When you use your home address for business, you sacrifice your family's privacy. Anyone can google where you live, and even how much your house is worth. A post office box can seem less professional or legitimate, and can't be used when you need a physical address. Those are pretty obvious reasons for choosing a virtual mailbox, also known as a virtual address, but here are five less obvious reasons why you need one.
1. Convenience
Your virtual mailbox allows you to manage your mail and packages via any device. You can forward, shred, pick up, or discard mail and packages through the Firehouse's online portal. Managing your postal mail is as easy and convenient as email. In fact, your virtual mailbox looks similar to an email inbox.
Through our user-friendly interface, you can review and select the appropriate action, such as mail forwarding or mail shredding. The outside mail envelope or package label can be scanned so you can decide whether you want to scan the mail contents, forward the mail, or trash it.
A virtual mailbox can also receive mail and packages from all couriers such as USPS, UPS, and FedEx. Can you say the same for your PO box?
2. Prevent Identity Theft
Mail theft is one of the most common ways for someone to steal your identity. By rifling through your mail, a thief can collect:
Your name and address
Social Security number
Telephone numbers
Credit card and bank account information
Pre-approved credit card offers
This information allows thieves to easily run up credit card bills and commit fraud in your name. (It happened to us a few years ago. Someone opened an account and bought a computer in our name, and had it delivered to our house while we were out of town!)
The security of your mail is more important than most people think. Is it really safe for your mailbox to be on the street where strangers can just walk up and open it? If you have a virtual mailbox, only you can access your mail online.
3. Receive Mail Anytime, Anywhere
What if you're traveling, but expecting sensitive documents while you're gone? Or even just your monthly Amazon delivery? What happens when you move? Maybe your spouse gets a promotion in another state or even another country? Maybe you’re retiring and want a life of nonstop travel? How are you going to get your mail?
With a virtual mailbox you can:
have a permanent address you can maintain anywhere in the world
forward only the important mail
have your mail scanned and available online
You’ll be able to forward important documents to yourself such as a driver license, passport, or credit card, and you can consolidate packages and ship them anywhere in the world at affordable prices. With a virtual mailbox you won't worry about missed mail and package deliveries.
4. Protect Your Home from Being Burglarized
An overflowing mailbox is an obvious sign that you’re not at home and makes your home an easy target to nefarious strangers.
With a virtual mailbox:
no one is aware of your absence
you don't need to pay anyone to pick up your mail
if you expect an important document to arrive while you’re away, you can just check your mailbox online
The mail is kept safe and secure, you are immediately notified about packages or parcels that come into your mailbox, and you have more control over what happens to your mail moving forward.
When the USPS bulk forwards your mail, it includes junk mail and mail for previous mailbox owners. And USPS won't be happy if your mailbox overflows.
Firehouse Workspace Virtual Mail relieves you of all these worries. Your virtual mailbox will never overflow, and your mail and packages are securely stored until you forward them or pick them up.
5. Save time
Unlike a PO box, you can access your mail online from anywhere, at anytime, without having to physically drive to the post office. Once you see your mail, you decide what you want to do with it.
If you're in a hurry to read the mail, have it opened and scanned.
If it's sensitive material, forward it, or pick it up at the Firehouse.
If it's junk mail, have us trash it.
Sifting through your mailbox can take a lot of time, especially if you are running a small business or are particularly active on mailing lists.
With a virtual mailbox you’re able to separate out your business mail from your personal mail, you’re able to have junk mail discarded before it even hits your hands, and you’re able to keep track of all the mail that you are receiving with digital records of that piece of mail, the information regarding who sent that mail, and important timestamp information that you may need moving forward.
Not only does a virtual mailbox protect your privacy and make your small business seem more professional, it makes life easier in lots of other ways too! Reserve your virtual address today.
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