Whenever we hear the term a virtual mailbox or a virtual mailing address, the question that comes to our mind is, what about my regular mail? In this article, we have cracked the code and shared it with you. We have brought up all the information and the differences between your regular PO Box and Virtual mailbox. Here is how it goes:
What is a Postal Office Box (PO Box)?
A postal mailbox is something that we all are familiar with. It is easily available to individuals and businesses all around the world. These PO boxes are more like locked mailboxes that can hold your mail and packages safely at a post office location of their choice. You can choose the size of mailbox that is relevant to your needs.
What is a virtual mailbox?
In comparison, a virtual mailbox will take all your incoming emails and digitalizes them. It gives you the ability to access your emails in PDF images from any device through the internet. You can sign up for a virtual mailbox and select a mailing address to use. The best part of using a virtual mailbox and the address is that it can be used for your small business or personal use. All the mail sent to the virtual mailbox gets processed, sorted, and scanned. The user can preview and read their emails from any device at any time through the internet. You can perform the actions like shredding or forwarding your email to other addresses, just like any other mailbox.
Which is more convenient? PO Box or Virtual Mailbox?
When you are a business owner, all you need is convenience. Today in the modern world, we prefer everything that can be done at our fingertips – from managing a bank account to your daily schedule – everything is available within your phone. Therefore, a virtual mailbox is much more accessible than a PO Box. It allows you to control your mail anywhere in the world.
In contrast, a PO Box does give you remote access to its users. You need to take a trip to your post office each time to check your mail. It can be a hassle if you are a remote worker, a constant traveler, or not living near a post office.
How PO Box and virtual mailbox can be used?
Apart from convenience, there are other reasons that people need to decide if a PO Box or a Virtual Mailbox is suitable for them. Most business owners are worried about keeping their residential addresses private or having a secure way for mail delivery to avoid mail theft.
In the case of a PO Box, you choose a post office closer to your home to shorten the trips that you take to check your mail.
In contrast to a virtual mailbox, you get to choose from more than 80+ addresses along with street addresses. Most countries or states require a street address and not a PO Box for business registration.
Access to your mail
PO Box limits a user’s access to their mail and postal business address. It eliminates the ability to check your mail after business hours and on public/federal holidays. However, with a virtual mailbox, it is not the case. You can look and take action on your mail and important documents from any device, just using the internet.
Limited mail and package capabilities
As a PO Box is a subset of the postal office, it can only receive mail from UPS. This means that you cannot receive mail and packages from FedEx and DHL at the PO Box that you rented. Moreover, if you rent a mailbox that is too small to fit your mail, a physical contrast can cause your mail not to get delivered.
In comparison, a virtual mailbox can accept mails from all courier sources. This means that you do not have to worry about your mail not fitting in your mailbox. The unique quality of the virtual mailbox is that it will scan and digitalize your mails for you.
Manage mail online
As mentioned above, for a PO Box user, they must walk to the post office to check and manage their mail. However, it is just that. It offers an informed delivery and gives the customers an exterior preview of their mail that is on its way.
With a virtual mailbox, you have the full range of accessibility to manage your mail, important documents, and packages online, from any device, any time just using the internet.
Conclusion:
As we are advancing in modern world, we all need something more than a PO Box. A virtual mail box and address is an ideal way to do business and receive correspondence. Many virtual mailboxes are available that will fit and suit your needs.