There are many reasons why we should be careful when it comes to making online purchases. And it’s a good thing to be skeptical before buying something online; I know I try to be very cautious when I do as well. But the reason I feel secure when I make my online purchases is because I have a PayPal account which protects and my purchases and personal information online.
PayPal is the most used site for money transfers online. PayPal allows its users to send money and receive money online, while also tracking your online records of your sales and spending transactions as well. So basically, PayPal is the online financial middle man that monitors money transfers online, which really eases the whole transaction process. This way, Users only need to share their private information with PayPal and not any other unknown sellers or outside parties. So you always know that your credit card and banking information is kept safe and confidential when making payments online.
PayPal can be used to buy things online, it’s one of the most popular ways of purchasing stuff through eBay, and you can even receive money through PayPal, whether it is from friends, family, or buyers. There are three different types of PayPal accounts – Personal, Premier and Business.
A Personal Account is the basic PayPal account that most people use, this lets you pay for your eBay purchases easily. You can use it to send and receive money. You can also send funds to anyone with an email address in 55 countries and regions. With the Personal account there are no fees for the transactions you make. There is, however, a short limit on how much money you can receive per month (I believe it’s a 500$ limit that you can receive each month). So, if you plan to sell a high volume of product, the Personal account might be too restrictive for you. The Ideal User would be online shoppers who do not spend large amounts of money online. I own a personal account on PayPal, and it works perfectly for me because I usually make only a few online purchases per month.
A Premier account has all the same great features as the Personal account, but the bonus is that you can receive as many payments as you would like online (including credit, and debit, payments). The Premier account is perfect for small business owners who sell items online on a regular basis. The Premier account also offers features such as a “shopping cart” you can add to your online store and other reporting tools as well. Now the Premier account is free to create, free to hold money and to send money. HOWEVER it comes with withdrawal fees that PayPal calls ‘service charges’ which takes a small percentage of each payment to your account.
A Business account is best suited for people running a large scale online business or online store. Business accounts allow you to operate under your business name, with no restrictions on the size of transactions. So it helps you manage very large amounts of sales with ease. You can also have more than one person that can access your PayPal account so that multiple users can manage transactions which is great if you have employers who manage the sales of your company. And don’t worry; you can always upgrade your PayPal account if you feel the need to do so.
For sellers who want to know how much it will cost you to receive an online payment, you can use the PayPal Fee Calculator to see what fees you'll be charged if you know the amount of the transaction.
The signup process is very simple, after you signup you’ll get an e-mail asking you to verify your account, just click on the button in the e-mail, enter the password you created, and you’re confirmed. Your e-mail address is registered and you got your own PayPal account.
Now to send money online, users need to set up a bank account or to a credit card, this allows you to make online purchases. To link your Bank account to PayPal you will need your Bank Transit Number, your institution number, and your account number. Once your account is linked, your financial data is stored very securely, protecting it from Freud. PayPal will then send two small deposits to your account (each under a dollar) once you check for these deposits in your bank statement you will need to log back onto your account were you will be asked to enter the two deposit amounts for confirmation. The reason PayPal does this is because this proves you actually are the account holder and not some scam artist looking to use your account. (Since you’re the only person who should have access to your banking statements). Now that you’ve confirmed your bank account you can now shop online or send money with the funds in your bank account, you can also transfer money from PayPal back to your bank account.
Now initially your PayPal account has a sending limit, and only you the account owner can lift the limit, you do this by linking and confirming your bank account, once you do this your PayPal account will be verified and you will be able to shop with no limits holding you back.
You can even set up PayPal on your Mobile phone if you input your cell phone number into your PayPal account. PayPal will call you to verify a PIN number that sets you up for PayPal Mobile. So you can send money using your phone on the go.
PayPal continues to be a leader in safe online payments around the world. PayPal guarantees 100% protection against unauthorized use, fraud, and identity theft. Every transaction is confirmed by email to the PayPal account holder. And if you wish to dispute a transaction you have access to a 24/7 support team who will sort out your problem for you. Ebay purchases can also be insured through PayPal, through a service called “PayPal Buyer Protection”.
Read PayPal's list of security tips. And REMEMBER to file a claim of unauthorized activity if you see a charge to your account that you did not make. PayPal also offers a Resolution Center to help resolve buyer/seller disputes. If you have a verified account, you may even qualify for PayPal's Seller Protection Policy, which covers up to $5,000 for sellers who are defrauded.
Hope this segment helps make your online transactions stress free and easy to process, hope you tune in next week!
