Going green can be incredibly beneficial to your business. For one, it can help your business control the negative impact that it has had on the environment. However, the biggest incentive for any business to go green is the positive PR that it gains for doing so. In the long run, businesses that choose to go green gain the trust and the admiration of consumers, and this can increase their market share and therefore their profitability. Businesses that choose to be more sustainable may, in the process of reducing their environmental impacts, lower their energy expenditure and operating cost to the point of even being able to save some money. If you own a business and you are considering going green, you should know that there is no shortage of benefits should you follow through with your plans.

So, do you want to go green? Here are some of the things that you should do to achieve that goal.

Use office products that are eco-friendly

You should be very particular about the type of office products that you buy in order to reduce the amount of waste that your business generates. Instead of buying single-use kitchenware such as paper cups and plates, and plastic cutlery, you should buy real kitchenware that doesnt have to be thrown out. You should also reuse your office supplies whenever you can. When buying office products, choose high-quality products that you know are going to last, instead of cheap products that are guaranteed to break down. The cleaning products you use around the office should also be environmentally friendly. That means they shouldn’t contain harmful chemicals that could cause pollution or even negative health effects. In the office bathrooms, instead of using hand towels, you should install an automatic hand drier. This will reduce the amount of wastepaper that your business produces. Speaking of paper, if you can, you should buy recycled paper. The cost of recycled paper may be a little higher than that of ordinary paper, but remember the benefits of going green which we discussed earlier.

Reduce the amount of energy that your office consumes

If you own the building where your business is located, you should install solar panels or try to harness other forms of renewable energy. Solar panels are fairly expensive to install, but in the long run, they can save you a lot in terms of energy costs. Instead of printing out and photocopying all your documents, you can reduce your energy use by sharing and storing your office documents digitally. You should inspect and replace all your office machinery which may be energy guzzlers. Older machines tend to be less energy efficient than newer ones, so if you have old printers, computers, factory floor machines etc. replacing them with new ones could actually reduce your energy bills. You should also replace old lighting fixtures with new energy efficient bulbs. Energy efficient bulbs use a tiny fraction of the energy that the older bulbs use, and they last way longer, so you have to buy them less often. For transportation, you and your staff can use hybrid or electrical cars. Electric cars are relatively quite expensive, but they can provide your business with a lot of good PR.

Start observing green policies at the office

You can set up green policies which everyone at the office has to follow. Create rules that remind employees to turn off lights and computers before leaving work. You can try to conserve water by making sure all faucets are properly shut off (this make a big difference especially in larger companies). You should also start recycling. Train your staff on how to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste at the office. Make going green a challenge that everyone in the office takes a part in. If possible, use training videos and posters to pass across your message. You should incentivize your employees to either use public transportation or to carpool to work. If they live nearby, you can encourage them to walk or to ride bikes. Learn more about how you can involve your employees as you go green.

Partner with the community to support environmentalist initiatives

You can get together with other environmentally conscious businesses to move forward the green agenda in your community. When you network with other green businesses, you are able to increase your influence and make a bigger impact. You can encourage the community around you to also go green by organizing events meant to raise awareness. You should also work with local suppliers instead of national suppliers who have to transport products over long distances (which is bad for the environment). Whenever you purchase your supplies, make sure that they are from a business that is also eco-friendly. This will incentivize suppliers and small businesses to go green.

Going green is not easy, but it is doable. Depending on how extensively you want to create sustainable processes, it may cost you a small fortune to completely transition your business into an eco-friendly one, or you may want to transition more slowly as part of a longer strategic goal. Whichever way you decide that is right for your business the effort you put in will be worth it because you get to do your part for the environment, and it will also help to earn your business a good reputation in your community.