Most people when setting up their Symbiostock site for the first time will start with the site in “Sandbox” mode. Sandbox mode is a testing mode where no money changes hands, but the developer/site owner can make sure everything is working correctly. You don’t want to leave the site in Sandbox mode longer than necessary but you, as the site owner, probably will want to make sure your site is sending out the proper emails, that those emails are structured well and that your clients can access their purchases…and that you as the site owner get the communications on your end that you expect!

So, first make sure your Symbiostock site is set to the Sandbox/Testing Mode. Click the Symbiostock Bee, select the Settings tab. Scroll down a bit until you see the box titled Email and Payment Process Communication.

The area in red, is where you want to check. Make sure the bubble next to sandbox is filled. Put your Paypal email in the first box and your custom Paypal site logo (if desired in the bottom box). This is also where you set your shop’s currency.

Now, if  you were to try to do a purchase right now (assuming you have images) and try to use your normal Paypal log-in, you will have nothing but issues. Paypal will tell you you don’t know your password, etc.  So, now you need to set up a Sandbox account with Paypal.

Creating a Paypal Sandbox Account

Head on over to Paypal’s Developer Site and the link, just in case you don’t want to click the one above: https://developer.paypal.com/webapps/developer/applications/accounts

At the time of this writing, this version of their Developer site is in Beta. Click the Log In Button in the upper right hand of your screen. You should have a Paypal account before starting this process. If not, hit Sign Up and they’ll guide you through the process of getting an account.

You’ll get a pop-up prompting you to sign in to your Paypal account. After doing so the window will close and you’ll end up on a screen that says “Sandbox Test Accounts”. You’ll probably have one account listed which is youremailaddress-facilitator@yourdomain.com. Click the “Create Account” button in bright blue and fill out the form that opens. You will need to use an alternate email address not linked to your Paypal address and one that you will have access to, in order to check for messages. Make sure you give yourself a high enough balance to test your sales process.

That’s it! You can create multiple accounts and if you’re worried about sales receipts being flagged as spam, you may want to set up an email and account for the major free mail providers.

I hope this was helpful!