BEWARE – No refunds and inconsistent mobile performance

I purchased the “pro” plugin for $75 to get the stripe functionality. During testing I was shocked to learn that the javascript is transformed by some network providers (T-Mobile, CenturyLink) and it breaks the stripe button. I was able to reproduce this on several computers, an iPhone 12 and iPad Pro 2020 that were current on updates.

When I contacted support they wanted to blame themes and basically anything but the plugin. The exact problem is that when the stripe button is clicked on the payments page a “loading” animation appears but Stripe never loads. After talking to Stripe’s excellent support they determined the call was never leaving the server.

The script on the page that this plugin loads is bloated and contains code for Paypal even when Paypal isn’t being used. I concluded it was poorly written code and uninstalled the plugin. I installed a more popular, and more expensive plugin that worked out of the box and within a couple hours I had my events online and taking paid registrations. The transformation of on-page css and script by network providers is a well known issue that has been going on for a number of years. There are ways to work around this that good developers use.

Unfortunately, this company will not issue a refund. I’ve been going back and forth with the developer for a week now and he keeps offering to troubleshoot it. It’s really unfortunate and perhaps I wasted $75. So I feel like it’s important to warn other site owners that A) this company won’t issue refunds, and B) You need to be certain to test the registration payment on multiple devices and networks. Unfortunately, the only way to test the Stripe functionality is to pay the $75. If it doesn’t work you are out $75.

Many of my event attendees respond to invitations on their phones. So Mobile First has to be the priority for me.