In 2021, Telegram released the Payments 2.0 feature that lets developers create payment bots to receive live payments through groups and channels. Unfortunately, PayPal wasn't included as a Supported Payment Provider, and integrating it to Telegram isn't that easy without the proper tools or knowledge.
Although accepting PayPal payments in Telegram is hard to do out of the box, it's not impossible. To create a PayPal-Telegram integration, coding is required. Or, at least a third-party service to build the integration for you.
The InviteMember Bot has a codeless and ready-to-use PayPal-Telegram integration. This will let you receive PayPal payments efficiently through Telegram. And not just one-time payments, but automatic recurring charges that will work best for subscription businesses as well.
Is it safe to use PayPal in Telegram?
PayPal is one of the most secure payment platform providers on the market. Its encryption system protects each transaction's integrity and privacy and has a renowned customer protection policy that covers numerous types of online purchases.
It's no surprise that PayPal has become one of the most used online payment systems in the last decade. People just feel safer paying online with PayPal. Similarly, the Telegram app has been built with security and speed as its core features. So, like with PayPal, security-minded users prefer this messaging app above others.
Using PayPal for payments in Telegram is especially secure with the InviteMember bot. Any payment that is made to you through the PayPal-Telegram integration in the InviteMember platform, will be encrypted from end to end and will be completed entirely in PayPal's domain. Neither Telegram nor InviteMember will handle your funds or transactions at any point and all the transactions made through this integration will be protected entirely by PayPal.
How do I link my PayPal account to Telegram?
Linking your PayPal account to Telegram is very easy with the InviteMember bot. You just need a PayPal Business account, which you can create as a company or as an individual, and connect it to the bot.
The InviteMember bot will allow you to connect PayPal in Test mode for testing transactions, or in Live mode for receiving real payments. It is advisable to connect PayPal in Test mode first to learn how payments are made and to make sure everything's working correctly. Don't forget to disconnect Test mode when you're ready to receive real payments!
To accept PayPal payments in Telegram you just have to follow these steps after you've created your first InviteMember project:
- Start the @InviteMemberBot in Telegram
- Select Payment Options
- Select PayPal (Test or Live mode)
- Select Connect PayPal
Next, you'll be prompted with further instructions on how to get your Client ID and secret key in the PayPal Developer Dashboard. There’s no need to write any code or to understand any technical aspect in the process. Once you've sent your Client ID and secret key to the bot, you'll be able to receive PayPal payments in Telegram.
One of the main advantages of linking your PayPal account to Telegram with the InviteMember integration is that you'll be able to accept recurring payments from your clients. This means that you can sell a subscription business and your clients will automatically be charged periodically.
Setting a PayPal Grace Period (Payment Failure Threshold) in Telegram
PayPal offers a grace period feature for your recurring subscribers. When someone misses a payment, PayPal will try to charge it twice during the next 10 days after the first failed charge attempt. If the payment couldn't be settled during this time, PayPal would add the outstanding balance to the next billing cycle.
The number of times the outstanding amount can be added to the next billing cycle is called Payment Failure Threshold. PayPal has a default payment failure threshold value of 0, which means a subscriber can remain subscribed forever and his outstanding balance will be summed up each payment cycle until paid. If the value is changed from 0 to 2, for example, the subscriber will be allowed to stay for two billing cycles without paying before his subscription is suspended.
Some PayPal integrations allow you to change the payment failure threshold value, but only InviteMember's PayPal-Telegram integration allows the user to disable grace periods completely. This means that if you want to, PayPal won't try to reach a maximum payment failure threshold value before suspending an account.
InviteMember's PayPal-Telegram integration has a default payment failure threshold value of 1, which means your subscribers will have a grace period equal to one billing cycle before their unpaid subscription get suspended. Setting up the PayPal grace period with the InviteMember bot is easy, and if you want to disable it completely, you just have to press a button.
To configure your PayPal-Telegram integration grace period, you just have to follow these steps:
- Go to your project menu in the @InviteMemberBot
- Select payment options
- Select PayPal
- Select set payment failure threshold for changing its value, or select disable grace period to remove it
For manually canceling unpaid subscriptions under the grace period, you can go to PayPal's unpaid subscriptions dashboard.
Canceling PayPal Recurring Payments
With InviteMember's PayPal-Telegram integration you or your subscribers will be able to cancel their subscriptions at any time. This can be done in four different ways:
1) By your subscriber in your membership bot
To initiate this, the user just has to send "Status" to your membership bot and select "Cancel subscription" and then confirm.
2) By yourself in the @InviteMemberBot
To do this you must go to PayPal's payment option menu in the InviteMember bot, select "Cancel subscription," and enter your customer's subscription ID.
3) Automatically
If payments can be settled and there's no grace period or PayPal's payment failure threshold value is reached, subscriptions will be canceled automatically
4) By you or your subscriber on the PayPal website
Either you or your clients can cancel subscriptions on the PayPal website. Keep in mind that canceling this way will have an immediate effect on the subscription. This means that the subscriber will be removed immediately from your subscription plan even if there was time remaining for the client's subscription. This won't happen with the other methods mentioned above.
Disconnecting PayPal from Telegram
Disconnecting your PayPal account from Telegram is really easy. You just have to:
- Go to your project menu in the InviteMember bot
- Select Payment options
- Select PayPal
- Hit the Disconnect button
Conclusion
Accepting PayPal payments through Telegram is a great advantage for your business. It will not only help you increase your revenue by attracting more customers who already trust this payment platform, but it will also help you manage recurring subscriptions easily. If you're planning to use a PayPal-Telegram integration for your membership-based business, get started with InviteMember FREE today!
