Easy Ideas for Greening Your Business

Easy Ideas for Greening Your Business

Your primary responsibility as a business owner is turning a profit. Despite this, you also want to run your operation as ethically as possible. The quest for earnings should never overtake the importance of responsible citizenry.

Being an enlightened entrepreneur can take many forms. One is incorporating eco-conscious operating procedures into your venture. Although this prospect may seem intimidating, creating an eco-friendly business is less burdensome than you may think.

Powering Down

These days, it’s practically inevitable that computers are integral to keeping your startup humming. Even if you run a brick-and-mortar store, you probably use digital systems to keep track of inventory, handle payroll, and examine your budget. There’s no point in having PCs running during off hours. Make a habit of shutting them down before heading home each day.

The same principle applies to lights. Make sure the person in charge of locking up leaves the space dark. Turning off or lowering the thermostat will further reduce your carbon footprint. Besides being good for the environment, these practices help save a few dollars on energy bills.

Recycling Trash

Setting up a recycling plan is easy. The first step is placing recycling bins in strategic spots. It shouldn’t be hard to spot out-of-the-way niches with plenty of foot traffic. Next, educate everyone on the importance of putting recyclables in these receptacles rather than just dumping them in the trash.

All that’s left is to enlist the services of a recycling pick-up service to haul away your junk. In most areas, it should be easy to find one. If none is available, create a rotating schedule whereby employees are assigned to collect the waste and bring it to the local recycling center.

Buying Biodegradable

Nonbiodegradable products last forever. Once they wind up in a landfill, they’re an environmental hazard. Animals that come across these items may consume or get stuck in them, leading to tragic and unnecessary deaths.

Fortunately, many alternatives exist. Replace disposable pens with refillable ones. Use eco-friendly cleaners instead of those made from toxic chemicals. Encourage the use of mugs and thermoses over single-use plastic cups. Although these changes may seem minuscule, the impact can be enormous if enough people adopt them.

Fashioning an eco-friendly business should not only soothe your conscience. It will also provide a prime promotional opportunity, as customers naturally want to patronize companies they see actively contributing toward sustainability. Going green may ultimately result in higher profits.

Join our Financial Insider Newsletter