PayPal charging members while still on free trial

by UW
9 replies
I have already tried searching everywhere for my answer and I can't seem to find it do this is my last resort. Hopefully one of you can help me.

What I want is to offer a free 14 day trial and then charge them once their trial is over.

I have tried testing this myself by creating a membership level in wishlist member that has a free trial for one day then gets charged. I then went and created a paypal subscription button to match this membership level. Where after one day of a free trial I would be charged.

Everything works except paypal charges me before I get moved to the paying membership level. So basically paypal charges me while I am still on my trial.

Does anyone know what I am doing wrong or how to fix this? Thanks in advance
#charging #free #members #paypal #question #setting #trial
  • Profile picture of the author CyberAlien
    What was the date you created the subscription, the date it charged you, and the date it should have charged you?
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    • Profile picture of the author UW
      Originally Posted by Escalate Hosting View Post

      What was the date you created the subscription, the date it charged you, and the date it should have charged you?
      Created the subscription on November 27th, it charged me at 4am on November 28th but it wasn't a full day and I was still on the free trial
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      • Profile picture of the author Istvan Horvath
        Originally Posted by UW View Post

        Created the subscription on November 27th, it charged me at 4am on November 28th but it wasn't a full day and I was still on the free trial
        I think (didn't check, though) that this is a pseudo-problem.
        The difference might be in what you think is one day and what Paypal's server counts as one day.

        It is clear, that by the calendar they charged the memeber the next day = there was one day free trial.

        It is not necessary that Paypal calculates the "one day" similar to the car rental companies: pick-up at 11am Thursday -- drop-off 11am Friday.

        It is possible, they end every free trial at the time what is 4am in your time zone, and switch every free membership into paying members after 1, 3, 5 or 7 days of trial.

        Just a thought... before getting into panic mod
        Signature

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      • Profile picture of the author CyberAlien
        Originally Posted by UW View Post

        Created the subscription on November 27th, it charged me at 4am on November 28th but it wasn't a full day and I was still on the free trial
        That's actually not abnormal, it only seems like a big deal when you're trying to run a 24 hour trial which I don't think is possible. PayPal almost always bills our customers before 8 AM Central Time - regardless of the exact time they create the subscription - it's based off calendar days - not to the exact hour.
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        • Profile picture of the author Sid Hale
          Istvan offered the correct analysis of your problem in his response above.

          Here's the solution...

          Advertise a 1 day free trial, but set up the payment button for a 2 day free trial. Billing will not occur until sometime after the first 24 hours, but before 48 hours have passed.
          Signature

          Sid Hale
          Coming Soon... Rapid Action Profits (Pro)

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  • Profile picture of the author affspy
    Watch this video that i found in Youtube : youtube.com/watch?v=bEU7-tzr-S8
    It maybe will help you.
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    • Profile picture of the author UW
      Originally Posted by affspy View Post

      Watch this video that i found in Youtube : youtube.com/watch?v=bEU7-tzr-S8
      It maybe will help you.
      I know how to make the button but paypal doesn't seem to work with wishlist member completely.
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      • Profile picture of the author agmccall
        What did paypal say when you called them?

        al
        Signature

        "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." Thomas Edison

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  • Profile picture of the author seobro
    How about charging $1 for the first month and you get rid of freebie hunters will you are at it. People who sign up for free services... Typically, those COSTomers are more trouble than they are worth any way. Get them to pay. ABC always be closing - yes.
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