In a world where everyone seems to be going green, or at least claiming to, you might find yourself wondering “what does this mean for my business?” Even though you do care about the environment, and being responsible in terms of your business, you also need to keep up your bottom line. But are you doing enough to keep up with the status-quo? Are you doing enough to keep up with your competitors? Is it easy enough for your customers to understand everything you do to be green? How can you improve your green initiatives without threatening your profit margins? In this article, we’ll answer all of these questions and more; giving you the tips you need to keep your business green, and help other’s realize your efforts.
What Does it Mean to be a “Green Business”
Unfortunately, there’s no international committee that rates and qualifies whose “green” and who’s not – or what that even really means. Instead, many companies talk about being “green” and their “green initiative” all the time – and it can mean a wide variety of things, and be interpolated for a whole lot more or less. Being that this is the case, it’s important that you take the opportunity to take some real (not embellished) green initiatives for your business, and make sure people can understand them – so you can benefit from your efforts the way other companies have. Remember, it’s not shameful to talk about how many environmentally responsible initiatives you’ve enacted in your business – on the deepest moral level, it’s the only way businesses will push each other to be more conscious and responsible for the environment.
Are you Keeping Up with Competition?
When it comes to running a green business, it can be difficult to even know if you’re keeping up with the competition or not. Some companies like business card printer PrintingforLess.com run a 100% wind powered facility, made largely from recycled materials. While it can be hard to keep up with those kind of staggeringly green factors, many other companies simply take smaller initiatives like eliminating hand towels form their bathrooms, using only recycled paper, installing power saving light bulbs, etc. Remember, if you’re trying to keep up with your competitors that are taking some of the smaller steps to stay environmentally conscious – even implementing a couple of the above listed initiatives qualifies you to state that your company is “going green” as well.
Improving Green Initiatives while Protecting your Bottom Line
One very common misconception about corporate green initiatives, is that they are always a cost – and never a money saving venture in essence. This simply couldn’t be further from the truth. Just to list a couple examples; think about the money you save by installing fluorescent light fixtures in all of your lighting – ending the high consumption incandescent bulbs. Installing solar panels, even if they only power some of your facility, will still save money over time when compared with simply buying from the power company. On a larger scale, improving insulation of your building will use less power – and so will investing in new low energy appliances like workstation computers, monitors, and even refrigerators. You can get your employees on board by creating contests to see who can use the least amount of waste in one week – or leave the fewest lights on in the building. Whatever the initiative, you can’t afford not to go green – for the sake of your PR image, your bottom line, and most importantly – the planet!
