Should we put postage on the response envelopes for our wedding invitations?

Question

It would make it easier for people to respond, but it is an added cost.....what is right?

Answer 1

You should put them on their as a courtesy to your guests, also if you want them back, you better...if they see the stamp its just extra reminder to them that its important to you for them to respond, and will be more apt to do that.

have you already ordered or bought the respond cards? If not, money saving tip, get the print-your-own postcards and do one side with your wording and the other with your address and lines for them to put the return address on. you can use the 24 cent postcard stamps on them instead of the full 39 cent ones used for things in envelopes. it also ends up being way cheaper to print those yourself and its very easy to do....I ordered my invites because I didn't want to deal wiht making them, but made my post-cards and it all total saved me about $75, well worth it!

Answer 2

It is "right" (meaning proper) to put the stamp on the envelope. If you are planning any type of formal (semi-formal) affair, you need to have those. If you are planning a cookout for all your friends, then send the response envelope without the stamp but give the option of replying by email or phone.
As far as added cost....the inner envelope is only the normal stamp, not the price of sending the whole invitation (which weighs more, so costs more). If you figure it's $0.39 per stamp, even at 300 stamps that's only $117. Spring for that, and save on something else. $100 is not that much, considering. (And if you're sending out 300 invitations, that means you're inviting roughly 600 people. If you're worried about $120 with 600 people, that's a whole other problem!)

Answer 3

I get that it is an added cost and for every 100 people you are inviting it will cost you an extra $39.00 to put the stamps on BUT - it really is the "proper" way to do it. If you are doing everything else "by the book" don't skip this one. if the budget is that tight - see if there is anywhere else you can trim a few dollars from your day to day spending - I know that when I need extra $ I stop buying the Coffee and roll at the local store on the way to work and pack my lunch instead of buying the $6.00 salad and drink at Wendy's - but every day I take that $7.00 from my wallet and put it in a jar with the lid taped shut with duct tape. My husband usually throws his change in there every night - by the end of the month we have between $100 -$150 and I never really missed the extras or even the $ since I usually spent it everyday.

Good Luck to you and Congrats on your wedding.

Answer 4

It is proper etiquette to put postage on the RSVP envelopes. Doing so will also increase the odds of you getting the RSVP back.

These days people are offering email addresses and phone numbers in lieu of a card. But, you risk not having people RSVP....

The costs of the stamps is far worth you not having to call everyone on your guest list to get confirmation of their attendance. Of course, if you don't need to know for catering purposes, the confirmation doesn't matter as much.

Answer 5

I have seen it done both ways. I do believe the proper thing to do is include postage. If you don't want to do this or the cost is too high for you then give your guests an alternative. There are tons of wedding websites that let you set up for free and they include an RSVP feature. Print the website address at the bottom of the RSVP card or include it in the wording.

Answer 6

Yes you should, it is an added cost, but the reasons are two fold. First, it is the appropriate thing to do, Second, people are more inclined to answer your RSVP, if the postage is taken care of. We as people are procrastinators in general, so the more help you give your guest list, the more likely you are to hear from your guests in a good time frame.

Answer 7

Yes, you should put postage on the reply envelope. It's worth the extra cost to not be thought of as being tacky and cheap

Answer 8

Good manners calls for return postage; and the Post Office sells a matching pair of stamps (one for the invitation and another for the return letter) especially for this purpose. Besides, do you want to appear "cheap" to those who will be thinking about giving you a gift????

Answer 9

It is usually customary and if you want a true head count you better put the postage because in every family there are cheap people who won't buy the stamp to RSVP but they will show up

Answer 10

Absolutely!

And remember, if you decide to go the route of a telephone RSVP, you need to be extra organized and keep a guest list, or at least a pencil and paper near the phone, and make sure that everyone who would answer the phone knows to write down the information if someone RSVPs.

I can't tell you how invaluable having the written response cards were to us when we were organizing tables and menu counts. It's nice to have the written cards to refer back to.