Efficient payment processing is one of the cornerstones of a successful online marketplace. Sharetribe, a popular marketplace platform, integrates seamlessly with Stripe to handle payments. Whether you’re starting a marketplace or fine-tuning your payment flow, understanding Sharetribe’s payment capabilities is vital. This guide covers everything you need to know about payments in Sharetribe, including supported payment methods, transaction processes, and customization options.
Why Payments Matter in Sharetribe Marketplaces?
A streamlined payment process enhances user trust and ensures smooth transactions between buyers and sellers. Sharetribe leverages Stripe, a robust payment gateway, to support various payment methods and handle complex payment flows. With features like preauthorization, escrow-like holds, and instant payouts, Sharetribe provides flexibility for different business models.
Supported Payment Methods
Pull Payment Methods
Card Payments:
Card payments are the most commonly used method in online transactions. Sharetribe supports all major credit and debit cards, enabling seamless payments for customers across the globe. This method works by preauthorizing the payment amount, ensuring that the funds are reserved on the customer’s card but not charged until the transaction is confirmed. Once accepted, funds are held in an escrow-like manner for up to 90 days before being paid out, offering added security for both parties. This provides flexibility for marketplaces to manage transactions, including scenarios like cancellations or refunds before the charge is finalized.
Wallets (Google Pay, Apple Pay, Microsoft Pay):
Digital wallets like Google Pay, Apple Pay, and Microsoft Pay operate similarly to card payments but provide enhanced security and convenience. These wallets allow customers to pay using saved payment information on their devices, making the checkout process quicker and more secure. To enable these wallets, some modifications are required in the Sharetribe Web Template, such as integrating Stripe’s “Request Payment Button” functionality.
Alipay
Alipay is a widely-used payment method in China, making it an excellent choice for marketplaces targeting Chinese customers. It enables direct and immediate payments, ensuring a smooth and efficient transaction flow. Alipay leverages Stripe’s PaymentIntents API for secure and instant payment confirmations, adding convenience and trust for international buyers.
Push Payment Methods
Bank Redirects (iDEAL, Bancontact, EPS, giropay, Przelewy24)
Bank redirect payment methods are prevalent in specific regions and are a great option for marketplaces targeting local customers. These methods involve the customer being redirected to their bank’s online portal to approve the payment. Once the payment is confirmed, it is instantly captured, and funds are transferred to the provider’s account. Examples include:
- iDEAL: Popular in the Netherlands.
- Bancontact: Widely used in Belgium.
- EPS: Common in Austria.
- giropay: A trusted method in Germany.
- Przelewy24: Tailored for customers in Poland.
Stripe’s PaymentIntents API Support
Sharetribe’s payment integration relies on Stripe’s PaymentIntents API, which facilitates immediate payment confirmation. This modern API ensures transactions are secure and swift, eliminating delays often associated with older systems. However, Sharetribe does not support payment methods that require Stripe’s older Sources API, ensuring the platform stays aligned with Stripe’s latest and most efficient payment technologies.Steps in the Marketplace Payment Flow:
- Provider Onboarding:
Providers must connect their Stripe account to Sharetribe to start accepting payments. As part of the onboarding process, they need to submit Know Your Customer (KYC) documentation, including identity verification and banking details, ensuring compliance with financial regulations. Once approved, payouts are routed to their linked bank account. - Customer Checkout:
Customers initiate a transaction by selecting a product or service and providing payment details. Depending on the payment method, Stripe either preauthorizes the payment (reserving funds without charging) or captures it immediately. This step sets the transaction into motion, ensuring funds availability. - Provider Acceptance:
After checkout, the provider reviews and decides to accept or reject the transaction. For marketplaces with an instant booking feature, this step is skipped to streamline the process, allowing immediate confirmation without provider intervention. - Customer Refund:
Refunds are possible during the period between payment capture and the provider’s payout. Sharetribe enables full refunds by default, helping address disputes or cancellations. Refunds typically include Stripe’s processing fees, ensuring a smooth experience for both customers and providers. - Provider Payout:
Once the transaction is finalized, Stripe releases the funds to the provider’s connected bank account. This step marks the completion of the payment process, ensuring providers receive their earnings securely and efficiently.
Customizing Payment Processes:
- Instant Booking: Automate provider acceptance for quicker transactions
In this scenario, Sharetribe enables immediate booking and payment for services or products. The provider’s acceptance is automated, meaning that once a buyer selects an item or service, the transaction can be processed right away without waiting for manual approval from the provider. This is ideal for marketplaces where speed and convenience are essential, such as in accommodation booking or event reservations.
- Off-Session Payments: Delay payment capture for preorders or future bookings
With off-session payments, you can delay the actual capture of payment until a specific event occurs—like the delivery of a product or the date of a future booking. For example, this is useful when someone preorders a product or books a service for a later date. The initial authorization of the payment takes place right away, but the actual charging of the payment is held off until the scheduled event.
Handling Refunds and Payouts:
Sharetribe offers various ways to handle refunds and payouts to accommodate different marketplace needs. Full refunds are straightforward and supported out of the box for all payment methods, meaning if a buyer requests a refund for a full order, it can be processed easily through the system, ensuring a smooth transaction reversal.
However, partial refunds are more complex and typically require custom development, as they involve splitting the original payment into smaller amounts or manually managing the payouts between the buyer and seller. This means the system doesn’t handle partial refunds automatically, and developers would need to create a custom solution to enable this functionality.
Regarding payout timing, Sharetribe adheres to Stripe’s policies, which dictate that funds must be paid out to sellers within 90 days of the payment capture. This ensures that the funds are transferred within an acceptable timeframe, but it also means that any payout to sellers cannot exceed this 90-day window, ensuring compliance with Stripe’s guidelines.
Alternatives to Stripe
While Stripe is the default payment gateway in Sharetribe, you can use third-party payment systems or operate without integrated payments. To implement a different payment gateway, you would need to carry out custom development, as Sharetribe doesn’t provide out-of-the-box support for alternative payment providers. Implementing a different payment gateway requires custom development but offers flexibility for non-Stripe-supported regions.Best Practices for Marketplace Payments:
To ensure smooth and successful marketplace payments, there are several best practices to follow. First, it’s essential to keep the flow simple by minimizing the number of steps for buyers and sellers. A streamlined payment process increases conversion rates and prevents users from abandoning transactions due to complexity.
Another key practice is to use escrow for security, as it builds trust between buyers and sellers. Holding funds until the product or service is delivered ensures both parties fulfill their obligations and reduces the risk of disputes.
Additionally, it’s crucial to ensure compliance with legal requirements, such as Stripe’s KYC (Know Your Customer) regulations, which help verify the identities of parties involved in transactions and keep the marketplace legally compliant.
Finally, testing payment processes in a test environment, like Stripe’s, before going live is vital to ensure everything functions as expected. This helps identify potential issues early, reducing the risk of problems and providing a smoother user experience once the marketplace is live. Following these practices not only improves the payment experience but also enhances trust, security, and operational efficiency.
Conclusion
Payments in Sharetribe marketplaces are designed to be robust, secure, and customizable. By leveraging Stripe’s advanced capabilities, Sharetribe empowers marketplace operators to manage transactions efficiently while offering flexibility for diverse business needs. Whether you stick with the default payment flow or explore customizations, Sharetribe ensures a seamless experience for both customers and providers.
FAQ's
1. What payment methods are supported in Sharetribe?
Sharetribe supports various payment methods through Stripe, including major credit and debit cards, digital wallets like Google Pay and Apple Pay, Alipay for Chinese customers, and bank redirect methods like iDEAL, Bancontact, EPS, giropay, and Przelewy24.
2. What is the difference between pull and push payments in Sharetribe?
Pull payments involve preauthorization, where funds are reserved but not immediately charged, providing added security. Push payments, on the other hand, capture the payment immediately after the customer confirms it, with funds transferred directly to the provider’s account, and refunds can only be processed once the money is moved.
3. How do refunds and payouts work in Sharetribe?
Sharetribe supports full refunds for all payment methods, including Stripe’s processing fees. Payouts are processed to providers’ bank accounts within 90 days of the payment capture, as per Stripe’s policy. Partial refunds require custom development.
4. Can I use a payment system other than Stripe in Sharetribe?
While Stripe is the default payment gateway, it is possible to implement third-party payment systems with custom development. Sharetribe doesn’t natively support alternative payment providers, so integration would need to be developed specifically.
5. How can I customize the payment process in Sharetribe?
Sharetribe offers customization options like instant booking for immediate payments and off-session payments, which allow for delayed payment capture, such as for preorders or future bookings. Custom development is required for more complex payment flows, like partial refunds.
