| g the wrong online payment processor can drive your | | | | The inability for customers to file a complaint against |
| customers away and kill any chance of your online | | | | bad merchants makes it a perfect tool for dishonest |
| business succeeding. You may not even know why | | | | marketers and I do not want my sales websites |
| your business is failing. | | | | associated with that stigma. |
| Google has developed a shopping cart/checkout | | | | I have a Google Checkout merchant account. I did test |
| system to compete with other online merchant service | | | | it but after finding all the shortcomings, I quit using it long |
| providers. This is a lucrative market for them and it is a | | | | ago. Now that I have discovered how the system |
| service that is in high demand by online sellers. | | | | works from the buyer's side, I know I will never offer it |
| Online sellers are often start-up's who need a way to | | | | as a payment option again. |
| accept credit cards but do not want to go through the | | | | Online marketers must carefully evaluate the |
| headaches involved in setting up a merchant credit | | | | companies they use to process payments. If a large |
| card account. Using an online credit card charging | | | | number of buyers have a bad experience with Google |
| service is much easier. Most services allow you to | | | | Checkout, then you can bet they will be less likely to |
| create a simple buy-now link that you can place on | | | | trust your website when they see a Google Checkout |
| your website. You can sign-up and start selling your | | | | logo. They will know that they have no real buyer |
| product in minutes. | | | | protection and will either avoid your site completely or |
| But wait, it is not so simple. | | | | look for an alternate payment method(Such as PayPal |
| Usually when Google develops a system, they test it. | | | | which gives them the most control and they do not |
| They have done an excellent job with their Adwords | | | | have to share their credit card number). |
| and Adsense systems. These are well researched | | | | Many marketers pick a credit card processing |
| and the people running them are very knowledgeable. | | | | company based on what it does for THEM. You must |
| That is why I was surprised to find that Google | | | | also think about what it does for your customers. |
| Checkout is so poorly designed. | | | | For example, Digital River's Swreg software sales |
| Here is a Comparison. | | | | service offers a great deal for online sellers. At least it |
| When you purchase through PayPal using a credit | | | | appears great. It is easy to setup, you can create links |
| card, you have a clearly stated buyer protection policy | | | | to place on your site that your customers use to pay |
| and PayPal makes it easy to file for a refund if you do | | | | by credit card. Sellers have the option to pay 2.9. |
| not receive your order. This is not the case with | | | | Which do you think most marketers will choose? Right, |
| Google Checkout. Once you send a payment using | | | | they will pick the 0 is not the best option for buyers or |
| Google Checkout, there is no facility to file a complaint | | | | sellers. In order to obtain this special low price package, |
| for non-receipt. On the order page for Google | | | | Swreg adds an $8 charge to every shopping cart |
| Checkout, there is no mention of any buyer protection | | | | purchase. This charge is for a software backup |
| or fraud prevention. That is because there is no | | | | service. Most sellers of software already offer this |
| protection. They force you to contact the vendor and | | | | service for free but there is no way to remove the |
| if the vendor is unwilling to ship the item you paid for, | | | | extra charge by the seller. That means when you try |
| you have no other recourse than to file for a charge | | | | to sell your $19.95 software, the customer clicks |
| reversal with your credit card company. If you have | | | | through and they are immediately charged $27.95. The |
| filed for a reversal before, you know what a pain that | | | | price just jumped almost 30%. The seller does not see |
| can be plus you then have to cancel your card and | | | | one cent of this $8 fee. When customers need to |
| wait for a new card to arrive. | | | | re-download, they usually contact the seller and not |
| Here is a typical scenario. I purchased a DVD video | | | | Swreg so the customer paid extra for a service and |
| set from uBid which uses Google Checkout as their | | | | the seller is the one who must provide the service, |
| payment processor. My card was charged and I | | | | uncompensated, while Swreg pockets the $8. |
| received a message the next day with a USPS | | | | Some customers will remove the extra charge from |
| Priority Mail tracking number. Three weeks later I still | | | | the shopping cart, but most will think they are being |
| did not have my DVD set. A check on the tracking | | | | gouged when the price shoots up and they will click |
| number showed that my order was never shipped. I | | | | the back button to find the next company offering a |
| went to my Google account and that is when I | | | | similar product. The end result is that the seller has |
| realized there were no buyer protection options. | | | | generated bad will with a customer and driven away a |
| The only option I was given was to contact uBid. I did | | | | sale. |
| that. Three days later they had not responded. I then | | | | Choosing the best selling option for the seller is not |
| went to the uBid site and tried to contact them through | | | | always the best option for the buyer. If it is not the |
| their web form as instructed. When I completed the | | | | best option for the buyer, then it is never the best |
| form and clicked Submit, I received a big red letter | | | | option for the seller because it means lost sales. |
| message saying they did not accept Google Checkout | | | | Many of these services will also charge outrageous |
| inquiries. After some web searching, I see uBid has a | | | | fees for normal course-of-business services, make |
| history of failing to ship purchases. During my checkout | | | | unexpected additions to your shopping cart, spam your |
| from uBid using Google Checkout, I also was | | | | customers with their own offers, or offer related items |
| presented with a box asking if I wanted to receive | | | | from your competitors automatically on the checkout |
| promotional offers from uBid. I did NOT check the box, | | | | page. Once the buyer clicks another offer, they are |
| but two days later I started receiving spam anyway. I | | | | unlikely to return and finish purchasing from you. |
| had to wonder why they bothered to ask if they | | | | You must be very careful when choosing a payment |
| planned to spam me anyway. | | | | service. Choosing a Digital River related site could |
| When I realized I was not going to receive my order, | | | | result in lost sales due to unexpected items appearing |
| now 4 weeks after I paid, I returned to Google | | | | in the cart or spam. Using Google Checkout can also |
| Checkout and spent more than half an hour going | | | | damage your sales because once a customer is |
| through their help system trying to find out how to | | | | burned using them, they will remember that they have |
| report a fraudulent charge(I paid but they will not ship | | | | no buyer protection and never use the Google |
| or respond to customer service messages and that is | | | | Checkout service again. |
| fraud). | | | | Always research a payment processing company |
| If I had used PayPal, 2Checkout, ClickBank, or any | | | | from the buyer's perspective. Make sure you place a |
| other service, I would have had some protection and | | | | real paid(not a test) order and use a special email |
| could have requested a refund. The seller is unwilling to | | | | address that you can monitor for spam abuses. You |
| resolve the matter and Google has no facility to report | | | | want to know how the company really works before |
| fraud or to authorize a refund. | | | | sending your hard-won customers to their site. Look at |
| This puts the buyer in a very weak position. | | | | the order process through the buyer's eyes. Pretend |
| On a side note: Google Checkout has a number of | | | | you have never seen the order page before. Is it |
| other disadvantages for online marketers. They do not | | | | confusing, are there any distracting offers that may |
| offer any type of managed affiliate program. Since | | | | lead a buyer to buy something other than your |
| Google is making the actual charge, they should also | | | | product? Are there any unauthorized items |
| offer a managed affiliate system similar to ClickBank, | | | | automatically added to the buyer's cart? Is there a |
| but they failed to include this common feature. Any | | | | clearly stated buyer protection offer or link? |
| good online marketer uses affiliates. The absence of | | | | If you were the buyer and you are not willing to order |
| this feature is stunning to me. | | | | from your own site, then customers will not be willing |
| As an online marketer myself, I would be afraid to | | | | to buy either. |
| even offer Google Checkout. | | | | |