When I first started getting into subscription based services about 2 years ago, googling "recurring billing rails" brought me ActiveMerchant, a few Payment gateways, and some blog entries about getting a merchant account which is all you need. I was on my merry way.
Try that same query now and it's full of noise. You get rants from various people and you get companies peddling their services. While I agree that new services are helpful and are an essential part of the eco-system it's becoming really intimidating for newcomers because it's so hard to get the bare minimum truths one needs to know.
Sure, there are many payment gateways to choose from (Auth.net, TrustCommerce and Braintree are great with ActiveMerchant, btw). Sure it's a lot to thinking and worry about. We're talking about taking money out of other people's pockets here - there should be at least a little bit of effort right?
If you're intimidated by recurring billing issues - get over it, it's really as easy as there makes it out to be, especially when you're just getting started. There's time to fill in the details (like coupon codes, special offers, prorating, etc) after launch. For now, I'd suggest ActiveMerchant + Gateway + cron job and worry about getting customers instead of worrying about your middlemen.
When I first started getting into subscription based services about 2 years ago, googling "recurring billing rails" brought me ActiveMerchant, a few Payment gateways, and some blog entries about getting a merchant account which is all you need. I was on my merry way.
Try that same query now and it's full of noise. You get rants from various people and you get companies peddling their services. While I agree that new services are helpful and are an essential part of the eco-system it's becoming really intimidating for newcomers because it's so hard to get the bare minimum truths one needs to know.
Sure, there are many payment gateways to choose from (Auth.net, TrustCommerce and Braintree are great with ActiveMerchant, btw). Sure it's a lot to thinking and worry about. We're talking about taking money out of other people's pockets here - there should be at least a little bit of effort right?
If you're intimidated by recurring billing issues - get over it, it's really as easy as there makes it out to be, especially when you're just getting started. There's time to fill in the details (like coupon codes, special offers, prorating, etc) after launch. For now, I'd suggest ActiveMerchant + Gateway + cron job and worry about getting customers instead of worrying about your middlemen.