Our business depends on mail delivery. In the last several years, trends have inched toward longer mail delivery times. We try to optimize our operations at Earth Class Mail to avoid delays, but we depend on the work of the U.S. Postal Service. When they have delays, they affect us.<h2>Mail delivery times are getting longer</h2>An analysis of mail delivery times, used in part when the postal service proposed its new <a href="https://about.usps.com/what/strategic-plans/delivering-for-america/">10-year-plan,</a> shows that mail that once took 2 days to arrive takes an average of a day longer from the mailing date. The USPS proposed the plan, in part, to change expectations. The agency missed its 2-day delivery goal so often, the goals needed adjusting.<h2>Changing standards for mail delivery</h2>According to recent reports from the USPS, it expects to deliver less than 88% of first class mail on time for the routes set for 2-day delivery. For the mail that takes three to five days, less than 69 percent should be on time.Even those goals are better than what the postal service has done in 2021 so far. Its latest report said just 86% of two-day mail and 58% of three-to-five day mail was on time. Those figures drop below the 91% and 79% on-time deliveries it made in 2020, a year marked by postal service problems. In prior years, the USPS had a goal of 95% of mail delivered on time. <h2>Reasons you might have late or missing mail:</h2><h4>Weather </h4>The adage about postal workers says “neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night” should deter them from deliveries. Unfortunately, that’s not reality. Major weather events can stall delivery because of impassable roads, staffing shortages, and power outages. To find out if weather-related incidents are causing service disruptions in your delivery area, you can call 1-800-ASK-USPS or report a disruption at mailserviceupdate@<a href="https://prowritingaid.com/en/Analysis/WebEditor/usps.gov.">usps.gov.</a><h4>Air delays </h4>As detailed in Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s 10-year plan, shipping mail via airplane often causes more delays. The agency pointed to “unreliable” air cargo space and on-time air arrivals. Under the plan, which also outlines a plan to close some post offices and processing centers, the majority of first class mail would travel by land instead of air, a departure from how the postal service has shipped long-distance mail for decades. <h4>Incorrect address information</h4>If your postal worker has to guess where an item should go, that can cause a delay. An incorrect address, zip code, or suite number can postpone mail for days or weeks. When using your <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a>, always provide senders your complete Earth Class Mail address, including your unique mailbox number. <h4>High usage </h4>During peak times, more mail and packages get processed. During the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, shipments multiplied and workers were scarce. Likewise, each year in December, an increase in demand from holiday shipments can slow down deliveries. <h2>USPS delays and Earth Class Mail</h2>Earth Class Mail aims to make mail easier, with mail scanning, check deposit, and virtual addresses. However, we rely on the mail service to do our work. If you are missing expected mail, you can always notify us and we will look into the issue.Occasionally, we have an issue with longer delivery times at one address in our network. We continually monitor the health of our virtual address network to make sure we receive mail regularly at our addresses.If you experience delivery time problems as a customer, you can always reach out to our customer success team via email, or call us at 210-802-5211. <h2>What to expect with Earth Class Mail delivery times</h2>If we ever experience a delay from the Earth Class Mail operational side, such as when 2020 Oregon wildfires temporarily shut down our processing facility, we alert all customers via email and with in-app notifications. If you suspect the issue could be with the mail never making it to your virtual address, you can also submit a missing mail search request to the postal service.We strive to process your mail as quickly as we receive it. Once it arrives at our operations center, we aim to process it within 24 to 48 hours. <h2>
How to adapt to later mail deliveries</h2>We pay attention to potential changes at the USPS and hope for changes that improve deliveries times, not worsen them. Postal workers and the public have spoken out against some proposed changes, which may deter some of them.To understand more about what the USPS 10-year-plan could mean for you and how to plan for those changes, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-the-usps-10-year-plan-means-for-you">click here</a>.

In the last several years, trends have inched toward longer mail delivery times. We try to optimize our operations at Earth Class Mail to avoid delays, but we depend on the work of the U.S. Postal Service.

In the last several years, trends have inched toward longer mail delivery times. We try to optimize our operations at Earth Class Mail to avoid delays, but we depend on the work of the U.S. Postal Service. When they have delays, they affect us. Mail delivery times are getting longer An analysis of mail delivery times, used in part when the postal service proposed its new 10-year-plan, shows that mail that once took 2 days to arrive takes an average of a day longer from the mailing date. The USPS proposed the plan, in part, to change expectations. The agency missed its 2-day delivery goal so often, the goals needed adjusting.

Do you have late mail or missing mail? Here are the biggest reasons for mail delays

Recently, the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a<a href="https://about.usps.com/what/strategic-plans/delivering-for-america/assets/USPS_Delivering-For-America.pdf"> 10-year plan</a> that aimed to save the postal service from bankruptcy and threatened extinction. It will increase postage costs, reduce hours at facilities, and slow down delivery times that already lag. For the average residential or business customer, preparing now for the changes the plan will introduce could save you from future headaches.<h2>How much will stamps cost under the new plan?</h2>The first change rolled out increases the cost of a first class stamp from 55 cents to 58 cents. This hike, effective in August, will go to pay down the $160 billion of debt the department holds - debt that the agency hasn’t paid down in 10 years. Although postage rates increase every few years, it has tied the regular increases to inflation. These will go to bail out the agency from its debt. It’s not just regular stamps costing more. Rates for marketing mail and postcards also increased, along with some specialized categories, such as medical mail, periodicals, and money orders. The agency also said rates for shipping will increase. <h2>Why is the USPS in debt?</h2>The overwhelming debt the postal service has on its books isn’t all a result of operational costs. It’s tied to a mandate requiring the agency to have enough cash to fund all postal service workers’ retiree benefits. If every retired postal worker withdrew all their benefits at once, the postal service must have the money to pay that out in a lump sum.This creates a massive burden for the government, and it’s not unique to the postal service. City police and fire departments, municipal governments, and state agencies have likewise struggled under these accounting rules. <h2>Changes in how much mail people send</h2>First class mail volumes peaked in 2006. Since then, although the country’s population grew, the volume of mail slips lower each year. People use more email, electronically sign documents, and send fewer letters.Meanwhile, the amount of packages shipped using USPS and other services, such as UPS and FedEx, went up.  Those trend fluctuations intensified during the COVID pandemic. The amount of packages shipped increased by 40 percent. Simultaneously, marketing mail and junk mail slowed down as companies cut back on their advertising budgets. Meanwhile, just as in other industries, postal workers got sick with COVID-19 and quarantined at home, reducing the workforce. Now, as mail advertising ramps up again, businesses will find costs have increased. <h2>Will USPS mail delivery times improve with the 10-year plan?</h2>You weren’t imagining that receiving your mail takes longer than it used to.The COVID-19 pandemic strained the postal service, and it hasn’t recovered yet. Since July 2020, the USPS on-time report hasn’t reached 90 percent, which means at least 10 percent of mail took longer than 3 days to arrive.Under the new plan, any piece of mail going 980 miles or less becomes a three day delivery instead of two days. If it’s a coast to coast item going further, the standard will increase to five days. Mail that right now travels via plane will be driven, which substantially reduces costs but increases processing time. This won’t impact the items people send under priority mail, which will keep the speedier delivery time for a higher fee.<h2>How to prepare for the USPS 10 year plan</h2>Many of the suggested changes to the postal service are still only proposed plans. Lobbyists and postal advocates have fought some of the changes.But if the new service standards take effect, what will it mean for you? You may need to make some changes. If you’re a small business owner, those shipping and postage cost increases could add up quickly. A business such as a law firm or a financial organization might send out large volumes of mail, and those three-cent increases may add up to substantial budget changes. If you’re a business owner that relies heavily on shipments, you might need to adjust your pricing structure. Individuals who use the mail to send payments or ship items, factor in longer delivery times as a precaution. Post offices with lower traffic would be susceptible to reduced hours, although it’s not clear yet which post offices this would apply to. If you use a PO Box for your personal or business mail, evaluate if proposed reduced post office hours impact your ability to retrieve your mail.<h2>How a virtual mailbox can help you deal with the future of mail </h2>Some of the changes may seem overwhelming, especially if you depend on your mail to run your business or you haven’t digitized many of your documents. You could consider streamlining your operations with a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox service</a>.Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox plans allow you to view mail sent to a virtual mailing address of your choice as it comes to our secure processing facility. You can set up your account so that we automatically scan your mail items and you only have to view and manage the mail scanned in your account. Each piece of mail becomes a high-resolution PDF stored in your account.You can sort, save, or share those PDFs, so you won’t have to worry about mailing any documents to anyone else or spending time scanning those documents in. Plus, it allows you to access your mail from anywhere, using the mailbox<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses"> address you select</a>, as well as have checks deposited automatically. If you need a copy of your physical mail, we can send it to you. Earth Class Mail depends on the U.S. Postal Service. With their help, we want to make your mail easier and more accessible. Want to know about how virtual mail works? Read more <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/how-virtual-mail-works">here</a>.

The USPS unveiled a 10-year plan. Preparing now for the changes the plan will introduce could save you from future headaches.

The U.S. Postal Service unveiled a 10-year plan that aimed to save the postal service from bankruptcy and threatened extinction. It will increase postage costs, reduce hours at facilities, and slow down delivery times that already lag.  For the average residential or business customer, preparing now for the changes the plan will introduce could save you from future headaches.

What the USPS 10-year plan means for you 

Who still goes to the bank to deposit paper checks they received in the mail? Mobile apps and electronic payments have reduced what was a standard daily activity to a rarity. Even if you hardly ever visit the bank, you may still be one of the millions of people who receive check payments in the mail. Businesses still issue checks to respond to vendor invoices and if you’re a freelancer, many of your payments still come to your mailbox. You can bring those analog activities into the digital age with the help of a virtual mailbox that automatically deposits your payments. How to get checks from the mail automatically depositedA <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> offers you a professional mailing address, automatic processing and digitization of your mail, all while keeping your payments secure. To modernize your postal mail, you’ll need to first select a virtual mailbox provider. Then, you select from available mailing addresses. Earth Class Mail offers your choice of 80+ virtual addresses across the United States, all which offer <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">automatic check deposit</a>. You’re able to deposit a check for $10 per or choose a monthly plan for $39/mo. All you have to do is provide your bank information within your account settings.When we detect a paper check in your mail, it will automatically be deposited. There are no deposit limits. You’ll get paid easily and can deposit checks from your mobile device from anywhere in the world.You can also deposit a check for a one-time fee if you don’t expect to regularly receive payments. To do that, go into your “Account Settings” on the Earth Class Mail platform, and select the option to make the deposit. How does check deposit work?Earth Class Mail offers electronic check endorsing, so you won’t have to even touch the envelope to access your money. Once you sign up for an Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox, you need to activate the check deposit feature within your<a href="https://app.earthclassmail.com/login"> account settings</a>. That’s also where you provide the routing number for your bank, account holder’s name, and your account number. This will ensure your payments make it into the account you select. You’re able to add as many bank accounts as you like, so if you receive payments to different businesses or people, you’ll still be able to manage it all from one place. When you receive a check in the mail, we will scan and upload the check to your account. From our platform or mobile app, you can review your scanned checks online and choose what account you want it deposited in. It also allows you to split payments into different accounts. Earth Class Mail will electronically endorse your checks and complete your deposit slip. Then, we send your paper check and deposit slip directly to your bank. It usually takes 2 to 3 business days to process.Is it safe to automatically deposit checks with a virtual mailbox?It’s never easy to hand over your money, especially paychecks and business payments. That’s why we guard the security of our customers’ mail and personal information. We built every step of the process to protect your confidential information. Our security begins with the hiring and training of our technicians, and every staff member is trained to handle sensitive information. Our facilities are access-restricted and monitored 24/7.  We assign every envelope and item a unique tracking number through its life cycle so your documents are always secure and receive a thorough record of how and where each piece of mail moves through our facilities.Compare that to the security you can expect from a traditional mailbox. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/prevent-mail-theft-with-a-secure-virtual-mailbox">Mail theft</a> increased by 600% between 2017 and 2020, according to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. A virtual mailbox and automatic check deposit removes the risk of mail theft and the possibility of losing your paper checks. With the convenience of a hands-free depositing system, our automatic check depositing saves you a trip to the bank. Does Earth Class Mail work with all banks and banking apps?Earth Class Mail’s check deposit feature <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/integrations">integrates</a> with major bookkeeping softwares such as QuickBooks, Xero, and Bill.com. You can save images of your checks, along with the rest of your mail, into cloud storage systems, including DropBox, Google Drive, and Box. This way, you’ll have easy access to searchable PDFs of your checks, mail, and important documents.Our virtual mailbox and check deposit feature helps businesses and organizations reduce overhead costs, be free from physical office space, and save time. It’s especially important to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/automating-check-depositing-for-nonprofits-with-a-virtual-mailbox">nonprofit organizations </a>if they have a fundraising campaign or receive recurring donations. Learn more about how our customer, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-desire-street-ministries-modernized-their-mail-processing">Desire Street Ministries</a> uses check deposit service to improve their efficiency as a nonprofit. Interested in simplifying your life with automated check depositing?<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit"> Learn more here</a>.

Even if you hardly ever visit the bank, you may still be one of the millions of people who receive check payments in the mail. Businesses still issue checks to respond to vendor invoices and if you’re a freelancer, your payments still come to your mailbox

Who still goes to the bank to deposit paper checks they received in the mail? Mobile apps and electronic payments have reduced what was a standard daily activity to a rarity.  Even if you hardly ever visit the bank, you may still be one of the millions of people who receive check payments in the mail. Businesses still issue checks to respond to vendor invoices and if you’re a freelancer, many of your payments still come to your mailbox. 

Deposit checks you get in the mail automatically with Earth Class Mail 

Many nonprofits and small businesses don’t have the personnel or time to manage administrative tasks, such as processing and depositing checks. Without a budget for additional headcount, how can you save time to focus on things like fundraising and running operations? Consider automating your mail so you can deposit checks remotely, without even having to touch an envelope. Using a virtual address for your next fundraising campaign Nonprofit organizations face numerous obstacles during fundraising campaigns. If you’re running a substantial campaign that can’t survive on small online donations, you need an easier option. If you automatically deposit checks, your campaign will run smoother. Maybe you received pledges, but it’s not always easy to collect those checks if you don’t interact with donors regularly. In many cases, donors hesitate to make all electronic donations or wire money through online banking and prefer writing a check.Plus, if your nonprofit doesn’t operate an office, you need an address for those checks to go to. You could use your home address, but that poses privacy concerns and creates complications if your board of directors changes.  A virtual address that provides check depositing can solve both concerns at the same time, without requiring a visit to the post office.You don’t also want the burden of collecting and keeping track of donation checks and making multiple trips to the bank. Time is money. A virtual address takes away the extra work that comes with fundraising campaigns. What are the benefits of automating check depositing?Get paid easier than ever If you’re running a fundraising campaign or simply getting vendors to pay you via check, you can make the whole process hands-free. With Earth Class Mail’s automatic check depositing feature, you can get paid with a click of a button. In fact, we deposit between $8 million to $20 million a week for our customers. <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earth-class-mail/id1484077329">Mobile check deposit is now available on our iOS app</a>. This lets you deposit checks to your checking account from your mobile device from anywhere in the world. Reduces overhead costs Some businesses, especially startups, small offices, and nonprofit organizations, don’t have the luxury of having an office manager. Outsourcing some of your administrative tasks can give your leadership more time to spend on what’s more important.Organizations have outsourced payroll and accounting functions for decades.  A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> gives you even more automation.  Virtual mailbox services use an address you select as the mailing address. The mail you receive will be forwarded to a processing center. There, technicians sort, open, scan, and, in the case of paper checks, deposit it, into your bank account with your accounting software of choice. It also helps keep other business operations running smoothly. All your paper documents become <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/organize-your-mail-and-eliminate-clutter-with-a-virtual-mailbox">text-searchable PDFs</a>, so you won’t lose an important piece of mail again.   Prevent stolen checks in the mail or lost checksWith automated check depositing, you remove the risk of paper checks getting lost or stolen from your mailbox. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/prevent-mail-theft-with-a-secure-virtual-mailbox">With mail theft on the rise</a>, a virtual address keeps you from worrying about stolen checks. It can also be easy to lose a check in the paper clutter in your office. Checks must be deposited in 180 days or they become invalid. By eliminating the risk of lost checks, you’ll ensure all your money makes it to your bank account. With Earth Class Mail’s platform and in its app, you can view and manage your mail, track your payments, and make mobile deposits. Spend more time doing what’s important Automating your check depositing saves you time, which saves money and increases efficiency. Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox and address service automates labor intensive mail processes like sorting, opening, scanning, and check deposit. Our service allows you to manage your mail and access mail online from wherever. When you automate your administrative tasks, you’ll be able to focus on more important things, like running your business. Want some more tips on reducing time spent doing administrative tasks?<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-do-i-reduce-administrative-hours-spent-doing-menial-tasks"> Read more here.</a>  Automating processes such as check payment depositing will add time back into the day and get you paid faster than ever. Interested in taking the leap yourself? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Sign up for a virtual mailbox. </a>

Many nonprofits and small businesses don’t have the personnel or time to manage administrative tasks, such as processing and depositing checks. 

Many nonprofits and small businesses don’t have the personnel or time to manage administrative tasks, such as processing and depositing checks.  Without a budget for additional headcount, how can you save time to focus on things like fundraising and running operations? Consider automating your mail so you can deposit checks remotely, without even having to touch an envelope. 

Automating check depositing for nonprofits with a virtual mailbox

When you see the mailing address of a local business, you probably don’t think twice about it. You might recognize the street name or at least have an idea what part of town it’s in based on the zip code. But increasing numbers of remote or home-based businesses don’t have a storefront or office building. Business owners need a mailing address for marketing and to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/using-a-virtual-address-for-business">protect their privacy</a>. For that reason, Earth Class Mail offers virtual addresses. We collect your mail, scan it, and allow you to review it and decide if you want it shredded, shipped to you, or stored. <h2>Need a real street address for business  </h2>When you register a business, you’ll need a mailing address—both to receive mail and to display on your branding and marketing materials. Many states require a street address, not a P.O. Box, for this. Virtual offices and remote businesses still need mailbox services. If you don’t want to rent office space just for the address, a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> could solve your problems. Virtual mailboxes receive all your mail and digitize it into text-searchable PDFs, so you won’t have to worry about losing important documents. Moving to a new state and need an address thereWhen life takes you somewhere new, you might need an address there - or where you’re coming from - to help keep things in order.For example, if you plan to move out of state or to a new city, a virtual street address to list on paperwork could speed things along. Perhaps you need to file for permits or establish a business presence there while you plan your move. Need to keep an address when you’re moving awayWhen you plan to move, whether an international move or one just a few miles away, a virtual address gives you one thing your constant moving won’t - a permanent address.  If you’re running a business and want to keep it registered in your home state, you’ll need a business mailing address there. Before you move away, transfer the registration to a virtual address and it will keep your business based in the city where it started.Establish your business address in a city you don’t live inIf you launch a tech startup, having a prestigious San Francisco address might help give your business momentum and a professional image more than an address in a small town hundreds of miles away.Earth Class Mail offers addresses in 80+ cities across the United States, including prestige addresses such as our San Francisco address on Market Street and our New York City address on Park Avenue. Maybe you’re an aspiring cinematographer and want the Los Angeles address on Santa Monica Boulevard. Virtual addresses offer an affordable way to build that presence and get your mail from anywhere.Get an address in the best states to register your LLC When you register your business, your choice of where you register can impact your bottom line. Some states have higher taxes, filing fees, and penalties. We’ve compiled a list of the states that experts consider business friendly.<ul><li><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/de">Delaware</a> tops the country in business registrations for its low corporate taxes. More than half of all publicly traded companies in the United States use a Delaware address for this reason. </li><li><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/nv">Nevada</a> and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/wy">Wyoming</a> also attract businesses because they don’t collect corporate or personal income taxes or charge franchise taxes. Nevada also gives businesses anonymity in public filings, while Wyoming only requires minimal information in its filings. </li></ul><h3>How does a virtual address work</h3>A<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-a-virtual-mailbox-and-how-to-choose-one"> virtual address is</a> a subscription service that provides you with a<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-the-difference-between-a-physical-address-and-a-mailing-address"> physical address</a> where you receive mail. You can use your virtual address to register your business or expanding your business into a new market. Virtual addresses aren’t completely virtual - they are real places that receive mail. Unlike a P.O. Box at the post office, a virtual address doesn’t require you to live in the general vicinity to check your mail. Processors open, scan, and process your mail. You view and manage your mail on a website or an app. Then, you decide what you want to do with it: shred it, ship it, or share the PDF with someone else who might need it. <h3>Earth Class Mail comparisons </h3>Earth Class offers virtual street addresses in more than 80 cities across the country, along with services that include secure processing, sorting, opening, scanning, shipping, shredding, and<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit"> check deposit</a>. You can easily access all your mail online using the cloud storage software of your choice. Earth Class is compatible with<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/integrations"> nearly a dozen platforms</a>, including Google Drive, Dropbox, and QuickBooks.<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">Sign up for a virtual address now</a>.

When you see the mailing address of a local business, you probably don’t think twice about it. You might recognize the street name or at least have an idea what part of town it’s in based on the zip code. 

When you see the mailing address of a local business, you probably don’t think twice about it. You might recognize the street name or at least have an idea what part of town it’s in based on the zip code.  But increasing numbers of remote or home-based businesses don’t have a storefront or office building. Business owners need a mailing address for marketing and to protect their privacy.

How to get an address somewhere you don’t live

Does your business need an office or just need the address? Based on some of the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2021/12/27/this-is-the-future-of-remote-work-in-2021/?sh=162f0cdc1e1d">early research</a>, you might not need the office space for long. Many <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/whats-next-for-remote-work-an-analysis-of-2000-tasks-800-jobs-and-nine-countries">data analysts</a> seem to think the fluorescent-lit office crammed with cubicles will become a thing of the past. Even as the world reopens, vaccinations roll out, and it becomes safer to spend time indoors with others, remote work may be here to stay.<h2>Remote working trends </h2>Before 2020, only about 20 percent of workers did their work at home, according to a <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/12/09/how-the-coronavirus-outbreak-has-and-hasnt-changed-the-way-americans-work/">Pew Institute research</a> study.  That number jumped to more than 73% at the height of the pandemic, but it hasn’t receded as fast. Another survey from <a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2020-04-03-gartner-cfo-surey-reveals-74-percent-of-organizations-to-shift-some-employees-to-remote-work-permanently2">Gartner CFO</a>, suggests that up to 74% of businesses plan to make some employees’ remote work permanent.<h2>Benefits of a remote businesses with no office </h2>Some businesses transitioned to fully remote offices. No real estate means they can save money they would have spent on leases, office furniture, and utilities and use it on business operations and salaries.It sounds like an ideal change for workers, too. The majority of those surveyed in the Pew study said they wanted to keep working from home. <h2>What do you need to run a remote office</h2>Making the change to permanent remote work will require some logistical planning for businesses. They need some type of centralized way to communicate, a public-facing address and a way to manage their mail, banking, and document storage.  <h2>What mailing address do you use if you have a remote office? </h2>No matter where your employees work, you still need an address to register your business, receive mail, and list on marketing materials and emails. A virtual address provides all of that, along with other business applications. Virtual mailboxes collect your postal mail without you ever walking into a post office. Instead of having letters and parcels delivered to the doorstep of your business, all mail sent to a virtual address arrives at a processing facility. There, technicians sort, open, scan and process it. Think of it as an online P.O. box.<h2>How a virtual address works </h2>A virtual address does exist in the physical realm. What’s virtual about it is that you, the recipient of the mail, neither live nor work there - nor is it a post office in the traditional sense of the word. Instead, a service accepts physical mail at the address, which gets processed in a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/prevent-mail-theft-with-a-secure-virtual-mailbox">secure sorting facility</a>. Even if you’re halfway around the world, you can access it. <h2>Flexible office locations with virtual addresses </h2>You can register a business with a virtual address in any state, although many states require this to be a street address and not a P.O. Box. Having a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> makes it possible to access your mail even if you’re working remotely from outside the state or another country.It can also establish a business presence in a state you want to expand to or operate from if you don’t live there. A virtual mailbox makes it simple to set up a business base in a city you may not even live in. <h2>Virtual addresses give you a real street address to share with the public </h2>While there are sound financial reasons to cancel a lease, the lack of physical address can create problems for your business. Without a public-facing address, you could direct all business mail to your home address. This creates a different sort of problem. Getting business mail delivered to your home may jeopardize your company’s credibility, not to mention <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/using-a-virtual-address-for-business">add privacy and security issues</a>. Some neighborhoods and cities may also have laws against operating businesses from your home.<h2>Mail scanning, processing and document management </h2>In addition to the benefit of having a physical mailing address, virtual mail providers also process your mail and manage it. Depending on your needs, you can have your mail scanned, shipped, or securely shredded. Many mail services also can automatically deposit checks for you.You can access all your pertinent mail online using the cloud storage software immediately after it has been processed. Your mail becomes a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-to-search-through-your-mail-using-earth-class-mail">text-searchable PDF </a>that you can easily send to others in your office. You don’t have to worry about mail getting lost, misplaced, or mishandled. With a virtual mailbox, the power to access your mail is always when you need it.<h3>Earth Class Mail virtual business address plans </h3>Earth Class Mail has helped businesses go virtual and paperless since 2004. Earth Class Mail offes 80+ virtual mailing addresses to choose from. In addition, our online services <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/integrations">integrate with a wide variety</a> of cloud storage solutions and accounting software, including Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, and QuickBooks.<h3>Solutions for you to get your mail from anywhere:</h3>Our virtual <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">business addresses</a> are best for businesses that rarely receive mail, since you will be billed for each item received.<ul><li><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">MailBox </a>plans are well suited for start-up businesses and small businesses with fewer than 20 recipients and less than 100 pieces of mail a month.</li><li><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">MailRoom </a>plans can have unlimited recipients and higher volumes of mail. Customers that expect more than 250 pieces of mail a month can create a customized plan. </li></ul>If you need a check deposited,  you can also add on that feature. You can manage your mail and packages from anywhere in the world, on any device. This allows you to work without restrictions and frees you from the hassle and limitation of postal mail. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">Sign up for a virtual address today</a>

Making the change to permanent remote work will require some logistical planning for businesses. They need some type of centralized way to communicate, a public-facing address and a way to manage their mail, banking, and document storage.  

Does your business need an office or just need the address?  Based on some of the early research, you might need the office space for long.

Why You Might Need A Virtual Address for Your Business

Can you use a virtual address for your business? 

Are you ready to redefine the term “business trip?” Remote workers who have the flexibility to work from anywhere now can do just that. With COVID-related travel restrictions lifted and borders reopening, why work from home when you can embrace international travel? Some countries recruit remote workers with special visas just for them. These digital nomad visas allow employees to work for their U.S.-based job abroad. Some countries even launched specific programs to recruit remote workers to help the local economy recover from the pandemic. Barbados launched a “Barbados Welcome Stamp” program and one plan calls for entire Italian communities to become remote worker hubs. Other countries might allow long-term travel and remote work without an explicit policy. While traveling for remote work might not be quite the same as doing it just for fun, it’s a middle ground if you don’t have vacation days to spare or want to make your vacation more permanent. <h2>Countries with open borders that offer visas for remote workers</h2>The remote work visa gives you a ticket to turn your travels into a lifestyle. Many countries offer mid-to-long term residence visas to location-independent businesses and remote employees. These digital nomad visas typically come with a fee ranging from $100 to $2,000 for a year-long stay. While each country has different restrictions, many of them require proof of income. Visas last anywhere from six months to two years, but many of the programs allow you to reapply and extend your stay. <h4>These countries offer specific visas for remote workers:</h4><ul><li>Anguilla </li><li>Antigua &amp; Barbuda</li><li>Aruba - Limited to 90 days </li><li>Australia</li><li>Barbados</li><li>Bermuda</li><li>Cayman Islands</li><li>Costa Rica - Limited to self-employed or freelancers</li><li>Croatia</li><li>Czech Republic</li><li>Dubai (UAE)</li><li>Estonia</li><li>Georgia</li><li>Germany </li><li>Iceland</li><li>Italy - <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rebeccahughes/2021/04/26/italys-1-billion-project-to-lure-digital-nomads-to-remote-villages/?sh=3cb0dab2a339">Limited to certain regions</a> </li><li>Jamaica</li><li>Mauritius</li><li>Mexico</li><li>Montserrat </li><li>Norway</li><li>Portugal</li></ul>Other countries don’t offer visas designated for remote workers, but may not place restrictions on working. <h2>Countries with borders closed to the U.S.</h2>A U.S. passport lost all the power it once had in 2020. In the height of the coronavirus outbreak, <a href="https://covidborderaccountability.org">189 countries closed their borders</a>. Those restrictions have eased, notably in May 2021, when the European Union announced borders will reopen to people vacationing from other countries. Not all of them will accept visitors from overseas, however. For example, you can visit Italy from the U.S., but if you want to go to France, you must prove you have a compelling reason for the trip aside from tourism. <h2>Requirements for remote work visa travel</h2>Before you apply for the visa, gather all the documentation. Besides your passport, you may also need:<ul><li>Vaccination history</li><li>Background/criminal record check</li><li>Proof of income</li><li>Proof of employment or company ownership</li><li>Health and/or travel insurance</li><li>Proof of accommodations</li></ul>Some countries like the Cayman Islands require a notarized reference letter from your bank. <h2>COVID restrictions in countries with remote worker visas</h2>While countries have lifted some COVID restrictions, things still haven’t gone back to normal. Many countries don’t have a high percentage of fully vaccinated people. When considering travel, you’ll have to factor in health regulations, including pandemic protocols, rules for wearing a mask, and vaccination policies. Working remotely while traveling abroad isn’t exactly a new idea. It’s been around almost as long as the internet has. Given the current state of global health, remote workers had to reevaluate their travel plans.The Centers for Disease Control compiled a comprehensive list of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/map-and-travel-notices.html">travel recommendations</a>, with countries organized by COVID risk level. <h2>Which countries are best for remote workers?</h2>When you’re deciding where to live, consider language, culture, and even the time zone you’ll be in if you have frequent virtual meetings. Some countries require you to pay local income tax. Plus, the internet connection strength will likely be crucial. Many of the countries in the Caribbean islands were - or still are - British colonies, so English is spoken fluently there. These countries include Anguilla, Antigua &amp; Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and Montserrat. Costa Rica, Mexico, and Spain are predominantly Spanish-speaking countries. Don’t be surprised if the language still takes some getting used to: dialects can vary wildly between continents, countries, and even regions. You’ll also want to consider the cost of living and culture of the country you’re going to. As a foreigner, you won’t necessarily be expected to assimilate with the general population -  but it’s still important to understand what you’re getting yourself into. <h2>Tools to prepare you to become a digital nomad </h2>Moving - even temporarily - to another place takes some preparation. You’ll need to select a bank with minimal international fees that you can access . If it’s a U.S. based bank, it may also require a U.S. address. You may also need a U.S. address if you’re self-employed and need to keep your business based here. A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> With<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/"> Earth Class Mail</a> can help you in your transition. Virtual mailboxes allow you to select from 80+ addresses in the U.S. and access the mail you receive there online. Our <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">virtual mailbox plans</a> provide a simple solution for globe-trotting workers and entrepreneurs. You can even operate your business remotely with one of our <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">business plans</a>.To learn more about what Earth Class Mail can do for you, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">compare plans</a> or <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/contact">get in touch today</a>.

Why work from home when you can embrace international travel?  Some countries recruit remote workers with special visas just for them. 

Remote workers who have the flexibility to work from anywhere now can do just that. With COVID-related travel restrictions lifted and borders reopening, why work from home when you can embrace international travel?  Some countries recruit remote workers with special visas just for them. 

What countries offer remote worker visas?

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, working remotely became a necessity. But it didn’t give you much freedom when you could only get a change of scenery by going from one corner of your home to another. After more than a year of closed borders, travel bans, and stay-at-home orders, workers who are still remote have opportunity and some freedom. If you plan on making up for the year at home with a year of travel, you can — you’ll just need to set up the logistics to make it happen. <img className="blog-content-image" width=710 height=532 src=//images.ctfassets.net/nkeg78xbl0jr/3GMmgk6flHQOlTZ8oBzejV/634d3b51050c2f8207264f314b5205dc/AdobeStock_313540655__1_.jpeg /><h2>Will your job let you keep working remotely? </h2>Early research indicates as much as 25 percent of businesses may keep remote work options for employees. A survey of more than 100 U.S. companies found that leadership considered remote work a success. Many small business owners don’t envision requiring everyone to go back to the office 40 hours a week, at least not yet. With unused vacation days accumulating, now might be the time to combine remote work with traveling the world. <h2> Remote jobs that allow you to work from anywhere </h2>If you can work remotely from anywhere, there’s no reason not to mix business with a bit of pleasure. A change of scenery can boost productivity by breaking you out of a monotony-induced slump. Not every job can be accomplished hundreds of miles from the office. Front-line and service jobs don’t have the flexibility that other jobs provide. But with video calls, cloud computing, and virtual office services, some industries fit well with remote workers. They include: Computer and tech <ul><li>Legal </li><li>Business and finance</li><li>Arts and design </li><li>Office administration and support</li><li>Architecture and engineering</li></ul><h2>Tools to help you travel while working</h2>If you’re hoping to travel while working, ensure you pick a location with  reliable internet service since it’s the thread that links you back to your job. Check to make sure the vacation rental or hotel has strong Wi-Fi signals and won’t bill you daily for its use.If you’re traveling often or to somewhere rural, consider buying a data sim card or signing up for a <a href="https://www.skyroam.com/">Skyroam account</a>, which would eliminate the need to hunt for connections. <h2>How to take care of your mail when traveling long term </h2>You might be able to lease out your home or leave as a lease ends, but that won’t tie up all your loose ends.What happens to the letters and packages that arrive for you while you’re away -- or any payments you receive in the mail? Traveling shouldn’t leave you stressing about the things you left behind. If you plan to travel long-term or indefinitely, a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> might help to set your mind at ease. Earth Class Mail offers <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/prevent-mail-theft-with-a-secure-virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox services</a> perfect for extended vacations or long-term traveling. A virtual mailbox receives physical mail on your behalf at an address you select, scans it, and provides it for your review. Unlike a P.O. box, a virtual mailbox comes with a physical address and can receive deliveries of all types. <h2>Can you run a business remotely while traveling?</h2>Collecting a salary while working remotely is one thing. What about when you are the boss? If you run a small business, you can stay connected with remote employees while on a long-term vacation. It’s possible to even run your business while living abroad or traveling around the country. As long as you set up a system to have face to face time with employees through video calls and track productivity, why not operate your business from a vacation home or as you travel from one business location to the other?When operating a remote-based business, you’ll need some way of keeping your operations centralized.A fixed communication system, such as Slack or Microsoft Teams, that allows your team to communicate without flooding each others’ email inboxes can help keep your employees informed.File transfer systems and group cloud storage will also help keep your business information accessible anywhere.Like permanent travelers, a business mailing address can help keep your business’ home presence even without employees sitting up at an office.<h2>Mail solutions for remote businesses </h2>No matter if you’re scrapping the office permanently or just traveling away from it for awhile, a virtual mailroom can help automate your mail and keep a permanent home base while also streamlining other business operations. Earth Class Mail’s business solution, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">MailRoom</a>, streamlines your operations to make managing your business while you’re away easy. You can set up automatic check deposits if you regularly receive payments in the mail. With MailRoom, your mail is sent to a virtual address, where it’s sorted at our secure processing facility. Then, it’s scanned, turned into a high-resolution PDF with full text search capabilities. It&#39;s then sent to your inbox using the cloud storage software of your choice. Earth Class Mail integrates with Bill.com, Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, Xero, and QuickBooks, helping you maintain business-as-usual, no matter where you are in the world. The important documents you need hard copies of can be shipped anywhere in the world.<h2>Taking a remote work vacation</h2>Remote work offers you a sweet taste of freedom. Why not take advantage of it?The <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/the-benefits-of-going-100-remote">remote work model</a> made it possible for even the busiest of employees to enjoy some travel. And with Earth Class Mail, you won’t have to spend another moment fretting about the state of your mail while you’re away. Whether you choose to scan, shred, or ship your mail, you can rest assured that your private data is in good hands. You don’t have to worry about mail stacking up on your doorstep or a nosy relative rifling through your private documents. Whether you’re a business owner with a passion for travel or a remote worker that needs a vacation, Earth Class Mail can change the way you think about your mail. Discover the freedom that comes with a working life that allows short-term or long-term travel—<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">choose your virtual address today</a>!

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, working remotely became a necessity. But it didn’t give you much freedom when you could only get a change of scenery by going from one corner of your home to another. 

If you're still working remotely and can work from anywhere, now might be the time to travel while working. Running a business remotely or working remotely is easier with a virtual mailbox. 

Is it time to take a remote work vacation?

If you’ve never had a package or piece of mail stolen, consider yourself lucky. Research suggests that half of people in the United States fell victim to some type of mail theft in 2020.Making your mail digital can keep your mail safer - as long as you find a virtual mailbox provider that follows <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/company/security">security protocols</a>.A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> receives your mail, digitizes it, and you can view and manage your mail on a website platform or app. When you want to, you can have your original mail forwarded or decide to shred it.At every step, there is potential for security threats if you aren’t careful. Before you sign up for a virtual address, check the company’s policies and business operations.<h2>Mail security checklist for virtual mail providers</h2>When picking a mail service to access your postal mail online, consider each company’s security procedures.Here’s the minimum you should expect:<ul><li>Background checked employees</li><li>Secured mail processing facility</li><li>Video monitoring of mail facility</li><li>Restricted access to areas with open mail or mail scanning</li><li>Platform to access your mail safe from cyber attacks</li><li>Limited access to user logins for each account user</li><li>Item tracking</li><li>Proper storage and disposal of mail</li><li>Control of what happens to your after it’s scanned</li><li>Employee training on privacy protocols, such as HIPAA</li><li>Secure check deposit and shredding</li></ul><img className="blog-content-image" width=752 height=501 src=//images.ctfassets.net/nkeg78xbl0jr/68uCkx9UI8WT2XQMgTXZkA/1db9d14bb99682e63abd8bb4236ebfad/pexels-mikhail-nilov-7534101.jpg /><h2>Earth Class Mail and security</h2>Earth Class Mail takes our customers’ privacy and security into account at every step. Cameras monitor activity throughout the operations center, where only authorized employees have access. We also run background checks on all employees and train them on complying with privacy laws, such as HIPAA requirements. Earth Class Mail also achieved <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/earth-class-mail-is-officially-soc-2-type-1-certified">SOC-2 certification</a>. This designation means we met all security recommendations for handling our customers’ data. We’re also audited on meeting these standards to keep our certification active.The security requirements cover both the physical handling of mail, the digital files we create, and the platform where our customers access their postal mail online.Some of those rules include encrypted emails, firewalls, intrusion detection, and quality assurance protocols. <h2>Are all virtual mailboxes safe?</h2>Most <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/competitors">virtual mail providers</a> follow some security protocols, but don’t always disclose their specific policies for mail processing or if they screen employees.Like Earth Class Mail, many have video monitoring of the mail processing facilities. However, if these companies have security certifications, they don’t share that information on their websites.<h2>Anytime Mailbox and security</h2><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/competitors/anytime-mailbox">Anytime Mailbox</a> offers hundreds of virtual addresses across the county. They license a software product to business mailing centers, which allows those places to operate as a virtual mailbox provider.Customers use a platform to access their mail created by Anytime Mailbox.But, the volume of address vendors comes at a price. Your mail will only be as safe as the individual franchise owner operating the location you select. Policies vary for how each address vendor secures their building, background checks employees, or trains them on how to dispose of mail.<h2>iPostal Mail and security</h2>Likewise,  <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/competitors/ipostal1">iPostal Mail</a> relies on partnerships with work spaces and business mail centers. The people who process your mail work for those partners, so security protocols vary depending on which address you select.<h2>Protect against stolen mail and identity theft with a virtual mailbox</h2>On their own, most individual pieces of mail won’t give identity thieves the crucial personal information they need. Over time, though, information in your mail combined with data available about you online could lead to a stolen identity.  It’s especially concerning considering many of the most important documents come in the mail -  your IRS documents with you social security number, credit cards, and bank account information often come to your mailbox. If you’re concerned about mail theft, virtual mailbox services can provide the solution you need without the need to visit the post office. You select a real street address and have a safer way to receive mail.  You’ll also get other benefits, such as check deposit, automatic recycling of junk mail, and easy digital organization of your mail.Ready to get started? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Find a plan</a> that works for you.

Making your mail digital can keep your mail safer - as long as you find a virtual mailbox provider that follows security protocols. 

Virtual mailboxes can protect you from identity theft if you select a company that follows the virtual mailbox security checklist 

Is a virtual mailbox safe from identity theft?

The most sensitive documents collect in one spot before making it to the safety of your home: your mailbox. The original copy of a social security card comes in the mail. Your new credit card arrives in a thick white envelope. You can&#39;t just pick up a renewed passport - it arrives in your mailbox.Although your mailbox won&#39;t get hacked in a data breach, worse could happen. Mail theft and mail tampering endanger your personal information. <h2>Mail theft statistics</h2>With all those sensitive documents sitting in your mailbox, you need to keep it secure. Consider these facts about mail fraud:<ul><li>Mail theft grew by 600 percent between 2017 and 2020, according to the postal inspection service</li><li>11 million people in the United States had a package stolen in 2020</li><li>The Federal Trade Commission received over 2.1 million fraud reports from consumers in 2020</li></ul><h2>How does identity theft happen with your mail?</h2>You’d be in trouble if identity thieves intercepted your bank account statement or stole an important document, like a new driver&#39;s license.Those items can give identity thieves enough information to open checking accounts, take out loans in your name, or access your financial  accounts.It’s not just those high-priority mail pieces that jeopardize your personal information. Even a package that contains an online purchase might include a packing slip with enough information for a thief to access an online account. That information, combined with your <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/protecting-your-personal-information-online">personal information available online</a>, can give them information about your payment method.<h2>Protect against stolen mail and identity theft with a virtual mailbox</h2>Most people don’t watch their mailbox 24/7. It’s inevitable that some mail will sit in your mailbox while you’re out of town or when you’re too busy to retrieve it. Some office spaces simply stack mail for your suite outside the door if no one is around to receive it or use a mailroom that isn’t secure. To protect yourself from mail theft, consider using a virtual mailbox provider. A virtual mailbox digitizes your postal mail, making it as easy to retrieve as email - while giving you enhanced protection against identity theft. <h2>How secure is a virtual mailbox?</h2>If you opt for a<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox"> virtual mailbox,</a> select a provider that prioritizes security.Earth Class Mail processes all mail in a secure facility, monitored 24/7 with cameras and staffed by security experts. Unlike its competitors, Earth Class Mail also achieved <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/earth-class-mail-is-officially-soc-2-type-1-certified">SOC-2 certification</a>, a designation indicating the company met all recommended security requirements. These include  the receipt and management of mail and safety guidelines for facilities and its employees.Our security measures extend to our employees. Every technician handling mail must pass a background check, undergo intensive security training, and complete HIPAA training. <h2>Virtual mailboxes and online security</h2>Virtual mailboxes ease the threat of physical theft of mail. Earth Class Mail also keeps your digital copies secure. Earth Class Mail undergoes regular penetration tests, where cyber security experts attempt to find any digital vulnerabilities. We address any weak spots in our computer system to protect against a data breach.  Using a virtual mailbox can also <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/protecting-your-personal-information-online">protect your personal information</a> with an address other than your residence to use for business mail or anything sensitive.  When you use a virtual mailbox, you can still get the physical copy of those important documents.  <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-forwarding">Just request to ship it</a> to wherever you are in the world. When it’s a sensitive document like a new credit card, you can choose from multiple options to track its delivery.<h3>Other mail security tips</h3>Keeping track of your personal information requires diligence. Be sure to also:<ul><li>Sign up for a free credit report and report any unusual activity</li><li>Shred unwanted documents that contain personal information before throwing them out.</li><li>Don&#39;t give personal information out over the phone or internet unless you started the contact.</li><li>Check expiration dates on credit cards. Contact the issuer if you don’t get a replacement before they expire.</li><li>Match credit card receipts against monthly bills and check financial statements for accuracy.</li></ul>Want to know how a virtual mailbox works? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/how-virtual-mail-works">Learn more here</a>

The most sensitive documents collect in one spot before making it to the safety of your home: your mailbox. 

Virtual mailboxes can prevent stolen mail and increase the security of your sensitive documents 

Prevent mail theft with a virtual mailbox 

Prevent mail theft with a secure virtual mailbox

About half of businesses in the United States operate from people’s homes. Even more startups - 69% of them— are home-based businesses, a number growing with the effects of the pandemic on small businesses. Those remote businesses may not need an office, but they do need a mailing address to list on legal paperwork, business banking accounts, business cards and marketing emails. Many people resort to using their home address for their business. But should you?Should you use your home address as your business address? When you use your home address as your business address, it jeopardizes your privacy and safety. Your business mailing address becomes part of the information associated with your company. It will be listed on the Secretary of State’s website and sold to marketers and other companies that purchase lists of new businesses. Besides your business mail, your home mailbox will get full of more<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/get-rid-of-junk-mail-while-helping-the-environment"> junk mail</a> and your home address becomes publicly associated with your company. If you use your home address for your business, expect to blur the lines between your work and personal lives.A home address will hurt your public image if you want your business to appear large or more established. It could also invite work home more than you bargained for even while working from home. You likely don’t want clients or customers showing up at your house, especially anyone upset or angry.Business addresses on emailsIn 2003, a law passed limiting spam emails. One rule it added requires every email sent by businesses to include a postal address.If you plan to send marketing emails, you probably don’t want to advertise where you live to your entire list of potential customers.Your business address privacyWhat address should you use to register your business when you don’t want to use your home address? A virtual address gives you an actual street address without spending money on office rent. It will also keep your home address private and your personal life separate.As a business owner, you’re expected to provide your mailing address on many items, including invoices, email signatures, contracts, social media address listings, and marketing materials such as business cards, brochures, websites, and flyers. Do I need a street address for my business? For many businesses. you don’t need office space, just the physical mailing address. As a business owner, you can use a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> in the place of a traditional P.O. Box or physical location. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-a-virtual-mailbox">What is a virtual mailbox</a>? A virtual mailbox and virtual address provider will digitize your mail so you can access mail and your important documents online from anywhere. Virtual addresses are real street addresses, but your company just does not occupy the address space. What should you use for your business mailing addressResist the urge to list your home address and instead consider using a virtual mailbox service. Virtual addresses give your company a public address without the overhead costs of an office building. When you list a virtual address, you’re not <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/protecting-your-personal-information-online">only protecting yourself and your personal information</a>, you also give your business a more professional image. P.O. box vs. a virtual mailboxA P.O. Box will give you an address, but you will still need to make trips to your postal office to pick up your mail.  As a business owner, who has the time for tedious tasks like that, especially if you go by only to find it empty?  A virtual business address solves the problem of needing a physical street address. Your incoming mail will be scanned and sent to you via email or available to check in an app. When you need a hard copy of an important document, you just request it. Plus, you’ll have unlimited cloud storage of all your documents, synced with the web storage service of your choice, making<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-to-search-through-your-mail-using-earth-class-mail"> keeping track of your important business </a>documents easier. How to get a virtual business address?It’s simple. Once you’ve decided on your preferred virtual mailbox and address provider, you can sign up for a location of your choosing. Earth Class Mail offers 80+ premier addresses in all 50 U.S. states.<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Sign up for a virtual address or mailbox today with Earth Class Mail!</a>

About half of businesses in the United States operate from people’s homes. Even more startups - 69% of them— are home-based businesses, a number growing with the effects of the pandemic on small businesses. 

About half of businesses in the United States operate from people’s homes. Even more startups - 69% of them— are home-based businesses, a number growing with the effects of the pandemic on small businesses.  Those remote businesses may not need an office, but they do need a mailing address to list on legal paperwork, business banking accounts, business cards and marketing emails. Many people resort to using their home address for their business. But should you?

Using a virtual address for business | Earth Class Mail

Using a virtual address for business

Every day, we share vast amounts of personal data and information online. We share photos from a Bora Bora vacation on Facebook. You might register your business with a home address. It all adds up to a massive amount of personal information accessible to anyone with a computer.It may feel like no one has privacy in a digital world, where oversharing is the norm. You can take several steps to protect your personal information - steps that go beyond just adjusting your social media privacy settings.To keep confidential information private, it helps to protect your personal details everywhere they may be. We all realize not to publish our social security number, but other details can also jeopardize your privacy.<h2>Virtual mailboxes and mail privacy </h2>Beyond your email address, there’s a much more important address you may want to keep private: where you live. You may want to limit the amount of personal information tied to your home address or want to keep your home address completely private. Either way, using a virtual mailing address instead of your home address protects your personal information.While you could just rent a P.O. Box at the post office, that would involve inconvenient trips to what might be an empty mailbox. Instead, you could consider a virtual mailbox. A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> can keep your residential address off important documents such as LLC paperwork, business cards, and more. With a virtual mailbox, you’ll choose an<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses"> address</a> for your mail to be sent to. Your mail is scanned and uploaded to a cloud-based service for you to access from anywhere. We recommend using a virtual address for any mail except what your friends and family send you. This gives you the ultimate address privacy protection. <h2>Create secondary emails </h2>Having more than one email address can also secure your personal information. Distinct email accounts provide added security and keep sensitive information limited. They will also help you organize separate areas of your life and avoid clogging up your inbox.Create an email address specifically for online shopping. This keeps your primary email address from making it to online public forums. Don&#39;t include your first or last name in this address, so you are not identifiable. You can do this for various areas of your life: personal, work, online shopping, or online accounts on websites. These sites are all places you give information to that are not only likely to spam you - they collect your information. You can even use one email address to send emails and one for social networks, to keep social networks from knowing what people you send emails to by cross-referencing your friends’ social media profiles with you.  <h2>Business address registration without an office </h2>When starting a business, you’ll need an address to list on your registration paperwork. If you don’t need an office building, you may not have an office address to list. Many business owners list their residential address on paperwork.We don’t recommend this practice because your registered<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business"> business address</a> becomes public information. This makes it part of marketing databases and listed in registration documents. Having a virtual address will create a buffer between your personal and professional lives without having to rent an office or make trips to a P.O. Box.<h2>Keep where you live secret</h2>If you own your home, it’s likely that your information is readily available online thanks to the public tax office in your area. To get that information disassociated from your name, you need to file your homeownership under a business, such as an LLC, or a private trust. Then you can use a virtual mailbox as the registered address for the LLC. <h2>Hide your phone number online</h2>Our phones are a direct link to our lives, so you may want to protect your phone number from marketing calls or directory listings. We recommend setting up a phone number through <a href="https://voice.google.com/u/0/about">Google Voice</a> and have it directed to your personal phone or an email address. You can connect your Google Voice account to one of your alias email accounts. This way, you never have to pass out your personal phone number to anyone that you don’t want to.Interested in getting a mailing address that can keep your personal information safe? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing?hsa_cam=10940454924&hsa_grp=109113866562&hsa_mt=e&hsa_src=g&hsa_ad=459196232109&hsa_acc=3305771729&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_kw=earth+class+mail&utm_term=earth+class+mail&hsa_tgt=kwd-307083642438&utm_campaign=%5BAUG+2020%5D+ECM+-+Branded+&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_ver=3&gclid=Cj0KCQjws-OEBhCkARIsAPhOkIaHh17ohGJXBVl5WnAVObqOzyiURtRt0Jxr78mPYI0Ek-L0qkS_USkaAskSEALw_wcB">Click here</a>

Every day, we share vast amounts of personal data and information online. We share photos from a Bora Bora vacation on Facebook.

Every day, we share vast amounts of personal data and information online. We share photos from a Bora Bora vacation on Facebook. You might register your business with a home address. It all adds up to a massive amount of personal information accessible to anyone with a computer.

Protecting your personal information online | Earth Class Mail

Protecting your personal information online

<h1>How to search through your mail using Earth Class Mail</h1>Almost everyone - 98% of people - open their mail the day they receive it, according to a U.S. Postal Service<a href="https://www.pb.com/docs/US/pdf/Microsite/Nonprofit/ed_np_getyourmailopened_05MailMoment.pdf"> study</a>. However, keeping it organized and finding a certain document when you need it can be another story. After you open your mail comes the sorting, searching, and organization. Sorting through mail can be time-consuming and tedious. On average, Americans spend<a href="https://prowritingaid.com/en/Analysis/WebEditor/three%20hours"> three hours</a> each week reading and sorting through mail. When sorting, most people will pull out any personal letters or cards and then are left with those pesky white envelopes. That mail then piles up on surfaces all over the place—making it easy to lose track of and get overwhelmed by the stacks of paper.One solution: A<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox"> virtual mailbox</a>, which makes organizing your mail convenient and simple. Your mail becomes digitized and lost, cluttered papers are left in the past. <h2>How a virtual mailbox helps organize paper mail clutter</h2>With a virtual mailbox through Earth Class Mail, sorting begins the moment your mail arrives at our scanning facilities. Earth Class Mail’s team of operators acts as a spam filter for your physical mail. You see the important things, with promotional materials, catalogs, or coupons automatically sorted out. According to the postal service,<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/get-rid-of-junk-mail-while-helping-the-environment"> junk mail</a> makes up more than half of all the mail processed each year. That means we’ll save you half the time, immediately.<h2>Digitized mail makes organization easy</h2>With all your incoming mail digitized and sorted, record-keeping and filing become simpler than ever. Your mail is organized and left to be viewed at your disposal whenever. Your scanned mail transfers into high-resolution<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-scanning"> PDFs</a> that you can access anywhere, anytime. A full text search feature allows you to search any keyword related to the specific item you are looking for, saving you countless hours digging through piles of mail. Once you find your mail you need using the full text search feature, we make it easy to use that mail how you want to. All of our<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing"> plans</a> boast unlimited digital copies of your mail. <h2>No more misplaced or lost mail </h2>All Earth Class Mail plans offer unlimited cloud storage of these scans, as well as 30 days of free physical storage. Cloud storage combined with text-searching means you can sort through a lifetime of documents for exactly what you’re looking for, even if you received it years before. Need a physical copy? We can ship it to you. When you ask, we forward your mail wherever you want.l allowing you to control your shipment: what it includes, how to package it, and timelines and insurance. We’ll even help with customs forms if needed.<h2>A virtual mailbox saves your business time</h2>In a business setting, we often need to share important documents between departments or team members. With a virtual mailbox, we do the heavy lifting for you. Once you find the document you want to send to others, you can send them a copy without visiting the copy room with a click of the “share” button. When it’s time to check that mail, anyone from your team can log into your Earth Class account from any device. We customize<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom"> MailRoom</a> plans based on business needs, so you can add as many or as few people to the account. Either way, we take care of some of the most labor-intensive parts of your business, organize your mail, leaving you time to focus on more important things.Interested in learning how virtual mailboxes could work for your home or office? Learn more <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing?tab=mailbox">here</a>.

Almost everyone - 98% of people - open their mail the day they receive it, according to a U.S. Postal Service study. However, keeping it organized and finding a certain document when you need it can be another story. 

Almost everyone - 98% of people - open their mail the day they receive it, according to a U.S. Postal Service study. However, keeping it organized and finding a certain document when you need it can be another story. After you open your mail comes the sorting, searching, and organization. 

How to search through your mail using Earth Class Mail | Earth Class Mail

How to search through your mail using Earth Class Mail

Most households and businesses in the United States receive hundreds of pieces of mail a year. Junk mail makes up more than half of that, but what remains can often be important. Legal documents, check payments, insurance, tax, and banking forms all typically come in the mail.Once those papers are in your home or office, you need to organize them so it doesn’t turn into clutter. Ever lost an important piece of mail amid stacks of paper all over your house? A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> can keep that headache from happening. Virtual mailboxes contain scanned copies of physical mail sent to an address you select. You can then access those scans from your computer, tablet, or phone—anywhere, anytime. Virtual mailboxes can be useful for remote businesses, people who travel often, live abroad, or those who don’t want to have to handle physical mail again.<h2>How virtual mailboxes help you focus only on important mail. </h2>There’s nothing worse than checking the mailbox and seeing the piles of mail that you’ll have to sort through. To decrease that clutter, you need a system.  Thanks to virtual mailboxes, managing that mail doesn’t have to involve sorting through a giant pile of envelopes. In fact, looking for a specific piece of mail you received months ago can be as easy as a Google search. With an Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox, your mail is automatically scanned and converted into a high-resolution PDF with full text search, meaning you can search any keyword and find your mail with ease.With a virtual mailbox plan with Earth Class Mail, removing and sorting through that clutter gets easier. We review any mail that isn’t first class mail for<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/green?utm_medium=social&utm_source=LinkedIn&utm_campaign=ECM+Green+Initiatives+Landing+Page"> recycling </a>on your behalf. Our team of operators acts as a spam filter for your physical mail, so you see the important things, but don&#39;t have to sift through promotional materials, catalogs, or coupons. With all your incoming mail digitized and pre-sorted, your record-keeping and filing become hassle-free. This allows you to skip the inconvenience of sorting through mail, and creates a paperless document storage solution—keeping the mail off your desk and easily accessed online.With a virtual mailbox from Earth Class Mail, you have the option to store, share, and shred the postal mail that hits your inbox. Recycling this unwanted mail helps contribute to the 12,000 pounds of paper we recycle each week. We also make sure to<a href="https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/03/13/fix-recycling-america/"> recycle everything properly.</a><h2>How virtual mailboxes improve organization</h2>When you use a virtual mailbox, your mail becomes digital. Armed with PDFs of all your important documents, you can easily sort or search through your mail to keep all your important papers organized. Earth Class Mail virtual mailboxes work with many of the most popular apps.  Your account can link scanned PDFs automatically to any cloud storage provider or systems such as Google Drive and Dropbox. Checks can also be deposited for you automatically and integrated with most accounting software. Other <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/integrations">powerful integrations</a> from Bill.com, Intuit Quickbooks, Xero, and Box can save you time.A virtual mailbox can help create flexibility, provide organization, and increase efficiency in your life. You’ll need to find a service that prioritizes these values. Ready to organize your life? Find a plan that best fits your needs <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">here.</a>

Most households and businesses in the United States receive hundreds of pieces of mail a year. Junk mail makes up more than half of that, but what remains can often be important. 

A virtual mailbox can help create flexibility, provide organization, and increase efficiency in your life. You’ll need to find a service that prioritizes these values. Ready to organize your life? Find a plan that best fits your needs with Earth Class Mail  

Organize your mail and eliminate clutter with a virtual mailbox | Earth Class Mail

Organize your mail and eliminate clutter with a virtual mailbox

You can’t eliminate your carbon usage completely  — every person and business uses some type of energy that affects the environment. So how exactly do companies, governments, and organizations become carbon neutral?It’s not impossible. It requires you to put the same amount of resources back into the environment as you take.That’s where carbon offset programs can help. <img className="blog-content-image" width=600 height=335 src=//images.ctfassets.net/nkeg78xbl0jr/5VTlojaJ6RMQqRUY5HbxSJ/d9649a4dc1e7f6db0d04f30c1dcbb413/Grassroots_Carbon_Photos-42.jpg /><h2>What are carbon credits?</h2>Carbon credits create an exchange between those wanting to reduce their carbon footprint with the people and programs helping the environment.For example, it’s better for the environment when farmers and ranchers allow fields to regenerate. But it’s costly and affects their profits.Carbon offset programs, such as<a href="https://buildgrassroots.com/"> Grassroots Carbon,</a> connect farmers and ranchers with green businesses. Grassroots Carbon partners with farmers and ranchers to underwrite the costs they incur by practicing sustainable farming. Businesses that want to offset their carbon footprint purchase carbon credits, which go to the farmers. <h2>How big is my carbon footprint?</h2>First, measure your carbon footprint so you know your starting point. Plenty of<a href="https://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx"> tools</a> can estimate your carbon footprint. Those are educated guesses. You need details if you want to be certain that you are carbon neutral. <a href="https://greenfeet.com/">GreenFeet</a>, a software platform that calculates carbon usage, can audit your carbon emissions.<h2>Ways to reduce your carbon footprint </h2>Aside from carbon credits, you can also reduce your energy use and waste. That’s one reason people and businesses have gone paperless.Digitizing your mail can dramatically reduce how much paper you use. That’s where a virtual mailbox can help. With a virtual mailbox with Earth Class Mail, your important documents become digital and we recycle your junk mail and any other mail you don’t need.We’ve always recycled junk mail and other mail our customers don’t want. Every week, we recycle over<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/get-rid-of-junk-mail-while-helping-the-environment"> 6 tons of junk mail</a> and other unwanted mail. Our customers’ mail recycling adds up to save over 1,000 trees a year. That’s why on<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/green"> Earth Day 2021,</a> we celebrated our customers’ efforts. We partnered with the National Forest Foundation to plant a tree for each customer. We’ve also committed to planting a tree each time a new customer signs up for the rest of the year.Taking care of the environment requires more than mail recycling or tree planting. To become an eco-friendly business, we realized we need to make bigger changes in all the ways we do business. <h2>Earth Class Mail’s goal to become carbon neutral</h2>Earth Class Mail set a goal of becoming carbon neutral by the end of 2022. To begin, we’re working with GreenFeet to measure our carbon footprint and bought carbon credits from Grassroots Carbon. We also help thousands of businesses across the United States digitize their mail.  Businesses can choose to have checks deposited automatically and pick from more than 80 virtual addresses in major cities throughout the country.  Interested in digitizing your mail?<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing"> Learn more.</a>

You can’t eliminate your carbon usage completely  — every person and business uses some type of energy that affects the environment.  So how exactly do companies, governments, and organizations become carbon neutral?

Ways to reduce your carbon footprint with carbon offsets and virtual mailboxes 

Ways to reduce your carbon footprint | Earth Class Mail Blog

Ways to reduce your carbon footprint

If it seems like you get more junk mail than anything else, it’s because it’s likely that you do. The average person receives 41 pounds of junk mail each year.Marketing mail - packages of coupons, postcards, and flyers - makes up more than half of the mail sent each year, according to  the<a href="https://facts.usps.com/table-facts/"> U.S. Postal Service</a>.That mail is more than just annoying. It hurts our environment. Producing a year&#39;s worth of junk mail takes 80 million to 100 million trees. Then, 5.6 million tons of junk mail ends up in landfills each year. <img className="blog-content-image" width=403 height=302 src=//images.ctfassets.net/nkeg78xbl0jr/1Z66VDn8TcXYAJC8Aw2SdQ/6feef58bed59b3bcd3edd87c11a4c6bc/IMG_5710.jpg /><h2>Recycle junk mail, see only your important mail</h2>At Earth Class Mail, we strive to keep junk mail out of our customers’ lives and out of landfills. That’s why we recycle junk mail automatically. Our operations team filters out the junk mail, but still scans the bulk mail our customers might want, such as subscription-based magazines. This way, only the mail you need to see appears in your account.Once you review your mail, you decide whether you want to have the mail forwarded to you, stored, or shredded. The majority of mail we receive ends up shredded and then recycled. Your recycled mail later becomes recycled products sold at major U.S. retailers, such as Costco. <h2>Mail recycling at Earth Class Mail</h2>We fill up more than 30 containers each week that get picked up by our recycling partner. It adds up to over 6 tons of paper recycled each week. We partner with an independent recycling operator to make sure everything we say is recycled actually will be. That’s not always true when you recycle junk mail at home. Two-thirds of items people intended to recycle ended up contaminated and then in landfills, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. When we recycle junk mail, we make sure it doesn’t get contaminated and work with an independent recycling operator to oversee the process. <h2>How we help you make mail eco-friendly</h2>Earth Class Mail has always recycled, but we weren’t sure if our customers realized how much of an impact they were making. That’s why on<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/green"> Earth Day 2021,</a> we decided to celebrate their efforts. We partnered with the<a href="https://www.nationalforests.org/"> National Forest Foundation</a> to plant a tree for each of our customers. The trees are our way of saying ‘thank you’ for recycling junk mail and their other mail.  We’ve also committed to donating a tree each time a new customer signs up for the rest of the year. As a business, we’re reducing our carbon footprint when we recycle junk mail, but we wanted to do more. We set a goal to become carbon neutral by the end of 2022.<h2>Green business benefits when you recycle junk mail </h2><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">Virtual mailboxes</a> can help your company become an eco-friendly business. Green businesses can cut down on paper waste, with digitized mail that eliminates the need to make copies of important documents. It can also increase efficiency. Mailroom employees spend about 25 percent of their time sorting through junk mail. <h2>Stop junk mail before it&#39;s sent</h2>Want to do more? You can stop junk mail before it&#39;s even mailed by taking your address off mailing lists.<a href="https://www.optoutprescreen.com/?rf=t"> Sign up to opt out</a> of pre-screened offers from credit cards and insurance agencies. That cuts down on some of the junk mail so it’s never even sent to you. Ready to make your mail green and get rid of junk mail? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/how-virtual-mail-works">Learn how it works. </a>

Junk mail is more than annoying, it hurts the environment. Learn how you can make sure all your mail is recycled without ever having to deal with it. 

Go green and get rid of junk mail when you use a virtual mailbox. All your junk mail will be recycled and your important mail automatically scanned into a searchable PDF. Perfect for paperless offices and remote businesses.

Recycle your junk mail while helping the environment | Earth Class Mail Blog

Get rid of junk mail while helping the environment 

Even before the pandemic changed the world as we once knew it, more people were choosing a nomadic lifestyle than ever before. With decent internet and cellular coverage pretty much everywhere you go, the trend moved out of its once-quirky niche and planted itself firmly on the list of viable options for anybody who was looking to do life differently. Even with all the creature comforts, living a nomadic lifestyle and being on the road 24/7 isn’t for everyone. You have to have a bit of an adventurous streak and a lot of ingenuity to make it work. Fortunately, we’ve now got plenty of experiences to draw from those who know. <h2>Nomadic Living: When Home Is Where You Are</h2>First things first, though. If you’re going to be a nomad, you need to settle on your abode. The nomad of today isn’t out wandering the badlands and living off the land. They <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/tips-for-living-and-working-in-an-rv-full-time">live in RVs</a>, converted vans, and tiny houses on wheels, and they know a thing or two about living the nomadic dream. According to some estimates, at least <a href="https://www.vox.com/first-person/2020/5/6/21249164/coronavirus-covid-19-rv-van-nomad">one million Americans</a> live in RVs. They come from all corners of the industry – some are traveling nurses, others are journeymen/women, retirees, digital nomads, or just folks with insatiable wanderlust. And business is booming. Despite showroom shutdowns forced by COVID-19 restrictions, RV sales <a href="https://www.rvtravel.com/sales967b/">exceeded all previous records</a> in 2020, increasing more than 20 percent from a year earlier. And the buyer demographics tell their own story, as it’s a market no longer dominated by retirees. Young millennial couples and others in the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2018/11/12/million-americans-live-rvs-meet-modern-nomads/">35 – 55 age group</a> have usurped the space previously occupied by folks over 60.<h3>The Traditional RV</h3>Back in the day (as they say), people would pack up their families in the RV and take extended vacations. To make it work, they needed kitchens, sleeping space, tables, storage, and bathrooms, and though the average nomad needs these things too, they usually don’t need to accommodate the whole family, kids, and all. Today, the trend is toward the compact and connected. Instead of substantially changing floorplans, most companies offer optional upgrades to suit, such as long-range Wi-Fi routers, ingenious storage solutions, and mobile office features.Most manufacturers see this as a growing segment, and it’s one that’s expected to gain a lot of traction as COVID wears on. On the plus side, life in an RV is pretty sweet – you really don’t have to compromise space or amenities, and it can be customized to suit your needs. On the downside, they’re expensive, both to purchase and maintain, so it might not be the best choice if you’re trying to live frugally. You might get lucky and buy a used RV for $10,000, but a top-of-the-line vehicle runs $100,000 and up. Trailers are a little more economical, but depending on the features and amenities you want, they could still run anywhere from $10,000 and up. <h3>Converted Vans</h3>Properly outfitted, converted vans and RVs make it easy to live, work, and play on your own terms. However, not everyone can afford a fully-loaded RV. Companies like <a href="https://dmvans.com/">Dave and Matt Vans</a> found a niche specializing in van conversions for the WFA crowd. They start with a bare-bones RAM Promaster build out your ride with customized interiors designed for your specific needs. They even offer to finance, making it even easier to take that leap. Of course, there’s only so much space in any van. Living and working out of a van would be most suitable for singles, unless you and your squeeze get along really, really well. Plus, you’ll need to figure out your shower situation – outdoor camp showers are cool in southern climes, but you’ll be motel-ing it otherwise, so it’s an extra expense you’ll need to consider. The average cost of a fully converted and customized van is about $60,000. On the plus side, it’s a self-contained vehicle you can drive and live in. On the downside, you probably will need to borrow a shower now and then, and if you’re traveling with others, it might get a little cramped<h3>Tiny Homes on Wheels</h3>Tiny houses have taken the world by storm. Like a camping trailer or fifth wheel, you’d need a large vehicle to tow it, but once you park it, you’ve got all the amenities of home without the price tag. And when the weather gets nasty, or you grow weary of the view, you can hitch it up and chase the sun. Tiny homes only look small from the outside – you’d be surprised at the innovative designs out there. Essentially, it’s a complete house in miniature, with most clocking in at about 400 square feet. But unlike its more mobile counterparts, it takes a little bit of planning and elbow grease to make it work. For example, you’d need to be able to park it for extended periods, and depending on its size, you might not be able to stay in RV parks either. That said, there are so many people who’ve embraced the nomadic tiny house movement. Many are solar-powered, others run on propane, but there are plenty of options depending on your fuel preferences. Tiny homes can also be safely outfitted with wood or pellet stoves to keep the space cozy and warm in the colder months. So, you might say that tiny homes are a little bit better suited to nomads who don’t necessarily want to do a lot of moving around. Of course, changing the scenery isn’t impossible, but the house itself is a bit more unwieldy than your average RV. On the plus side, it’s more spacious and versatile. Cost-wise, you can buy or build a tricked out tiny home for an average of $23,000 – a fair sight less than your typical RV or van conversion. Keep in mind, though; you’ll need a reliable, good-sized vehicle to haul it, so that’s an additional expense. <h3>Hotel Motel Time</h3>Of course, not every nomad needs to live in a mobile home. Many prefer to motel-hop or camp out old-school at campgrounds along the way. Fortunately, there are plenty of tools and solutions available to ensure you’ve always got an internet connection and that your postal mail ends up where it’s supposed to be. Connectivity and postal mail are two of the most vital issues for any nomad today. Without the internet, you can’t work, and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-do-you-get-mail-when-you-live-in-an-rv">without an address</a>, you’re not a business. On the internet side, investing in a <a href="https://www.skyroam.com/">Skyroam Solis</a> mobile hotspot keeps you connected from wherever you are. As for postal mail, a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> from <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/">Earth Class Mail</a> is a must-have. Simply <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">choose your address</a> and set up your account. When mail arrives at our processing facility, our HIPAA-trained technicians open, scan, and send you your correspondence as a fully searchable PDF. Sync your account with cloud services like Box.com, Dropbox, or G-Suite. We’ll even deposit incoming checks if you need us to – cash flow assured, problem solved! Is it time to leap into full-time nomadic living? If so, you’re one of more than one million Americans who are making it one of the fastest-growing trends of the modern age. But before you hit the road, make sure you’ve got your business covered with a virtual mailbox from Earth Class Mail. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/contact">Reach out today</a> to learn more about how we help.

Even before the pandemic changed the world as we once knew it, more people were choosing a nomadic lifestyle than ever before. 

Even before the pandemic changed the world as we once knew it, more people were choosing a nomadic lifestyle than ever before. With decent internet and cellular coverage pretty much everywhere you go, the trend moved out of its once-quirky niche and planted itself firmly on the list of viable options for anybody who was looking to do life differently. 

The Best RVs for a Nomadic Lifestyle | Earth Class Mail Blog

The Best RVs for a Nomadic Lifestyle

<h2>How Do I Reduce Administrative Hours Spent Doing Menial Tasks? </h2>As a small business owner, you’re always looking for ways to lean up, lower costs, and generally improve the bottom line without hindering productivity. Unfortunately, repetitive, mundane daily tasks are the bane of any company’s existence. If you’re spending way too much time doing things other than high-level business growth activities, you’re not doing yourself—or your company—any favors. But as we all know, you can’t conjure more time in the day, and sadly, you can’t print your own money. That said, there are plenty of ways to reduce the hours you spend on menial tasks and still get everything done. How, you say? What is this magical potion you speak of? Today, we’re going to take a page from some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs and talk about how they manage to “do it all” and grow their business value at the same time. <h2>Tips to Optimize Business Processes and Put Time Back in Your Day</h2><h3>Delegate Repetitive Tasks</h3>Think about all the administrative tasks you do from day-to-day. Are you taking it all on yourself, or do you have support? The truth is, not everything has to be done by you. Once you give up some of those processes, you’ll have a lot more time to devote to higher-value activities, like bringing in new accounts or innovating. If you have staff in-house that can follow directions, you can <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SbwZWnEaJ8&feature=youtu.be">create systems</a> around each task that anybody can run with. Of course, not every process requires a step-by-step procedure, but it’s never a bad idea to have something like this in your playbook. An excellent way to do it is to go through the task from start to finish and capture a video of it on your screen. Tools like <a href="https://www.loom.com/">Loom</a> are perfect for this – it’s a solution that captures your process on video along with your spoken direction as you work. Once you’ve made your video, hand it off to an employee so they can document each step in writing. When they’re finished, they own the process and can teach it to others. You’re free!Do this for any process that you must repeat often and takes more than five minutes to do. What you’ll get is a templated system that you can tweak and adjust as needed. If you’re a solopreneur wearing all the hats, having a templated system is still valuable, as you can outsource your task to a freelancer, a temp, or a part-time employee. <h3>Automate Everyday Workflows</h3>Process automation is a massive time-saver in any office – but it’s not just for the enterprise. There are plenty of amazing—and sometimes free—apps and productivity tools that make short work of your everyday admin tasks. For example:<ul><li>Let’s look at QuickBooks, for example. It’s one of the most popular small business accounting apps – but did you know it can track income, categorize expenses, and automate payments? Connect QuickBooks to your business bank account, credit cards, and lines of credit, set up rules to tell it how you want your expenses categorized, and all you have to do is check-in with it every once in a while to make sure there are no loose ends. You can even scan your receipts into the app, and it will find the matching transaction and attach the image to it. It’s an easy task to export all your information at tax time, and if your accountant needs a receipt, just a couple of taps, and it’s there. </li><li>Social media is another big chunk of your day. You need to keep your accounts active, your customers engaged, and constantly be on the lookout for great content to share. There are a few ways to automate social media without letting go of the reins. To save time, use a tool like <a href="https://www.hootsuite.com/">HootSuite</a> to schedule posts weeks in advance.<a href="https://ifttt.com/"> IFTTT</a> is another great and simple tool for keeping the social media love flowing. You set “recipes” in IFTTT and just kick back and let it do its thing – for example, you could set it to tweet every time you put up a new blog or post on Facebook. It’ll drive traffic back to your sites and pages and multiply the work you’re already doing. </li><li>Content creation is another marketing activity that takes up a lot of time in the day. Marketing software like <a href="https://www.hubspot.com/products/marketing/marketing-automation">HubSpot</a> automates your marketing workflows so that you’ll never miss an opportunity. Every workflow you automate through HubSpot can be tied to a specific goal – and you’ll have all the analytics you need to quantify the results of your work. HubSpot pretty much does it all from blogging to email campaigns, lead management, and digital advertising. </li><li>Calendly is a <a href="https://calendly.com/">scheduling application</a> that takes all the back-and-forth out of planning business meetings, phone calls, and appointments. Set up your calendar with your availability and embed a link into your emails to invite participants. The recipient simply clicks the link, chooses a time that’s convenient for them, and the event is added to your schedule. Done! </li></ul><h3>Outsource Your Postal Mail</h3>And how about your postal mail? What a time suck that is! Sorting through the mail, scanning it, filing it, getting it to the right people and places, not to mention all that paper. Outsourcing your postal mail is as simple as establishing a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a>. Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox plans are designed with the small business owner in mind. Simply choose your virtual address, and we’ll do the rest. When postal mail arrives at our secure facility, it is opened and scanned by HIPAA-certified technicians, digitized, and uploaded directly to your Earth Class Mail account. From there, you can <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/integrations">integrate with G-Suite</a>, Dropbox, Box.com, QuickBooks, and more. Your scanned mail is sent to you as a fully searchable PDF file, helping you go completely paperless in the process. We’ll do what you like with the physical mail – forward it to you or securely shred it in our facility. If you still receive payment by check, we can even deposit your checks for you using QuickBooks or Xero. <h3>The Benefits of Virtual Mailboxes</h3>A virtual mailbox saves a lot of time, effort, and money too. Just add up all the hours you spend dealing with postal mail over the course of a year, and then think about all the other things you could have been doing! And it’s not just about picking up and opening the mail – you’re sorting it, shredding it, filing it, forwarding it, and recycling the waste (and there’s a lot of waste). All those hours really add up.Plus, how many times have you lost a piece of mail? According to some estimates, it costs a company <a href="https://www.papersavers.ca/blog/the-jaw-dropping-cost-of-on-site-document-storage-management/#:~:text=How%20much%20does%20it%20cost,to%20locate%20a%20misplaced%20document.">about $122</a> to locate just one misplaced document. And then there’s the issue of security. How do you protect your confidential mail? Is it in a file cabinet, on a desk, or sitting in an inbox where anybody could pick it up? Virtual mailboxes solve these problems and more. Lastly, if you’re considering taking your company <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/the-benefits-of-going-100-remote">100 percent remote</a>, a virtual mailbox makes it possible. We’ve helped <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-a-virtual-mailbox-helped-basecamp-become-fully-remote">so many businesses</a> save money without skipping a beat as they moved to a fully remote business model – and when you’re ready, we’ll help you do it too. Browse our virtual mailbox plans today: <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">choose your address</a> to get started. Need more info? <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/contact">Reach out, and let’s talk</a> about your business’ needs. We’d love you show you how we can help.

As a small business owner, you’re always looking for ways to lean up, lower costs, and generally improve the bottom line without hindering productivity. 

As a small business owner, you’re always looking for ways to lean up, lower costs, and generally improve the bottom line without hindering productivity. Unfortunately, repetitive, mundane daily tasks are the bane of any company’s existence.

How Do I Reduce Administrative Hours Spent Doing Menial Tasks? | Earth Class Mail Blog

How Do I Reduce Administrative Hours Spent Doing Menial Tasks?

Since 2020 was a year of big changes in the workplace, we decided to make a continuation of our popular <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/productivity-tips-while-working-from-home">productivity tips blog</a> for our readers. According to a study done at Stanford University, 42 percent of America’s workforce is full-time remote, and there are no indications this will change anytime soon. Before the pandemic, remote work and occasional work-from-home days were more of a job perk than a necessity. Full-time remote work was the milieu of small businesses, consultants, and freelancers – and while these sectors continue to thrive in unconventional environments, many of us have been forced to adapt. And it hasn’t always been easy. Those with children and families learned how to better manage their time, set boundaries, and organize their workspaces for maximum efficiency. We necessarily embraced communications and productivity apps and tools, like Zoom, Asana, Slack, and more. We had to redefine work-life balance and find new ways to ensure our teams remained engaged and aligned, despite the enforced distance constraints. Most important of all, and I think we can all agree on this – we’re always looking for new ways to improve productivity and make our working life more manageable. In the absence of direct contact, it’s easy to feel like you’re alone in the universe, and that’s not the best way to get things done.So let’s look at some more of the top productivity tips that have come out of these times. As cliché as it sounds, necessity is the mother of invention!<h2>More Productivity Tips For Working Remotely</h2><h3>First Things First: Upgrade Your Internet</h3>When you think about all the new processes and workflows you’ve had to adapt to make working from home possible, they all have one thing in common: you need a good, stable, fast, secure, and reliable internet. And unfortunately, what worked for you and your family before might not be viable now. Consider this: if you have kids, spouses working from home, or roommates who share your connection, you’ll be competing for bandwidth – so you’ll either have to lay out a few new ground rules or upgrade your connection to support your needs. Our vote is always for the upgrade. After all, you’ve probably got better things to do with your time than troubleshooting or arguing with your living partners. Video calls lack stability without enough capacity. Plus, with virtualized company systems, you need to ensure easy access to the documents and apps you need, and also that your network is secure. If you can access business-grade internet in your area, that’s the ideal approach. However, you might need to shop around for the fastest connection, the most bandwidth possible, and a new firewall, VPN, or malware protection app. If you need to upgrade, you can probably expense it – and it will be worth the effort when you don’t have to deal with dropped calls, missed communications, and cyber threats. <h3>Compartmentalize</h3>When you had a workplace to go to, it was a simple task to separate home life from work life. However, working from home means you can’t just walk away. Of course, everybody’s home environment is different. While working from the couch was okay for the first few days, you quickly discovered how easy it is to get distracted, let deadlines slip by—or maybe the opposite, where you’re working inordinately longer hours simply because you can’t walk away from what’s on your desk. All of this adds up to increased stress, anxiety, and often depression. Once the lines begin to blur, it’s easy to let the gloom take over, and suddenly, there’s no joy left for anything. You might also be dealing with other issues at home – like home-schooling or caring for a loved one who’s sick, making it doubly critical to gain some separation just to maintain sanity. Here are a few quick tips to help you compartmentalize for maximum productivity:<ul><li>Set working hours and stick to them. Start and end your workday at the same time each day. </li><li>Make sure others in your household know when you’re not to be disturbed. You might use a sign on the door, a light, or whatever works to set clear boundaries. </li></ul><h3>Overcommunicate</h3>If there is one thing we can all learn from successful remote workers, it’s that communication is a tried-and-true recipe for smooth sailing. Since you can’t just saunter over to your teammate’s office, the next best way to stay connected is to check in regularly. Don’t rely on people reaching out to you; whether it’s clients, managers, or co-workers, take the initiative to connect. Sure, you likely have meetings, scrums, and check-ins scheduled periodically, but don’t limit your outreach to just that. If you have a question, ask. If you need help, go get it. If you want to call a Zoom huddle to brainstorm or have an impromptu coffee break, do it. If you’ve finished a project, make an announcement. If your stapler finally bit the dust, say a few words in memoriam. The point is, the more you reach out, the more you’ll get back, and that’s good for everyone. Check out our Managing a Team Remotely blog for more communication tips and tricks <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/managing-a-team-remotely-at-earth-class-mail">here</a>. <h3>Accept The Perks (And Concern) You’re Offered</h3>The best companies are always mindful of their employees’ mental health. Of course, they want you to stay on track and be productive, but they genuinely care about your well-being too. Companies like ThankView are offering their employees monthly boxes from SnackNation, reimbursing for new work-from-home equipment, and scheduling regular social events in addition to their standard benefits. Other organizations offer a paid day off every couple of weeks, and most have implemented one-on-ones to stay in touch with each individual on a personal level. At Searchspring, during their daily Slack standup, the first question is always “how are you feeling?” to which most reply with an emoji or GIF, which helps others understand where they’re at without an awkward conversation. It’s a way to be heard and get validation without all the stigma attached to it, and it’s incredibly empowering. In a time when we’re all dealing with various issues, knowing that you don’t have to hide it—and that others are in the same boat—helps to keep you on track. <h3>Earth Class Mail’s Virtual Mailbox</h3><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Virtual mailboxes</a> are just one of the many tools that have helped companies stay agile as they pivot to remote work. Take Basecamp, for example. When they decided to go 100 percent remote, they needed a solution for their postal mail. One of their biggest challenges was finding a virtual solution to handle confidential documents, deposit checks, and scan and forward mail to different people – and Earth Class Mail delivered. Our HIPAA certified mail technicians and customizable options sealed the deal, enabling Basecamp to go totally remote. The time they would normally spend sorting and distributing mail can now be used for higher-value tasks. Plus, they no longer have to deal with unwanted mail as it’s sorted out immediately. Fast, efficient, and value-driven, our <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> services are a big part of their success. <h3>Final Thoughts</h3>Our new collective reality may have forced us out of the office, but it’s also spawned many new observations, approaches, and strategies that support productivity and engagement. Perhaps most poignantly, we’ve learned to value ourselves, our time, and our innovation in ways that might not have been completely evident before. To learn more about Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox and how it supports your work-from-home initiative, reach out today. We’d love to show you how we can help.

Since 2020 was a year of big changes in the workplace, we decided to make a continuation of our popular productivity tips blog for our readers. 

Since 2020 was a year of big changes in the workplace, we decided to make a continuation of our popular productivity tips blog for our readers. According to a study done at Stanford University, 42 percent of America’s workforce is full-time remote, and there are no indications this will change anytime soon. 

More Productivity Tips While Working from Home | Earth Class Mail Blog

More Productivity Tips While Working from Home

Once an occasional employee perk or a way for employers to source top talent from the global pool, remote work is fast becoming the new standard of work culture. Of course, even without the pandemic restrictions, we’re under, experts have predicted the movement for many years. They just didn’t expect the future to arrive so quickly! We’ve all had to pivot in some way. For companies who were already promoting a remote work culture, it wasn’t much of a shift, but most had at least an expectation of things returning to normal at some point. Now, a year into the global health crisis, it looks like remote work is here to stay. <h3>Is Remote Work Working?</h3>Results thus far state the benefits of going 100 percent remote overwhelmingly favor operational improvement. And while we’re still working out the long-term impacts, there are indeed many things to love about it. Let’s take a deeper dive to find out why.<h3>The Benefits of Remote Working for Employers</h3>In light of current stay-at-home recommendations, many employers are moving to remote work culture. Here are some of the benefits they’ve discovered as a result:<h3>Reduced Real Estate Burden</h3>While a reduced need for office real estate might not be great news for landlords and building owners, it shifts many overhead costs back to the bottom line. The in-house office workforce has <a href="https://news.stanford.edu/2020/06/29/snapshot-new-working-home-economy/">dwindled considerably</a> in recent years, forcing companies to reduce dedicated office space in favor of shared workspaces and co-working arrangements. As a result, the move to 100 percent remote is just another step in that direction. Without the expense of a traditional office lease, companies are free to channel those funds into business growth and technology to support remote work. Reducing office space demand could have many other positive outcomes, including reimagining office buildings into affordable housing. <h3>Per-Employee Cost Reduction</h3>Onboarding new employees is costly and time-consuming. Assigning desks, office equipment, workstations, allocating space, adding phone lines, and allocating parking spaces are just a few of the expenses involved. Moving to a 100 percent remote work environment eliminates many of these costs. By some estimates, employers save <a href="https://globalworkplaceanalytics.com/telecommuting-statistics">about $11,000</a> a year for every remote employee – and that adds up pretty quickly!<h3>Attract Talent Wherever It Lives</h3>If your company is remote work-ready, you’re able to draw from a larger pool of global talent. These days, highly skilled technical talent is in high demand, and local shortages are the norm. Having to compete for these individuals is time-consuming, costly, and often ineffective. A remote work environment supports bringing on new talent no matter where they live in the world. In many cases, this reduces costs even further, as salary expectations are often much lower in countries outside the United States. From an employee’s standpoint, the ability to work remotely is quite attractive. According to a study <a href="https://www.owllabs.com/state-of-remote-work/2019">released in 2019</a>, more than seven out of ten workers stated they would favor an employment offer that allowed them to work remotely. <h3>Improved Productivity</h3>There are a host of reasons why remote workers are <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/productivity-tips-while-working-from-home">more productive</a>. There’s no commute, no distractions from coworkers, and once they settle in, remote employees are much more motivated to complete tasks. According to Gallup’s <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/238085/state-american-workplace-report-2017.aspx">State of The American Workplace Report</a>, remote workers understand their roles better and often feel greater responsibility for their overall performance. Plus, employers worry less about lost productivity due to tardiness and sick days. In one study, the findings indicate that many remote employees feel compelled to go above and beyond, possibly because they think that the situation might change or out of gratitude for the opportunity. The <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140918150940.htm">same study suggested</a> that work performance improved for employees who didn’t initially have a good relationship with their boss, possibly for the same reason. In either case, the employee didn’t want to lose this special privilege, so they worked extra hard to ensure they continued to have this job perk. <h3>The Benefits of Remote Work For Employees</h3>So, what does remote work do for employees? As it turns out, quite a lot! Before work-from-home (WFH) became mainstream, it was a highly sought-after benefit of working for some of the world’s top companies. Here’s why:<h3>Flexibility</h3>Employees working from home can choose when, where, and how they work. They can take breaks, get up and walk around, choose different work environments to change things up a bit, and cut a lot of time out of their workday by not having to commute, sit in useless meetings, or get distracted by their coworkers. <h3>Work-Life Balance</h3>We’re all experiencing a shift in how we go about our day. A flexible WFH schedule gives you a lot more leeway for things like childcare, wellness, fitness, and recreation. Whereas you might have had to get up extra early to attend a fitness class and still get to work on time, now you can do your session online and on-demand during a break. A little oxygen to the brain and blood does wonders to get the productive juices flowing again, and working from home gives you the bandwidth to do that. <h4>Your Commute Is Killing You – And The Planet</h4>Besides being a colossal waste of time, studies show that commutes longer than 30 minutes daily are associated with higher anxiety, stress, depression, increased HDL cholesterol, and elevated blood sugar. Yikes! Eliminating stress helps you lower cortisol levels, improves your overall health, and could actually help you lose weight as well – all excellent reasons to prioritize stress reduction, and ditching the commute is a great start. Plus, if you’re at all concerned with your carbon footprint, cutting out the commute is a great way to do your part. By working remotely, each worker saves us from <a href="https://environmentjournal.online/articles/working-from-home-can-dramatically-cut-co2-emissions/">379.2kg of CO2 emissions</a> each year.<h3>Remote Working Tools For Success</h3>Making a move to 100 percent remote work isn’t the easiest thing to do for some companies. There are still many manual processes to maintain, such as answering the phone, banking, and dealing with postal mail. How will you deal with these tasks when you have no physical office? Most companies use a VoIP telephone system, so it’s easy to redirect and manage calls without being tied to a location. As for postal mail, a virtual mailbox is an excellent solution. Earth Class Mail’s <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">mailroom</a> plans have helped many leading companies go <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-a-virtual-mailbox-helped-basecamp-become-fully-remote">fully remote</a>. Simply choose your preferred address from our extensive list, and you’re up and running in minutes.Here’s how it works: Mail arrives at our facility and is opened and scanned by our HIPAA-certified technicians. Scans are uploaded to your account in searchable PDF format, after which you can download them to your connected cloud account, forward them to the appropriate recipient, or archive them into your system. You direct us as to what you want to be done with your physical mail. Every virtual mailbox plan includes secure shredding, ensuring your data never falls into the wrong hands. We’ll even help you with your banking too! Our add-on features include <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing/detail">check deposit</a> through your preferred accounting software, helping you maintain cash flow without a second thought. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">Choose your address</a> today, or <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/contact">reach out to us</a> directly to find out how we can help your company go remote.

Once an occasional employee perk or a way for employers to source top talent from the global pool, remote work is fast becoming the new standard of work culture.

The Benefits of Going 100% Remote | Earth Class Mail Blog

The Benefits of Going 100% Remote

As a small business owner, there will come a time when you’ll have to think about growth. Inevitably, you’ll have reached a ceiling that you need to break through, either through expansion, innovation, adding new products, or doing things a little differently.Growth is one thing – but if you’re looking to scale, there are a few critical concepts you’ll need to grasp to make that happen. Scaling your business doesn’t happen overnight, and success is just as much about your mindset as it is the product or service you offer. Here are a few ideas to get you into the growth mindset.<h3>Invest In Technology To Gain Competitive Advantage</h3>Innovation comes in many guises. It can be as cutting-edge as a management platform or next-generation technology tools, or it can be done through process optimization – but it all starts with digitization. Once you’ve completed your digital transformation, you have a launching pad that could take you just about anywhere. Today’s most exciting business innovations leverage <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/data-driven-2021-predictions-for-a-new-year-in-data-analytics-and-ai/">artificial intelligence</a> (AI) and machine learning (ML), two vital components in process automation. And while you might think that AI and ML are more in the realm of science fiction, you’d probably be surprised to know that you use them every day. Most online services and apps rely on AI for personalized, agile services, and now, the technology is built into many of the third-party apps you rely on to run your business. But what can AI do for you? If you typically spend most of your time on mundane, repetitive tasks, you’re already behind the eight-ball. Process automation and workflow optimization not only give you back those hours to focus on higher-value tasks; they do it very efficiently and accurately. Plus, machines don’t sleep, so you’ll get a massive boost in productivity almost right away. While innovation doesn’t always mean technology, you’ll want to have it on your radar if you’re on track to scale. There will come a time when you’ll have to jump in the sandbox with the “big guys” in your industry, so you’ll want to be on a level playing field. Do your homework. Find out what your competitors did to get where there are today, and if that’s what you aspire to be, use that data as a yardstick to measure your progress. When you’re one step ahead, you won’t have as far to go.<h3>Engage Your Staff in The Innovation Process</h3>No matter how passionate or excited you are about your new direction, be sure you’re looping your employees in throughout the process. Your teams are the front line, and you need them to be on board whatever you decide. After all, if they aren’t comfortable with the tools and processes you layout for them, you stand to lose a lot. Good employees are hard to come by, and when your company begins to scale rapidly, you want people you trust on your side. Everybody wants to feel like they’re a part of something bigger than themselves. When your people feel valued, they’ll work harder for you and bring their best work to the table. Here are a few ways you can engage your staff to inspire innovation:<ul><li>Actively solicit ideas from your teams</li><li>Make problem-solving a part of every staff meeting</li><li>Put all new tech through a beta phase, and engage your best employees to give you honest feedback before you buy</li><li>Make sure every employee feels like they are valued, and their voice has merit</li><li>Make time for weekly check-ins and monthly one-on-ones with each person</li><li>Be present, be transparent</li><li>Encourage them to share ideas without fear of retribution</li><li>Support opposing opinions</li><li>Celebrate wins</li><li>Create opportunities</li><li>Offer training </li></ul>Change is very exciting, but keep in mind; it is highly stressful too. When employees notice big shifts in their environment, they will usually think the worst – that they will be replaced or left behind. When you invite them to share the journey, you’re building relationships, encouraging loyalty, and empowering them to step up into their roles. You have a much better shot at success when you take these steps together. <h3>Ask Your Customers What They Want</h3>You might have a few incredible ideas about how you want to advance your company, but do you know what your customers think? If you don’t, here are a couple of ways you can find out.<ul><li>Understand your ideal buyer. Almost every business has a few “ideal buyer personas” to guide their marketing. But when was the last time you looked at those profiles? With all the shifts in customer preferences, technology, and business processes, chances are their priorities are vastly different than they were just a few years ago. Especially if you intend to grow, it’s critical to get inside their heads now so you can give them what they really want. </li></ul><ul><li>Solicit feedback. There are many ways to find out what your customers want, but the most direct method is to ask them outright. A “strike while the iron’s hot” mentality is everything here, meaning the best time to ask if you’ve satisfied the customer’s needs is <a href="https://medium.com/swlh/why-you-should-care-about-what-your-customers-want-c787d07ca5a0">immediately following the sale</a>. Be ready to accept and digest the good, the bad, and the ugly – because these are the insights that inform the road ahead. </li></ul><ul><li>Leverage Your Data. If you’re already collecting vast amounts of data from customer transactions or loyalty programs, this is another excellent way to gain insight into their preferences and behaviors. It shouldn’t be the only way you get information from your customers, but it’s a viable method of validating insights you glean from other sources. When you look at your data’s totality, you’ll get a clearer picture of how your customers currently engage with you, and it will be easier to identify the gaps. </li></ul><h3>Invest In A Virtual Mailbox</h3>We’ve talked about many critical scaling-up concepts today, but let’s go back to process improvement and workflow optimization. With all the changes you have planned, you’ll need to rethink how you’re doing things as much as what you’re doing. Ultimately, you need to gain as much time as possible, and that means eliminating low-value inefficiencies to pave the way for what’s ahead. A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> is an excellent way to reallocate talent to higher-value tasks. Just think about the time it takes to manage your company mail. From receiving the mail to sorting, delivering it to the right personnel, forwarding, scanning, filing, and taking action, that’s a lot of time and effort. Often, it’s an <a href="https://www.papersave.com/blog/the-true-cost-of-a-paper-based-document-management-process/">inefficient and costly</a> process too. How many times has postal mail landed on the wrong desk, got buried in an overflowing inbox, or been misfiled? Plus, when it’s all said and done, what happens to all that paper? Earth Class Mail’s <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">virtual mailbox plans</a> take all the hassle out of postal mail. When mail arrives at our processing center, it’s opened and scanned by our HIPAA certified technicians. Scans are sent to you as fully searchable PDFs, ready for distribution. We integrate your account with your preferred cloud services and can even <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">deposit checks</a> for you. No matter what your new business model looks like, the wave of the future is all about efficiency. Our virtual mailbox services support a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/5-simple-steps-to-help-achieve-a-paperless-company">paperless workflow</a>, and it even helped one of our client companies go <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-a-virtual-mailbox-helped-basecamp-become-fully-remote">100 percent remote</a>. <h3>Final Thoughts</h3>When you’re ready to take your company to new heights, there’s a lot to think about. The road ahead might be paved with inspiration, but some of the most incredible value you’ll find is already at your fingertips. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">Choose your address today</a>, and free yourself to grow into the future.

As a small business owner, there will come a time when you’ll have to think about growth.

As a small business owner, there will come a time when you’ll have to think about growth. Inevitably, you’ll have reached a ceiling that you need to break through, either through expansion, innovation, adding new products, or doing things a little differently.

How Can I Innovate To Scale My Business? | Earth Class Mail Blog

How Can I Innovate To Scale My Business?

These days it’s easier than ever before to start a new life in another country. Countries like Belize have long welcomed expats. Over the past year, several other Caribbean countries followed suit, making it easy to get an extended visa, work, and stay in countries like Aruba, Barbados, and Bermuda. Whether you’re a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/seven-tools-every-digital-nomad-needs">digital nomad</a> or a retiree looking for a change of scenery, here’s what you need to know about becoming an expat. <h2>What Is An Expat?</h2>Simply put, an expert is someone who lives in a country outside of their nationality. Expats don’t have a set demographic, nor are they all retirees, as is the common misconception. Short for “expatriate,” an expat might be in another country for work, either temporarily or permanently. They may have gained official residency status in their new locale, though that’s not always the case. And while it might seem like a romantic notion—or a bold one, depending on your mindset—expatriating isn’t for everyone. You’re living in a country <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/checklist-for-traveling-full-time">far from home</a>, and there are certain skills and aptitudes you’ll need to cultivate. Agility, adaptability, and curiosity are essential!Plus, there’s the not-so-small matters of visas, cost of living, and culture. You must consider the legal, financial, and social aspects of your decision well before you make a move. After all, your happiness and peace of mind are closely tied to your environment. You certainly don’t want any surprises.<h2>Preparing For Your Move</h2>There are plenty of countries that accept expats. Your choices will likely come down to personal preferences, what non-negotiables you have, and what you can afford to pay. Personal preferences might include climate, scenery, rural, or urban lifestyles. As for non-negotiables, let’s say you’re a digital nomad; you’ll want to be sure wherever you’re going has reliable internet and cellular.You’d do well to have a budget in mind before you begin, too. Some countries, like Viet Nam and Thailand, welcome expats and offer a high standard of living for a very low cost. Other countries, like Germany, The Netherlands, and the UK, are more cost-restrictive. In these locales, perhaps you’ll enjoy a more cosmopolitan way of life, but rental housing is expensive for non-citizens, and the cost of living is much higher in general. So job one is to do your research. Make a wish list and search your options to find out what it takes to settle in there. One website to check out is <a href="https://wherecani.live/">WhereCanI.Live</a>, where you’ll find details on what type of visa you’ll need and pretty much everything else there is to know. <h2>Finding a Job</h2>It’s often easier to settle in another country if you’re not looking to work in that country. However, if you’re not a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/successfully-navigating-remote-work">freelancer</a> and need to work, you’ll have to get creative. Younger folks can look into working holiday visas or student work visas, but there are other avenues to consider. Countries looking to fill skills gaps in their economy may issue <a href="https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/about-visa/long-term-skill-shortage-list-work-visa">skills shortage visas</a>, so if you have a desirable specialization, it’s worth checking into. Alternately, some countries issue <a href="https://pickvisa.com/blog/The-world-best-15-startup-visas">startup visas</a> to entrepreneurs and founders. Either choice is an excellent inroad to permanent residency, and in the latter case, you may also gain access to incubators, government funding, and loads of local talent.<h2>Taking Care Of The Spaceship</h2>No matter where you go in the world, there are a few things everybody needs to consider. Staying healthy and strong is number one. You don’t want to be stuck anywhere without the right support. Healthcare, for example, is a bit iffy in some countries. So, for example, if you’re middle-aged or older, you’d want to ensure access to quality care, a critical detail that might help you eliminate a few destinations on your list. Take Belize – a beautiful, temperate country with a stable economy, and (bonus) it’s outside of the hurricane zone. But if you have complex health issues, you’d probably have to go to Mexico or Florida if you need specialized care. Health insurance is a concern also. If you don’t have resident-standing in some countries, emergency care can be quite expensive. Be sure you’re adequately covered for every scenario. Even if you think your current policy covers your time abroad, it might fall short. Read the fine print so you understand the gaps and ask your insurance provider whether they offer international insurance. Most do. <h2>Understanding The Culture Of Your Destination</h2>It doesn’t matter where you go in the world; you’re bound to be in for a little culture shock, at least until you get in the swing of things. Little things we do without even thinking about are unheard of in some places, so you’d do well to bone up on local customs and faux-pas before you go. For example, tipping at restaurants isn’t often done in Europe, certainly not at the level we’re used to shelling out. In countries like Japan or China, leaving a tip is considered an insult. Chewing gum could land you in jail if you do it in Singapore, and you don’t ever want to run out of gas on the Autobahn. When in Italy, don’t feed the pigeons in Venice’s San Marcos Square or wear shorts to the Vatican. Sure, <a href="https://www.farandwide.com/s/weird-laws-world-4961c1ede8d749bf">some laws and customs</a> might seem a little ridiculous, but in the interest of fitting in, best to fall in. There are undoubtedly other ways to assert your individuality that won’t get you arrested or tossed out on your ear.<h2>Taking Care of Business: The Virtues of a Virtual Mailbox</h2>Whether you intend to stay at your new location indefinitely or continue to explore the known universe, every expat needs a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a>. That way, no matter where you go, you maintain some consistency and will continue to receive postal mail. Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox services were made with expats in mind, providing you with cloud-based access to your postal mail, check deposit services, secure shredding, and more. Your mail is always accessible through our cloud-based system, meaning you can pick up your mail from anywhere, as long as you have an internet connection. We integrate with most cloud storage systems, so whether you prefer Dropbox, Box.com, or G-Suite, we’ve got you covered. Here’s how it works:<ul><li>Choose a street address or PO box from more than 80 locations across the United States.</li><li>Postal mail arrives at our secure processing facility. </li><li>Our HIPAA-certified mail technicians open and scan your mail.</li><li>Scans are converted to PDFs.</li><li>Log into your account, view, forward, or save mail to your preferred cloud service.</li><li>Let us know what you want us to do with your mail – trash and recycle, shred, forward, it’s your call. </li></ul>A virtual mailbox from Earth Class Mail is an excellent way to ensure you continue to receive your bills, tax documents, and other postal mail communications. If you receive packages, we’ll forward them wherever you choose. Your virtual mailbox is a real address you can use to register your business and maintain continuity even when you’re traveling. Ultimately, even expats need some stability. Earth class mail is here to support you, whether it’s short or long-term. <h2>Final Thoughts</h2>Becoming an expat is a big step – but you’ve got this. And we’ve got your back! No matter where the tradewinds take you, a virtual mailbox from Earth Class Mail will make it that much easier to make it all work. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">Choose your virtual address today</a>, and start packing!

These days it’s easier than ever before to start a new life in another country. Countries like Belize have long welcomed expats. 

How to Become An Expat | Earth Class Mail Blog

How to Become an Expat

Many of us are working from home these days and have been for quite some time. As the outlook for remote work looks like it will last for a while, we wanted to examine best-practices for staying productive under these conditions. Note that staying productive in the office can have plenty of challenges too, but working from one’s home office presents its own set of unique challenges, be it homeschooling children, or even the distracting video game console sitting in the corner. We reached out to colleagues in our network to see what they were doing to stay productive and put together some ideas to help stay on track while not in the office. Get in the habit of setting routines.<h3>Set a schedule</h3>Set a start and end time to your day that includes a lunch break, just as you would in the office. Plan your calendar for the day to make note of meetings and block off periods for deep work and keep your home working hours as if you are in an office setting. Sticking to a schedule to help maintain routine and consistency which can help you track progress and make sure you are spending your time wisely. There are some great ideas from <a href="https://www.themuse.com/advice/work-from-home-productivity-schedule">Themuse.com</a> that include having consistent times for getting out of bed in the morning and changing into a work outfit, even if it’s not quite the same as what you’d wear to an actual office,<h3>Create a “commute”</h3>You can get creative with this one and start and end your day as you would if you were making the drive to the office. One idea for creating a &quot;commute&quot; is to take a walk around the block before hitting your desk - and &quot;commute&quot; home by doing the same. Getting fresh air and setting up a similar routine of going to and from the office is a great way to mentally mark the start and end of the workday.<h3>Setting up your workspace</h3>Your workspace at home should feel comfortable and familiar. One way to do that is to set up your home office like your real office. For example, 2 monitors, a real desk and chair in a dedicated space. Keep in mind ergonomics and be especially careful to avoid repetitive strain injuries that a bad setup can cause. <a href="https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/ss/slideshow-ergonomic-tips-for-a-home-office">Tips for an ergonomic set up</a> from WebMD include 1) choosing a work surface that offers plenty of space for your knees, thighs, and feet 2) an office chair with lower back support, 3) keeping your feet flat on the floor with a footrest.<h3>Dedicating a space</h3>Maintaining an area of your house solely for work can increase productivity according to numerous sources such as <a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/207306">Enterprenuer.com</a>, and <a href="http://www.generationy.com/home-office-space/">Generationy.com</a>. Working from your bed or the dining room table might sometimes be a necessity - but having a spot in your home carved out specifically for work can allow you to get more done. If you can’t get a dedicated space you can separate from the rest of your life, try to find a niche space you can use that is out of the rest of the household’s way — and they out of yours — as much as possible. <h3>Staying active and healthy</h3>Having snacks and staying hydrated.Back to back zoom calls can sometimes leave little room for eating a healthy meal. Having snacks such as hard-boiled eggs and nuts around that are easy to eat helps with an empty stomach. A focus on protein, fiber, healthy fats, fruits, and veggies is the best way to go according to <a href="https://health.clevelandclinic.org/10-tips-for-eating-healthy-when-youre-working-from-home/">Clevelandclinic.org</a>. Other suggested grab and go items include lean jerky, apples, bananas, and string cheese. <h3>
Exercise</h3>Exercise is a great way to keep up your activity level and take a quick break in order to come back to work feeling refreshed.One suggestion is to use your Apple Watch or other smartwatches or timers to remember to stand, stretch, and get the blood flowing.You can also set aside time for a walk. With winter weather coming this can be harder but there are also lots of online options for classes to take from home such as those hosted by <a href="https://obefitness.com/">Obe Fitness</a>. Classes can range from yoga to cardio.<h3>Brain breaks</h3>Play a quick game.Brain games can be a good stress reliever. Spending time away from the computer and focusing on something like a puzzle or sudoku can get your mind re-energized.<h3>Power naps</h3>A quick power nap can reset the brain and give you the time you need to take a mental break and wake-up rejuvenated for the rest of the day. Media mogul and Founder of <a href="https://thriveglobal.com/">Thrive Global</a>, Arianna Huffington is a strong advocate for taking naps at work. She even has a <a href="https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/thrive-nap-room-coco-mat-arianna-huffington">dedicated napping and meditation room</a> for employees in her company headquarters.<h3>Adding to your environment</h3>Good playlists can help you concentrate and focus. Find the style of music that works for you and play it in the background while working to maintain your pace. Podcasts and audiobooks are also great to listen to as they can spark ideas and maintain a level of learning. Here is a<a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/240202"> top 25 list</a> of business podcasts that include <a href="https://go.skimresources.com/?id=143769X1608443&isjs=1&jv=14.4.0-stackpath&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.entrepreneur.com%2Farticle%2F240202&url=https%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Fpodcast%2Fentrepreneurs-on-fire%2Fid564001633%3Fmt%3D2&xguid=989d23f24609e48c9802c2f8a625462c&xs=1&xtz=360&xuuid=bc02d3a223ea0329a4cdc52e1869dbd5&xjsf=other_click__contextmenu%20%5B2%5D">Entrepreneurs on Fire </a>and <a href="http://tayorockson.com/podcast/">As Told by Nomads</a>. Ambient noise is another suggestion that helps lessen distraction and aid with focus. This can also help cover up noises from homeschoolers or familial co-workers. Ones to try include <a href="https://asoftmurmur.com/">A Soft Murmur</a> or <a href="https://mynoise.net/">myNoise</a>.

Many of us are working from home these days and have been for quite some time. As the outlook for remote work looks like it will last for a while, we wanted to examine best-practices for staying productive under these conditions.

Productivity Tips While Working From Home | Earth Class Mail Blog

Productivity Tips While Working From Home

Considering the ubiquitous nature of digital communication, it’s surprising the post office even has a presence at all in this day and age. However, we live in a world ruled by bureaucracy, so chances are there will be forests-worth of paper flowing through the system for the foreseeable future. Bottom line – unless you’re living off the grid completely, you probably still get postal mail. And while that’s not always a problem, it can become one in certain circumstances. If you’re a freelancer, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/successfully-navigating-remote-work">remote worker</a>, an ex-pat, or a digital nomad constantly on the roam, you might find yourself looking into virtual mail or virtual address solutions. And while these products are related, they’re not exactly the same, so depending on your specific situation, either one or the other might make more sense. So let’s dive deeper into the finer points of virtual addresses and virtual mailboxes to help you decide which one is right for you. <h3>What Is A Virtual Address?</h3>First things first – technically, and despite being called “virtual,” a virtual address actually does exist. Usually used for business purposes, it’s a real address that accepts physical mail, but the difference is that your business does not operate from there. Virtual addresses are most often used by people who work from home or companies that do not maintain a physical location. If you operate a business in the United States, you need a business address, and there are myriad reasons you wouldn’t want to use your home address or a P.O. box. You can’t legally <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-to-get-a-po-box-without-a-street-address">use a P.O. box</a> as a business address in some states, so a virtual address is a good option. A virtual address might be right for you if:<ul><li>You need to register a business</li><li>You don’t expect to receive a lot of (or any) mail</li><li>You need a professional business address</li><li>Your business is entering new markets, and you need a local address</li></ul>Small business owners use virtual addresses because it helps them maintain privacy in their personal life. Additionally, some communities and municipalities have laws against operating a business from home. Keeping your professional interests separate is always a good idea, as it reduces risk and liability and keeps those parts of your life neat and tidy. If you expect to receive mail regularly, a virtual address might not be the best or most economical option. Before choosing this option, be sure the service lines up with your ongoing needs and budget. Earth Class Mail’s virtual business address will scan or forward your incoming mail as needed. You can be confident of receiving your mail promptly no matter where you are in the world. Check out our <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">virtual address plans</a> today to get started. <h3>What Is A Virtual Mailbox?</h3>Virtual mailboxes include virtual addresses – but they also offer a few more options and added flexibility. For anybody who expects to receive mail more frequently, a virtual mailbox is an excellent choice over a virtual address alone. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">A virtual mailbox</a> would be a good fit for you if:<ul><li>You travel a lot. If you’re on the road all the time, whether for work or leisure, getting mail is often a challenge. Imposing on friends or colleagues to pick up and forward your mail isn’t always ideal, and the lag time in mail forwarding services might be a big inconvenience.</li><li>You live in an RV. When you’re roaming free in the world, getting mail is a complicated undertaking. A virtual mailbox receives your mail, opens and scans the contents, and emails the files as PDFs. In most cases, you’ll receive your mail within 24-48 hours of it arriving at the facility. An Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox also offers various add-on services, including <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">check deposits</a>, helping you maintain cash flow no matter where you are in the world. </li><li>You need an address in a specific location. Some virtual address services don’t give you the option of choosing your locale when you sign up. In other words – you get what you get within the range of what they offer. You might have some choices, but if they don’t align with your needs, you might be better off with a virtual mailbox instead. </li></ul>Virtual mailboxes are also excellent for helping you stay on top of important documents. Since your mail is scanned into PDF format, each piece of mail is sortable, searchable, and conveniently paperless. Earth Class Mail keeps your original documents for 30 days, after which they are securely shredded. Packages are forwarded to a location of your choice or held for pickup at your discretion. If you need greater flexibility, you can design a virtual mailbox plan to suit your needs. Some of the options you can consider include:<ul><li>Sync with Dropbox, Box.com, Google Drive, or your cloud of choice</li><li>Occasional or recurring check deposit with your preferred accounting software</li><li>Add additional addresses and users when needed</li><li>A business address that complies with federal and state incorporation standards</li><li>Choose a street address or P.O. box</li><li>Domestic and international shipping and forwarding</li><li>Expedited scanning </li><li>Oversized or heavy packages handling and storage</li></ul>Some of these options are associated with additional fees, but you can design a plan around your needs for maximum efficiency and value. Why Choose A Virtual Mailbox Over A Virtual Address?In a nutshell, a virtual address is more geared towards commercial entities. However, that’s not to say that a virtual mailbox is not suitable for businesses – just the opposite, in fact! A virtual mailbox from Earth Class Mail comes with a virtual address and gives you all the advantages it brings; plus, you’ll have access to so many more options and customizations to suit your needs. So let’s look at some of the pros and cons, using Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox and virtual address options as a baseline. <ul><li>Economy. If your business receives a lot of paper mail, a virtual address might not be the most economical choice. A virtual address does not include incoming mail handling, so if you do receive a lot of mail, the extra costs can add up. For example, an Earth Class Mail virtual address account charges $1 per piece of incoming mail and another $4 for content scanning. </li></ul><ul><li>Volume. On the other hand, a virtual mailbox includes 50 pieces of mail in the basic plan, and there is no charge for scanning the first ten items. If you only expect to receive official documents and statements, you probably won’t pay any overage fees at all. </li></ul><ul><li>Scalability. A virtual mailbox plan is also scalable. Let’s say you are using your account for your business; you can expand your capacity or add users instantly, as needed. </li></ul><ul><li>Choices. With a virtual address alone, you might not be able to get an address in your preferred city. While this might not matter to some, impressions do count for a lot in business, so having more options might be advantageous. </li></ul>Ultimately, the main difference is whether or not you need to receive mail regularly. If you do, a virtual mailbox is probably the best choice. If postal mail is a non-issue or is not a significant concern, then a virtual address might be sufficient. No matter what you decide or where you roam, the bottom line is, you can be confident of a secure and reliable experience with Earth Class Mail. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Check out our pricing today</a> and choose a virtual plan that makes your life easier.

Considering the ubiquitous nature of digital communication, it’s surprising the post office even has a presence at all in this day and age. 

Considering the ubiquitous nature of digital communication, it’s surprising the post office even has a presence at all in this day and age. However, we live in a world ruled by bureaucracy, so chances are there will be forests-worth of paper flowing through the system for the foreseeable future. 

Do You Need A Virtual Address Or A Virtual Mailbox? | Earth Class Mail

Do You Need A Virtual Address Or A Virtual Mailbox?

Launching a new business is exciting, but there are many details to review before you start transacting. No matter what industry sector you operate in, whether you’re a sole proprietor working from home, a brick-and-mortar shop, a consultancy, or a tech startup, your company needs to be licensed and legal to do business in your state. But what type of business structure should you choose? There are many different choices, and each option has its own set of pros and cons. Much like when you’re developing your business plan, it pays to do some research first, so you can be sure you’re <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/knowing-the-costs-of-starting-a-business">making the right decision</a> for your needs. <h3>Different Types of Business Structures</h3>Each type of business structure comes with its own regulatory framework. Your decision will impact how much you pay in taxes. It will also dictate what compliance paperwork you’re required to file and how much business and personal liability insurance you need. If you’re planning to seek funding, your legal business structure will also affect how you go about this. Ultimately, your choice comes down to three distinct factors: record-keeping, liability, and taxation. Because no two situations are the same, there is no clear-cut right or wrong answer. It all depends on the business needs, your individual needs, and those of your partners (if you have them). You should also consider where you see taking the business in the future, for example, if you plan to sell the company at some point or bring in more shareholders when it’s time to grow. <h3>Sole Proprietorship or Partnership</h3>A sole proprietorship is the simplest business structure. It’s fast, easy, and inexpensive to set up. As the owner, you have complete control over all aspects of the business, but you are also personally responsible for paying taxes and any other elements of financial liability. A sole proprietorship is a good choice for independent contractors or small businesses that do not have any major liability concerns. If you have significant personal assets and feel they might be at risk, it would probably be better to look at incorporating. However, if you expect your annual income to be higher than $100,000, and don’t have enough deductions to lower your taxable income, there are <a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/77730">advantages to incorporating</a>. <h3>Partnership</h3>A partnership is when two or more people agree to share the business’s profits and/or losses. This structure is similar to a sole proprietorship in that each partner is personally liable. If the company is sued, each partner bears the onus equally (or according to their share of the business). A partnership can also reduce the tax you pay as the amounts are passed through to be paid on each partner’s individual return. You might choose a partnership if you and one or more others are engaged in providing a product or service and wish to share aspects of business operations and administration. <h3>Corporation</h3>A corporation is a business entity that is created with the sole purpose of conducting business. It is separate from the people who created it and is responsible for meeting its obligations under the law. The corporation is taxed and can be held liable for damages incurred as a result of its activities. Perhaps the most significant advantage of incorporation is the absence of personal liability. As a corporation, you are taxed at a lower rate, and there are many more options available to you, so if you are a high-earning sole proprietor, it’s something to consider. However, incorporation comes with its drawbacks as well. The cost of incorporation is relatively high, and tax preparation is much more complicated and costly. You will also be required to maintain and file specific paperwork, and you may be taxed twice—once through the corporation and again on your personal income tax. An S-corporation helps you avoid double taxation by allowing losses to be passed on through your tax return, much like a partnership. A corporation is also advantageous when it comes to estate planning. If you plan to pass your stake in the company along to your children, for example, this is a way to avoid inheritance taxes and probate. When you die, your shares pass on to your beneficiaries automatically without going through a lengthy legal process. <h3>Limited Liability Corporation (LLC)</h3>An LLC is a hybrid of a partnership and a corporation. Some business owners prefer this structure because it offers the best of both worlds. Partners are protected from personal liability, and profits and losses can be passed through without incurring additional taxation. Of course, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-address-should-i-use-for-my-llc">an LLC</a> has its downsides too. If you’re hoping to attract investors, it’s not impossible, but certainly less likely. Investors generally prefer the protections of a corporation. Plus, you cannot pay yourself a salary as an owner. There is less paperwork to file than with a corporation, but renewal fees can be pretty high. Most types of companies can be LLCs, with the exception of professional services, like medical offices or legal firms. Choosing an LLC structure over a sole partnership, partnership, or corporation will largely depend on what protections, tax advantages, and other features matter most to you. <h3>Every Business Needs A Physical Address</h3>Whether you’re a digital nomad, a clothing designer, a financial advisor, or a construction firm, every business needs a physical address. In fact, you can’t register your business at all unless you have an official address. For some companies, this is an easy task – if you have a location, you have an address. However, these days it isn’t always that cut-and-dried. Many businesses today <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-a-virtual-mailbox-helped-basecamp-become-fully-remote">operate remotely</a>, meaning they don’t have an office people can visit. Plus, many states do not allow you to list a P.O. box as your business address, so that that option might be off the table. And while some sole proprietors might feel like it’s okay to use their home address, there are pros and cons to that as well. Nobody likes the idea of salespeople, vendors, process servers, or even potential customers just showing up on their doorstep unannounced. If you are setting up your company and need to get started quickly, a virtual address is the answer you’ve been looking for. Some of the benefits of a virtual address include:<ul><li>Satisfy state and federal requirements</li><li>Not a P.O. box – an actual street address</li><li>Choose the city and state you do business in</li><li>Receive mail and official documents</li><li>Affordable, predictable monthly fee</li><li>Professional address to use on your website, business cards, and marketing collateral</li></ul>Plus, it immediately lends legitimacy to your company. In the eyes of your peers, customers, and the government, you are a thriving and active concern. Plus, if you’re the type that’s always on the go, you can still receive your mail. Incoming mail is scanned and sent to your email or synced with your preferred cloud service, minimizing delays and ensuring you stay on top of critical business correspondence. When you’re starting a new company, it pays to take a systematic approach. Before you choose your business structure, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">sign up for a virtual business address today</a>. Choose your <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">virtual address</a> from our extensive list of locations, pick a plan that works for you, and you’re ready to conquer!

Launching a new business is exciting, but there are many details to review before you start transacting.

Launching a new business is exciting, but there are many details to review before you start transacting. No matter what industry sector you operate in, whether you’re a sole proprietor working from home, a brick-and-mortar shop, a consultancy, or a tech startup, your company needs to be licensed and legal to do business in your state.   But what type of business structure should you choose? There are many different choices, and each option has its own set of pros and cons. 

What Business Structure Should I Choose? | Earth Class Mail Blog

What Business Structure Should I Choose?

The nomadic lifestyle isn’t for everybody. Despite that, there aren’t too many people who don’t find the idea attractive in some way.Think about it for a moment. If you weren’t tied to a desk or an office, if you could work from anywhere you are in the world, wouldn’t that conjure up a few fantasies? Those of us who have that natural wanderlust wouldn’t have it any other way. <h3>Embracing the Nomadic Lifestyle</h3>With the roller-coaster of COVID restrictions we’ve all experienced in 2020, the digital nomad lifestyle has picked up a lot of steam. More people are taking that leap of faith, but many find that it’s not all wine and roses, especially when you’re just starting out. You need to be acutely organized, stay on top of your communication channels, and be ready to respond immediately. Good Wi-Fi is a must – otherwise, you’re setting yourself up for a level of stress that all the white-sand beaches in the world won’t melt away. Every grand scheme requires careful planning. Setting yourself up for success as a digital nomad is a matter of ensuring you have an environment that supports and optimizes productivity. Finding the right tools is a key ingredient to making it all work, and today we’re going to share some of our best suggestions.<h3>Top Seven Digital Nomad Essentials</h3><ol><li>Portable Wi-Fi. Depending on where you are in the world, you might not have reliable Wi-Fi. While that might be hard to believe in this day and age, you’d be surprised at some of the places you end up (even here at home) where connecting to the internet is still a challenge. When you bring your own Wi-Fi hotspot, you’re always assured of a connection. One of the best values in personal Wi-Fi is <a href="https://www.skyroam.com/">Skyroam</a>. Purchase their hotspot hardware, sign up for a plan according to your needs (they have pay-as-you-go as well as monthly data plans), and you’re good to go. The <a href="https://www.skyroam.com/solis-x-wifi-smartspot">Skyroam Solis X</a> has a few other valuable features you’ll like, like a power bank, remote camera, speaker and microphone, and a voice-activated smart assistant. You can connect up to 10 devices on the same plan, so you’re covered for all your gear.  </li><li>Solar Charger. Portable chargers might seem like a no-brainer, but when you’re sitting on the side of a mountain in Napa Valley or on the beach in Aruba, an outlet might not be handy. For all your mountainside connectivity woes, a portable solar USB charging station is the cure. <a href="http://www.ibigblue.com/product/detail/?id=17">BigBlue</a> offers a three-port foldable 28W solar charger that’s compatible with most devices, laptops, and DSLR cameras included. It’s super portable, lightweight, and totally affordable at under $70 from Amazon.  </li><li>Scheduling/Calendaring Apps. If you’re freelancing as a writer, web developer, graphic designer, or just about any gig-based job, you’re likely dealing with numerous clients, each of whom has their own issues, ideas, and ways they like to communicate. The busier you are, the more challenging it is to stay on top of every detail, but that’s how you rise to the top in the gig economy. Excel or Numbers spreadsheets are excellent, but if you want something a little more interactive, choosing the right app is a must. Here are a few of our faves: — Slack: if you’re part of a remote team, <a href="http://www.slack.com/">Slack</a> helps you stay on top of projects, even if you’re working in different time zones. You can set up Slack groups for more than one company too. All conversations, tasks, events, meetings, and even video conference calls can be managed within the app.  — Evernote is an <a href="https://evernote.com/">online organizer</a> where you can create notebooks for various projects or ideas, clip articles and links from the web, and even scan in your passport and other important documents. If you lose something, all your files are stored in the cloud and can be accessed anytime. <a href="https://evernote.com/compare-plans">The basic plan</a> is free, but the premium and business plans offer enhanced features, like team management, multiple users, offline access, and higher upload limits.  — Toggl is basically a time clock, but if you have multiple clients and get paid hourly, it’s a pretty nifty way to simplify tracking. You can set up companies, projects within companies, and output detailed reports to submit with your invoices. <a href="https://toggl.com/">Toggl</a> starts with a free plan, but <a href="https://toggl.com/plan/pricing">$8 a month</a> gets you premium planning features like recurring tasks, team assignments, and a few more bells and whistles.  — Trello is a <a href="https://trello.com/home">collaborative tool</a> that helps you track everything from the broad strokes right down to the tiniest details. It’s a handy to-do list and productivity tool that even lets you automate tasks based on rules you set. Start with the <a href="https://trello.com/pricing">free version</a> and move on up to a paid plan if you need additional features or customizations.  — Asana is <a href="https://asana.com/?noredirect">another great app</a> (our favorite) that’s as great for digital nomads as it is for remote teams. If you’re working with multiple teams with progressive deadlines, this is the way to get things done. Asana features include task automation, intuitive timelines, and goal-setting. It also integrates with other apps you already use, like Microsoft 365, Adobe Creative Cloud, Gmail, Outlook, Slack, and Zoom. Get your feet wet with a <a href="https://asana.com/pricing">free plan</a> and then upgrade to access more robust features, including portfolios, proofing, a client approval platform, and more.  </li><li>A Good Backpack. When you’re on the move all the time, there’s nothing worse than schlepping a pile of gear without a handy way to do it. You want to keep it as compact and light as possible while still keeping your stuff safe, secure, and protected from the weather. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Kopack-Backpacks-Resistant-Business-Computer/dp/B01B15LDBM?tag=fluentu-20">The Kopack Slim Backpack</a> is lightweight and secure. You can’t access your laptop unless you take it off. It’s made of anti-puncture, tear-resistant material, and you can secure the zipper on the outside compartment with your own lock. It’s got compartments for all of your stuff too, so you won’t have to root around looking for anything. </li><li>Noise-Canceling Headphones are essential if you’re trying to work in noisy places. <a href="https://www.bose.com/en_us/products/headphones/over_ear_headphones/quietcomfort-35-wireless-ii.html#v=qc35_ii_silver">Bose QuietComfort headphones</a> are Bluetooth-enabled, and they have a built-in microphone too. <a href="https://www.apple.com/airpods/">Apple AirPods</a> are a little more discreet, and they have transparency mode if you want to hear what’s going on around you.  </li><li>External Hard Drives are essential to back up your work – especially if you’re working with graphics or audio. Large files tend to take up a lot of hard drive space, and keep in mind you might want to work offline every now and then, so you’ll want to be able to access the files you need. Choose one that’s lightweight but rugged enough to take a beating. Ideally, you’ll want something that facilitates high-speed transfers, Thunderbolt, USB 3, etc. <a href="https://www.lacie.com/products/rugged/">The LaCie Rugged SSD</a> is made for filmmakers and delivers superior performance – plus, it’s waterproof, so that’s one less thing to worry about at the beach.  </li><li>Virtual Mailbox. You can’t be 100 percent efficient on the road if you don’t have a virtual mailbox. Sure, you could get a friend, family member, or even a postal outlet to forward your mail. Still, when you’re unsure exactly where you’re going to be, that’s another complication you don’t want to have to stress on. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">Earth Class Mail’s Virtual Mailbox</a> gives you a legal business address and ensures you get your mail as soon as it arrives. When mail comes, it’s scanned and sent to you as a pdf file. Plans start at $19 per month, and features like check deposits and third-party integrations are available if you need them.</li></ol><h3>Final Thoughts</h3>If you’re a digital nomad, you know how essential it is to have the right tools at your disposal. Staying connected, organized, and stress-free are the keys to ongoing success. To learn more about Earth Class Mail or sign up for a virtual mailbox, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailbox">compare our plans today</a>.

The nomadic lifestyle isn’t for everybody. Despite that, there aren’t too many people who don’t find the idea attractive in some way.

The nomadic lifestyle isn’t for everybody. Despite that, there aren’t too many people who don’t find the idea attractive in some way. Think about it for a moment. If you weren’t tied to a desk or an office, if you could work from anywhere you are in the world, wouldn’t that conjure up a few fantasies? 

Seven Tools Every Digital Nomad Needs | Earth Class Mail Blog

Seven Tools Every Digital Nomad Needs

Living in an RV affords you <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/tips-for-living-and-working-in-an-rv-full-time">so much freedom</a>. You can go where you want, live life on your own terms, and you’re in total control of your immediate environment—an abiding concern these days when we’re all trying to avoid COVID-19 exposure. And if you’re a freelancer, remote worker, or a digital nomad of any kind, it doesn’t really matter where you are. Of course, there are some drawbacks to living a nomadic life. You don’t always have reliable cell service or Wi-Fi. If you’re moving from a house or an apartment, you’ll probably have to get rid of a lot of stuff or put it in storage. And what about your postal mail? Granted, most of us use email and other forms of digital communication more these days. However, you still need a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-the-difference-between-a-physical-address-and-a-mailing-address">physical address</a>, especially if you have a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-address-should-i-use-for-my-llc">business license</a>. You’ll also need an address to register your vehicle, pay your taxes, maintain a bank account, credit cards, insurance, and a driver’s license. So even if you’re living “off the grid,” as it were, you can’t just be a free particle in the universe – and you can’t use your RV as an address unless you’ve got it parked at a campsite that will accept postal mail for you.But what if you’re on the road all the time? How is that going to work? Stay with us here; there might still be a few options you haven’t considered. <h4>Five Ways To Receive Postal Mail</h4>When you don’t want to miss any critical communications, but you also can’t be tied down to a location. Even so, getting your postal mail doesn’t have to be a complicated process. There are still plenty of ways to make it work; some options are more suited to a stationary lifestyle, while others are better for those on the move. <h4>Mail Forwarding Option 1: Family and Friends</h4>Suppose you have family or a friend who is amenable to handling your postal mail. In that case, you can ask them to forward it to you periodically as it comes in. However, there are always caveats. Are they reliable? Can you trust them to let you know when something important arrives? Will they respect your privacy? If that person is letting you use their address, it could also result in legal <a href="https://www.escapees.com/domicile-revisited-back-to-the-basics/">domicile concerns</a> for you in areas like taxation, estate law, and jurisdiction. Family and friends forwarding is undoubtedly a cheaper option, but there’s huge potential here for glitches. There might be times when they’ll need to forward packages, which means they’ll have to shell out for additional postage on top of the time and effort involved. And, if you miss a deadline because a piece of mail didn’t get to you in time, it might be the end of your friendship or the beginning of a lifelong feud. Do you really want to take that risk? <h4>Mail Forwarding Option 2: P.O. Box With Mail Forwarding Service</h4>If you’d prefer to keep your mail forwarding “all business,” many postal service outlets will forward your postal mail to you – which is fine, as long as you don’t move around too much. Issues could arise if you move on down the road and forget to check in with your mail service to let them know. Assuming that most postal mail you receive is important, this is not ideal for your typical RV-er. Still, if you are a highly organized individual, you can probably make it work. <h4>USPS</h4>Your local USPS will hold or forward your postal mail, but if you change locations periodically, your mail can just as easily disappear into a black hole, never to be seen again. Plus, their pricing is not exactly competitive – you can get more personalized service at better rates elsewhere. <h4>P.O. Box</h4>A P.O. Box is great for many things, but it doesn’t give you a legal business or residential address. If you need a street address, be sure you choose a postal service that offers that. If you are in and around a certain locale most of the time, this option is usually just fine. When you hit the road, you can ask for your postal mail to be held or forwarded, or you can have a friend, family member, or business colleague pick it up for you. If you’re having your mail forwarded or choosing any other services that a postal service offers, be sure to check rates for the various options you need. You’ll pay a rental fee for your P.O. box, but forwarding and other services are extra and can add up pretty quickly. For example, if you tend to receive a lot of packages, the expense will be somewhat less predictable as the cost of postage to send it on will vary depending on what zip code you’re in. Plus, though most services will tell you that you have mail, they don’t tell you what’s inside. Do you really want to pay to have your junk mail chase you around the country? Or if you’re waiting on something time-sensitive, how will you know it’s in there?<h4>Virtual Mailbox</h4><a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">Virtual mailbox services</a> are ideal for full-time RV-ers, but keep in mind, not all virtual services are created equal. Virtual mail services are offered by shared office providers, coworking facilities, and private mail handling services like UPS. Be sure you check the fine print before making a commitment; you’ll want to make sure you’re getting the services you need at a price that makes sense for your budget. Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox is a simple way to take care of all your nomadic mail concerns. You’ll get a physical business address, physical storage, cloud storage, and you can even have more than one user on the account. Here’s how it works. Your postal mail is sent to your Earth Class Mail business address. These are commercial addresses that you can use for business registration, on your website, and on all of your marketing collateral. As soon as your postal mail is received at one of our processing centers, we scan it to a pdf file and email it to you. Generally, items you receive will be in your account the same day. However, if your Earth Class Mail address is in a city where we don’t have a processing facility, it might take a little extra time. When you sync your account with cloud storage, such as Dropbox, Box.com, or Google Drive, it is automatically sent there, but you can also download the files directly to your computer if you prefer. If you receive checks, your account can be linked to your preferred accounting software to facilitate e-deposits. We’ll hold the physical mail for 30 days, though packages are only kept for 10 days, meaning you’ll need to have somebody pick it up, or we’ll forward it to the address you give us. Secure shredding services are included in your monthly plan, and there are plenty of special handling options to choose from, including expedited scanning. If you want one less thing to worry about, you can even <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">automate your check deposits</a> to maintain cash flow. <h4>Final Thoughts</h4>Living in an RV is the ultimate freedom for many people, but the question of how you receive your postal mail is always a concern. Earth Class Mail offers flexible, secure virtual mailbox plans that are perfect for today’s digital nomad. Browse our <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">virtual mailbox plans</a>, or if you would like to learn more, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/contact">reach out today</a>. We’d love to be a part of your adventure.

Living in an RV affords you so much freedom. You can go where you want, live life on your own terms, and you’re in total control of your immediate environment—an abiding concern these days when we’re all trying to avoid COVID-19 exposure.

How Do You Get Mail When You Live In An RV? | Earth Class Mail Blog

How Do You Get Mail When You Live In An RV?

Starting a new business is not for the faint of heart. To navigate the process effectively, you must be ready to face many questions, challenges, and risks: Will my business idea work? How much will it cost? How do I protect myself and my assets? With proper planning and education, you can navigate the process with confidence. Once you are able to answer the Who, What, Where, Why, When, and How related questions for your new business, the next step in the process is understanding all of the costs required to start a new business. These costs set the foundation for establishing your new business. The first cost you will encounter is forming your business entity.Forming Your Business EntityA business entity helps you establish the type of business that you want to operate. Each business entity is slightly different in how they handle taxes and liability for your business. These entities include sole proprietorships, partnerships, limited liability companies (LLC), and corporations. It is important to speak with an attorney and an accountant to understand the laws, fees, and taxes involved with starting a new business. The attorney fees for filing your business entity can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars. If you plan to form your business in a state that you are not physically in, Earth Class Mail has a virtual business address solution (see more details in <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/from-albuquerque-to-wilmington-we-have-a-virtual-address-in-every-u-s-state">&quot;From Albuquerque to Wilmington, We Have A Virtual Address in Every U.S. State (...and now, Atlanta!)&quot;</a>). You will also need to pay for a registered agent in that state (see more details in <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business">“How to Get a Virtual Mailing Address to Register Your Business”</a>) to actively participate in commerce in that state.LocationThe location of your business can set the tone and establish instant credibility for your new business. Whether you are looking for a local address in Columbus, OH or a premier address on Park Avenue in New York City, NY, or Market Street in San Francisco, CA, Earth Class Mail offers over <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">80 virtual business addresses</a> that you can sign up to use for your business address. The location will act as your business address to register your business entity and the location where you will receive business postal mail. Earth Class Mail offers plans for new businesses to manage a way to digitize your postal business mail. For more details on the cost of Earth Class Mail’s plans, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">see here</a>.How to Manage Your Business Postal Mail and Checks:As your new business continues to grow, you will begin to receive postal mail from your customers (including checks), your bank, the government, and other important documents. With Earth Class Mail, we can help you scale your business with a suite of products that provide digital solutions to automate your company’s postal mail, checks, and important documents. From your mailbox to your inbox, Earth Class Mail helps you launch your new business with a digital solution for postal mail. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/">See more here</a>.Payments with Stripe:Another decision that you will need to make is which service and method you will choose to accept payments from customers. We highly recommend <a href="https://stripe.com/">Stripe.com</a>. Stripe brings together everything that’s required to build websites and apps that accept payments and send payouts globally. Whether your new business is an e-commerce store or a subscription business, Stripe offers a complete stack for all your payment needs across channels. Stripe also protects your new business from fraud. With 135+ currencies and dozens of payment methods, Stripe makes it easy to launch new markets and add your customers’ preferred way of paying to increase conversion abroad. See more on Stripe’s pricing and plans <a href="https://stripe.com/pricing">here</a>.When starting a new business there are many decisions and costs that you will encounter on the way, such as setting up your business entity and choosing the right location, as well as how you manage your postal mail and your payments. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/">Earth Class Mail</a> and <a href="https://stripe.com/">Stripe</a> provide easy solutions to help you get your new business up and running. We wish you the best and let us know how we can help you scale your business from the idea stage to a successfully operating venture!

Starting a new business is not for the faint of heart. To navigate the process effectively, you must be ready to face many questions, challenges, and risks

Knowing the Costs of Starting a Business | Earth Class Mail Blog

Knowing the Costs of Starting a Business

At Earth Class Mail, we believe people are the foundation of building a great business--and our team members are our greatest assets. Lucky for us, we have some impressive team members on our roster. It takes a lot of people with various skills to make the Earth Class Mail experience what it is.  From building data models to managing mobile app operations, we all work together to go beyond customer expectations.As we continue to innovate and grow, we wanted to introduce you to the newest “Mailers” (we’ll work on that nickname…). We asked our four newest team members a few questions, so you can get to know a handful of people who are behind-the-scenes making Earth Class Mail one of the top <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-a-virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/from-albuquerque-to-wilmington-we-have-a-virtual-address-in-every-u-s-state">virtual address</a> providers.Priyanshi Agrawal, Senior Data Analyst<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/priyanshi-agrawal/">Priyanshi</a> is on our Business Intelligence/Data Operations team at Earth Class Mail. In her new role, she will be contributing data-driven decision-making for the business, as well as optimizing and automating our current business processes. What are a few goals you&#39;d like to accomplish in life or while at ECM?I honestly love working in an entrepreneurial work culture, I want to get out of my comfort zone and try my hands on different areas of business allowing me to add several new skills to my existing skillset. I am an empathy-driven person so I definitely want to utilize this innate quality in me to understand the needs of society and our customers and empower them with optimum solutions to their problems utilizing data and science.What&#39;s your go-to productivity trick?<ol><li>Institute 50/10 rule throughout the day. Work without distraction with optimum focus for 50 minutes then take a 10-minute break</li><li>Following the <a href="https://www.eisenhower.me/eisenhower-matrix/">Eisenhower Matrix</a> allows me to prioritize tasks and wisely manage my time.</li></ol>What are your hobbies outside of ECM?I like engaging in psychological thrillers, documentaries, or listening to Bollywood music while strolling around. I also like to keep myself updated with current affairs whether in technology or other by reading blogs, articles, seminars. My stress buster would be playing fun board games or having sound intellectual conversations with family and friends.Shawn Friel, Vice President of Growth<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnpfriel/">Shawn</a> joined to lead our Growth team, where he is responsible for driving revenue through improving awareness, conversion, and retention. He oversees a large department that helps shape the Earth Class Mail experience for our customers.What are a few goals you&#39;d like to accomplish in life or while at ECM? I would like to compete and win in the Amazing Race.  If that doesn&#39;t happen, I would like to finish the World&#39;s Toughest Race.What&#39;s your go-to productivity trick?  When I hit a mental roadblock, exercising or taking a nap usually helps me clear my head and think through a problem.  What are your hobbies outside of ECM?  I enjoy spending time with my family, playing board games, and hiking or biking on trails. What&#39;s an interesting fact about yourself?  My wife and I adopted children through foster care internationally.What are three items you&#39;d take with you to a deserted island?  I typically try to avoid deserted islands.  If I found myself stranded on one, I would bring scuba gear, Wilson (a volleyball), and pizza.Tyler Brown, Cyber Security Intern<a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-brown-284ba418b">Tyler</a> is a new member of our Infrastructure team at Earth Class Mail. He will be keeping us up to speed on (security) compliances to ensure <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/company/security">world-class security</a> to keep customer and employee data safe, secure, and adherent to requirements from HIPAA, payment card industry, and cloud operations. What are your hobbies outside of ECM?I’m an avid powerlifter and in the process of switching to Strong Man in hopes of competing locally. I also like to learn programming languages and study different vulnerability exploitation processes.What&#39;s an interesting fact about yourself? I never thought I would be interested in computers at all. I felt unchallenged in a lot of the other potential careers that I pursued. When I started my first introductory classes with computers, I noticed just how much there is to learn in the broad scope of Computer Science. Ever since then I&#39;ve been a computer nerd and have enjoyed tackling all the complex challenges I&#39;ve encountered.What are three items you&#39;d take with you to a deserted island?As a veteran, this is a hard question. Probably my woobie (military issue snuggle blanket), a large cup, and an axe or something to that effectVural Cifci, Vice President of New Business <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/vuralcifci/">Vural</a> is now a part of our Emerging team, where he will be leading Earth Class Mail’s Mobile App operations and working to find new revenue streams. He will be leading the charge on creating a world-class mobile experience for our customers.What are a few goals you&#39;d like to accomplish in life or while at ECM?While at ECM, I want to build a mobile team and mobile-first products for ECM.What&#39;s your go-to productivity trick?Pick up the phone or send an instant message whenever I have a question.What are your hobbies outside of ECM?Football, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), and cleaning the house.What&#39;s an interesting fact about yourself? I have a mild case of OCD, I really don&#39;t like it when people touch my things, change the order or move things around, and/or not return as they find it in the first place.What are three items you&#39;d take with you to a deserted island?Absolutely nothing, if I&#39;m on a deserted island, it&#39;s for a reason.

At Earth Class Mail, we believe people are the foundation of building a great business--and our team members are our greatest assets.

At Earth Class Mail, we believe people are the foundation of building a great business--and our team members are our greatest assets. Lucky for us, we have some impressive team members on our roster. 

 Welcome to the Team: Earth Class Mail Employee Spotlight | Earth Class Mail

 Welcome to the Team: Earth Class Mail Employee Spotlight

It’s one thing to pack your bag for the average weekend getaway or a quick vacation across the country— but for many traveling full time is their everyday life, and deciding what to put in your bag can be a difficult decision.While traveling full time, you’ll be in and out of different cities, states, countries, or even climates. Clothes suitable for Calgary aren’t suitable for Mexico City. So what do you do? Earth Class Mail has you covered with tips and tricks on how and what to pack for this full-time traveling lifestyle. First Step: Understanding Economic Complexities First of all, traveling full time isn’t all piña coladas and toes in the sand — it’s a lot of hard work. Before you decide to take the leap into the digital nomad lifestyle there are a few things you’ll need to understand. First you’ll need to figure out how much money is needed to travel full time. Most people don’t have enough money saved to travel full time indefinitely. If that’s you, you’ll need a way to finance this new lifestyle. One suggestion is to work while you travel. figuring out what skills or career path you have that can allow you to work remotely will be key to solving your economic issues. We have another blog post about managing a business while being a full time traveler <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/this-founder-digital-nomad-reads-her-postal-mail-anywhere">here</a>. Second Step: Choosing the Right Luggage A solid piece of luggage is key when traveling full time. It’s something to put the majority of your belongings in, so finding something that is conducive to your travel style is essential. That’s either a heavy-duty, large rolling suitcase, or for most a large backpack. The most efficient backpack type for traveling full time is a luggage-entry style. A luggage-entry style of backpack fits the most and unzips all the way around to reveal everything in your pack. This allows for a more easy way to find your things when traveling through airports, hotels, and other various transportation hubs. Where to find one of these backpacks? We did our research and found the top-rated, luggage-entry style backpack. It’s the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Osprey-Farpoint-Travel-Backpack-Volcanic/dp/B014EBLI7Y/ref=as_li_ss_tl?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1478113012&sr=1-1&keywords=osprey+farpoint+55&linkCode=sl1&tag=goonthro-20&linkId=6570f4dfe4639a5bff2bc14c06214580">Osprey Farpoint 55L back</a> rated 5/5 stars on Amazon with over 1,000 reviews. Third Step: How to Pack for Different Cities and Climates Traveling full time has its positives, but living out of a suitcase is difficult. It’s hard to lug around items of all kinds around the world for every type of climate, here’s a few tips on how to “hack” the system. Choose multi-purpose items. Go with basic solid colors, and always think about layers. When traveling from Alaska to Southern California, you’re going to need to change your style of dress to adapt to the different climate. For women, a long skirt is a great example that does well both in warm and cooler climates, but for the girls the real winner is leggings. They have so many uses, wear them under pants for warmth, or wear them by themselves for everyday wear or exercising! A comfy solution to a lot of climate-related clothing problems.For men, try buying shorts that double as swimming shorts. Look for pants that can either be zipped halfway off or can be rolled up to create a stylish ¾ length pant. Anything lightweight and able to dry quickly is vital for traveling full time, never pack for a specific scenario. This wastes space, and only works for one specific destination. Keep in mind you can always purchase items out and about as you see fit. You can donate or sell items you are finished using wherever you end up! Final Step: Get Your Pack on! These packing tips and tricks are just some of the many ways you can go about traveling full time, but you’re almost there! Hopefully we’ve helped steer you in the right direction. Always remember, every full-time traveler does something a little different. We recommend doing your own research and finding solutions to any problem that may arise BEFORE you hop on that plane, bus, or boat to wherever you desire. Whether you’re traveling around different cities in the same country, or traveling the globe — Earth Class Mail has you covered with all your basic tips and tricks to thrive in your new on-the-go lifestyle. Go out and seize your day! And from us, safe travels!

It’s one thing to pack your bag for the average weekend getaway or a quick vacation across the country— but for many traveling full time is their everyday life, and deciding what to put in your bag can be a difficult decision.

It’s one thing to pack your bag for the average weekend getaway or a quick vacation across the country — but for many traveling full time is their everyday life, and deciding what to put in your bag can be a difficult decision.

 Checklist for Traveling Full Time | Earth Class Mail Blog

 Checklist for Traveling Full-Time

For many reasons, traditional mailboxes aren’t right for everyone. Fortunately, many alternatives could fit your lifestyle or your business’ needs. One of the most common alternatives to a regular mailbox is a Post Office Box (PO Box). PO Boxes are quite popular because they help address some of the limitations of a physical mailbox, like security and privacy. In this post, we’ll explain how PO Boxes work, why people decide to rent them, and shed some light on how to get a PO Box without a physical address. <h3>What is a PO Box?</h3><a href="https://www.usps.com/manage/po-boxes.htm">USPS PO Boxes</a> are lockboxes housed at local post offices. PO Boxes are probably the most common alternative to traditional mailboxes, and individuals or businesses can use them. PO Boxes typically come in a range of sizes and are available at post offices. Access to PO Boxes in some post office locations is available 24/7 for convenience. <h3>Why do people sign up for PO Boxes?</h3>PO Boxes are generally considered to be a <a href="https://www.updater.com/moving-tips/how-much-is-a-po-box">more secure option</a> than traditional mailboxes. A common reason people sign up for mailboxes is to maintain their privacy because PO Boxes are tied to mailing addresses, as opposed to physical or residential addresses. PO Boxes offer people a way to receive postal mail without having to tell senders where they live. Additionally, unlike most mailboxes, PO Boxes are locked or require a code to access. This adds another layer of security than most mailboxes.People sign up for PO Boxes because they may not regularly have access to their physical mailbox. For example, people who travel for work or for extended periods of time are not necessarily able to keep up with their physical mailbox without the help of a friend or neighbor. This can pose other security risks, of course. <h3>The Limitations of a PO Box</h3>While a PO Box certainly has many benefits, there are some things you’ll want to consider before renting one. Most notably, if you are a frequent traveler or lead a nomadic life, keep in mind that you will still not be able to keep a close eye on what you receive. Of course, you can pair a personal PO Box with Informed Delivery and stay abreast of what you receive. Informed Delivery is a free service offered by the USPS that sends users pictures of the outside of incoming postal mail pieces. Informed Delivery keeps you posted about what pieces of postal mail you’re receiving. However, even if you know you are receiving something important or time-sensitive, you won’t be able to see your postal mail contents with Informed Delivery, much less act on it. If you frequently receive packages, a PO Box is probably not the best option for you. Major carriers like UPS and FedEx will not deliver packages to PO Boxes provided by USPS. Even if senders are not using these carriers, you may still run into issues because of the PO Box size. In that case, the post office will typically hold onto the package for you at the desk, but this can still be a nuisance if you plan to regularly receive packages.<h3>How Can I get a PO Box Without a Street Address?</h3>One of the biggest limitations of a USPS PO Box is that you must provide a permanent, physical address to be eligible for one. This poses an issue for nomadic people who don’t maintain a traditional, permanent residence. That being said, there are still options. If you don’t mind not being able to open or act on your postal mail remotely, you can research private PO Box services offered by companies instead of the USPS. Depending on your service provider, you may not need to have a permanent address to sign up. Of course, you’ll also want to look into any restrictions about packages for your service provider. However, there is one alternative to a traditional PO Box that doesn’t have the same restrictions and gives you more power to act on your postal mail. A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> or virtual PO Box, like the ones we offer at Earth Class Mail, offer you much of the same security that a PO Box does. With a virtual mailbox, you will receive a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">virtual address</a>. This address is a real, physical address offered by the service provider and is not tied to where you live or work. Earth Class Mail accepts postal mail on behalf of its customers, scans the content, and uploads copies as PDFs available within their account, just like email. Earth Class Mail does not have carrier restrictions for packages, and we can receive and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-forwarding">forward packages</a> or physical copies of your postal mail as needed. A virtual mailbox or PO Box will give you all the security benefits of a traditional PO Box while also offering added capabilities and convenience. <h3>Is a PO Box right for me? </h3>PO Boxes are a very common alternative to traditional mailboxes and for good reason. They offer enhanced security for your postal mail and depending on your location and needs, can be very convenient in terms of proximity. Overall, a traditional PO Box can certainly help address any security concerns you have about your current mailbox. However, they are not the best choice for everyone. If you plan to receive packages frequently or don’t want to wait until you are able to visit your mailbox to act on your postal mail, you should consider a virtual mailbox provider like Earth Class Mail. A virtual mailbox will offer the same security benefits as a PO Box, but without some of the limitations. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/">Sign up today</a>.

For many reasons, traditional mailboxes aren’t right for everyone. Fortunately, many alternatives could fit your lifestyle or your business’ needs. One of the most common alternatives to a regular mailbox is a Post Office Box (PO Box). 

A traditional PO Box can certainly help address any security concerns you have about your current mailbox. However, you'll have to make some adjustments if you want a PO Box and you don't have a street address. Visit our blog to learn more.

How to Get a PO Box Without a Street Address I Earth Class Mail Blog

How to Get a PO Box Without a Street Address

Remote work has become the norm for many of us since the pandemic hit in March. 42% of the U.S. labor force is now working from home full-time, according to the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). Compare this to 3.4% before the pandemic. At Earth Class Mail, we have been writing on remote work and what it means for businesses and individuals alike. Our virtual mailbox product helped <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/how-a-virtual-mailbox-helped-basecamp-become-fully-remote">Basecamp become entirely remote</a>, and we also offer our perspective on what&#39;s ahead in our blog <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/remote-work-after-covid">The Future of Remote Work after COVID-19 Pandemic</a>.In a part of our series on remote work, including <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/managing-a-team-remotely-at-earth-class-mail">Managing a Team Remotely at Earth Class Mail</a>, our VP of Marketing <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/murraygwen/">Gwen Murray</a> set out to find how other leaders handle the process. She specifically wanted to hear from other female leaders to learn what they are doing to collaborate, maintain morale, and successfully hit productivity goals. She created a series of online interview questions and received detailed and well-thought-out replies. These companies&#39; teams have self-identified as successfully navigating remote work. Read on to hear why.<h3>Searchspring&#39;s Marketing Team</h3><a href="https://searchspring.com/">Searchspring</a>&#39;s Marketing Team Leader is <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannmmartin/">JoAnn Martin</a>. Searchspring is a sister company of Earth Class Mail that provides online brands with user-friendly search, merchandising, and analytics tools. JoAnn is an accomplished executive who is skillfully navigating remote work with her growing team. How does she do it, and what makes her confident that her management style is working?In her own words, JoAnn describes Searchspring&#39;s marketing team as &quot;always focused foremost on our revenue goal. We contribute to that goal by hitting our new pipeline KPI -- each person has specific targets depending on their function that they&#39;re working on hitting. We haven&#39;t changed our team goals because our business goals have not changed.&quot; She notes that success is a team effort and claims &quot;it would be silly to take credit for their ambition and dedication.&quot;<h4>So how does that ambition and dedication manifest itself at Searchspring? </h4>What JoAnn has been able to maintain is the &quot;quality&quot; of her team. &quot;Despite a challenging year, every team member has been engaged, productive, and creative.&quot;<h4>How do you connect with your team without the benefits of hallway conversations, walks to the local coffee shops, or scheduled Happy Hours?</h4>&quot;There are a couple of ways that I check in on my team to see how they&#39;re doing. I don&#39;t expect that they will always be doing well. You&#39;d have to be a little &#39;wheels off&#39; to have fully enjoyed 2020.&quot; Part of her team&#39;s practice is their daily Slack standup, in which the initial question is, &quot;How are you feeling?&quot; JoAnn says, &quot;It&#39;s a subtle question that is most often answered with a GIF or emoji but helps the rest of the team understand where you are without an awkward conversation. There are a lot of Nicholas Cage party parrots and Let&#39;s Go Taco emojis in that thread.&quot;&quot;The second [practice is] one on ones. Each manager has a weekly one on one with each team member (and me with mine) to talk about activity, but also about anything that they need to discuss.&quot; <h4>But what happens if you notice morale or productivity slipping? How and when do you choose to intervene? </h4>&quot;I look for productivity trends. Is someone who is typically reliable slipping? Is work quality diminishing? Are our results trending down? Those aren&#39;t unique to remote work, but they can bring more complexity when people are piling on anxiety about their children&#39;s school (or ability to teach them while working from home), plus spouse&#39;s job security or ill family members. Even the stress of a kid with a cold has been exponentially multiplied. So, if something like that comes up, it requires a lot more compassion and grace.&quot;When team members raise concerns, JoAnn jumps in to &quot;change things up.&quot; The team recently had a project start to go &quot;&#39;wheels off&#39; because of these factors, so we jumped in and talked about how we simplify and focus the project to be more effective. Did we have the right people involved? It came out better than it started.&quot;It sounds like JoAnn has the right set of tools in her toolkit to navigate remote work - flexibility, empathy, and a playful attitude, to name a few. <h3>ThankView&#39;s Client Outcomes Team</h3>The team at <a href="https://thankview.com/">ThankView</a>, a video outreach platform specializing in stewardship for their Education, Healthcare, and Non-Profit clients, is exceeding company goals and doing it remotely. <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadyacollins/">Nadya Collins</a>, their Chief Customer Officer, has experienced a lot of transition since the pandemic hit. During that time, her team restructured, recruited (tripled!), and trained the Client Outcomes teams (Onboarding, Support, and Success), all while being remote.<h4>What are some of the &quot;KPI&#39;s&quot; you are using to gauge your success?</h4>&quot;The primary KPI that Client Outcomes is measured on, and frankly, the reason why ThankView decided to invest in the role that I was hired for, is Net Revenue Churn. Before I started in March, that number was between 15%-19%, and I was tasked to get that number below 10%. I was in the office for three days before the entire company moved to work from home. It was definitely hard to come in, observe, build the relationships, and build the trust to drive the change needed to achieve our goal while working remotely in an environment that previously was so built around in-person, fun, and after-work activities. But I honestly think it was the culture and the team that made it possible to align and execute on those changes remotely.&quot;<h4>Did you use any external partners to help maintain the momentum? </h4>Nadya brought in expert help from Simu.ly, who &quot;helped us build a Sales playbook, train the team, and assess the team afterward through simulation calls. However, if the team hadn&#39;t been so open-minded, empathetic, and motivated to change, we would never have been able to absorb the new way of working and drive that &gt;15% Net Revenue Churn down to the &lt;-1% it is today.&quot;What an incredible accomplishment! <h4>What new processes and tools have you tried?</h4>Nadya rolled out a &quot;life-changing tool&quot; called Front. Front is a multi-channel inbox that lets you assign tasks, follow, comment, and analyze efficiency. &quot;Especially with shared inboxes, tripling the team and needing to train and support new employees while on the job, Front has been an absolute game-changer. I honestly don&#39;t think I could ever go back to just using Gmail after this.&quot;<h4>What are you doing to keep up the pace and achieve high levels of morale and employee engagement?</h4>&quot;We try to come up with new and inventive ways to celebrate still and continue to invest in our culture. Fun is actually listed as one of our company&#39;s core values, and ThankView had had a Fun Committee since before I started, so it is something that is always top of mind for any of the leadership here.&quot;&quot;We have done virtual game nights, poker nights, happy hours, a Halloween themed event, and we also like to celebrate people&#39;s achievements and milestones through events and gifts. In addition to our normal benefits, the company has also implemented new perks such as reimbursement for work-from-home equipment (monitors, etc.), and monthly boxes by SnackNation.&quot;With her team, she also encourages time off in the form of a&quot; mental health day&quot; where any ThankView employee can take a free day off every two weeks. From Nadya&#39;s perspective, companies should keep in mind that it&#39;s not just about going remote... It&#39;s also about &quot;acknowledging that this past year has made life increasingly stressful with people potentially having to deal with isolation, sickness, loss of loved ones, and other events that are impacting people&#39;s mental health.&quot; She further explains, &quot;It&#39;s important to listen to your employees to understand how you can best support them.&quot;Nadya&#39;s team has made impressive progress over the past few months, exceeding her goals! Her ability to stay connected and embrace new ways of keeping employees motivated is inspiring. We want to be more like Nadya! Don&#39;t you? <h3>Merkitus’ Market Team</h3><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-laing-b69622110/">Charlotte Laings</a> is Head of Marketing at <a href="https://www.metrikus.io/">Merkitus,</a> a unique software platform that helps their customers understand and optimize their buildings&#39; environment, maintenance, usage, and health. Charlotte&#39;s team has been busy the past few months winning an award based on her team&#39;s digital marketing campaign and onboarding a new employee - all while being fully remote.<h4>In a few sentences, describe why you think you&#39;ve had success managing your team remotely? What are some of the &quot;KPI&#39;s&quot; you are using to gauge your success?</h4>&quot;In terms of performance, during the lockdown, we have done some of the best work we have ever done. We&#39;ve increased website views by 20% and tripled social media following.&quot; She attributes this to &quot;the closer bond the team has formed over this time.&quot; For Charlotte, keeping morale high has been about &quot;truly embracing the benefits of remote working. Making the most of flexible working hours and using the time saved from commuting to learn new things,&quot; keeping her team happy and productive.<h4>How has your communication style adapted to stay connected with your team? Have you tried any new tools or tactics?</h4>&quot;Not necessarily a &#39;productivity tool&#39; but calls are your best friend. Whether it&#39;s a video call or just a phone call, it&#39;s miles more effective for communicating one on one.&quot; For Charlotte, this takes people out of the routine of constant slacks and emails and helps maintain personal relationships amongst co-workers. <h4>What feedback have you received from your team that indicates working remotely is going well?</h4>Charlotte&#39;s Senior Content Manager provided the following input:&quot;We all know when deadlines are, and as long as we stick to them and are present for meetings, we can manage our own time within that space. As a writer, I can&#39;t always write on command, especially with big, research-led pieces, so this style of working suits me down to the ground: it allows me the room to think creatively and to work at my own pace. I think it&#39;s a testament to the way Charlotte runs the team that things rarely fall through the cracks, and no one is ever burnt out.&quot;<h3>Final Thoughts</h3>There is a lot to learn from others&#39; experiences during this time, and we encourage you to reach out to your network and find out what they are doing right (and maybe mistakes made along the way) while managing remote teams. We have learned some great tips from these women and think we&#39;ll be asking HR about SnackNation! At Earth Class Mail, we love seeing teams come together to support one another during what can be an isolating and challenging time, and we hope you also found value in the stories these leaders shared.

Remote work has become the norm for many of us since the pandemic hit in March. 42% of the U.S. labor force is now working from home full-time, according to the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). Compare this to 3.4% before the

As we settle deeper into remote work for the foreseeable future, best practices and idea sharing can be very helpful. Hear from 3 women leaders winning at remote work.

Successfully Navigating Remote Work I Earth Class Mail

Successfully Navigating Remote Work

As a freelancer, you&#39;re running a one-person show. Unfortunately, that doesn&#39;t mean you only do one job. To land clients and gain their trust, you have to do many things big businesses do—but on a smaller scale.And you&#39;re competing against more freelancers than ever. In 2019,<a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90411808/35-of-the-u-s-workforce-is-now-freelancing-10-million-more-than-5-years-ago"> 57 million people</a> in the United States did freelance work. Freelance job openings increased by<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/07/freelance-work-grows-amid-covid-19-math-stats-game-hiring-in-demand.html"> more than 25%</a> in the second quarter of 2020. Of course, you&#39;re not only competing against other freelancers. You&#39;re competing against companies that offer similar services. Creating a professional image shows potential clients that you&#39;re a legitimate operation.These tips will help you build a professional image so you&#39;ll have plenty of clients (and a full bank account).<h2>Tip #1 — Invest in your website</h2>Your website is the freelancer equivalent of a brick and mortar store. It&#39;s one of the primary ways potential clients will interact with you. You want a website that presents you in the best way possible. That means it should be easy to read, error-free, and clear about what you&#39;re offering and the value you bring your clients.There are thousands of professionals that can help you build a site. You can reach out to colleagues and friends for referrals. You can also find designers and copywriters on platforms like <a href="https://www.fiverr.com/">Fiverr</a>, <a href="https://www.upwork.com/">Upwork</a>, and <a href="https://99designs.com/">99Designs</a>. If your budget is too small for a designer, many tools make it easy to create a beautiful site on your own. Some of the most popular are <a href="https://www.wix.com/">Wix</a>, <a href="https://www.squarespace.com/">Squarespace</a>, and <a href="https://wordpress.com/">WordPress</a>.Wix and Squarespace have drag-and-drop templates, so they&#39;re easy for beginners. WordPress is an open-source platform with a lot of functionality. Keep in mind that this tool can have a larger learning curve if you&#39;re new to building your own website.Why build your own website and not just use a platform like Upwork? Plenty of folks do quite well on freelance services marketplaces. But a<a href="https://thefreelancehustle.com/the-complete-guide-to-setting-up-your-freelancer-website/"> professional website</a> can set you apart and help you attract higher-paying clients. It&#39;s a great way to pull together everything you&#39;re building. A word about social networks: Think of your social profiles as an extension of your website and brand. They can be a useful way to connect with potential clients. But they may not be a necessity, especially depending on your industry. If you can&#39;t manage that much online activity and aren&#39;t in an industry that necessitates social presence, focus on your website. <h3>Tip #2 — Highlight testimonials</h3>Collecting and sharing customer testimonials is one of the best ways to<a href="https://blog.boonle.com/look-professional-freelancer/"> establish credibility</a> as a freelancer. It&#39;s called social proof, and it&#39;s not just a way to share nice things about yourself. There&#39;s actually science behind it. Psychological studies show that people prefer to follow the majority than step out on their own.<a href="https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-proof/"> Social proof</a> capitalizes on that tendency.A potential client who sees that others have enjoyed your service believes they will too. So how do you<a href="https://neilpatel.com/blog/customer-testimonials/"> get testimonials</a>?At the end of a project, ask the client for feedback while the work is still fresh in their mind. If they agree, get their permission to use their name and image on your website. Put the testimonial in a prominent spot on your site so that all your visitors will see what a great choice you are. <h3>Tip #3 — Sign up for a virtual address</h3>Even if you run an online business, you&#39;re going to need a mailing address. Why? Because the bank will want it when you open an account. Your website domain host will want it when you create a website. You&#39;ll need to put it on the bottom of marketing emails to follow anti-SPAM laws. You&#39;ll need one if you choose to<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business/"> register your business</a> as a limited liability company (LLC). And you may have a client that wants to pay by check. Or that wants to know they&#39;re dealing with a legitimate business—one with a mailing address.Of course, you could use your residential address. That is not the best idea for two reasons:  <ul><li>Keeping your personal and business addresses separate helps maintain your privacy. The address you use for your business may become public, especially if you register with the secretary of state. You probably don&#39;t want a client showing up on your doorstep.</li><li>Maintaining separate personal and business affairs sends a message to government entities. You&#39;re running a real business. So if you ever get audited or sued, your personal assets will be better protected.</li></ul>Getting a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">virtual address</a> presents your clients with a professional image. It also helps you <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/virtual-address-privacy-and-security">maintain your privacy</a> and keeps your personal and business affairs separate.Plus, if you <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailbox">receive mail</a> at your virtual address, you have access to it through an online dashboard. Instead of handling paper, you can spend more time finding clients.<h3>Tip #4 — Modernize your phone</h3>Keeping your personal and business phone numbers separate is important for the same reasons.Of course, the possibilities for disruption to your personal life are even greater. Putting boundaries around the time you spend at work is hard enough when you work from home. If clients start calling your personal phone on the weekends, your work-life balance gets pretty tenuous.A business phone number allows some separation between home and office. Plus, with a separate business number, you can create a professional, outgoing message. Keep that silly singing voicemail on your personal number. So what if you want a business number but don&#39;t want to get a whole separate phone line?<a href="https://voice.google.com/u/0/about">Google Voice</a> and <a href="https://www.openphone.co/">OpenPhone</a> are two popular options. Signing up for one of these allows you to use your personal phone but keep your number private. Clients see a professional image, and you get to limit business calls to business hours.<h3>Tip #5 — Invest in an invoice system</h3>If you&#39;re regularly invoicing clients, you may be ready to invest in a system to level up your invoices. Sure, you can ask a client to Venmo you, but that doesn&#39;t project a professional image.If you don&#39;t already have a system like <a href="https://www.freshbooks.com/">FreshBooks</a> or <a href="https://www.waveapps.com/">Wave</a>, consider signing up for one. Some invoicing tools, like Wave, are free. They may charge bank transfer fees but don&#39;t require a monthly subscription.Many invoicing platforms also provide time-keeping tools or integrate with other time-keeping apps. This integration can be useful if billable hours are part of your business model. Some also integrate with larger accounting software systems so you can keep everything in one place. If you&#39;re only invoicing one client every few months, you may not be ready for the investment. But using an invoicing platform will make your invoices look more professional. Clients may see you as more trustworthy. Professional invoicing can also help you get paid faster. Many include automated reminders for unpaid invoices.<h3>Conclusion</h3>Freelancing can be an exciting way to put on your entrepreneurial hat without starting a full-blown company. It can also be a serious way to make a solid living. Even though you don&#39;t have employees and an office, you&#39;re still a legitimate operation. Presenting that message to your clients will help you build the brand and the bank account you want.These tips will help you maintain a professional image, so your clients know they&#39;re working with a legitimate freelance business.

As a freelancer, you're running a one-person show. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean you only do one job. To land clients and gain their trust, you have to do many things big businesses do—but on a smaller scale.

Freelancers are faced with the challenge of maintaining a professional image while often being a one-person show. Read our tips for how to maintain a professional image as a freelancer.

Freelancer Tips for Maintaining a Professional Image I Earth Class Mail Blog

Freelancer Tips for Maintaining a Professional Image

If you are starting or running a business, you’re probably no stranger to paperwork. From signing contracts to signing up for all kinds of services, there’s a lot to juggle. You may not have anticipated asking yourself, do I need a physical address or a mailing address?If you’re like most people, you may not even be completely sure what the difference is between a mailing address and a physical address. However, the difference between a physical address and a mailing address is important for business owners and entrepreneurs to know. For certain business practices or paperwork, business owners will require certain types of addresses. Mailing addresses differ from physical addresses in a few important ways. Knowing the difference can help you know what type of address you need for your business. <h3>What is a mailing address?</h3>A <a href="https://www.rovva.com/en-gb/blog/startups/difference-between-mailing-and-physical-address">mailing address</a> is an address that senders can use to send you postal mail. For many people and businesses, this is your home or office address. However, for some people or businesses, a mailing address is not their home or office address. A common example of a mailing address is a P.O. box. A P.O. box is a mailing address but not a physical address. Using a P.O. box, senders can make sure postal mail gets to you. However, your location remains private. <h3>What is a physical address?</h3>A <a href="https://www.serviceobjects.com/blog/mailing-address-vs-physical-address-whats-the-difference/">physical address</a>, on the other hand, describes a location. If you receive postal mail at your home, your residential address is a physical address and a mailing address. However, some people or businesses maintain a physical address separate from a mailing address. While a physical address can be a mailing address, that’s not always the case. If your company operates out of a physical office, then your office is the physical address. However, if your company does not require a physical space to run, you might not have immediate access to a physical address. Fortunately, there are options. <h3>Do I need a physical address for my business? </h3>If you are an aspiring business owner, you probably know whether or not you need a physical office to operate your business already. For example, if you need a physical office for your business, let’s say you’re planning to open a brick-and-mortar boutique, you know the answer to this question upfront. If you require a physical office for your business, you don’t need to worry about finding an additional physical address because your office takes care of it. Of course, you can always save time and effort from the postal mail services that come with a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">virtual address</a> or mailbox.However, for certain types of businesses, the answer to this question can be a bit murky. Remember that even if you don’t need an office, you might still need a physical address. For example, if you operate a consulting business and work with clients entirely over Zoom or Google Hangouts, you don’t need an office to operate your business. However, if you set up your business as a limited liability corporation (LLC), limited partnership, or a limited liability partnership, you will need to have a <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/do-you-need-a-physical-address-for-your-business">registered agent in the state your business is registered in.</a> LegalZoom defines a <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/what-is-a-registered-agent">registered agent</a> as an “individual or entity which has been designated by the LLC to receive service of process notices, government correspondence, and compliance-related documents on behalf of the LLC.”If you don’t have an office space, you will need to have a physical address for the registered agent to use. However, that doesn’t mean that you need to run out and find an office to rent. For businesses that operate remotely, a registered agent used in conjunction with a virtual address can help solve this issue. <h3>Another type of physical address: virtual addresses  </h3>Despite what it sounds like, a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">virtual address</a> is a real, physical address that can accept postal mail. However, they’re called virtual addresses because you don’t need to be physically present to receive postal mail there.But what does this have to do with you and your business? For entrepreneurs and small business owners, virtual addresses offer several benefits. For LLCs, a virtual address fulfills the requirement of a physical address for your registered agent. Also, virtual addresses are a popular choice for registering a business at the state or federal level. A virtual address offers a shortcut that can save you time and money for businesses that don’t need a physical building or office to operate. Virtual addresses can also accept postal mail and packages on your behalf. This will come in handy if you need to receive postal mail for your business and don’t want to share a residential address with customers or partners.If you expect to receive postal mail related to your business often, you may consider going one step further and signing up for a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a>. A virtual mailbox comes with a virtual address and offers postal mail scanning services that allow you to access your postal mail like email. Virtual address services typically offer things like postal mail scanning, forwarding, or storage on demand. However, these costs can add up. If you know you will be regularly receiving postal mail, it is likely more cost-effective to sign up for a virtual mailbox than a virtual address alone. <h3>Signing up for a Virtual Address </h3>Whether you know you’re going to require a physical address for a registered agent or just want to keep your residential address private, a virtual address can be a viable solution for you. To choose your virtual address, you’ll want to know where you plan to register your business or what type of address you want to publicize. For example, if you’re looking for a premium address, you might consider signing up for an address in a major city on a street like <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/ny/new-york">Park Avenue</a>. Of course, where you plan to register your business will be a determining factor as well. Once you’ve made up your mind about where your virtual address should be, you can sign up for a location of your choosing. <h3>Summary </h3>Knowing the difference between a physical and mailing address can help you be better prepared to make important decisions about your business. Most importantly, you want to keep in mind that you may be required to have a physical address depending on your business type, even if you don’t need a storefront or office to run. If you find yourself needing a physical address but don’t want or need to invest in office space, consider a virtual address or virtual mailbox. These solutions can not only solve your immediate needs, but they’ll also be flexible, so you never have to worry about what happens if you move to a new location.<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Sign up for a virtual address or mailbox today with Earth Class Mail</a>.

If you are starting or running a business, you’re probably no stranger to paperwork. From signing contracts to signing up for all kinds of services, there’s a lot to juggle.

For certain business practices or paperwork, business owners will require certain types of addresses.  Mailing addresses differ from physical addresses in a few important ways. Knowing the difference can help you know what type of address you need for your business. 

What is the difference between a physical address and a mailing address? I Earth Class Mail

What is the difference between a physical address and a mailing address?

For entrepreneurs, scrappiness is a must. Easy-to-use services to get their business up and running can help save time and money - things company founders cannot waste.<h3>Stripe Atlas + Earth Class Mail </h3>To help new companies successfully launch their business, Earth Class Mail teamed up with the folks at <a href="https://stripe.com/atlas">Stripe Atlas</a>. The partnership began in February of this year, and since then, we have seen dozens of mutual customers benefit from our combined offering.Stripe Atlas is a great option for companies who need assistance incorporating their company but don’t want to go the DIY route. For just $500, Stripe will incorporate your company, arrange the registered agent, create your federal EIN, and even open a bank account for you. It doesn’t get any easier than that! According to Tyler Tate, a two-time company founder and current employee at Instacart, “If I were starting a new company today, I would use Stripe Atlas in a heartbeat.” Tyler writes about his journey as a founder and lessons learned in this “<a href="https://medium.com/startup-grind/the-startup-cheat-sheet-ca7fca624da5">Startup Cheat-Sheet</a>” full of tips and tricks for entrepreneurs.<h3>A Natural Partnership </h3>Stripe Atlas and Earth Class Mail form a natural partnership as incorporating a company requires submitting an address visible to the public. Apart from providing an address, Earth Class Mail’s virtual mailbox service digitizes postal mail and gives you a dedicated address. This offers added efficiencies. Say you decide to move offices. It can be time-consuming to update your business address with state and federal governments, banks, etc. Getting a dedicated address that doesn’t physically tie you to a specific location right at the beginning removes the hassle. It also frees your team from organizing and dealing with postal mail - because managing postal mail will be as easy as checking your email. You can also <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/from-albuquerque-to-wilmington-we-have-a-virtual-address-in-every-u-s-state">choose marquee addresses</a> in cities such as New York and San Fransisco to give your business an even more prestigious image. <h3>Finding Earth Class Mail in the Stripe Atlas Onboarding Experience</h3>Companies looking to incorporate their business via Stripe Atlas will find the Earth Class Mail offering as part of their onboarding flow. David Engle, CEO of <a href="https://www.uprightlabs.com/">Upright Labs</a>, found Earth Class Mail when establishing his Stripe Atlas account. He is a joint customer and finds Earth Class Mail’s service to be reliable and efficient. It has also allowed his team “to go fully remote,” as many teams need help within 2020. By combining Stripe Atlas’ service to incorporate his company, and Earth Class Mail’s virtual address product, he has had a complete, hassle-free experience. David also mentioned enjoying “how everything was handled for me” by our team of world-class onboarding specialists.<h3>Focus on Running Your Business</h3>At Earth Class Mail, we strive to make life easier for our customers by removing the hassle of postal mail to focus on more important things - like running their business. Stripe Atlas also strives to make its customers’ lives easier and do so in an efficient, intuitive, and helpful way. Our partnership has been a natural fit!We are proud to partner with a company like Stripe Atlas and know that we are benefitting the lives of entrepreneurs worldwide. According to David Engle, he is “looking forward to being a user for many years,” and we at Earth Class Mail look forward to continuing to provide a great service that exceeds his expectations!

For entrepreneurs, scrappiness is a must. Easy-to-use services to get their business up and running can help save time and money - things company founders cannot waste.

Learn more about how Earth Class Mail teamed up with Stripe Atlas to help startups and small businesses get off the ground.

Built for Entrepreneurs: Stripe Atlas + Earth Class Mail I Earth Class Mail I Blog

Built for Entrepreneurs: Stripe Atlas + Earth Class Mail 

In 2009, a Xerox study showed that American businesses spend <a href="https://www.xerox.com/assets/motion/corporate/pages/programs/information-overload/pdf/Xerox-white-paper-3-25.pdf">$460 billion</a> in salaries just to manage paper-driven information overload. That&#39;s right, billions, and for every dollar spent on printing documents, companies incur another $6 in handling and distributing that paper. The study suggests that paper is one of the leading causes of overwhelm or information overload in corporations. That&#39;s a lot of money spent on paper, that&#39;s making employees more overwhelmed than anything. The digital transformation era has made remote work and paperless initiatives more convenient and accessible to a wide variety of industries. Surely there&#39;s a better way to manage the nearly <a href="https://www.roadrunnerwm.com/blog/office-worker-waste-generation#:~:text=The%20average%20office%20worker%20generates%20about%202%20pounds%20worth%20of,the%20total%20waste%20in%20offices.">10,000 sheets</a> of copy paper the average office worker uses every year: going paperless.Going paperless can seem daunting because you&#39;ll have to figure out what to do with everything from <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">postal mail</a> to <a href="https://www.shoeboxed.com/pricing/">receipits</a>. However, it&#39;s not impossible and, more importantly, it&#39;s worth it. Going paperless can reduce information overload but also provide other environmental benefits. Following these steps can help you down your path to becoming a paperless company.<h3>
Step 1: Be a Leader </h3>One of the reasons some companies don&#39;t go paperless is because there&#39;s no one on the team pushing for a change. Essentially, many businesses are ready and willing to go paperless, but nobody is leading the way or providing the tools needed to start. Any individual can step up and lead the way to become a more efficient office. Approached the right way, your team will be grateful for the environmental benefits and the overall working experience! No matter what level you&#39;re at, you can set goals for your company as a whole that encourages an easy transition to an electronic document management system. As a business leader, the important part about going paperless is that you lead by example. If you have your own filing cabinet overflowing with documents, consider uploading them to cloud-based software. Set goals for yourself and take ownership of those goals. If your employees see you leading the way, they will be more likely to follow suit, and you will drive home the importance of what going paperless really means. <h3>Step 2: Normalize Going Paperless into your Company&#39;s Culture</h3>No matter how strong the paperless initiative may seem, your company won&#39;t complete the transition unless employees are on board. Show them the ways going paperless could benefit them. Demonstrate the time and energy they&#39;ll save in a paperless office. Specifically, they&#39;ll be able to view, read, and share documents and files from their computer without printing more paper. They just have to see that going paperless will make their jobs easier.<h3>Step 3: Organize Paper Files and Documents</h3>Now that key leaders are taking the initiative, and you have strong backing from your employees, the tougher side of going paperless begins — organization. Getting organized is a key component of your plan to going paperless. If your team cannot organize digital files, you might find yourself inheriting a paper system&#39;s stress. <ul><li>Create a unified organization system for your documents by name, year, department, etc.</li><li>Divide the heavy lifting between employees or departments and divvy up documents into categories for the organization. </li><li>Determine an expiration date for all documents; anything older than the decided date (think: auditing) can be found and shredded. This will help weed out unneeded space in cloud storage and help keep you more up-to-date in the process.</li><li>Set a goal for when each employee or department should have their files organized and ready to enter your chosen document management software. </li><li>Follow up until your goal is met. Once paper documents are organized, you can prepare to take your business to paperless!</li></ul><h3>Step 4: Choose the Necessary Document Management Software</h3>With a newly organized system of documents, you&#39;re going to need to find the right digital document management system. The choices for finding the right system for you and your company are endless, so you need to research and compare your options before making a decision. Determine the needs of your company and your monthly budget.To aid in your search for the best option, we recommend sitting down and making a list of your business&#39;s functionality needs the most out of a document management system. These typically include data backup, amount of storage, number of users allowed on the account, audit logs, and automation. After selecting your software provider, set up training to allow for a streamlined understanding of the software cross-departmentally. The important thing is that all employees who handle, file, and need access to information in the cloud will be able to do so digitally and confidently. With all that under your belt, you can finally begin the transition from paper-driven to paperless!<h3>Step 5: Reap the Benefits</h3>Once you finish the steps for going paperless, much less effort will be needed to stay paperless. Printing, labeling, and filing will be a thing of the past!As you begin digitizing your files, you&#39;ll start to see the number of benefits in the office. Your employees, customers, and business as a whole will benefit from making the switch to becoming a paperless company. Your company will notice the time and energy spent doing the cumbersome tasks of filing and searching manually will be shifted into being more productive as a whole. By following the steps outlined above, you can manage your company&#39;s paper problems and feel good about becoming a more efficient, paperless office!

In 2009, a Xerox study showed that American businesses spend $460 billion in salaries just to manage paper-driven information overload. That's right, billions, and for every dollar spent on printing documents, companies incur another 

Becoming a paperless company is possible, but it requires some work. Keep reading for 5 tips for achieving a paperless company.

5 Simple Steps to Help Achieve a Paperless Company I Earth Class Mail 

5 Simple Steps to Help Achieve a Paperless Company

In the United States, as in most countries, when registering a business, you will need to provide a business address. Whether you decide to establish your business as a sole proprietorship, a c-corporation, or an LLC, you&#39;ll need to decide what business address to use to register your business and/or display on your site and marketing materials. <h3>Do I Need to Have a Physical Office to Register My Business?</h3>In the past, it was a foregone conclusion that having a business meant renting or owning office space. A lot of that has changed, especially in 2020. Today, remote work is the status quo. Companies work with independent contractors or employees worldwide, and freelancing is a viable business model. Whether you&#39;re working from home by choice or otherwise, the point is – a physical office is not always necessary. The money you would typically allocate to an office lease could be put to much better use; you could invest it back into your business, buy new equipment or software, or channel it into marketing. You will need a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-business-address">business address</a> to set up your company. However, using your personal address might not be the best idea. Fortunately, having a physical office space and using your home address aren&#39;t your only options. <h3>What is A Virtual Address? </h3>A virtual address, also known as a virtual mailing address, is a subscription service that allows you to use a real physical address for mailing or business registration purposes. These addresses are virtual in the sense that you don&#39;t need to be physically present to use them, but they are real street addresses. Digital nomads, ex-pats, and frequent travelers often rely on virtual addresses to sustain their lifestyle. However, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business">registering a business</a> is one of the most popular reasons for securing a virtual address, as it comes with many benefits. <h3>Why People Choose Virtual Addresses Over Personal Address</h3>There are many reasons to choose a virtual business address and even more compelling reasons not to use your home address. <ul><li>Privacy. When your home address is your business address, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/virtual-address-privacy-and-security">it becomes public domain</a>. Anybody so inclined can search your location through the Secretary of State&#39;s website. It&#39;s on your business cards, website, and all your marketing collateral. Your suppliers, vendors, and customers know exactly where you live. Should you have to deal with anybody who is disgruntled in any way, you may be putting yourself and your loved ones at risk. </li></ul><ul><li>Zoning laws and homeowner&#39;s associations. Some regions have laws against operating a business in a residential area. You might risk having an issue with your condo or homeowner&#39;s association, landlord, or your neighbors if you&#39;re running a home-based business unlawfully. <a href="https://businesstown.com/articles/is-it-legal-to-run-my-business-out-of-my-home/">Local zoning</a> might be an issue, too, depending on where you live. Be sure to check the rules before you move forward. </li></ul><ul><li>Liability. If you&#39;re registering your business as an LLC and using your home address as the primary business address, you might face difficulties if you are ever sued. For example, a debtor has the right to seize business assets—but not personal assets. However, if your business address is your home address, neither you nor your property is protected.</li></ul><h3>Benefits of A Virtual Business Address</h3>On the plus side, a virtual address gives you access to addresses in just about every major city in the country. New York, Houston, San Francisco – it&#39;s all possible! Even if you live in Texas, you can have a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/ny/new-york">Park Avenue</a> address for your business. Plus, if you ever move, you won&#39;t have to change your address. If you&#39;re a globetrotter, you can be anywhere in the world and still access your postal mail. Scalability is another huge benefit. If you&#39;re growing your business and entering new markets, you can set up local virtual addresses in those regions to build trust and capture new customers. Plus, a virtual address enhances your business identity, as your address is a critical component of your professional image and reputation. As for your business mail, virtual address providers like <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/read-your-postal-mail-from-anywhere-with-new-plans">Earth Class Mail</a> offer postal mail services as well as mail forwarding, shredding, and digitization. Earth Class Mail receives postal mail on your behalf and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-scanning">scans the contents</a>. You will then receive a digital, sharable copy of your postal mail in your inbox. The technicians that process your mail are Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) certified, so even if you operate in a high-compliance industry, you can be confident that your postal mail is secure. <h3>How Do I Know What Virtual Address To Sign Up For? </h3>Before you choose a virtual address, there are a few things to consider. Even though you can get an address anywhere, the address you choose should be in the state you register your business in. Many states have rules around what you can and cannot use as a business address. Some do not allow PO boxes, so you&#39;ll need to know that before you make a decision. When you&#39;re ready to register your LLC at the Secretary of State&#39;s office or the SBA, make some inquiries about what&#39;s allowed. <h3>How To Register Your Business With A Virtual Address </h3>Before you register your business, you&#39;ll need a business address. First, choose the virtual business address plan that suits your needs. Here are a few questions you might ponder before you decide:<ul><li>How much business mail do you expect to receive? </li><li>Will you receive payments by check, and will they come to that address? </li><li>Do you have other employees? And if so, will they receive mail as well?</li><li>Will you require physical or digital mail forwarding?</li><li>Do you receive large amounts of paper, such as contracts?</li></ul>With the answers to these questions in mind, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">choose the plan</a> that suits you best. We offer Mailbox plans suitable for solo operations and small organizations and Mailroom plans for larger businesses and enterprises. Next, you&#39;ll choose a virtual address in the state where you&#39;re registering your business. You will need to fill out a <a href="https://about.usps.com/forms/ps1583.pdf">USPS 1583</a> Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent. This authorizes Earth Class Mail to collect and handle your business mail. You will need to have the form notarized and provide two pieces of identification. If you have any trouble with this, reach out today – we can help!Once you have secured your virtual business address, it&#39;s time to register your business on your local secretary of state&#39;s website or <a href="https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/pick-your-business-location">through the SBA</a>. Then, it&#39;s official! Your business is registered. You can check out our guide to registering a business for more detailed information and tips on this process. <h3>Final Thoughts</h3>There are several factors to consider when choosing an address for your LLC. Registering a new business can be a complex and confusing process, but once your business address is established, you&#39;re free to move on to bigger and better things. If you&#39;re ready to sign up for a virtual address, you can <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">check out our list of locations to choose from</a>. We have an address in every state!

In the United States, as in most countries, when registering a business, you will need to provide a business address. Whether you decide to establish your business as a sole proprietorship, a c-corporation, or an LLC, you'll need to decide 

You no longer need a physical office for your business. With a virtual address, you can choose register your business in the state of your choice. Learn more about what you should consider when choosing an address for your LLC. 

What Address Should I Use for My LLC? I Earth Class Mail 

What Address Should I Use for My LLC? 

”I want to travel and work from anywhere in the world. What&#39;s holding me down?&quot; Let&#39;s be honest. During the past months of COVID-19, if we haven&#39;t thought this ourselves, we know someone who has. According to the RV Industry Association, the pandemic caused a surge in RV sales, reporting &quot;the highest July (2020) shipment numbers in four decades,&quot; up 56.6 percent from July 2019.But how do you make that dream into a reality? I spoke with full-time RVers, Tom and Cindy, who are currently enjoying Phoenix, AZ&#39;s lovely sunny weather, to get their tips for living and working in an RV. Cindy and Tom had been romanticizing the RV life for about a year. Like others, COVID-19 switched the gears on their timeline and sped up their jump to live on the road. &quot;Living in an RV was a way to also protect ourselves. We are in control if/when we come in contact with others,&quot; says Tom. They purchased an RV and sold their house in June 2020 and hit the road...and they haven&#39;t looked back since.<h3>Learn to live with less</h3>The average size of an RV is 240 to 270 square feet. That&#39;s not a lot of space for your items. When you shift from a house or apartment to an RV, consider downsizing your material items. Make a list of things you use daily, such as essential kitchen items.Consider renting a storage unit for seasonal items, such as heavy coats and recreational equipment. Tom and Cindy recommend renting a storage unit in a city you will come back to, whether it&#39;s somewhere where your immediate family members are or where your heart is drawn.<h3>Utilize apps </h3>Apps will be your friend on the road. Whether you&#39;re researching RV park/campground reviews or connecting to friends and family through social media, there&#39;s an app to make your travels easier.With full-time RV living, gas will be a crucial line of the budget. <a href="https://www.gasbuddy.com/">GasBuddy</a> is a free travel and navigation app that helps you find the cheapest gas in your respective area or a route you are taking. Also, make sure to check out <a href="https://www.campendium.com/">Campendium</a>. It&#39;s a review site for campgrounds and will help you find your next perfect spot.Next up: you&#39;ll need a reliable weather app to show your area&#39;s radar. Along with basic local and national weather, <a href="http://www.weatherbug.com/">WeatherBug</a> also alerts you when lightning is near and when to seek shelter, which is valuable with a large RV home.<h3>Prepare for little cell service </h3>A challenge many face when living on the road is finding a way to stay connected.If you are working from your RV, cell service on the road can be unreliable. But luckily, there are plenty of full-service campgrounds around the United States that are equipped with WiFi and other luxuries. Another viable option is investing in a cell signal booster.If you already have a job that&#39;s allowing remote work, great! If not, <a href="https://workamper.com/">Workamper</a> is a job board for people who work out of their RV. The site has a wide variety of jobs to explore.<h3>Research, research, research </h3>A lot of research should happen before making the switch to living and working in an RV full-time. There are many things to consider with life on the road, some you might not have thought of yourself, like filing taxes. Be sure to research various state&#39;s tax laws, &quot;...some states tax on particular things such as social security, whereas others do not.&quot; Dig deep in state laws to determine what state works best for your needs when choosing where to file taxes.In addition, research some RVing Clubs that best suit you. Having a support system of adventurers like yourself to reach out to for tips and recommendations will help you learn the tricks of the trade. Some great options are <a href="https://harvesthosts.com/">Harvest Host</a>, <a href="https://www.escapees.com/">Escapees</a>, <a href="https://www.fmca.com/">Family Motorcoach Association</a>, and so many more to choose from based on your needs! <h3>Unexpected challenges</h3>Living on the road means your house is on wheels. Bumps on the road are not your friend. RVs can break down, or a mishap can occur with the toilet system in the middle of nowhere. Expect the worst, hope for the best, so prepare for long journeys in remote areas with appropriate handy tools, such as a back-up generator, batteries, and some tools from your shed.Tom and Cindy shared that not having a physical address was an issue they did not expect. Having a PO Box is not ideal when traveling across the country, and neither is rerouting one&#39;s mail to an immediate family&#39;s residences. A solution Tom and Cindy are considering is signing up for a <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/what-is-a-virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a>. After referrals and discussions with family, they agree that having the availability to access their postal mail from anywhere, online or from their phone, would be incredibly helpful.<h3>Summary </h3>Preparing for a journey of a lifetime will be long, stressful, and possibly overwhelming at times. But will all be worth it once it begins. Make sure you do your research, download your apps, purchase necessary tools, and get ready for the time of your life!&quot;The United States is a marvelous make-up of people and terrain. Sometimes, it&#39;s even overwhelming to describe to [our friends and family] what you see and experience on the road. It&#39;s amazing.&quot;

”I want to travel and work from anywhere in the world. What's holding me down?" Let's be honest. During the past months of COVID-19, if we haven't thought this ourselves, if we haven't thought this ourselves, we know someone who has. According to the RV In

Working and living in an RV comes with its quirks. We sat down with some full-time RVers to share their wisdom about life in an RV.

Tips for Living and Working in an RV Full-Time I Earth Class Mail

Tips for Living and Working in a RV Full-Time

Founded in 1999 as 37signals, <a href="https://basecamp.com/">Basecamp</a> offers a project management solution that helps remote teams of all shapes and sizes get organized and keep their work on track. Basecamp&#39;s team is also responsible for inventing the very popular programming framework <a href="https://rubyonrails.org/">Ruby on Rails</a> and email platform <a href="https://m.signalvnoise.com/how-basecamp-became-a-100-remote-company/">HEY</a>. With 50+ employees spanning 32 cities, Basecamp is now a <a href="https://m.signalvnoise.com/how-basecamp-became-a-100-remote-company/">fully remote company</a>, but that wasn&#39;t always the case. <h3>Challenges</h3>Basecamp maintained a small office presence in the Chicago area since 2010, but the office was nonessential with such a distributed team. Navid Afshar, the Senior Administrative Assistant, shared, &quot;Basecamp had been a huge promoter of remote work for two decades basically, so having an office was a nice to have. It got to the point where it was just not worth the cost. Then the pandemic hit and it sort of pushed us [to become completely remote].&quot;While the company was already well on its way to becoming fully remote, there was one challenge left to solve: postal mail. Managing postal mail was one of Navid&#39;s responsibilities, and in his words, Basecamp was &quot;trying to find a way to make [his] job 100% remote like everybody else&#39;s.&quot; While Navid could do almost all of his work remotely, postal mail was the last piece of the puzzle. Navid said, &quot;[Mail] was the only thing tying me to Chicago.&quot; To help solve their postal mail problem, Basecamp explored a few options. Initially, they experimented with a PO Box and a UPS Mailbox. However, neither of these options quite met their needs. In terms of the PO Box option, Navid shared, &quot;everything would go to the PO Box, and I would have to check it weekly. That was fine, but not ideal.&quot; In comparison, the UPS Mailbox seemed like a better option. Navid said, &quot;I set it up so that all of the mail would be forwarded to my home. But they don&#39;t sort through the mail. They don&#39;t throw away what we don&#39;t need. They don&#39;t scan anything. I would end up getting a huge package every week of mostly [unwanted mail]. I would also end up having to scan stuff at home or at a coworking space and into our Basecamp [account].&quot;While a PO Box or UPS Mailbox would allow Basecamp to shut down its office, the fundamental problem was still the same: postal mail was tied to a physical location. Tying postal mail to one location could present challenges further down the line if Navid moved or went on an extended vacation. There had to be a better solution.<h3>Solution</h3>Fortunately, Basecamp was able to find a better option: <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mailroom">Earth Class Mail</a>. After learning about our products on Twitter, Navid did his homework. One of Navid’s biggest priorities was finding a solution that would handle the company’s private and confidential documents appropriately. Navid shared, &quot;We&#39;ll receive tax statements [in the mail], employee W2s, stuff that has our owner&#39;s tax ID on it. All of the important [documents come] through the mail. One of the biggest reservations [we had] before speaking to anybody at Earth Class Mail was around the privacy and security of our documents.&quot; Fortunately, we were able to meet Basecamp&#39;s needs in terms of privacy and features. The team signed up for our Business MailRoom offering in July 2020. So far, Basecamp uses features like <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-scanning">mail scanning</a>, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/mail-forwarding">mail forwarding</a>, and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">check deposi</a>t. Basecamp is also getting paid faster with Check Deposit, and it&#39;s quickly become one of their favorite features. &quot;The check deposit feature has been easy and wonderful. I just click &#39;deposit&#39; [and the money is there in a couple of days]. It&#39;s been smooth, very happy with that feature.&quot; Other services Basecamp is using are mail sorting and forwarding. In particular, mail sorting has helped reduce postal mail clutter. Navid shared that with mail sorting, &quot;all of the [unwanted mail] doesn&#39;t even reach my eyeballs. That&#39;s huge.&quot;<h3>Results</h3>Accessing their postal mail online has allowed Basecamp to become fully remote, save time, and become even more productive. Navid shared that the time he spends on postal mail has at least been cut in half. Before Earth Class Mail, Navid was spending about 30 minutes to an hour dealing with postal mail every week, and that number has since dropped down to 15 minutes every week. Before signing up, dealing with postal mail was a chore. Navid shared that every week looked like, &quot;Picking up the mail, opening the mail, scanning the mail, destroying the mail, and sorting through it.” Now dealing with mail is much faster. Navid shares it&#39;s just a matter of &quot;looking at it, downloading it, and saving it to our internal archives.&quot; Moreover, the amount of unwanted mail he has to deal with has reduced drastically. Before Earth Class Mail, the company was regularly receiving six copies of a single catalog.In just a few short months, Basecamp has been able to access postal mail online, deposit checks remotely, and forward important documents. Most importantly, Basecamp has reached its original goal and has now become a 100% remote company.

Founded in 1999 as 37signals, Basecamp offers a project management solution that helps remote teams of all shapes and sizes get organized and keep their work on track. Basecamp's team is also responsible for inventing the very popular programming framewor

When Basecamp wanted to become a fully remote company, they had to figure out what to do about their postal mail. Keep reading to find out how a virtual mailbox helped them become 100% remote.

How a Virtual Mailbox Helped Basecamp Go Fully Remote | Earth Class Mail

How a Virtual Mailbox Helped Basecamp Become Fully Remote 

Getting a new address is exciting, and with Earth Class Mail, getting a new address for your business or yourself is as easy as a click of the mouse. A virtual address establishes your presence in a new location. Whether you’re looking to set up with a marquee address like Park Ave in New York City or Market Street in San Francisco, or you’re looking to get set up with a local presence, such as Peachtree Street in Atlanta (newly launched!), Earth Class Mail has you covered. A virtual address gives you all the benefits of a professional location without being physically at the location. With <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">over 80 addresses</a> in every U.S. state, you will find a virtual address that works for you. Your virtual address acts as the perfect solution for receiving, routing, and forwarding your mail, checks, and packages. Additionally, if you simply need an address to register your business, a virtual address is the best option.<h3>Our Network of Virtual Addresses, Now Including Atlanta</h3>We are pleased to offer <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses">over 80 addresses</a>, including a range of street addresses and P.O. boxes, in every U.S. state. You will find addresses from the far reaches of <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/ak/anchorage">Anchorage, Alaska</a>, to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/hi/honolulu">Honolulu, Hawaii</a>, to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/co/denver">Denver, Colorado</a>, and <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/tx/dallas">Dallas, Texas</a>, or in <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/addresses/ga/atlanta">Atlanta, Georgia</a>, our newest address. Once you’ve decided on the right virtual address for your use case, your next step is to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">sign up</a> for an Earth Class Mail plan.<h3>How Virtual Addresses Work</h3>Once you’ve signed up for an Earth Class Mail plan, selected your virtual address, filled out your <a href="https://help.earthclassmail.com/hc/en-us/articles/115004392987-What-types-of-identification-can-I-use-for-my-USPS-1583-form-">1583 form</a>, and got it notarized (with a tool such as <a href="https://www.notarize.com/">Notarize.com</a>), you will receive your new mailing address with a unique PMB number. Next, you will notify and share your new address and PMB number with your contacts. Once we start receiving your postal mail at the address, we route it to our secure facilities for mail scanning, check depositing*, and mail forwarding. You will receive digital scans, the option to forward your mail to you, or deposit the checks into your desired bank account. We also offer secure shredding at our facilities and integration with your preferred software, including bill.com, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Quickbooks Online.<h3>Why Use A Virtual Address</h3>A virtual address gives you a lot of flexibility. Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur, road warrior, remote company, or digital nomad — Earth Class Mail is the ideal solution to keep a consistent U.S. mailing address for your business or personal endeavors.With about 50% of all small businesses in the United States being home-based businesses, there are many benefits to using a virtual address when registering your business. As we mentioned in our blog post, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business">How to Get a Virtual Mailing Address to Register Your Business</a>, there are three important reasons to use a virtual address when registering a business: <ol><li>You don’t want to entangle your business and personal affairs. </li><li>The address you use to register your business is public. </li><li>You may be prohibited from operating a home-based business at your home address. </li></ol>Getting a virtual address for your business protects your private information and keeps your business and personal affair separate. Getting a virtual address is easy. Sign-up for an Earth Class Mail plan, select from over 80 addresses, and begin your new virtual address presence today.<a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">Start here </a>to choose your plan and virtual address.*Check deposit requires an additional fee. <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/check-deposit">See more details here</a>.

Getting a new address is exciting, and with Earth Class Mail, getting a new address for your business or yourself is as easy as a click of the mouse. A virtual address establishes your presence in a new location. 

We are excited to announce a new virtual address location in Atlanta. Learn more about how a virtual address can help you separate your personal and professional life.

Announcing an Atlanta Virtual Address I Earth Class Mail

From Albuquerque to Wilmington, We Have A Virtual Address in Every U.S. State  (...and now, Atlanta!)

In the past few years, the number of people choosing the freelance lifestyle has steadily increased. In fact, <a href="https://www.websiteplanet.com/blog/freelance-stats/#:~:text=By%20the%20year%202027%2C%20freelancers,by%20the%20end%20of%202020!">Website Planet</a> reported that 35% of Americans were freelancing in 2019, compared to 7% in 2013. Projections suggest that this number will only continue to grow, with an estimated 50.9% of working Americans becoming freelancers by 2027. <h3>Freelancers have unique needs</h3>As this segment of the workforce continues to grow, it’s important to note that freelancers face some issues that traditional 9-5 workers do not. Without a conventional employer to handle the overhead of operating as a business, freelancers have to invest in many resources and tools. Freelancers have to think of everything from where they will work to the mechanics of how they will get paid. Moreover, because they are their business, freelancers may have to work extra hard to separate their personal and professional lives. These aspects of the freelancer lifestyle lead to additional expenses and paperwork. Several tools can make a freelancer’s life easier, like invoicing software or building a website with a Content Management System (CMS). However, one often overlooked product that can make freelancers’ lives easier is a virtual mailbox service. <h3>What is a virtual mailbox?</h3>A <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/virtual-mailbox">virtual mailbox</a> service will digitize your postal mail so that you can access it online, 24/7, from any device. When you sign up for a virtual mailbox, you will go through an onboarding process to officially give the company the right to receive postal mail on your behalf. Then, your virtual mailbox provider will begin receiving your postal mail and digitizing it for you to access it like email. Your virtual mailbox subscription will also come with a virtual address that you can share with clients or other people who may send you postal mail. Virtual addresses are real, physical addresses, but the word virtual is used to clarify that a company or person does not actually reside at that address. When people send you postal mail, they will need to use your virtual address for it to be digitized by your postal mail provider.  <h3>How does a virtual mailbox work? </h3>At a basic level, <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/how-virtual-mail-works">this is how a virtual mailbox operates</a>:<ul><li>You sign up for a plan that fits your needs. When signing up for a virtual mailbox plan, you’ll want to keep in mind things like whether or not you need to choose your virtual address, how many people need access to your postal mail, and more. We offer three different <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/pricing">virtual mailbox plans</a> to suit different needs for individuals, freelancers, or small businesses. Medium to large companies can choose from mailroom plans that allow for larger quantities of mail. </li><li>USPS routes your postal mail to a secure facility where it is processed and digitized. At Earth Class Mail, we log, organize, and store your postal mail with the help of our Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (<a href="https://www.hipaatraining.com/">HIPAA</a>) certified technicians. </li><li>The virtual address service scans the postal mail and uploads it to a cloud-based service giving you the freedom to access it whenever from wherever. Earth Class Mail uploads your postal mail to our secure cloud as a high-resolution PDF document with a searchable text feature, where you can easily view it in your account.</li></ul>A virtual mailbox service should provide you with efficiency, flexibility, and, most importantly, security while addressing your postal mail needs.<h3>Why should freelancers consider a virtual mailbox? </h3>Virtual mailboxes are popular with businesses, digital nomads, ex-pats, and location-independent people. There are a few reasons why freelancers can benefit from a virtual mailbox or virtual address. Many of these stem from aspects of the freelancer lifestyle and the need to operate as a legitimate business.  Here are a few reasons freelancers should consider investing in a virtual mailbox:<ol><li>Separate your personal and professional address. Anyone can benefit from having a virtual mailbox, but keeping your residential address private is critical for privacy and security for independent business owners and freelancers. However, you likely still need an address to share with clients or to <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/blog/use-virtual-address-to-register-business">register as an LLC</a>. Many small business owners, startups, or freelancers utilize their personal address as their business address. However, this approach can easily entangle your private and confidential affairs and require you to publicize your residential address when you otherwise wouldn’t. With a virtual address, you can register your business or share an address with clients without broadcasting your private information. </li><li>Get paid faster with Check Deposit. While some find it hard to believe, many companies still use checks to pay invoices. In fact, we cash anywhere between $8 million to $20 million a week for our customers. As a freelancer, you’ll work with clients who use various payment methods, including checks. With an Earth Class Mail account, you can sign up for automated Check Deposit and get paid faster.</li><li>Make document retention easy with integrations. Earth Class Mail makes it easy to integrate your postal mail with apps you know and love, such as Dropbox and Google Drive - all from your favorite device, with the touch of a button. With a virtual mailbox, keeping a digital record of all necessary documents is easy. </li><li>Save time and manage your postal mail like email. With a virtual mailbox, you have full control of your postal mail. You have the option to share, shred, or connect your postal mail. The best virtual mail services allow you to do what you want when you want</li><li>Flexibility. Freelancers aren’t typically tied to specific offices or locations. Whether you’re on the go or traveling for work or pleasure - a virtual mailbox provides you convenient access to your postal mail whenever and wherever you are. Ideally, a virtual mailbox should have the ability to handle packages as well as your postal mail. At Earth Class Mail, we allow you to store your incoming packages until you’re ready to receive them at your private address – submit a request when you decide. We’ll send your packages directly to your residential address. </li></ol><h3>Summary </h3>Freelancers have their work cut out for them. Between operating as a business of their own and keeping clients happy, there’s a lot to do. Of the many ways freelancers can ease some of this burden, a virtual mailbox is one of the most unique. Not only does a virtual mailbox make it easier for freelancers to separate their personal and professional lives, but it also can enhance their efficiency with features like automated check deposit and document storage integrations.

In the past few years, the number of people choosing the freelance lifestyle has steadily increased. In fact, Website Planet reported that 35% of Americans were freelancing in 2019, compared to 7% in 2013. Projections suggest that this number will  

Freelancers face a number of unique challenges, including separating their professional presence from their personal life. Read more about how a virtual mailbox can help freelancers face this challenge.

Why Freelancers Should Consider A Virtual Mailbox

When starting a business, there are a lot of questions to answer. Especially if you are a first-time entrepreneur, you may have never thought about many of the things you&#39;ll need in order to get your business off the ground. One of the most important steps you may need to take to legitimize your business in the legal sense is to register it. <h3>What Does it Mean to Register My Business? </h3>Registering your business is the process of making it a <a href="https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/register-your-business">legal entity</a> in the eyes of the federal or state government. Many companies opt only to register with state agencies. It&#39;s important to note that owners can register a business in multiple states and are sometimes required to do so. Depending on your business&#39; structure and location, you must follow different requirements to register it. <h4>Business registration vs. Business name registration </h4>Some businesses choose only to register their name with state and local governments. Still, it&#39;s important to remember that registering your business and registering its name are not the same. If you register your business with the state, you don&#39;t typically need to <a href="https://www.thebalancesmb.com/register-business-name-3974576#:~:text=Business%20registration%20means%20sending%20in,by%20completing%20Articles%20of%20Incorporation.&text=As%20part%20of%20the%20incorporation,will%20automatically%20register%20the%20name.">register its name</a> because registering the company as a whole accomplishes that. When you submit your business name for registration, you ensure that the state&#39;s registry of legal names includes your company. <a href="https://www.thebalancesmb.com/">The Balance</a> recommends taking this step if you plan to run a sole proprietorship or have decided on a business name but are still figuring out more details about its structure.  <h3>Do I Need to Register My Business?</h3>Before you worry too much about registering your business, it&#39;s essential to know whether or not you are required to do so. In terms of federal registration, the Small Business Administration (SBA) advises that most companies don&#39;t need to register outside of filing for a national tax ID. However, there are different implications for state registration. Generally speaking, LLCs, corporations, partnerships, and nonprofits will most likely need to register in any states they conduct business. The SBA defines conducting business as: <ul><li>Having a physical location or presence in a state</li><li>Traveling regularly to a state for client work</li><li>Substantial revenue coming from a state </li><li>Having employees who work in a particular state </li></ul>If your business is an LLC, corporation, partnership, or nonprofit and meets the above criteria in a particular state, you will likely need to register there.<h3>What Are the Benefits of Registering My Business?</h3>Even if you aren&#39;t required to register your business at the federal or state level, there are many benefits in doing so. When applicable, registering your business at the national level can offer benefits like trademark protection or tax-exempt status. At the state level, registering your business can protect you from personal liability while also offering legal and tax benefits. There are also many<a href="https://smallbusiness.chron.com/benefits-registering-business-532.html#:~:text=A%20business%20registration%20allows%20you,taxes%20on%20the%20employee's%20behalf."> services</a> that you may need or seek as your business scales that will be easier to obtain if your business is registered. For example, finance-related tasks like getting a bank account or loan for your business are more accessible if your business is registered. To hire full-time employees to help you grow your business, you will need to register your business.<h3>What Do I Need to Register My Business? </h3>In preparation for registering your business, you will need to have a few things ready.<ul><li>You will need a <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/what-is-a-registered-agent">registered agent</a>. Registered agents can receive official paperwork on behalf of your company, but they must be located within the state of your choosing. In some cases, a registered agent is an employee. However, many companies choose to work with external service providers, as well. </li><li>Be ready to pay registration fees. There are fees associated with registering your business, and these can vary based on location and type of business. Fortunately, the SBA reports that registering your business typically costs under $300. </li><li>Prepare the proper documentation needed for your business structure. Depending on the form of your business, you will need various types of documentation. For example, LLCs require <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/articles-of-incorporation-what-are-articles-of-incorporation">articles of incorporation</a> and an <a href="https://www.lawdepot.com/contracts/llc-operating-agreement/?loc=US">LLC operating agreement</a>. Visit the <a href="https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/register-your-business">SBA</a> to determine what kinds of documents you must prepare for your business structure.  </li><li>Determine any (state or federal) permits needed to operate your business legally. It&#39;s possible that your business may need permits to operate. For example, some counties require companies to register their names. To determine any applicable local requirements, you will need to investigate local government sites. At the federal level, you may need special permits if your industry is regulated by a federal agency. </li><li>Be mindful of ongoing requirements. When registering your business, make sure you determine whether or not you will need to keep any documentation or reports up to date. These requirements can vary by state or business type.  </li></ul><h3>Where Should I Register My Business? </h3>As covered earlier, where you are required to register a business depends mainly on where you conduct business. That covers everything from where workers live, to where your revenue comes from. However, companies who either have no physical location, nor regularly conduct out-of-state business, may be able to <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/starting-up-which-state-to-file-your-llc-in">start an LLC in a state they don&#39;t live in</a>. Typically, businesses take this route to take advantage of the incentives that the state provides. For example, many companies choose to form LLCs in Delaware because associated fees are lower, and the state does not tax out-of-state income. Moreover, should you enter into any disputes for your business, you can take advantage of Delaware&#39;s <a href="https://courts.delaware.gov/chancery/">Court of Chancery</a>. This court is dedicated to hearing only business-related cases and is the only one of its kind in the U.S.  Other popular states for forming an LLC include Nevada and Wyoming. Neither of these states charges business income or franchise taxes. Nevada has relatively lax measures for remaining compliant with the law and offers some unique privacy benefits. For example, the state does not require operating agreements and &quot;allows LLC owners to remain anonymous in public filings.&quot; On the other hand, Wyoming offers the option of a &quot;lifetime proxy.&quot; An owner&#39;s identity can remain private by leveraging a lifetime proxy to share their perspective. Many companies also opt for <a href="https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/which-state-should-you-file-your-llc-in">registering in their home state</a> even if it&#39;s not required. Of course, proximity likely makes this option the most convenient one for most. Registering your business in your home state can save you from paying the fees associated with a foreign LLC or a registered agent. Overall, where you register your business can have many implications for the fees that you pay or the legal benefits you receive. For many small companies, this matter is quickly resolved by where they primarily conduct business. However, for LLCs who have more leeway in terms of registering or setting up their business, it&#39;s worth considering how you can optimize for factors like tax benefits or privacy.<h3>How Do I Register My Business? </h3>Once you have followed the above steps to prepare and understand the appropriate requirements, you are ready to register your business.First, you will request an Employer Identification Number (<a href="https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/employer-id-numbers">EIN</a>) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). An EIN is also referred to as a Federal Tax Number. If you are unsure whether or not you need an EIN, <a href="https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/do-you-need-an-ein">this IRS questionnaire</a> can help you determine the answer. Any businesses that employ people or that operate as corporations or partnerships are required to obtain an EIN. Applying for an EIN is free and can be done <a href="https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/how-to-apply-for-an-ein">online, by mail, or by fax</a>.Next, you will need to register your business with state or federal agencies. Depending on the state you are registering in, you may be able to complete registration online. However, some states only allow registration in-person or by mail. To confirm the requirements for the state or states of your choosing, you will need to visit each state&#39;s government website. Typically, you will need to register with the Secretary of State&#39;s office, a Business Bureau, or a Business Agency. While there is a lot to consider when registering your business, closing the loop on this process is not difficult if you&#39;ve done the upfront work required to understand all of the steps you’ll need to take.  <h3>Summary </h3>Registering your business is one of the most important steps you can take to legitimize your operations. It&#39;s also important to note that you must tailor business registration based on your location, business structure, and how you operate. For instance, some businesses need to only register at the state level and not the federal level. Other companies may also need to register at the local level, depending on city or country-specific requirements. While many businesses may not be required to register, there are several benefits to doing so. Most notably, registered companies enjoy tax-benefits and liability protection. However, registering a business can also make other critical operational tasks more straightforward. For example, getting a loan or a business bank account is much easier as a registered business.To prepare to register your business, be sure to conduct the necessary research on the best path forward for your business and prepare the proper documentation. Conducting research upfront will make registering your business a breeze! In need of a virtual address to register your business? Learn more about our business address plan.

When starting a business, there are a lot of questions to answer. Especially if you are a first-time entrepreneur, you may have never thought about many of the things you'll need in order to get your business off the ground. 

There's a lot to do when you start a business: from deciding your business structure to registering your business. In particular, registering your business can spur a lot of questions. We put together a guide for small business owners and entrepeneurs.

Registering Your Business: A Guide for Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs 

It’s been going on eight months now since the team at <a href="https://www.earthclassmail.com/">Earth Class Mail</a> has been working from home. With a team of five, spanning multiple time zones and locations, even before workplaces established COVID work from home policies, keeping everyone on the same page wasn’t always easy. But now, with an almost fully-remote workforce across the organization, the need for transparency, clarity, and consistency is even greater. To say that my team has relied on technology to get us through this experience would be putting it lightly… Without video conferencing, instant messaging, and good old-fashioned email, I can’t imagine how we would function. Traditional water cooler talk is out, but collaboration can still take place, in spite of the obstacles working remotely can create.As most of us settle into working remotely for the long term, <a href="https://businessfacilities.com/2020/06/even-after-covid-19-execs-expect-remote-work-trend-to-continue/">at least longer than we had initially thought</a>, we can’t afford a band-aid approach. It takes sustainable methods and consistent practices to keep our teams engaged and productive. <h3>Tools and Check-ins </h3>I’ve managed remote employees in the past, but to have the entire company working away from the office has forced a shift in how I operate, how we communicate as colleagues, and how we stay on-track without the benefit of face-to-face interactions. New tools and routine check-ins have taken the place of more casual encounters.As part of my research on different mechanisms and techniques to keep employees engaged, I’ve been talking to colleagues in my network at the <a href="https://www.revenuecollective.com/">Revenue Collective</a> to hear what they have to say about this new style of work.Heather Teicher, VP of Marketing at Loqate (a GBG solution) shared her experience in managing her remote team. &quot;It&#39;s been very important to maintain personal connections with members of my team. We&#39;ve been &quot;at home&quot; in the NYC/NJ area since the end of February and had to get creative in how we keep things fun, while working really hard. We chat about what&#39;s really going on in our lives on weekly 1:1 calls (non-video) and share random things that make us happy over text, like freshly baked cookies. We&#39;ve sent each other flowers for each other&#39;s birthdays and random surprises for jobs well done. Anything to keep each other smiling and sane.&quot; These seemingly small gestures can go a long way in maintaining team unity and connectivity.Intentionally setting aside time to check-in with my team on non-work related matters has been important for my team as well. Virtual Happy Hours with “get to know you” games have been a great way to maintain social connection. It’s also been important to check-in and see how the team is feeling, just how they are doing. Happiness scores in our new HR platform <a href="https://lattice.com/">Lattice</a> have helped drive some of those conversations.Watching for signs of employee burnout are also important. At Earth Class Mail, we have an unlimited PTO policy, and I encourage my team to take time away from work to recharge and unplug. Lattice also provides the opportunity to ask deeper questions and monitor happiness scores over time. This helps shine light on employees who might benefit from some time away from their desk, screens, and home office.Tate Gibson, Head of Marketing at AccessPay identified that “video call fatigue is real. I think our brains are working harder to read emotion and understand each other through pixels and headphones.” To combat that, her team has camera-optional daily stand-up in the mornings to check in on everyone&#39;s mood and priorities for the day. These meetings help remind her group that they are “on a team, not on an island” and allows her to follow-up with team members directly if she senses that anyone is feeling overwhelmed or “off.”<h3>Management Tips</h3>The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted some best practices in an article called <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/battling-pandemic-blues-how-managers-can-rally-the-troops-11602460801?st=25c0vf13vhioljr&reflink=article_imessage_share">Battling Pandemic Blues: How Managers Can Rally the Troops</a>. The article does a fantastic job of offering insights into managing teams from a distance. It features tips and tricks that I’ve began implementing with my own team such as:<ol><li>Rethink meetings: Make sure every Zoom call has a purpose. If a meeting isn’t working, adjust the content, cut the time in half, or scrap it altogether.</li><li>Analyze what happened: Conduct after-event reviews of your team’s successes and failures, Prof. Hinds says, so no one’s in the dark about what happened, and employees can apply lessons learned to the next project.</li><li>Give people a challenge: Form a special team to examine new opportunities or give workers time to tackle a tough problem. Learning helps people grow, feel engaged and be productive, Ms. Bates says.</li><li>Keep tabs on your employees: Set reminders on your calendar to check in with folks. Standing meetings can further clutter your team’s calendar, so adjust your outreach as you go based on who needs what. And really listen to what they share.</li><li>Offer perspective: Remind your team that this is just a moment in time. Things might be hard, but this stretch won’t last forever. </li></ol><h3>Summary</h3>While working remotely has proved challenging, it has also been rewarding in many ways. My team members who were already remote get an equal amount of face-time among the checkerboard during our video calls. The situation has pushed me as a leader to be open to new approaches, new technology, and new ways of connecting. Celebrating our achievements has taken on new importance, and making sure everyone feels connected is a top priority. The team at Earth Class Mail continues to be collaborative, open, and hard-working - all reasons that motivated me to join the company in the first place.

It’s been going on eight months now since the team at Earth Class Mail has been working from home. With a team of five, spanning multiple time zones and locations, even before workplaces established COVID work from home policies, keeping everyone on the

With the pandemic, teams around the country have been pushed into working remotely. For leaders managing a team remotely can present unique challenges. Read more about how our VP of Marketing has tackled managing her team remotely.

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