Writing the Mailing Address

Part1

Writing the Return Address

Position the envelope. Lay your envelope on a flat surface. Situate the envelope so the envelope flap faces down, towards the surface of the table, and the front of the envelope faces up, towards you.

· The envelope should be oriented long ways left to right, not top to bottom.

· When you begin to label your envelope, the 9 1/8¨ length of the envelope should run from your left to right hand.

· The front, smooth side of the envelope is where you will write all the information needed to get your envelope to the addressee.

Print your name for the return address. The return address is necessary in the event the mail is undeliverable. If the mail cannot reach its intended destination, the postal service will send it back to you at the location indicated by the return address.

· The return address is written in the upper-left corner of the envelope and contains three lines of text.

· The first line will be your name. You do not have to write your complete name.

· For example, you can write just “J. Doe” if you like. Be certain, though, that your mail carrier will be able to recognize your name and deliver it to your address by the name indicated on the return address.

Print your street address. The second line of text in the upper-left corner will include your street address.

· Don't forget to include your apartment number, if you have one.

· If you receive your mail at an address different from where you live, you should indicate that address instead.

Print your city, state, and zip code. This information should appear directly under your street address as the third line of text.

If, for some reason, your city and state information takes up a lot of space (you find yourself writing far out into the middle of the envelope), it is acceptable for you to write the zip code on a fourth line.

Part2

Writing the Mailing Address

Print the name of the person to whom the mail is being sent. The mailing address indicates your letter's destination and also include at least three lines of text. The first line will be the name of the person to whom your letter will be delivered.

Write that person's name in the very center of the envelope. You will be writing lines below this name, so be sure to start high enough up in the middle of the envelope to leave yourself space.

Know when and how to use the abbreviation “Attn.”. For some letters, you may need to add an additional “name” line. For example, if you are sending your letter to an individual at a company, start the first line of the mailing address with the name of the company. For example, “Big Corporation X”.

Write the name of the individual to whom you are writing underneath the name of the company with "Attn:" right before his or her name. For example, “Attn: J. Doe”.

This helps ensure that your letter will wind up in the correct person's hands instead of getting lost in the company's mail-room.

Know when and how to use the abbreviation “c/o”. You may also consider using the designation “c/o” (which stands for “in care of”) instead of “Attn:”. Use this convention when you are mailing a letter either to a person or business but know that the letter will be handled or delivered by an intermediary.

You may also use “c/o” when you are trying to send a letter to a person whose address you do not have, but when you do have the address of someone you believe will be able to forward the letter.

Write the street address of the recipient. Once you have filled in the name of the letter's recipient, you will print the street address to which the letter will be delivered.

Print this immediately below the name. This will be the second or the third line of the mailing address, depending upon whether you had a second line with “Attn:” or “c/o”.

Be sure to include the complete address, including any relevant apartment or suite numbers.

Write the city, state, and zip code (or postal code) of the recipient. This information is the last line of the address, and appears directly under the street address.

If you are sending mail internationally, you will also need to include the country to which your letter is being delivered. This does not need to be included if you are mailing domestically.

Part3

Taking Care of Postage

Determine the correct postage. Postage is required to send mail through the postal services in most countries. If you are using a standard business envelope, you will most likely only need one stamp to mail your letter.

Be aware of different postage rates. Postage rates do change fairly frequently. If you haven't mailed a letter in a while, the old stamps that you have stashed in the back of your desk drawer may be insufficient.

Place a stamp on your envelope. The stamp goes in the upper-right corner of the envelope.

Make sure that you do not place your stamp over any part of the mailing address. Make sure as well that you do not write over the stamp. Double-check that you've included all of the necessary, correct information. You're ready to mail!