Forum for discussing general topics related to Couch.
4 posts Page 1 of 1
Hello, I am trying to decide whether to take on a new client site and am looking for clarification on integrating PayPal with Couch.

The requirement started out as 'Buy Now' - so having read through the Couch docs on the PayPal tags I thought I'd be happy to have a go at this.

BUT - the products for sale are physical products - and I am wondering if the Couch tags are only to streamline the payment via PayPal and download of digital products for sale? i.e. to allow the sale to proceed without manual intervention by the site owner, and are therefore not suitable for physical products.

And it now seems that the (potential) client actually wants PayPal 'Add to Cart' functionality. The PayPal website makes this seem very simple
To set it up, just put the Add to Cart button on your website.

Can anyone confirm that it is really that simple?! I don't want to bite off more than I can chew - with ecommerce, shopping trolley etc - but if it's a simple PayPal button it would be do-able.

Thanks!
The PayPal integration that preceded the shopping cart addition in 1.3.5 was intended for digital products. That limitation no longer applies however with CouchCart. I highly recommend you give the documentation (http://www.couchcms.com/docs/concepts/shopping-cart-1.html) a read and check out the simple demo (http://www.couchcms.com/demo/simple/). It does nevertheless sound like Couch can accommodate your requirements.
@potato,

The 'Add to cart' buttons provided by PayPal are indeed simple but have one major drawback - *every time* the visitor clicks 'add', he is redirected to PayPal which is where he sees the actual cart.
To add another item, he has to come back again to your site and repeat the process.
This is, I am sure you'll agree, not the ideal user-experience. However, if the client is ok with that, go ahead as it'll definitely be the easiest approach.

Using CouchCart, as @cheesypoof suggested, will provide a seamless experience. The cart exists on the very site and can be styled to your liking.
The redirection happens only as the final checkout step.
However, it will require a little more effort to setup than the aforementioned buttons.

I sense that is why you are hesitant to dive into CouchCart :)
I'd strongly suggest, however, that you do.
The documentation should provide all the info you need and, of course, you'll always find us ready to help if you get stuck somewhere :)
Ah thanks - that's clarified the key differences. Couch cart obviously much nicer. PayPal button much quicker. We'll see what happens!
4 posts Page 1 of 1