My previous post centers on how you can reduce postal mail by going digital.  However, this does not really reduce your junk mail.  You see, someone somewhere is selling your address information to these direct marketers for small profits.  There are very few ways that you get around this issue because you are not in control of your contact information once it’s out in the open.  You could give out a fake address, but let’s face it, there are possibilities that our banks are selling our information behind our backs to their “affiliate partners.”  To give those people a fake address means that you will not be receiving the important mail notifications from them either.

Instead of using fake addresses, try renting a postal mailbox from your local post office or a postal mailbox rental location instead.  Post office mailboxes, commonly known as PO Boxes,  are mailboxes hosted at your local post office.  They are great for people who move around a lot, have a business and want business mail delivered there or just want the security of having their mail delivered to a locked location where they can pick it up at their convenience.

However, one big disadvantage to a PO Box is that you normally cannot use it to receive packages from Fedex, UPS, and other couriers.  If you’d like to do that, you can try another alternative – mailbox rental stores.  One of the largest mailbox rental stores in the US is the UPS Store.  Here, you can receive mail and packages, ship packages, and perform other postal mail functions.

What makes these mailboxes special is that they are mostly ignored by direct mail marketers.  For example, these mailboxes do not normally receive those everyday PennySaver-type coupons and advertising.  Those are normally delivered along with your normal mail, but PO Boxes are not included in those mailings.  That’s quite a lot of junk mail you have reduced.  In addition, many direct mail marketers keep a record of mailbox rental store locations and intentionally skip mailing to those mailboxes.  The mailers understand that people who own those do not always check mail everyday and are normally not interested in advertising.  Mainly, marketers know that they get extremely low response rates from those mailbox owners.

I used to own such a mailbox at a local UPS Store.  The number of mail I receive is about 3-5 pieces a week!  Now compare that to about 8-10 pieces a DAY and you will get the picture.

Getting a rental mailbox is one of the most effective ways to reduce your junk mail.  However, they do come at a cost.  These mailboxes usually cost $10-$20 a month.  They are worth it if you hate junk mail.  Furthermore, they give you an additional layer of privacy protection since the address is not your home address.  They also remove the hassle of having to change your address or forward your mail when you move to a new place.  If you constantly move around, then a rental mailbox is a good option.

However, having to drive to the store to check and pick up your mail is quite a hassle.  It’s also expensive considering how high the gas price is these days.  You can always make phone calls to the store to ask before you drive there, but still, these are hassles you have to go through for the benefits that you get.

Next time, I will show you a new way to get the benefits of having a rental mailbox without the hassles.