Virtual office

Virtual Office Software for Address and Mail Handling

Turn an address into a managed mailing service. Every item photographed on arrival, client is notified and then decides - scan, forward, shred and recycle.

  • Photographed on arrival
  • Client chooses what happens next
  • Mailroom carries out instruction
Traizr virtual office management, showing an address being run as a managed mailing service with scanning, forwarding, shredding and recycling handled through the app
Traizr virtual office management. Watch the walkthrough.

The workflow

From Delivery to Decision to Instruction

Five steps to delivery

  1. Photograph it & Notify Recipient

    Mailroom staff scan the item in on a phone or tablet and photograph it while it is still sealed. The photograph lets the recipient decide what to do next, without anyone opening the envelope.

  2. Traizr notifies the recipient

    The item is linked to a recipient account and they are notified that they have new mail.

  3. The recipient receives a notification

    A notification is received in app, via email or SMS, with the photograph attached. The client can act on it from anywhere.

  4. They choose what happens next

    Scan, forward, shred or recycle (or a combination of these) selected in the app. The request is sent back to the mailroom for action.

  5. Mailroom carries out instruction

    The instruction is completed and recorded. A scan is attached to the item in Traizr if requested.

An item in the Traizr mobile app showing the photograph taken of the envelope at receipt, the barcode recorded against it, and the list of virtual office actions the client can choose from

Four things a recipient can request

  1. Scan it

    The item is opened and the contents scanned.

    RecordedWho opened and scanned it, when they did it, and the file itself, stored against the item.
  2. Forward it

    The item is posted on to a real address.

    RecordedThe destination address, the date it was sent, the person who sent it, and the postage cost.
  3. Shred it

    Secure disposal for anything carrying a name and an account number.

    RecordedThat the client asked for destruction, which member of staff carried it out, and when.
  4. Recycle it

    Ordinary disposal for marketing post, which makes up a large share of everything arriving at a business address.

    RecordedThe client's instruction and the date it was carried out, so an item is never simply missing from the record.

Each action is recorded rather than just done, because a virtual office holds other people's correspondence. When a client asks what happened to an item, the answer needs a name and a time attached to it. That is the same principle as internal proof of delivery, applied to mail that never enters a building.

All Virtual Office systems include . . .

All included as standard. No feature tiers, no per-user fees, and no dedicated hardware to buy.

  • Photograph at receipt

    Every item is photographed as it arrives, so the recipient sees the item first hand.

  • Client mail accounts

    Each client has their own account, instructions, forwarding address and history.

  • Automatic notifications

    App, email and SMS alerts as soon as an item is logged, with reminders for anything still waiting on an instruction.

  • Scan to file

    Contents are scanned and attached to the item.

  • Forwarding with postage

    The destination address and postage cost are captured when the item is sent.

  • Shred and recycle requests

    Disposal is an instruction with a name and a timestamp on it, which is what makes it defensible later.

  • Usage per client

    Items received, scanned and forwarded, per client, over any date range.

  • More than one address

    Run several virtual office addresses from one platform, each with its own recipient list.

  • Collection in person

    Recipients can arrange to walk in and collect the item.

  • Searchable history

    Find any item by client, sender, reference or date.

  • Role-based access

    Allow only certain mailroom staff to carry out certain roles.

  • Thirteen languages

    Clients read notifications in their own language.

Running it by hand against running it on Traizr

The manual version works. It just does not scale, and the places it breaks are predictable.

By handWith Traizr
A message saying post has arrivedA photograph of the item, sent automatically
Instructions by email, text and phoneOne request - One action
Scans emailed and then lostScan stored against the item permanently
Forwarding address from the sign-up formHeld on the client record and kept current
Postage absorbed as an overheadCaptured against the client when it is sent
Monthly billing reconstructed from notesUsage per client over any date range, exportable
No evidence an item was handledEvery action named, timestamped and searchable
Post for closed accounts processed anywayFlagged rather than quietly handled

Frequently asked questions

What is virtual office software?

It is the system that runs the mail side of a virtual office. Clients pay to use your address, but what they are buying is the handling: someone receives their post, tells them it has arrived, and does what they ask with it. Virtual office software makes that repeatable. Each item is photographed and logged on arrival, the client is notified, they choose what happens next from their phone, and the action is recorded against their account.

Can clients see their mail before deciding what to do with it?

Yes, and it removes most of the phone calls. The envelope is photographed when it is logged, so the client sees the sender and the format before choosing. Most items are obvious from the outside. A client who can see that something is junk will recycle it without asking you to open anything.

What actions can a client request?

Scan, forward, shred or recycle. Scanning opens the item and returns the contents as a file. Forwarding posts it on to a real address. Shredding is secure disposal, and recycling is ordinary disposal. Every request is timestamped, carried out by a named member of your team, and closed off on the record.

Can Traizr handle billing for virtual office clients?

Traizr records what you handled and what you did with it, per client, over any date range. That gives you the figures a virtual office is normally billed on: items received, items scanned, items forwarded, and the postage attached to each forward. Traizr does not raise the invoice itself, but it removes the guesswork about what goes on it.

How many clients can one address handle?

There is no limit in the software. Each client is a record rather than a separate installation, so the practical limit is your own capacity to handle the post. If you run several addresses, multi-tenant mailroom software covers how those are kept apart.

Can we run this alongside a physical mailroom?

Yes. Many business centres do both, with a virtual office client list alongside tenants who are physically in the building. It is the same platform and the same app. Staff scanning the morning post do not need to know which category an item belongs to, because the recipient record already says.

What happens to mail for a client who has left?

The account is closed, and anything arriving afterwards is flagged rather than processed as normal. This matters more than it sounds. Post for a departed client is the most common way a virtual office ends up holding something it has no instruction for, and the usual result is a pile in a drawer that nobody has the authority to open.

Is there a limit on how long records are kept?

No. The history stays available for as long as you need it, and scans stay attached to the item they came from. That matters when a client disputes whether something arrived, because the answer is a search rather than a conversation.

Do clients need to install an app?

No, although most prefer to. Push notifications are faster than email, and the QR code used for collection in person lives in the app. Clients who would rather not install anything can be notified by email or SMS and respond the same way.

How is this different from a PO box?

A PO box holds post until someone collects it. A virtual office acts on it. In software terms, a PO box needs a pigeonhole and a virtual office needs an instruction workflow, which is why the two are not really the same product. See PO box management software if the pigeonhole model is closer to what you run.

If you also handle post for people inside the building, mailroom management software covers the wider picture.

Ready to Simplify Secure Speed Up Optimise Your Building?

Bring your client list and the way you bill for it, and we will walk one item from delivery through to a closed instruction. About 20 minutes.