The decision to go green can seem overwhelming, but being eco-friendly is as simple as good planning. The best eco practices are where sustainability meets convenience. Your environmental policy has to make sense for your business, your market and the environment.
But are eco-friendly products and packing good quality? Will they help the bottom line? In a word, yes. Studies have proven that consumers will pay more for sustainable and ethical products. Companies with strong environmental and ethical values are increasingly sought after, so going green will only improve your brand power.
Here are a few tips to get you started:
1.A paperless workflow is the way to go
Wherever possible, remove dependency on paper and digitise your workflow. Not only will you be able to share information faster and more widely, you will spend less on printer paper and ink cartridges. When you do need to print, ensure your paper is recycled and sourced from sustainable forests.
2.Use cloud storage
Cloud storage has many benefits: Not only will you free up space on your desktop computer, but you may inadvertently be saving on courier and travel costs, staffing expenses, save project time and work efficiently across distance and time barriers. Cloud storage makes information accessible to employees in any location and time zone, and can help you avoid IT callouts for server and FTP issues. You may also be able to cut down on costly server equipment and trim your electricity bill at the same time.
3.Tech recycling
Ethically disposing of tech waste is a priority for any online business. Recycling of tech waste is currently sitting around 27%, with non-recycled E-waste ending up in landfills or incinerated. If your business is replacing electronic items such as computers, cables, keyboards, monitors, external hard drives, disk drives, tablets, smartphones, etc., make sure that tech waste is traded in, properly disposed of, or donated to a local school or charity.
4.Sell ethical and sustainable products
Help others to make better environmental choices by making sure your goods are manufactured sustainably, non-toxic, recyclable or made from recycled materials, are from sustainable sources, not over-packaged, and are made to last rather than disposable or single-use. Better still, use eco-friendly packaging when selling your products. p
5.Send the right message
Use biodegradable, compostable and recycled packaging and stationary that creates a visual, not an environmental impact. Ecology packaging helps you positively state what your business stands for and is the type of packaging people want to re-use agin and again. Sending the right message has never been easier [link to ecology homepage].
These simple hacks will help your bottom line, increase your respectability in the marketplace and boost morale among your staff.