It’s becoming more and more prudent for both financial and moral reasons for businesses to go green, but it’s easy not to know where to start. Taking steps to be more environmentally friendly doesn’t just make you a good corporate citizen and help you stand out against your competitors, it can also save you money and increase your profits as well.
Saving money and decreasing your negative environmental footprint is as close to a win/win as it gets, so let’s go over five simple ways you can get started and green your business.
1. Invest in green upgrades to your office
There are plenty of changes you can make around the office, including easy fixes like switching to LED lightbulbs. LEDs use far less energy than regular bulbs. Though they cost slightly more, they last five times as long and don’t contain any of the harmful chemicals that other types of bulb have. If you have a water dispenser or kitchen area, remove plastic cups and utensils, and encourage employees to bring their own reusable cutlery and water bottle. Not creating more waste with disposable products is good for the environment, but also saves your business money on having to constantly puchase more cups and utensils.
2. Use solar power
Switching to solar power isn’t just an environmentally friendly idea, it also enables you to take advantage of assets you may not have even realized your business can provide. Instead of relying entirely on costly electricity from the grid, using solar storage panels on your roof or surrounding ground space can help reduce your energy costs by generating your own renewable solar power. Using solar storage panels enables you to store energy for later use, or even feed it back into the grid to generate additional revenue. Solar power is essential if your business is serious about reducing emissions.
If you’re considering a switch to solar power in your residence as well, it’s easier than ever to install solar panels in your home. If the cost seems high, you can always look into a solar loan company like LoanPal. The cost to get your house solar-ready is estimated to run between $2,000 – $10,000. It can vary based on how much work needs to be done to the roof, whether the electrical panel requires upgrading, and how many panels are required.
3. Switch up your printing habits
Paper accounts for 25% of landfill waste, and it’s easy for any office to fall into the habit of printing too much. In the modern world, it’s not only greener to switch to electronic files and cloud storage instead of making hard copies of everything, it’s also much easier for employees to access files and share work.
With businesses having to interact all over the globe, having easy access to digital copies of everything you need just makes sense. You can also switch to using PCW paper (post-consumer waste) instead of virgin wood pulp paper.
4. Improve your recycling program
Making recycling convenient and accessible for employees is imperative if you want them to take it seriously. Do you have recycling bins easily available? Are you disposing of your electronics properly? E-waste, or electronic waste, is very rarely properly disposed of.
You can learn more about how to dispose of different types of electronics by researching the instructions for your specific piece of equipment. Donating functional items to local shelters and schools is also an option.
5. Consider green web-hosting for online projects
Green web hosts are companies that engage in practices like using renewable energy, buying carbon offsets, or planting trees to neutralize their impact on the environment. The cost is often comparable or even cheaper than companies that don’t offset their use of fossil fuels. Given that the quality of service is still high, there’s no real reason not to make the switch if you’re looking for easy ways to reduce your company’s carbon footprint.
There’s plenty more you can do to help your company go green, but even these five simple tips can save you an appreciable amount of money while also boosting your reputation as an eco-friendly and responsible business. Given that consumers care more and more about the character of the companies they patronize, engaging in the world in a productive and meaningful way can give you the edge over your competition.
Ultimately, the costs of going green are far outweighed by the potential benefits both for your business individually and for the world.
