Benefits of Being Environmentally Friendly in Business

October 30, 2018

As newer generations of consumers are becoming more concerned about the environmental impact of the products they purchase and the companies they purchase from, many businesses are taking the necessary steps toward transitioning into being more environmentally sustainable. Though transforming your business into an environmentally friendly one may not be an easy task, the benefits of doing so are long lasting for the environment, the consumer, and even businesses themselves.

 

What Does It Mean to be An Environmentally Friendly Business?

Being environmentally friendly in business means that your business makes a conscious effort to reduce its negative impact on the environment. This effort can take form in anything from implementing a green office program to working with your business’s manufacturers and suppliers to reduce the use of non-renewable resources.

 

Benefits of Going Green

There are many benefits to a business making the conscious effort to go green:

1. It Can Save You Money – reducing your energy, paper usage, and reusing office supplies where you can, will inevitably reduce overall costs which can then be put into other important facets of a business.
2. Builds Consumer Loyalty – Many studies have found that consumers believe green businesses to be more trustworthy than non-green ones. Moreover, by making a concentrated effort to reduce the negative environmental impact your business has can promote a sense of community between your business and the consumer.
3. Helps Attract and Retain Employees – Going green has also been proven to promote positive feelings within employees. Knowing that a business cares about the impact they make on their community boosts employee morale and can attract potential employees who want to feel that they are making a positive difference.
4. Improves the Longevity of Your Business – When your business is less dependent on non-renewable resources (i.e. resources that can become depleted in the future), you ensure the longevity and sustainability of your business in the future.

 

What Can Businesses Do to be Environmentally Friendly?

The first step to transitioning your business into an environmentally friendly one is to first assess and evaluate your current impact on the environment. This can be done by calculating your business’s carbon footprint. In fact, there are many carbon footprint calculators available online that can be used for free. Once you’re aware of your business’s impact on the environment, you can then figure out which areas of your business are the most impactful.

Though transitioning your business into being ecofriendly may seem overwhelming, it’s important to keep in mind that there are many ways, both big and small, that your business can reduce its negative impact on the environment. Some ways include:

• Reduce Electricity – encourage employees to turn off lights and electronics when not in use. This will not only save energy but can cut down on costs as well.
• Implementing Monthly Lunch-and-Learns – Reducing your business’s impact on the environment education involves ensuring that your employees are on board with the changes you are making. Lunch-and-Learns can be a great opportunity to educate employees on the efforts they can make to reduce office resources.
• Implement a Green Office Program – reward programs for employees who show the most effort
• Reduce Paper Usage Where Possible – only print necessary documentation and deleting unneeded print jobs are just some of the ways you can reduce paper usage.
• Reduce Air Travel – Air travel is one of the biggest culprits of increasing your business’s carbon footprint. Businesses can reduce air travel by holding conference calls online instead of meeting in person.
• Use Sustainable & Energy-Efficient Products – This includes using things such as solar power, energy conserving electronics or rainwater tanks in order to reduce your business’s reliance on non-renewable resources.

If you’re struggling to find more ways to reduce your carbon footprint, try surveying employees to see if they have any suggestions on ways your business can improve.

 

OE Canada’s Eco-Friendly Efforts

Plant a Tree Program

At OE Canada, we believe in the importance of sustainable environmental practices in business. That’s why, in partnership with Tree Canada, we implemented the Plant a Tree Program. With this program, OE Canada promises to plant one tree for every printer sold on behalf of our customers.

How OE Canada Helps Other Businesses Become Ecofriendly

OE Canada offers several eco-friendly printers so that businesses can have peace-of-mind without sacrificing efficiency. The “Eco” Toshiba e-Studio 3508LP Hybrid Multifunction Printing System helps businesses transition into eco-friendly practices by utilizing Toshiba’s hybrid technology which combines conventional printing with erasable printing allowing you to reuse paper over and over again. Black and white printing has never been this green with the world’s first copier/printer with erasable toner!

PaperCut software is also offered at OE Canada as a solution to eliminate waste and encourages employees to print responsibly and take accountability for their printing usage. PaperCut allows employees to delete any print jobs that are no longer required which helps eliminate print waste and saves paper.

Contact an OE Canada Inc. consultant today to learn more about our innovative printers and dynamic printer services.