Going Green: Your Roadmap to an Eco-Friendly Business

The world’s climate is out-of-whack and we’re burning through resources rapidly. Businesses worldwide are waking up to this reality – they have to transform to be eco-friendly or, at the very least, eco-neutral. The world is changing, and they must change as well to adapt. There are incentives for making such a shift: Not only do customers think better of sustainable businesses, but they’re also much more profitable, reports The Guardian.

If you’re a budding entrepreneur planning on launching a business soon, you might want to build it to be eco-friendly from the very beginning. We won’t sugarcoat it: It will be difficult to pull off, not to mention require more seed money. But you should be able to recoup your investment. Furthermore, you’ll make a name for yourself as a “greenpreneur” – someone who does business ethically, with respect for the ecosystem. It can help with your image in the market and attract employees, customers, investors, and other stakeholders who care about these same things.

Here, Zeno Effect Media offers ideas and suggestions on all the steps you need to take to start a sustainable business, including building a “green” business and marketing plan:

Understand What You’re Aiming For

First, it’s a good idea to come up with green goals for your business. This gives you something to aim for, and gives you an outline by which to structure your business processes. Green businesses, according to the Library of Congress, balance profit with the health of the planet and its inhabitants. Essentially, they work harmoniously with the environment without undue harm.

Inform Yourself of Some Challenges You May Face

As you may have figured out, becoming sustainable isn’t as easy as it sounds. There will be many obstacles for you to overcome. Some examples:

Resistance: Your employees and investors may not see the value in you going green.
Hiccups: Setting up green processes may not be easy. For example, finding an ethical source of raw material.
Lack of traction: Your green products or services may not be accepted by customers.
Failure: Unfortunately, business failure is always a possibility you need to account for.

Know That Going Green Is Possible

Many of the biggest companies in the world are making the switch to green, such as Nike, Apple, IKEA, and Google. They can’t be deemed fully sustainable, but they’re making significant changes – such as prioritizing renewable energy, reducing waste, responsible sourcing, and giving back to the community.

Jesper Brodin, the CEO of IKEA, is especially “aggressive” with his sustainability drive. He’s making IKEA carbon positive by 2030, switching to all-electric vehicles by 2025 for deliveries, and has invested 2.5 billion euros in producing renewable energy to date. IKEA now produces more renewable energy than it uses.

You don’t necessarily have to go above and beyond with your green drive. You could look into doing what’s feasible right now and then slowly adding to it over time. Sustainability-related technology is improving, so you will likely have more options for doing things cost-effectively down the road.

Create a Green Business Blueprint

A green business blueprint is a variation of your typical business plan. It allows you to quantify the steps you need to take to go green. It outlines your goals and green strategies, which depend on your business model, industry, and size. You can create this “greenprint” yourself with some research and taking inspiration from other green businesses. Don’t forget to research the local market to see what your competitors are doing, and the way green trends are headed. Also, factor in your budget, know-how, and other available resources.

Incorporate Sustainability into Your Culture

You’ll need to share your green vision with your employees. These are people who will be doing the actual green work for your business, including interacting with customers, clients, and other stakeholders. They’ll also be helping you implement your various processes. Some suggestions include having sustainability meetings, releasing educational resources, and promoting eco-friendly values (like reuse and waste reduction).

Have a Green Office or Work Arrangement

Many companies are making their offices, and sometimes the way they work, sustainable. Some ways to make your office greener are using energy-efficient appliances, reducing energy use, favoring reuse, adding plants, and increasing natural lighting. Promoting working from home and offering “hybrid” work arrangements may also boost your eco-friendliness by reducing travel-related costs.

Clean up Your Work Processes

Every one of your work processes has an impact on the environment. For example, transportation involves burning fuel and production involves waste. Even small businesses that don’t work with physical goods use energy and water. You can look into ways you could minimize or eliminate this impact. For a more exact idea of your eco-friendliness, you may want to check out your environmental metrics like water, land, and energy use.

Market Effectively

Marketing is always the key to business success – but especially so for sustainable businesses. You need to find and attract consumers who care about green and don’t mind paying an extra markup for it. You’ll need to “green market” your products, which is advertising your products as being green in a transparent, trustworthy way. Doing so digitally – through social media and related marketing campaigns – is convenient and affordable.

Keep in mind that while digital marketing-related methods are effective, so are traditional “offline” marketing methods. For instance, when you send someone a business card, holding such a tangible object tends to leave a lasting impression on the recipient. It’s more visible and personal than sending them an email. You can create a “green” business card design quickly and conveniently using an online tool that comes with pre-existing templates. You can customize them further by adding images, text, font, and color schemes of your choice to match your company’s aesthetic.

Conclusion

Making your business eco-friendly isn’t as easy as it sounds – it requires some risk-taking, investment, and know-how. However, the rewards are worth it. Not only will you potentially make more money, but you can rest easy knowing your business is worthy of respect.

Zeno Effect Media can create high-quality branding and content for your up-and-coming eco-friendly business.
Schedule a free consultation or call 805-394-8440 now!

About Our Guest Blogger

Lucy Reed has been starting businesses since she was a kid, from the lemonade stand she opened in her parent’s driveway at age 10 to the dog walking business she started while in college. She created Gig Mine because she was inspired by the growth of the sharing economy and wanted to make it easier for entrepreneurial individuals like herself to find the gig opportunities in their areas.