# mailing address



## fastxcr800 (Sep 18, 2008)

I've been looking into things to make my business look more professional. I'm trying out gopher for invoicing , better signage on trucks and trailer, ect.. Long story short, i would like to get return address labels printed with the company logo on them. At the moment i've been using my home address for the business. I'm not a fan of this, and i was wondering what you guys do.. home addess vs po box. Thanks


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## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

If your business is run out of your home then use your home address. Why would you want to run to a P.O. box to get your mail?


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## Silentroo (Jun 19, 2006)

Mail is in the box by 9am. 

PO boxes create more questions than they help. Consider a mail boxes ECT or someplace similar where you get a physical street address and a box number. It is the best of both worlds. If you want to push your luck you could call it a Suite. (a really small suite)


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## grandview (Oct 9, 2005)

How do you figure that a PO Box raises questions? Half the stuff you mail have PO Box #'s Depending on the size of your company and amount of invoices sent out, you always get those people who want to stop by you house to pay. All the years I've had one no asked me why I have one and I doubt it hurts business.


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## JohnnyRoyale (Jun 18, 2006)

Could you not get a PO box and have the mail forwarded to your house so you dont have to go get it, and nobody knows that you're operating from home?


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## LoneCowboy (Jan 2, 2007)

forget return address labels (ok, they are useful too) but get return payment envelopes printed up (about 10c each in quantity (1000)).

I always pay bills faster that have preprinted return envelopes
and 
I notice my bills get paid faster when I include preprinted return envelopes.


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## lilweeds (Aug 3, 2007)

Hey Gabe, I use a PO box, but you knew that. I choose not to go with Gopher. It is really made perfect for a business your size right now, but when you grow, it will be useless. I would just use Quickbooks to get started and after you grow some add qXpress or something.


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## doo-man (Feb 22, 2009)

I use Gopher and love it!! We have also have a PO box and like it, I do not want to answer the door or worse yet have my wife or kids while i'm on duty and have them deal with an irritated customer that may be drunk,stoned, or worse yet carrying a weapon!

I think it puts a buffer between my family and customers, I have heard and seen horror stories of nice people going postal !!!


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## clark lawn (Oct 7, 2005)

i have a PO box and have for about 5 years, never had any questions about it. i dont want people showing up at my house.


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## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

Maybe I'm the only one thinking this is strange but, why are you guys so paranoid about customers showing up at your house? Do you piss your customers off on a regular basis? Or do you work in rough areas? In 26 Yrs. of business, half of which were run out of the home, we never had this issue. Maybe it just depends on where you live, I don't know. Someone try to explain please, Thanks.


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## timberseal (Jul 24, 2008)

P.O. Boxes work fine and in 13 years we've never had a problem with it. Even with a physical shop location down the street from my home we still use the P.O. Box. For me it's a matter of seperation of home and business. My time is my time and it's spent at my home. Over the years I've had 2 customers stop by simply looking up our address on the net just to drop off payment or schedule something and neither realized the address was my home until they got there. It wasn't an issue but all the same having people just show up at your door, especially when your wife and kids are nearly always there isn't exactly what I want.

PS> and for the record I dont go to lengths to hide my address...... I just don't use it in business correspondance.


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## fastxcr800 (Sep 18, 2008)

yeah, the whole point isn't that i dont want my customers to know where i live (btw it's really none of their business), but like most said its separtion of work and home. Thanks for the input guys


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## CMU07 (Sep 29, 2009)

I have run my business out of the home and our shop. And I have always had a PO Box. Huge corporations have mail delivered to PO Boxes. I don't think there's any sort of credability issue there.


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## palmtree907 (Sep 25, 2009)

PO Box. I use it for personal and business. My dad has had his for 30yrs. Keeps things private.


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## procut (Dec 1, 2004)

I understand and agree with a lot of the posts made, but.... I can see having a PO box as a return for payments, many businesses do. But if you write a proposal, and the address is listed as a PO box, it would seem a little suspicious. If I was a customer and got a proposal for 10k and wanted 30%-50% down and saw the only address as a PO box, I'd raise an eyebrow.


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## clark lawn (Oct 7, 2005)

procut;970423 said:


> I understand and agree with a lot of the posts made, but.... I can see having a PO box as a return for payments, many businesses do. But if you write a proposal, and the address is listed as a PO box, it would seem a little suspicious. If I was a customer and got a proposal for 10k and wanted 30%-50% down and saw the only address as a PO box, I'd raise an eyebrow.


i know of an excavating company here that does mutimillion dollars each year and everything is ran through a PO box. if they can submit a bid for a few million and have a PO box listed as the address then i think your safe with a 10K bid.


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## ryde307 (Dec 3, 2009)

We use a PO box. Mostly for seperation from work and home. I dont hide where I live its not hard most people seem to know. With trucks coming and going people see it. Its more or less just to have 2 seperate things this is home and this is work.


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## gib (Dec 11, 2008)

Use a PO Box, Ive had one for 15+ yrs. Never had an issue with the mailing address. My good customers know where I live. They also know where my shop is. A huge issue not addressed yet is the banking industry is not very fond of home based businesses that have the same address as you. A PO box takes care of this. A couple years back I bought a new house, my banker flat out told me I would not have got financing if my business and personal had the same address.


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## carl b (Dec 28, 2006)

I don't have a bill gas electric, cable,cell phone . that doesn't go to a p.o.box. 13 years not one person has said a thing .


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## triadpm (Sep 26, 2009)

I use my home/yard address and only once has anyone come here. Shame on a person that would come here and get mouthy with my Wife or kids (grown), she would go totally off on them. Pure ******* with a major attitude and has her own pistol. Many times I have LMAO at her when someone said something smart to her,and she can back it up. Strong as an OX. Dont even have to let the 3 Pit Bulls out.


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## Superior L & L (Oct 6, 2006)

What is gopher ??


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## JR Snow Removal (Jul 16, 2008)

I use my home as of know and don't do labels spend a little money and get printed #9 return envelopes. I send my invoices out in a #10 window security tint envelope with my logo printed on it and put a astrobright blue return envelope in it with my return info on it. I like going with the blue return because when I open the mail box I know I got payup I understand this can be costly but it looks so much more professional to me and I am a commercial printer in my spare time haha so it doesn't cost me anything If you would like pricing just shoot me a pm.


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## tpiper (Dec 5, 2009)

LoneCowboy;969126 said:


> forget return address labels (ok, they are useful too) but get return payment envelopes printed up (about 10c each in quantity (1000)).
> 
> I always pay bills faster that have preprinted return envelopes
> and
> I notice my bills get paid faster when I include preprinted return envelopes.


i do the same thing and add postage, my customers love it and like you said it sometimes seems like the check is in the box a lot quicker this way


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## procut (Dec 1, 2004)

^ I bet your customers do. I don't think i've ever gotten a bill with postage paid on the return envelope. I think one time I sent out contracts with a pre-stamped return envelope. I didn't do it the next year becasue I thought it seemed a little "desperate." A lot of that type of thing gets faxed anyways.


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