Envelope Buying: Ultimate Guide 2020

Use a buying guide to help you begin the process of choosing the best envelopes for your business, personal, or other purposes. Learn how to select envelopes that are right for your needs.

Anyone who wants to buy envelopes soon finds out that the selection process can be a bit confusing because there are literally hundreds of varieties, styles, and combinations of ideas to choose. Perhaps you own a small business and need a formal but eye-catching design for invoices. Or, maybe you want to color-code individual pieces of a group of invitations to a personal celebration.

There are also functional considerations like making sure to get the right size of envelopes for photos you’re sending to clients for your graphics studio or needing envelopes with security features to mail sensitive legal documents to a business colleague. An envelope buying guide can come in quite handy no matter what your specific needs.

When it comes to custom envelopes, many people don’t know where to begin. They’re faced with a string of decisions about size, paper weight, color, adhesive, windows, special design options, and more. Using an envelope buying guide is a good start but getting expert help is even better.

Use an Envelope Buying Guide

If you need a buying guide to custom business envelopes, or information about other kinds of envelopes, here are some key points to keep in mind:

• Business: Business envelopes come in a countless array of styles based on the function they perform. For example, you can opt for small windows that show only the recipient’s name and address, full-face envelopes that display an entire block of important information, or security styles that conceal account numbers and other sensitive data.Business envelopes also feature rounded or square flaps, each one of which offers a different kind of look. By far, the most common kind of business envelope is the #10, which is designed to hold a standard sheet of paper folded into three panes. It’s likely that most of the business mail you receive is of this size and features a plastic address window. It’s the most common—but know that there are countless other styles, sizes, and designs available.
• Unique Shapes: In addition to the rectangular #10 and similar shapes, square envelopes are becoming more popular even for business uses. Long a staple of the invitation, gala, and special event industries, the square envelope now comes in a wide variety of colors, flap styles, and added features. Businesses often like the variety of sending out special offers in square envelopes in order to convey a feeling of a personal invitation.
• Small: Tiny envelopes have their own following and are one of the preferred types of specialty envelopes. Minis are #17 envelopes and are ideal for pairing with gifts and gift cards. There’s an even smaller version, a tiny envelope called the #1 “coin envelope.” Named for its size, the coin envelope is a popular choice for holding or sending business cards, keys, and very small objects.
• Specialty: Specialty envelopes are often hard to find in retail stores because they are so unique. If you’ve ever needed to send an oddly shaped financial document, packing slip, or historic document, you probably searched for the right envelope but had trouble locating it. This category includes super-strong materials like Tyvek, cardboard, and other materials. If you need a specialty envelope, be sure to speak with a professional and either show or describe your document so you can get the proper fit and style you need.
• Special Invitations: The most common invitation envelope, the A7, is offered in hundreds of colors and styles. These are the envelopes to choose for weddings, anniversaries, retirement parties, and the like. There are different designs and paper types depending on whether you plan to include photos, gift cards, or other materials besides standard paper.
• Printed Messages and Images: Keep in mind that any envelope made by a professional can include words, images, and photos onthe outside of the piece. The main use for envelopes like these is in advertising. The varieties of design are endless, but it helps to have the assistance of a professional to get the look and design just right.

Get It Right the First Time

Even a detailed buying guide to custom envelopes can’t cover every question someone might have. There are so many factors involved in the custom envelopes buying process that it’s easy to feel a bit overwhelmed at first.

When the time comes for you to buy envelopes, whatever the occasion or reason, visit our website at www.RiteGraphics.com or simply pick up the phone and give us a quick call at 610-981-2373. There’s no reason to leave your envelope selection to chance. A member of our staff can help you find the perfect envelope for your purpose.

We’ll be happy to answer your questions. We have four offices to serve customers all over the nation, located in Washington, D.C.; New York, NY; Baltimore, MD; and Philadelphia, PA. Let our team go to work for you and make your envelope ideas come to life.