We’re living in the age of technology where AI, Virtual Reality, Blockchain, and other smart, innovative ideas are being utilized in businesses, enterprises, and even in our own homes every day.
A virtual street address is another smart solution that made its way to the surface in 2013 and started becoming popular among businesses, especially small companies and startups for its convenience and affordability.
Read: Secrets for a successful business
You get the privileges of a street address with the flexibility of a virtual mailbox. So the question of the day is, does a virtual street address still matter in 2024? Let’s find out!
But first, what exactly is a virtual street address?
A virtual street address is using a physical street address as your mailing address. You get to choose from over 400+ addresses nationwide, whichever address you like. It can be in any city and doesn’t need to be in your current area or even nearby.
Your mail will be delivered to this address, which is actually a secure mail facility. When new mail arrives, the envelope is scanned and uploaded to your virtual mailbox.
You can log into your mailbox online, through your smartphone, laptop, or computer and view and control your mail.
You even get instant notifications updating you when new mail arrives, yes, it’s that simple! All you need to do is open your cloud-based mailbox and choose what to do with the mail piece.
You can open & scan, archive, forward, shred or recycle your mail, send in the request and mail operators will take care of it. With a virtual street address, you can enjoy organizing and clean your mailbox in just a few minutes.
Read here: The advantages of mail scanning service
Does it matter in 2024? Yes. Here are 3 reasons why:
Online Shopping is spreading like wildfire. Research has proven that by the end of 2022, online sales have increased 30% worldwide more than 2021 and it is continuously going to keep growing year after year.
Take Black Friday for example, instead of it being crowded stampedes at retail stores; it is now mostly done through online shopping sites.
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All the league brick and mortar retailers like Walmart, Target, and Macy’s have eased online shopping with innovative apps or through websites. This is beside the online giants like Amazon and eBay.
Unfortunately, even though online shopping is increasing more and more every day, mail efficiency is still as bad.
Mail theft is a common issue in the US, especially with packages. Most packages are delivered to your doorstep, but if you’re not home for it, there’s a big chance you won’t find it.
Instead of tying yourself down with delivery dates and worrying about your packages going missing, they are delivered to safe mail centers. A virtual mailbox offers you free physical storage space for up to 30 days from the package’s arrival.
So if you’re away on business or on vacation and shop online, your packages are safely stored waiting for your return.
Read about: How to Find Your Missing USPS Packages or Mail?
You can have your packages forwarded to you domestically or internationally, just by sending a forwarding request. Your packages will be consolidated for lower shipping fees and shipped out.
It’s great for remote businesses or employees, travelers, and startups. Every day a startup business is launched while another shuts down.
One of the main reasons only a few startups make it past the first 5 years in business is because they don’t waste their resources on office space. Remote enterprises are becoming more common now because of their flexibility. Some entirely foreign companies achieved a lot of success like Basecamp, Zapier, and Groove.
However, a mailing address is still necessary for customers and investors to validate your business and give it that professional edge.
A virtual address can be used as your business address. It can even be used on business cards, stationery, and the website as your own.
Businesses with a physical address can also use a virtual address as another branch of their business and for remote or traveling employees. They can quickly check and manage their mail without needing to be at the office.
Mailboxes are irrelevant today. Yes, mailboxes are somewhat pointless in our time. With email, mobile apps, and virtual mailboxes taking over, almost everything is done online.
A virtual mailbox not only offers enhanced security for your mail and packages but it also saves you valuable time.
With our busy schedules, we barely have the time to go through our mail, attend to important mail, and carefully dispose of critical documents like old bills or statements. With a virtual mailbox, you can get all that done and more in just a few minutes.
Conclusion:
A virtual street address will only matter more within the upcoming years.
With remote companies on the rise and new technologies being integrated into businesses every day, it’s just a matter of time before all companies and individuals have a virtual mailbox.