Should You Use a PO Box or Your Home Address for Your Online Store BusinessMany Internet and home businesses still use a post office box for an official business address. And that may be fine when it comes to businesses where products are not sold, but when products are being sold on your website, your customers may want to know where your business is located, and for many reasons as well.
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Should You Use a PO Box or Your Home Address for Your Online Store Business
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For example, before purchasing the product, they may want to estimate how long it’s going to take for them to receive the product if they opt for ground shipping services.
Or they may want to know where your business is located just for the sake of curiosity or to make sure that you’re located here in the states. Many times, customers will want to check out your online store when purchasing products from you for the first time. |
And they may do so diligently when it comes to non-major internet storefronts. However, if a potential customer sees a PO Box as your business address then that in itself can quickly become a red flag and cause them to shop elsewhere, even if you are a legitimate business.
It’s not that PO Boxes are bad, it’s just that PO Boxes don’t belong on ecommerce websites which sell products and/or services. Furthermore, when it comes to websites, many consumers become programmed to believe that PO Boxes are fake addresses and signs of possible scams.
They begin to question as to why no physical address is made available on the website if it is indeed a legitimate business. However, instead of contacting the business owner(s) and asking about such matters, they leave the website and move on to next online store in the search engine search results.
No matter how honest you are, and how well you do business, most consumers are aware of the fact that there are plenty of scams on the internet using PO Box addresses on their websites. And hiding your real address can cause you to be seen as such.
This is one of the reasons why most people won’t do business with a website that hides its real address and displays a PO Box instead.
The absence of a physical address may raise concerns almost instantly. And if they do not see a physical address on your website then they may not buy anything and make no attempts to contact you as well.
Many times, when a customer is ready to purchase a product from an online store for the first time, they must become confident in placing an order from that store, especially if they’ve never heard of you before.
It’s not that PO Boxes are bad, it’s just that PO Boxes don’t belong on ecommerce websites which sell products and/or services. Furthermore, when it comes to websites, many consumers become programmed to believe that PO Boxes are fake addresses and signs of possible scams.
They begin to question as to why no physical address is made available on the website if it is indeed a legitimate business. However, instead of contacting the business owner(s) and asking about such matters, they leave the website and move on to next online store in the search engine search results.
No matter how honest you are, and how well you do business, most consumers are aware of the fact that there are plenty of scams on the internet using PO Box addresses on their websites. And hiding your real address can cause you to be seen as such.
This is one of the reasons why most people won’t do business with a website that hides its real address and displays a PO Box instead.
The absence of a physical address may raise concerns almost instantly. And if they do not see a physical address on your website then they may not buy anything and make no attempts to contact you as well.
Many times, when a customer is ready to purchase a product from an online store for the first time, they must become confident in placing an order from that store, especially if they’ve never heard of you before.
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They need to know that your business is based within the United States and that you can be contacted at any time should any problems arise with their orders.
They need to know that your business really does exist and displaying a physical address on your website will confirm this.
You can add a contact phone number and an email address but that may not be enough to instill confidence within consumers. You’ll need a physical address to build and support credibility and to avoid losing sales as well. However, there are other options to consider.
You can use the services of a mail forwarding company which can provide you with a physical address for your business or use you can use your home address as well. For example, you can open up an account with a mail forwarding company such as Mail Boxes Etc or any mail forwarding company as most service providers provide the same type of services.
Mail forwarding companies offer a PO Box and a physical address as well. And you can use that physical address for a business address and for your website as well.
However, using the services of a mail forwarding company solely for the purpose of having a physical address to display on your website will bring extra and unnecessary business expenses. And until your business starts turning a profit then these are the types of expenses that you can do without. But of course, that’s up to you. And if you’re able to do so then you can obtain a physical address with a mail forwarding company.
You can also use your home address for your business address and website address as well. And by doing so, you can avoid the time and gas needed for the daily trips to the mail forwarding office and the extra business expenses. Furthermore, everything becomes less complicated when you’re using your home address for every aspect of your business.
Some business owners may become concerned with the possibilities of a customer showing up at your door step. But the possibilities of this happening are slim to none.
Therefore, there is no need to worry as customers who shop online, buy online and have no need to visit the actual storefront. This is the convenience of internet shopping. Furthermore, most consumers prefer to purchase products outside of their home state in order to avoid sales tax.
So if you’re doing business from home then you may be better off using your home address for your business address and website address as well. (It will be impossible for your customers to know that your business address is your home since the only thing that they’ll see is your website, and not your home). And if your website displays professionalism then your business will do the same. And if you’re living in an apartment complex then you can add your business name to your street address yet leaving out the abbreviation for apartment, (apt) and replacing it with the # symbol.
For example:
YourBusiness.com
123 Business Road #456
State, City, Zip Code
So if the question still remains; Should You Use a PO Box or Your Home Address?
To support credibility and avoid unnecessary expenses, you would be much better off using your home address for your business address and website address as well. And if you’re able to afford the added expense of a mail forwarding service then you can also obtain a physical address from a mail forwarding company as well.
They need to know that your business really does exist and displaying a physical address on your website will confirm this.
You can add a contact phone number and an email address but that may not be enough to instill confidence within consumers. You’ll need a physical address to build and support credibility and to avoid losing sales as well. However, there are other options to consider.
You can use the services of a mail forwarding company which can provide you with a physical address for your business or use you can use your home address as well. For example, you can open up an account with a mail forwarding company such as Mail Boxes Etc or any mail forwarding company as most service providers provide the same type of services.
Mail forwarding companies offer a PO Box and a physical address as well. And you can use that physical address for a business address and for your website as well.
However, using the services of a mail forwarding company solely for the purpose of having a physical address to display on your website will bring extra and unnecessary business expenses. And until your business starts turning a profit then these are the types of expenses that you can do without. But of course, that’s up to you. And if you’re able to do so then you can obtain a physical address with a mail forwarding company.
You can also use your home address for your business address and website address as well. And by doing so, you can avoid the time and gas needed for the daily trips to the mail forwarding office and the extra business expenses. Furthermore, everything becomes less complicated when you’re using your home address for every aspect of your business.
Some business owners may become concerned with the possibilities of a customer showing up at your door step. But the possibilities of this happening are slim to none.
Therefore, there is no need to worry as customers who shop online, buy online and have no need to visit the actual storefront. This is the convenience of internet shopping. Furthermore, most consumers prefer to purchase products outside of their home state in order to avoid sales tax.
So if you’re doing business from home then you may be better off using your home address for your business address and website address as well. (It will be impossible for your customers to know that your business address is your home since the only thing that they’ll see is your website, and not your home). And if your website displays professionalism then your business will do the same. And if you’re living in an apartment complex then you can add your business name to your street address yet leaving out the abbreviation for apartment, (apt) and replacing it with the # symbol.
For example:
YourBusiness.com
123 Business Road #456
State, City, Zip Code
So if the question still remains; Should You Use a PO Box or Your Home Address?
To support credibility and avoid unnecessary expenses, you would be much better off using your home address for your business address and website address as well. And if you’re able to afford the added expense of a mail forwarding service then you can also obtain a physical address from a mail forwarding company as well.