Virtual Office Mail FAQ

+ What is a Virtual Office?

A Virtual Office is a coworking space membership that typically doesn’t include a regular, physical spot. They often provide mail receiving, address use, forwarding services, and other amenities.

+ What is included in a Virtual Office membership?

At BLANKSPACES, most Virtual Office Memberships come with use of your own Private Mail Box (PMB) number, mail and package receiving, and access to mail services such as forwarding. It also includes 2 WorkCafe day passes per month, and one hour of conference room use, plus a 20% member discount on additional day passes/conference room use. Monthly hours do not rollover.

+ Am I considered a full member of BLANKSPACES?

Yes! You have access to all member events and privileges included in your membership level. Your WorkCafe and conference room hours may be used at any BLANKSPACES location, subject to availability.

+ Is this a PO Box?

No. PO Boxes are managed by USPS and do not have a physical street address. That advantages of a PMB over a PO Box include: PMBs can accept many deliveries that PO Boxes can’t; PMB addresses can be used to register or list on things PO Boxes can’t; PMB comes with the mail management platform features and a dedicated staff; Virtual Offices come with coworking features and a community!

+ What is Spheremail?

Spheremail is the name of the mail management platform we use to process payments and record your mail.

+ How do I pay?

All virtual office payments are now processed through Spheremail via credit card. Click here to sign up.

+ What documentation will I need?

In order to use the full features of the platform, you will need to fill out a USPS 1583 form, a CA Document 17538.5, and provide two forms of valid identification. There is an online notary service built into the platform for $25. If you don’t want to use it, you may use your own notary, or come into the office with your acceptable forms of ID and sign it in person with a BLANKSPACES staff member present.

View a blank USPS 1583 | View a blank CA Document 17538.5 | View a list of acceptable forms of ID

+ How do I change/update my payment method?

Log into Spheremail and navigate to “My Account,” then “Plans and Billing” to change your credit card information.

+ I accidentally let my membership payments lapse and got an email that it was canceled; can I rejoin? Is my mail gone?

Your mail is not gone unless it has been more than six months. Log on to the platform and make payment to restart your membership. If it has been more than six months, your mail may be gone and your mailbox number might no longer be available, but you’re always welcome to join again!

+ Why do I have to put down a security deposit for a Virtual Office?

We use the security deposit in case of damages to our facilities, but also to cover unpaid incidental costs should your membership be terminated.

+ Can I use this as a business address?

Yes! You may list this as your business address, but be sure to always include the PMB number. You may not use the address without it.

+ Can I register my business, etc at this address?

Yes! The organization you are registering with may have specific rules about whether or not you may use a PMB.

+ Can I use this address on Google Maps, etc?

Yes – but you are not allowed to imply that you have hours open to the public, or to do anything else that would cause customers to come to our space unprompted.

+ How do I write my address?

USPS best practices dictate that you use the abbreviation PMB and the number/hashtag symbol # before your mailbox number. At minimum, you MUST use one of those two things. You are NOT allowed to call your PMB a "Suite" number. Please see these guides for more on how to write your address at each location:

Culver City | Long Beach | Santa Monica (Main St.) | Venice

+ Who can receive mail at my address?

As long as you always include the PMB number in your address, we can receive mail for your name, the name of your business, and one DBA. Employees of your business may also receive mail as long as the company and PMB is ALWAYS listed (ie: Company Name ℅ person’s name, or “company name, attn: person name”). To receive mail for a family member or an employee WITHOUT the business name included, you must add them as an additional user.

+ How do I add additional people as recipients to my mailing address?

Additional people are available as an add-on for $10/mo. Log in to the platform to purchase.

+ How many businesses can I have at my address?

Each mailbox number may only accept mail for two business names (ie: one business and one DBA). If you need additional mailboxes for more businesses, contact us for a discount code to receive 50% off your second (or more) mailboxes.

+ Are there restrictions on bulk deliveries or mass mailings?

We do not have the capacity to accept very large industrial, warehouse-style, or bulk deliveries. Package sizes or quantities beyond our capacity are liable to be refused or may be subject to additional fees. Please do not send out a mass mailing using your PMB as the return address. Excessive amounts of returned mailers are liable to be refused or may be subject to additional fees. See your membership agreement for more info on this.

+ I can’t find my login link!

Here you go: Culver City | Long Beach | Santa Monica (Main St.) | Venice

+ Can my employee or assistant manage the mail for me?

Yes, you can add employees as additional users with their own log-ins to manage the mail. Log in to the platform to enable this feature.

+ When can I pick up my mail?

Mail pickup is generally available Monday - Friday, 9AM - 5PM (subject to holidays or other closures). Depending on the location and mailbox type, scheduling your pickup is recommended and sometimes required to ensure staff is available to assist you. You may do this via the schedule pickup feature on the mail management platform, or by phone/email to your local BLANKSPACES staff.

+ Why do I have to mark mail as picked up?

When you pick up your mail, BLANKSPACES staff may choose to mark your mail as ‘picked up’ on the platform as a courtesy, but it is ultimately your responsibility to do this as confirmation that the mail is now in your possession.

+ Can you just put the mail in my office/on my desk?

Yes, please provide us with written instruction/permission to do so. In these cases, your mail will be immediately marked as picked up.

+ What’s the deal with storage fees?

Storage fees are applied to mail items left in your box for more than 30 days. To be more specific, this is determined as 30 days after the monthly renewal date following the day the mail was received. For example, If your monthly renewal happens on July 1, and you receive a letter on July 5th, the next renewal is August 1, and you will be charged a storage fee on September 1. Items that have been previously scanned or photographed must still be removed to avoid storage fees. Mark as junk mail or select a disposal option to move those items off of your account.

+ What else can I do with my mail?

Mail can be: forwarded, marked as junk, opened and scanned, photographed, or shredded. The platform has other cool features like notarization and phone numbers that you should explore too!

+ What if I just want all my mail automatically scanned or forwarded?

This feature is available on the platform. Log-in to enable and learn more.

+ I have a special mail request or preference that I’m not seeing on the platform. What should I do?

Please email your BLANKSPACES location staff and we will let you know if we can help.

+ What if a piece of mail or a package is lost or damaged?

We will do everything in our power to keep your mail safe, secure, and prevent damages, but things happen in transit and we are not liable or responsible for any missing, lost, misplaced, or damaged mail. See your membership agreement for more on this.

+ I don’t want this junk mail/catalog/etc, what do I do?

Mark it as junk on the platform and we’ll toss it!

+ The mail platform is sending me too many emails, what should I do?

Sorry but we don’t have the ability to reduce the email notifications and don’t recommend that you filter them because you might miss something important!

+ Can I suspend my membership temporarily?

Sorry, no. Virtual Office memberships cannot be suspended as we can’t guarantee that you’ll stop using the address or stop mail from arriving.

+ How do I terminate my membership?

We hope you stay forever, but if you need to terminate, please go to blankspaces.com/termination to provide your required 30-day notice and submit the form. After that, we will set your membership to expire on the back-end.

+ What happens to my mail when I terminate my membership?

After your membership ends, we will hold all mail received for you for six months. As courtesy, we can allow you ONE pick-up OR forward (postage at cost to you) before the end of the six month period. If we have not heard from you by the end of the six month holding period, we are required by USPS to DISCARD all of the mail held during that time. After that, all items received for you will be returned to sender.

+ Can I file a Change-of-Address via USPS?

NO. USPS forbids Private Mail Box customers from using their Change-of-Address forms and it would be a violation of your membership agreement to do so. You could also unintentionally cause ALL the mail from the address to be forwarded to you.