Return address on direct mail - Posted by Kazi

Posted by John T on October 08, 2006 at 20:10:10:

Unless you are willing to rent an office with a real address, go with the PO box. Do you want people you collect rent from or sell homes to to know your address?

Return address on direct mail - Posted by Kazi

Posted by Kazi on October 08, 2006 at 15:18:29:

I am getting ready to send my first ever direct mail postcards through usps.com. Will it look unprofessional if the postcard does not have a full return address? I could put something like name, company name, city and zip code in place of address. I plan to rent a mailbox from the UPS Store eventually, but am trying to minimize costs before getting the next deal.

Please let me know what you think.

–kazi

Thanks! - Posted by Kazi

Posted by Kazi on October 09, 2006 at 13:53:33:

Thanks Kristine, John & Todd. I got the answer I was looking for. I will go ahead and rent a mailbox before sending out the postcards.

Re: Return address on direct mail - Posted by Kristine-CA

Posted by Kristine-CA on October 09, 2006 at 13:43:36:

Even if you get a UPS store box, you most likely will be required to
identify your box as a personal mail box, etc. At least that’s the way it
is here. The private mail box services here are not in the business of
sorting mail. I can see where they are coming from.

More important to me than the way your return address appears is that
you actually have one when you do your mailing. You will not have
complete data regarding your mailing if you do not keep track of how
many come back. Also, in my experience those that come back have
value as they are often good leads–depending on what kinds of
problems you are looking to solve.

Happy mailing, Kristine

Cheaper boxes at USPS - Posted by John T

Posted by John T on October 08, 2006 at 16:09:38:

I found PO boxes to be cheaper at the PO than the UPS store, FWIW. I rented the 2nd size, about 6"x6", I forget what number size they call them, for $72.00 for the year.

John

Re: Thanks! - Posted by IB (NJ)

Posted by IB (NJ) on October 09, 2006 at 18:58:56:

Remember it’s all about the seller trusting you. I would trust someone who has a street address over someone who doesn’t or who has a PO box. The UPS store here allows you to use their boxes as street addresses and suite numbers.

Ib

Re: Cheaper boxes at USPS - Posted by kazi

Posted by kazi on October 08, 2006 at 17:35:32:

I heard that it is a better idea to have a street address than a PO box, that’s why I have been thinking about getting it from them. Could anyone shed some light on this?

Thanks.

Re: Thanks! - Posted by Kazi

Posted by Kazi on October 09, 2006 at 19:37:29:

I think the same is true with the UPS Stores here in Atlanta. I will be renting a mailbox from them.

Thanks.

Re: Cheaper boxes at USPS - Posted by Todd-OH

Posted by Todd-OH on October 09, 2006 at 13:22:14:

I agree that its better to have a street address.

How do most of us feel when you get a piece of unsolicited mail, and we look at the return address, and its a PO Box?

You may need to check with the UPS store, or some other private mailbox places in your area to see how they allow the address to be stated. If they force you to say “Personal Mailbox”, its almost as bad as saying “PO Box”.

The best is if they allow you to used your name (or company name) only, or maybe even a “Suite #”. There is a family-owned, non-franchise place in our city that does this. You may be able to find a mom-n-pop place in your city as well.

Worst case scenario, with the PO Box, is that you can ALSO include the physical address of the post office to add legitimacy.

For example, let’s say your post office is located at 123 Main St.:

Pristine Properties
PO Box 456
123 Main St.
Big City, NY 44455