We get a LOT of packages delivered to our office for the send-in opportunities offered throughout each year and most of the time, everyone follows the instructions on our order pages perfectly. However, there are some very important things to remember when preparing your items for shipment that we wanted to mention as a friendly reminder...

SEND-IN TERMS PAGE: This is a required page that must be completely filled out and included with each item you mail in to be signed. It's linked on all order pages and specific to the actor/actress that we are featuring. It details the signing, what items are acceptable to mail in, how to label your items, how to pack your items and what date the items are required to arrive by. There is also a spot for you to write in a description of what you are mailing in, the 5-digit order number associated with the item and a place for you to sign and date the form. If you cannot find the 5-digit order number in your inbox, check your junk folder as all website orders automatically generate an email invoice which includes this information.

TAGGING YOUR ITEMS: When sending something in to be signed, always place your name, address and 5-digit order number on the back with a post-it-note. The best place for this is the upper right corner. Use a smaller post-it-note or cut off excess paper as the larger ones get stuck on other items and are most easily pulled off. The order number is used to identify your item throughout the send-in process, so it's very important to make it clearly visible.

Also, if you have requested personalization, or want your item signed in a particular color or place, it's best to use a post-it-note with an arrow pointing to the desired area. The more simple the better here...example: Mark Hamill - "To John" in blue with an arrow. If items aren't sent in with this information already on them, it just means additional time on our end to do so. We certainly appreciate your help with this.

SHIPPING YOUR ITEMS: As a general rule, the cheapest method is not always the best method and you get what you pay for. When it comes to send-in item deadlines, we put this in place for good reason. In the days and weeks leading up to our departure, all items are sorted and condensed for safe travel to and from the signing or event. Posters are a great example! If we are rolling posters to transport and everyone's poster except yours has arrived, it makes it very difficult to pack. Sometimes we are dealing with hundreds and hundreds of posters at a time, so it's essential to make sure you send your item out in a timely manner to arrive by the specified day. In other words, don't wait until the last second and...don't use the slowest/cheapest method as it's very likely your item will not arrive in time and not be signed.

SEND-IN ITEM PACKAGING: If at all possible, we always try to reuse the packaging you send your items in. If a package arrives too badly damaged to reuse, we discard it and use something else to get your items back to you safely. This can result in an additional charge depending on the size of the package needed. To help avoid this, it's best to use industrial strength packaging to begin with. Meaning...don't go to Walmart or Walgreens and purchase a cheap poster tube. Nine times out of ten, these arrive dented in or bent which can cause damage to your item before it's even signed. If you can stand on your package and it caves in, it's not strong enough to withstand the beating that packages take while in transit. Some boxes are only good for one trip through the mail (like most Amazon boxes), so again, it may get your item to us safely, but getting it back is another story. It's also important to note that using excessively large/heavy packaging will likely result in a much higher shipping cost than what you were charged at checkout. If this happens, we'll simply bill you for the additional postage.

HELPFUL HINTS:

In our experience, it's never a good idea to use the small square poster tube boxes or the triangle poster tubes as these seem to take the worst beating of them all and very rarely can we reuse them.

It's best to double-tube posters, especially those with multiple signatures already on them. Get a smaller tube to put inside a larger tube and secure both ends.

If you are packing a poster that's 27" wide in a poster tube that's 30" long, be sure to pad the ends as the constant rocking back and forth will damage the edges. This goes for any size poster in any size tube.

It's never a good idea to paperclip forms to photos or posters. This damages paper, plain and simple.

If you are sending a flat photo in a cheap envelope, make sure you include some very sturdy cardboard backing (the same size or larger than the photo itself) so it cannot be bent. The post office rubber bands packages together which causes the edges to curl up resulting in your photo being bent/creased.

If you live outside the US and only have 12 days for your item to arrive by the deadline, look for a quicker shipping method rather than sending regular First Class as it likely won't make it in time and then you've just wasted money on postage and we have to process a refund for the autograph. Again, cheaper is not always better.

When mailing in a DVD/Blu-Ray cover, an LP cover, a VHS cover or anything that has contents which can be removed, go ahead and remove them. This means less weight for shipping and less weight for travel. It also means less chance for something to get damaged.

It should not take more than a minute and a half to open a package. You can easily secure items safely without wrapping everything in bubble wrap and using duck tape around that. If we can't get your item out, we can't get it signed!

The smaller the item, the more difficult it is to handle when it's tightly rolled. For example, an 11x17 poster can easily be sent flat rather than rolled and this helps when getting them signed. When a small item with very little space to hold onto is curling up, it's more likely to cause the actor to mess up their signature than if it was sitting flat. The same goes for small photographs and art prints.

If you choose to print your own custom photos to have signed and mail them in, please be aware that the HP & Canon style photo paper often will not allow metallic inks to stick. If a silver or gold pen is used to sign one, the ink may just brush off. It also damages the photo finish when you place post-it-notes on the front and those are needed for placement, color and personalization requests.