Even though
going green is a simple concept that can save your business thousands of dollars or even millions, it does not come easily and that is why many businesses, especially small businesses shy away from investing in going green.
However, as much as some going green concepts may require huge investments to make an impact, some greening strategies may be easy and cheaper to implement and thus could be referred to as “low hanging fruit”. Such ideas could be as simple as switching from incandescent light bulbs to energy-saving light bulbs or just going paperless and using emails for correspondence and so on. This article attempts to explain some tips that your business can start to implement without having to invest a lot of money.
Going paperless
Firstly, going paperless is one concept that can be easily implemented in your business. It all requires conducting a simple analysis to determine whether it is possible to eliminate using a lot of paper for your business. Such an idea can save your business a lot of money while helping with sustainability since it can save thousands of trees from being cut down.
It may require writing down a strategy explaining the details of how to implement going paperless. Going paperless could start with implementing paperless document storage that allows you to securely store and back up important files and documents, for instance in a cloud storage space.
It may also require scanning existing documents and using electronic communication for your meetings and correspondence. It might take time to eventually switch to paperless, although looking at the sustainability benefits, it is a worthwhile cause. It is estimated that companies spend about $8 billion per year managing paper and that it costs an organization an average of $20 to file a document, another $120 to find a misplaced document and $220 to reproduce a lost document. By going paperless, research shows that digital companies tend to be 50% more profitable, generate 13% more revenue, and are valued 19% higher than their industry peers.
Switching to energy-saving light bulbs
If your business still uses incandescent light bulbs, you can switch to replace them with more efficient and cost-effective lighting that include halogen bulbs such as compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) which typically use about 25% to 80% less energy and can last 3-25 times longer. Even though the initial price for energy-saving bulbs is higher than that of incandescent light bulbs, the long-term savings are significant saving your business some money that you could put to other good use. Switching to energy-saving bulbs can reduce your office lighting energy consumption by up to 35% and because of they last long you won’t need to replace them as often.
Switching to energy-saving appliances
If your business still uses appliances such as servers, computers, printers, scanners that are not ENERGY STAR rated, you might want to consider switching to them to help you reduce your energy bill and go green. For instance, your business can start with switching to ENERGY STAR certified servers, data storage, networking, and uninterruptible power supplies which perhaps can be a little bit on the higher side but could save your business a fairly huge amount of money in the long-term. For instance, ENERGY STAR certified servers can save $60 to $120 annually in electricity costs.
Switching to solar
Many small and big businesses are switching to solar because of the need to save money and reduce their carbon footprint at the same time. Going solar is one of the low-hanging fruit to going green because business owners can install solar without having to own the PV system and hence using solar power while only paying for the solar power utilized in each billing period. Using such a flexible solar panel financing mechanism has helped to eliminate the high initial cost of solar panels, thus helping many businesses to switch to solar. You can learn more about this concept of going solar at the EnergySage online solar marketplace.
There are many other strategies to save your business money while going green. You can subscribe to this blog to learn more about going green concepts.
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