web

In the past few weeks we have learned something about the hosted e-commerce providers out there.  We learned that they kinda suck when it comes to keeping up with the really important parts of running an online business. I’m talking specifically about their inability to deal with destination based sales tax.

Ok, yes it is a pretty geeky thing to get all worked up about, but here’s something to think about.  35 states and the District of Columbia all require retailers to collect tax based on the destination of the item they ship.  For now this is only for instate items, but not for long.  There are rumblings that this will go nation wide, and that a retailer may be required to collect the tax specific to ALL of the zones, throughout the country.

Oh, what’s the big deal you say.  There’s got to be an easy service you can just link into and it will work. Guess again…there is not.  Moreover, most of the shopping cart systems (including one that rhymes with Big Commerce) require the site owner to add in each zone individually…by hand. There is no mass upload, there are no API’s.  There’s nothing.  And the worst part about it is that they seem perfectly content with this bag of horse $#!&.

Well, enough of my rant.  I’m just letting off a little steam for our friend Carlos Rivera. Carlos has been in tax entry hell for a few days now…along with Heather DeCamp and Cameron Spear. As a little thank you to Carlos, I finally got his character finished.