When you are a busy business owner or manager you have 50 different things going on at any one time, from marketing, to collecting debts to focusing on customer service. I always liked the saying by marketing Joe Polish:
“that a business owner has dealt with more issues by 9am on a Monday morning than most people in an entire week”.
Concentrating on recycling and ensuring your business is environmentally aware, can seem like a luxury that you do not have time for. It could also seem potentially like a waste of time for your staff to be separating recycling commodities out from general waste.
In this article, I would like to cover a number of points that might make you rethink this position and discover that being a green business, can also lead to extra dollars in your pocket!
Starting with….
Common misconceptions that could be costing you money
In 2018, being a green business and putting some effort into recycling could really benefit your business, simply by cutting costs, winning new customers and even helping you find investors.
Many people still have misconceptions such as the ones listed below, that prevent them from taking steps to boost recycling:
Belief that having recycling services is an added expense
If you put everything in general waste now, the idea of having a cardboard or a commingled recycling bin may seem like extra cost you can not afford.
However, in nearly all cases, recycling is much cheaper than general waste and if you add a recycling service, you can likely reduce a general waste service and save money!
Ever increasing government levies on dumping at landfill, also mean that boosting recycling is a form of future proofing your business against future cost increases.
Recycling it’s just too much of a hassle
If you run a busy office or even a kitchen within a restaurant, you may feel that it is too tricky to separate out the bottles, cardboard etc from the general waste. However, my experience shows that by using simple posters and colour coded bins, it actually takes up no more time than dumping it all in one bin. As Australian bin colours are the same across the country, nearly all your staff will know which bin to use.
Worried that all waste and recycling ends up in same place?
This is a common belief, especially when there have been less than flattering exposes of the waste industry such as the ABC TV show: War On Waste.
You should have confidence however, that your waste company is trying to make money (at least some things are sacred!) and will thus get money for cardboard and metals collected.
Dumping bottles and cans at landfill is much more expensive for the waste company than actually recycling them, so they certainly are financially incentivised to do the right thing!
Clients value a green business
When making a decision to boost recycling and to be a more sustainable business, you should keep in mind that you actually may get more sales!
There is a lot of evidence that certain customers (not all of course) really value a responsible business and would choose to frequent it rather than an equivalent supplier that is not so eco-conscious. See a report from Nielsen that attests that shoppers prefer sustainable brands.
Younger customers are more likely to also care, so a green business will likely grow more in the future.
“Brands that establish a reputation for environmental stewardship among today’s youngest consumers have an opportunity to not only grow market share but build loyalty among the power-spending Millennials of tomorrow, too,” says Grace Farraj, SVP, Public Development & Sustainability, Nielsen.
Investors prefer green businesses
As a growing business, you may someday seek investors to help grow the business or let you exit. There is increasing evidence that investors prefer green businesses too.
Evidence suggests that companies who focus on sustainability deliver better financial returns in the long run and investors notice this.
Staff feel more engaged in a socially responsible businesses
If you read the press, you may have the understanding that a lot of employees in 2018 are feeling completely disinterested and lacking motivation.
Of course that is highly exaggerated, however, any methods to increase staff motivation are always welcome and working in a green business is a proven method to increase engagement.
It makes common sense when you think that if a business cares about the environment and their stakeholders, they will also be more likely to care about their customers, suppliers and employees too!
Market your green power
Some of the points mentioned above sound really great ,but they will not happen if you do not tell people about your green achievements!
There are lots of methods to let people know about your project, such as posters in store or stickers on windows etc.
In your office, it is pretty easy to inform your staff and seek to get them engaged in what you are doing.
If you have a business website or social media, why not publicise and share your green activities with your followers too?
Some nice ideas that have real impacts
There are lots of small things you can do that can have big, tangible impacts.
For example, if you operate a shop,you could provide paper bags rather than plastic or even only offer a plastic bag if the client asks for one.
If you run a café or restaurant do you really need plastic straws? There is a lot of evidence that straws can affect vulnerable sea life.
If you work in an office, you could encourage people to sit down and drink coffee from a proper cup, they may enjoy it more and takeaway coffee cups can be very hard to recycle.
Conclusion
I know that in 2018 you will have many business goals,whether growing your revenues or profit, expanding your team or even cutting costs.
Make a place for recycling in your strategy and watch how it can help in numerous and perhaps unexpected ways!
