Sustainability is everyone‘s responsibility. Businesses can make a huge difference by helping the environment. Plus, consumers are more and more particular about only purchasing from green businesses. There are many ways to make your business more sustainable, but this also means it’s easier to make mistakes.
Avoid the following top three mistakes to ensure your business is as green as possible.
Doing Everything at Once
When it comes to going green, there’s admittedly a lot that could be done.
You could switch to energy-efficient light bulbs, start recycling, compost all your food waste, install water-cooled chillers – the list goes on.
But trying to do everything at once is a mistake. It’s important to focus on the most effective and impactful changes first. Otherwise, you’ll quickly become overwhelmed, and it’s more likely that your efforts will fizzle out entirely.
Instead of taking on too much at once, make a list of all the potential changes you could make and rank them in order of impact. The most impactful moves will depend on how your business negatively affects the environment the most. For instance, if you’re a manufacturing company, a top priority should be finding ways to reduce energy consumption.
If you own a restaurant, on the other hand, composting and recycling should take precedence.
Not Considering the Cost
Making your business more sustainable doesn’t have to be expensive- but sometimes it is.
Investing in new technology or equipment can be costly, and it’s important to consider whether the investment is worth it. For example, you might be considering switching to solar power. Solar panels can be a huge initial investment, but they have the potential to save you a lot of money in the long run.
You need to do your research and figure out if solar panels make financial sense for your business. In some cases, the upfront cost might be too much and you’ll need to look into other options.
Still, the important thing is to not let the cost deter you from making changes altogether.
Not Getting Buy-In from Employees
If you want your sustainability efforts to be successful, you need to get buy-in from your employees.
They need to be on board with the changes you’re making and understand why they’re important. Otherwise, they’ll be resistant to the changes and might even sabotage your efforts.
There are a few ways to get employees on board with your sustainability efforts. One is to simply explain to them why the changes are important and how they’ll help the environment. Another is to offer incentives for employees who make an effort to be more sustainable.
For instance, you could offer a bonus for employees who carpool to work or who compost their food waste.
There are many ways to make your business more sustainable, but it’s also easy to make mistakes. Avoid doing everything at once, not considering the cost, and not getting buy-in from employees to ensure your sustainability efforts are successful.
