sharp

Rapid Action Profits v SmartDD v ejunkie v clickbank v Some other well known solution I'm missing?

I have looked at all of them. Heck, then I saw 1Merchant and just said 'Stop the Madness!' My head? Hurting. I call on the WF (esp WR members) to save me and help me spend more money (wisely).

Here are the fact and data that applies to my needs, broken into 'site 1' and 'site 2'

Fact Info:
-All of them are 'the same' in terms of price to me over time; but I'd rather take my wife to dinner than pay more just 'because'.
-I don't like to code. I can do a little html, make minor changes to CSS, and am happy to outsource 1-time events; but not day-to-day operations.
-I would rather not have central admin of each site; and even if it was offered will setup a different install/login for each site.
-On each site they are buying a single product.
-Sites are already up, designed, and awaiting this new functionality.
-All sites run on linux boxes with nearly any server 'thingy' allowed.
-I hate scripts that drag the speed of my sites down. I don't like WP just on principle due to all the database use. I love to see clean pages. Most of my pages are either xhtml/css or php. Anything that runs much slower than another solution I'd like to know about (and then eliminate unless it is the only one that works for me).

Things I need for site 1:
-Affiliate Friendly (know they'll get paid, easy sign-up, or ???)
-Secure Digital Downloads that expire (either per timer or X uses)
-Payment happens (visually) on my site... no 'paypal' pages.
-Automatic email to clients.
-Automatic payments to affiliates.
-Paypal, CC payment choices.
-conversion tracking tool friendly
-All client seen pages can be customized.

Things I like, but can live without on site 1:
-Instant commissions
-Google checkout, other payment processor options
-OTO
-coupon codes, other affiliate tools.

Things I need for site 2:
-Ditto needs of site 1.
-OTO
-coupon codes
-A way for client entered data to be used in to fill in documents (think parsing or a 'mail merge') that only they can access (via link, members area or otherwise), after payment is complete. These should stay available to them for a period of months if not years (and them ONLY... there must be some kind of password or something generated that protects them; not just an 'obscure' link, and if done via a member login in no member should be able to even know any other members (or their files) exist).

((I understand this might not be able to be done by these scripts, but such a function must be possible on the site, so any script purchased must play 'nice' with such / passing data etc.))

That's it.

I hope that clear info about the which works for these needs, and open conversation about them, will help others save the pain I had in reviewing all and still feeling like I didn't know if one was wiser than the other, or why.

I know folks on the WF use all these options, and I know they all work. What I'm hoping to learn is that for a current site, with no cart or aff function present, which will serve my needs best in adding those functions.

Thanking you in advance,

sharp

Please Note: I'll be sending some 'beverage' funds to a select group of you reading and responding... the WF is very helpful and I appreciate the time put in to thoughtful replies. (So don't be afraid if I PM you for your paypal email addy : )

sharp

No love?
Is it just slow in here on the weekends or did I choose the wrong sub-forum for guidance?

Ok, Let me try it this way:
I know I want to use Clickbank; if people more talented than I will sell for me; I'm going to let them. It is too expensive though to be my primary processor for clients/affiliates I bring myself.

SmartDD seems great, but it has a major drawback: Weak affiliate handling. This could be overcome by just using Clickbank to handle all affiliates... is this a good or bad solution? I don't really plan to 'seek out' affiliates; but I would be willing to post the offer to different affiliate places (like offervault or such). Would telling all affiliates 'we just use clickbank' be a turn off or is that normal? Also, it wouldn't run with my merchant account, but I could just use a Paypal one so 'meh'. That's fine.

ejunkie is out (I think)... What good is it over just using SmartDD? Monthly cost for no added gain (other than the 'ejunkie marketplace').

RAP seems to do all SmartDD does (that I want anyway) and has solid support for affiliates. This seems like 'the win'. Am I missing some shortcoming it has (relative to my list of needs?) It will integrate into my current site right? I don't have to hack up their templates to look right do I?

(I should have bought the copy I was going to when it was cheap... I just never knew what it really did so I left it sit thinking it was all about affiliates and not about the delivery of digital goods... sigh.)

For any of them; 'easy install and it-just-works-once-installed' status is worth noting.

So which combo will make me happiest (given my site needs)?
SmartDD + Clickbank?
RAP?
RAP + Clickbank?

Cheers,

sharp

globalpro

Hi,

Each of the options you have listed have their strengths and weaknesses. It all depends on what you really want to do with your online sales.

Now, I have used ClickBank (would never use them ever again), but not e-junkie or SmartDD (have read up on them). I use RAP exclusively for all that I do. Me and over 1600 users (last count).

From what you have listed, RAP will do it all. With the RAP core script, you can do single or multiple products on any site (requires RAP set up on each domain, but comes with unlimited license). It only uses PayPal and you do have to go to the PayPal site, but there is some customization you can do to the PayPal page. PayPal doesn't work any other way.

The RAP pages are all HTML, so can be easily modified. Has the OTO, coupon codes, instant payout to affiliates, download protection with multiple download option (great for large downloads to be split up for delivery), top notch support and users forum.

RAP also offers a great add on library the gives you expanded sales options. The are sold separately, but money well spent. You can do memberships with a standard members area or use a blog for content delivery. Can do dime sales, Kunaki, PayPal recurring and trial payments, autoresponder integration, integration to MemberWing and WishList, etc.

It has easy affiliate and JV partner sign up, reseller area, product tools page for affiliates (completely customizable), two types of affiliate link cloaking, etc.

And there's a lot that RAP will do that's not advertised. The users community has gotten very creative over time to push it to the limit.

Hopefully this will give you some more to work with.

Thanks,

John

netnutmike

Sharp:

I agree 100% with John. Up until late last year I have had just about every kind of setup you can imagine. I had multiple micro-continuity sites with paypal and wishlist member, which meant no way of tracking affiliates.

I had multiple membership sites with amember. A few sites running the BFM script. I had some integrated with the iDevAffiliate software as well for keeping track of affiliate payments.

I still have some in clickbank and paydotcom that have not been converted and in the very near future will be able to keep them in clickbank and still have the benefit of using RAP too.

I have converted almost all of them to RAP and am never looking back! The core RAP is very powerful but it is like a tractor. You can add on to it and do almost anything with it. And there are new addons coming out all the time to do new stuff.

I can recommend RAP 100%.

Mike

globalpro

Mike,

Does this mean a new add on is in the works?

Good analogy. You can have a tractor to plow the fields or soup it up for the tractor pulls...

Love those power plows.

Thanks,

John

PS And before I forget Mike, I set up your WishList Add on for a client yesterday and it worked flawless. Fantastic job.

dbdaniels

How does RAP protect product downloads? My hosting co doesn't allow me to access my root directory for this purpose.

Sid Hale

Hi,
Very well, thank you.

While placing your downloads above the root is one of the options with RAP, we realize that many web hosts do not allow this, so we look at this as just an extension of the primary methods of protection.

It's too complicated (and probably not very prudent) to explain here, in detail. Security is multi-part to make it that much more effective.

1. Access to the download page includes checking of merchant-defined expiration timers
2. The links on the download page are not standard hyperlinks. Instead, they invoke server-side logic with numerous checks against encrypted values that are unique to each customer order.

Hope this helps,

sharp

Thank you guys. I was wondering when Sid and John would arrive. : )
Mike, that is is about the best recommendation I've ever seen. ...safe to assume you're drinking age?

To make sure I'm clear; something John said didn't make sense:
I've had Paypal as the payment processor and NOT had to see their pages... the client only saw my site 100% of the transaction. (I have the 'pro' or whatever.)

RAP doesn't support the seamless (my-site-only) sale with Paypal? One of the sites that'd be fine; but on one of my client's sites she is selling $1,000ish items to educators... They are very 'credibility' focused and in the sample testing we did we had (as suspected) abandonment when facing the Paypal screen; even with our logo/etc on the page.

If RAP doesn't do it out of the box... is there a plug-in or could we pay to add that functionality. ...I'd happily have that be an improvement for everyone to use btw.

Sid Hale

No. It doesn't.

I haven't ruled it out for the future yet, but there are some conflicting goals. This capability would have to be integrated with the instant affiliate commission features, so it poses some unique challenges.

You said that you have tried the custom Paypal headers, and I understand that is still somewhat limited - but you really have a lot of flexibility with that and the background color, image border color, etc. Maybe you just weren't creative enough ??

sharp

Ah. Good point Sid. I understand (in theory; not the technical of) what you're saying.

That would be a good option to have available even if to use it other features had to 'break'. The instant payment feature for affiliates is great; but not if it costs sales on high dollar items. I know we have some affiliates who are very much looking forward to selling this program, and an improvement in close ratio would more than make up for only getting paid once a day. The real loss here to me is that we go from being 1099-less to generating 1099s... The lack of need for those is a real plus I wish we could retain.

I'll have a different, dedicated paypal, guy make another pass at the purchase pages being as 'match the site' as possible and see what we get... unless...

John? Have you made any pages like this I could show my client? If you (or anyone) could PM me or link a site with a very 'non-paypal' page they are using via the customization options available it'd be much appreciated. I could show that to her a lot faster than have one done up; and it'd be free rather than spending more money just finding out if it'll work for her needs.

Thank you.

dbdaniels

Thanks Sid. I just wanted to make sure I could still use it with my hosting co. I'm not much of a programing geek so a technical explanation would have been wasted on me anyway. Thanks again.

abs007

Hi Sid
I had a question about RAP

If i set up a recurring payment and and the payments are split between me and my partner. The way I have understtod it - I maybe wrong - is that it will give the first payment to one account and then the next payment to the other paypal account.

Now say if a user only subscribed for one month and another user kept the subscription - how would this be split? would the system keep rotating the payments or once someone has been setup to pay one paypal account then would all recurring payments be sent to that paypal account?

Is there a way round this if this is the case

i hope it makes sense

Sid Hale

Hi ...

The sales rotate - not the payments. Once a customer purchases a subscription, all payments for that subscription go to the person who received credit for that sale. Recurring payments are a large part of the incentive that an affiliate expects, for promoting your subscription product.

If a subscriber cancels, so what. Your affiliate will have some that cancel, so will you.

No. Once the customer pays, the subscription is logged with Paypal, and they manage the subscription billing to the customer. It's logged against the seller's Paypal account.

abs007

Thanks for the promt reply Sid

it clears things up