If you are launching a new business you will need to establish an identity for it. This not only involves thinking of a good name, logo and mission statement, and of course writing a solid business plan, but it also means acquiring services that will enable people to contact you. These include a telephone – possibly an ordinary landline, an 1800 number and a cell number, at least one email address, and a snail mail address.
Here I’m going to talk about mailing addresses and the various options you have for your business. Consider them all, and be sure to weigh up the advantages as they relate to you personally.
Why You Need a Mailing Address
While it is true that many people rely more on email messages than on physical paper mail sent through a post office or some other mail service, there are items that are still commonly mailed the good old snail mail way. For instance even with the technology that enables us to attach a secure digital signature, many (if not most) companies prefer to have real witnesses who verify the signature. And so original copies of contracts are often mailed (rather than emailed). The same applies to statements, although more and more companies do now ask customers how they would prefer to receive accounts. Banks will also post (or mail) checks to clients once a month, once they have been redeemed, as will most service companies that provide energy, water and so on.
But the reality is that while there really is a shift towards the paperless office, we still need to send and receive stuff. Apart from documents of various types, you cannot email parcels. And irrespective of the type of business you are running or planning to start, chances are you will inevitably want things sent to you in the mail that cannot be delivered in a “virtual” manner.
Mailing Services
Of course if you have a physical address, chances are that the US mail service will deliver to this address, whether it is where you live and/or where you work.
With an increasing number of people working from home, the only physical option is often a home address. Good reasons NOT to receive business mail at home are:
- to keep your home address private,
- to safeguard the privacy and ensure the security of important documents, small parcels and personal snail mail communications.
So what are your options, and where do you want to receive your mail?
US Mail Box
A US post office box is a popular option for business mail. Wherever you live in the USA, you can choose a convenient post office in your area. Better still, you can manage the account online.
US Mail offers five different sized mail boxes – though not every single post office in the country has every possible size. The one you choose will depend on the size of the mail items you regularly receive. The full choice is:
- X-Small, which will hold between 10 and 15 envelopes that fit the 3″ x 5½” x 14¾” dimensions of the box, OR two magazines rolled.
- Small, which also measures 5½” x 14¾”, but which is 5″ wide, and will accommodate as many as five rolled-up magazines (depending of course on how fat they are).
- Medium, which is the same height and depth as the two above, but is 11″ wide. It is big enough for large envelopes and magazines to be stacked into it flat.
- Large, which measures 11″ x 11″ x 14¾”, making it big enough for two standard size shoe boxes as well as 10 to 15 letter-type envelopes.
- X-large, which is ideal for parcels and flat-rate boxes. This mail box measures 22½” x 12″ x 14¾”.
The cost of boxes varies by size and location, from $13 per six months and upwards. In addition you will be required to pay a $3 deposit per key issued (this is usually refundable). If you lose keys or the lock on your box has to be replaced, there are additional fees.
All you need to get a PO Box with US Mail is proof of your ID and place of residency – which is standard for all mail box services.
Of course you can always pick up large parcels inside the post office if you don’t have an extra large mail box. But if you regularly receive high volumes of mail, you might want to consider US Mail’s business mail pickup service. It’s going to cost you at least $430 for six months, but you will be given regular timeslots when you can pick up mail from your local post office.
UPS Store Mail Box
United Parcel service (UPS) – which partners with US Mail to be able to offer faster service and good value – has a network of franchised stores, customer centers and drop boxes that will enable you to pack and ship just about anything of any size or shape … to most places in the world.
Many small business owners opt for a UPS Store mail box simply because of the network of resources UPS offers – specifically those related to packing and shipping, tracking and billing customers. While their focus is on sending, clearly clients also receive mail; and so it stands to reason that UPS also offers mailbox facilities. These boxes cost, on average, around $20 a month.
Even though you operate a mail box, with UPS your mailing address is to a street – the address of the store where your letters and packages are sent. But because you are allocated a box, you have 24-hour access, and can therefore retrieve you mail at any time of the day or night.
One of the top rated benefits of having a UPS mail box is that it works particularly well for people who travel a lot, and for those who tend to move a lot.
It stands to reason that if you move often or are continually travelling, you’re going to have to make arrangements for receiving mail at different or changed locations. With UPS, your local store will box up and mail your stuff to any given address, even to a hotel where you are staying.
Another well-received benefit is that you can call UPS to find out if you have received anything; or you can opt for an email notification at no extra charge. Mailbox holders at some stores may also receive free fax messages which they hold for you.
Mail Boxes Etc. (MBE)
MBE is a global retail chain of independently owned, franchised business centers that offers the same sort of facilities as UPS, including mailboxes. There are more than 1,270 MEB outlets throughout the world; about 100 in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and the rest in about 30 other countries.
While UPS Store-branded centers are franchised by Mail Boxes Etc., Inc in the USA, soon all other MBE stores in the US will be required to re-brand as UPS Stores (the publicized deadline is 2012).
Postal Connections
Founded in 1985, Postal Connections is another US-based, franchised postal service. Like UPS, the company offers a mailbox service that provides a street address for your office (or for private use for that matter). They also offer mail forwarding and a holding service – as well as all the usual services this type of company offers. They post via US Mail and use authorized shipping agents for parcels, including DHL, UPS and FedEx.
This company has corporate offices in California, Florida and Texas.
How to Choose a Mailbox Provider
If you have no personal experience of outsourced mail boxes, talk to friends to see which they have found to be the most efficient. You could also read reviews that have been posted on the Internet.
If you found this helpful, please share it below. Thank you!
