Paypal provides easy tools for websites or blogs to accept payment for goods or services. For me it has been an excellent tool and what I really like is that you only pay fees when you sell something! No monthly or annual fees here.

You can upgrade your Paypal account free of charge which enables you to accept credit card payments etc. from purchasers.

If you want your order fulfillment to be automated, e.g. you are selling downloadable content such as an ebook or video, then the basic Paypal payment button is not sufficient for your needs. Why?

The basic Paypal system works by processing your customer’s payment and then returning them to a nominated page on your website or blog. The location of this page is either coded into your Paypal button or via your Paypal account, so either of the following can occur:-

  • Purchasers can share the address of this page with their friends, or
  • Anyone can view the source of your web page which reveals the URL (address) if it is included in the button code.

    • Hardly a foolproof system is it :-)

    The good news is that Paypal realised the limitations of this and developed their immediate payment notification (IPN) system. The system enables you to sell but in a way that utilises backend processing on your website or blog, so you can use various methods to secure your valuable content. Yes, it’s more complicated, requiring the use of a scripting language such as PHP, but in my experience it’s excellent.

    You will need to add an IPN script to your website that interacts with Paypal’s systems in the correct way. With IPN, when the payment is processed, Paypal’s system advises the status of the payment behind the scenes and your website or blog can then handle the transaction from there, so you can automate it to:-

    • fulfill an order if the payment was successful, or.
    • email the purchaser with further instructions etc.

    It’s easy to store required data in a MySQL database and it’s worth implemeting if you need that little bit extra.

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