Google checkout

[JR]

Has anyone used Google Checkout? I have been checking out different market accounts and they seem like the best. My first thought was Pay Pal, but I have a beef with them. Google Checkout is free. Has anyone used it for their online store?

John

 

[DopeSoap]

I am looking into it currently as an alternate payment source, I'll let you know what I find out. So far it looks like you need to have a https:// web address and not a http://, but I'll let you know for sure. Paypal express is really the first and foremost choice for me so far, but that of course requires a cart that is compatible with paypal express.

 

[JR]

I signed up for it. My biggest worry is that people who are not familiar with it will not buy. I hope that won't be so.

John

 

[Vega]

If your business starts booming and your making good money, I would advise that you look at merchant card service companies for a better rate than Paypal or Google. Paypal is great for starting out or for a small side-business but there rates aren't usually as good as other online merchant service companies. The other great thing about the other merchant card service companies is that they also have portable and wireless card terminals for those who go to art fairs and other conventions and trade shows.

 

[Lazy Bone]

I have google check out for my Ecrater shop where I sell handmade cards and other paper crafts ( I don't sell soap) and I like it better than paypal. To me it seems more user friendly and you can make adjustments like discounted shipping and stuff before you click for final payment. And then money is automatically deposited into your bank account where as with paypal you have have to transfer it out from your paypal account to your bank and it can sometimes take serveral days. But paypal seems to be more popular and some people I think are intimidated by using google checkout so unfortunatly I don't have a lot of transactions with it.

 

[rachelb5499]

I tried google BRIEFLY. I may have to try it again or at least checkout the fees, etc. Going straight to your bank account is a nice feature. I DO think some might be intimidated by it though.

Vega, do you have a merchant service you'd recommend?

The .30/transaction fee that paypal charges "kills" me on ebay because I do a lot of .99 auctions...by the time it's all said and done....goodbye profit! LOL

 

[xyxoxy]

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but i was wondering if anyone had any more thoughts on this topic. I'm planning to add purchasing options to my web site some time in 2011 and Google seems like a good option. It looks as if you can use them as a shopping cart plugin as well as for processing your order payments.

I don't have any of my products listed on my site at the moment... in fact my site is still not even really public. So from that perspective I'd be starting from scratch. However my site is pretty complete in most other respects. I just need to plug in products and a way to order and pay for them.

I should say that this is mostly still a hobby and I am not trying to make a living with B&B sales. So I don't need the most advanced option. I prefer not to get a merchant account at this time. I have been soaping and refining my process and recipes for over 3 years now, mostly just giving them to friends as gifts. But I'm very confident in their quality and more and more people just want a way to buy them.

Looking at Google... if my math is correct I can expect them to take 2.9% plus 30 cents on each order. So worst case someone orders one bar of soap at... say $5. Google would take 14.5 cents plus 30 cents or 44.5 cents of that sale. For larger orders they still only charge the 30 cents one time so it's less of a hit to me. Does that sound right to those of you who use Google?

Any other thoughts or recommendations on checkout/payment options? I know Paypal is more popular than Google but I'm not very keen on them and if I'm right... they take more of your profits.

 

[donniej]

I used it for a day, at the end of experimenting with it I asked to have my account deleted. Just like paypal's free service, users have to have an account with google in order to use the checkout. I want users to have the easiest experience possbile so I use paypal webpayment pro. It's $30 per month but IMO, with anything less I'd just stick with an Etsy store (BTW, I think Etsy is a great value).

The fees are high but I'm veyr happy with how well it works. They also give you a customer service number to call if you have any problems or questions.

 

[xyxoxy]

Thanks for the feedback.
I'm really not ready to pay high fees as I don't expect to make enough profit to even cover my costs. It would be better if I could only be charged a fee when I make a sale... not a monthly fee.

And you're right, I'm not thrilled that people have to create an account to use the Google cart... but I don't think too many people will complain. At least half of the people I know already have a Google login.