Support Engineering Interview: Written Questions -
Example Response
Question
Hello Stripe,
I can't seem to make the checkout widget work on my cats4cash site! Every time I input the information, nothing happens. I don't see a message
on the dashboard saying I made any money and I included my API Keys the way it said. I see a bunch of /v1/tokens things in my logs, but
nothing else! HELP!
Cheers,
Bob
Response
Hey Bob,
Thank you so much for bringing this to me, I'd be happy to help! I've actually used cats4cash recently, so I am really happy to hear you've
decided to use Stripe. Now let's get you up and running!
To charge a credit card on Stripe there are actually two phases.
The first phase is called the "Capture and Tokenization Phase". That's where we use information about the credit card to create a special string to
represent the actual value of the card. I like to think of these tokens as more of a codeword (maybe I just watch too many movies)-- the Crow Flies
at Midnight. It's a special way for both you and Stripe to know what card you're referring to, without anyone else being able to eavesdrop and
figure out any sensitive information. You do this phase with either Stripe.js [1] or, in your case, Checkout [2].
The second phase is the "Storing or Charging Phase". You can take that special token or codeword that we made earlier and then either (a)
charge it for a particular amount of money or (b) attach it to a Customer and store it for later. Either approach requires that you use the Stripe API
[3] on your backend. Your backend is usually something written in a programming language like PHP, Python, or Ruby.
It sounds like your code is only doing the first phase of collecting the card details, but not the second phase of actually creating the charge. You
need to take the token that is returned from Stripe.js or Checkout and send it to your backend code so you can call the Create a Charge [4] API
Endpoint.
If this looks intimidating, you may want to consider hiring a developer to help you. There are many freelance providers available that can help you
find the right person for your needs, so I included a few below (in no particular order):
- http://www.guru.com/d/jobs/q/stripe/ (Guru)
- http://www.toptal.com/ (TopTal)
- https://www.upwork.com/o/jobs/browse/skill/stripe/ (UpWork)
- http://www.peopleperhour.com/freelance/stripe (PeoplePerHour)
- https://coworks.com/ (CoWorks)
Stripe also provides many links to some great Integrations [5] if you're thinking you want to venture in alone, but aren't really a Software
Developer.
I really hope I answered your questions. If you need any more assistance, please let me know. I'm always happy to be of help!
Kind Regards,
Korben
[ 1 ] https://stripe.com/docs/stripe.js
[ 2 ] https://stripe.com/docs/checkout
[ 3 ] https://stripe.com/docs/api
[ 4 ] https://stripe.com/docs/api#create_charge
[ 5 ] https://stripe.com/docs/integrations
