Why it’s Important to be an Eco-Friendly Business
Turning your business eco-friendly is becoming less and less of a choice these days. As the climate crisis grows and grows, it’s no longer viewed as an option, a luxury or something to be swept aside as a concern.
Going green is an absolute no brainer for all sorts of different reasons. We’ll look at the key ones below, as well as how we can help you carry out a free eco-friendly web assessment to start improving your website can reduce its environmental impact.
The Impact of Businesses’ Carbon Footprint
It’s no secret that businesses chew through energy. Back in 2022, a report from energy management consultants eEnergy stated that UK businesses would waste enough energy to power the Greater London area for more than seven years.
Their calculations went on to also state that this would equate to £33.9billion worth of energy wasted in the same year. eEnergy claim that businesses could save 24.2m tonnes of CO2 each year by investing in net zero services and insulation to increase energy efficiency.
Why Is Being Eco-Friendly Important for Businesses?
Clearly, a greener business goes a long way to reducing the effects of harmful emissions. But from a business standpoint, there’s no shortage of benefits either. Let’s take a look…
Net Zero Targets
With government targets to reach net zero by 2050, then the only way we’re going to reach that goal is by becoming an eco-friendly business – it’s as simple as that.
But by increasing eco efforts, you’ll not only be helping the environment. There are a ton of other ways that in turn, will boost your business offering too.
Brand Reputation
Reducing the impacts your business has on the environment is undoubtedly a good look. In fact, in this day and age, a brand that goes the extra lengths to be greener could well be the difference maker in customers deciding to do business with you. An eco-friendly business closely links itself to more progressive values like empathy and innovation – two things that won’t go unnoticed by like-minded customers.
Consumer and Client Expectations
The key word here is expectations. More and more, green practices are seen as the done thing in 2024. Consumers and clients expect businesses do be doing their bit for the environment – in fact, they’re willing to pay more for greener services and products whether they’re B2B or B2C when they do.
Simply put, if you don’t offer more eco-friendly goods, then people will take their custom elsewhere to somewhere that does.
ESG Reporting
You’ve probably heard of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) in some form before, especially in conjunction with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). CSR is all about the actions and initiatives a business puts in place to have more positive effects on society and the environment.
ESG reporting, on the other hand, concerns the outcome of these actions. It provides the data and insights that you can present to stakeholders, which can better inform decision making and highlight areas for opportunities and risks going forward.
Competitor Positioning
Your business can make a real name for itself by properly highlighting your green credentials. And with consumers becoming more and more eco-conscious, making sure you’re positioning yourself as the go-to alternative in your sector can put you at a serious advantage.
And when 83% of people say they’ll pick a brand with a better record of sustainability, then flying the green flag is something you have to emphasise. Make sure you’re broadcasting your actions across your social media, on your products and by having a sustainability section on your site that makes everything clear.
Cost Savings
Don’t forget about the long-term savings a sustainable approach can create. Little changes go a long way in the green game, and there are plenty of ways your business can start cutting down on its costs.
Investing in renewable energy technologies, like solar panels, insulation and LED lighting can have a huge effect on reducing costs, bit even small things like switching off office equipment and lights, going paperless and making use of hybrid working can create positive effects over time.
Workplace Environment
As for your place of work itself, becoming a green business can do all sorts. It’s a great recruiting tool for starters, with research showing that 60% of UK job hunters read up on a potential employer’s eco efforts before they join. The same research, meanwhile, shows that 18% of workers overall would avoid working for a company they thought wasn’t doing their bit for the world around us.
Your green goals can also be a great workforce motivator too. Educating them on the impacts of sustainability and training them up on new habits is a good way of getting them to buy in, while putting your goals in writing means they’ll have a guide to keep them focused and engaged on their importance. And a healthy, engaged workforce is one that will stick around for far longer!
Get a Free Eco-Friendly Website Assessment
Looking for a good place to start being an eco-friendlier business? Start with your website!
With our new Eco Audit offering, we’ll assess the impacts your website might be having on the environment, identify opportunities and areas to minimise these effects and give you Eco-Friendly Web Alliance accreditation you can use to show off your cleaner, greener website to your customers and competitors.
Fill in the form below to get in touch and start your FREE assessment.
Our team of web developers, UX designers and SEO experts can optimise your website to help with the customer experience – and the Earth as a whole. To find out how, give us a call on 0345 459 0558 and let’s get talking.
