Get Going On Green: Why It Should Be Your First Business Objective
It’s a fact: going green is the single most significant benefit you can give your business. From cutting your operational costs to enhancing customer perception of your business, there are so many good reasons to have your business love the planet. Making the switch to renewable energy sources can seem like a headache though, so many business owners try and put it off for a rainy day. Here’s why you should make it a 2018 priority and what you can do to get going:
Keep Your Bills Down
Available cash flow is one of the single biggest problems facing most start-up businesses, and a reason that a good proportion fail within their first couple of years. But if there never seems to be enough spare in the budget to build up a financial cushion against leaner times, where do you begin? Cutting your energy bill is a great way to free up outgoings, and with prices for oil and gas on the rise, insulate your company against rising costs. Solar energy can be a great fit for businesses who have the property available to install solar panels with technology like perovskite solar cell commercialization. An economically sensible investment, you can lower or cancel your energy costs and sometimes even sell power back to the grid.
A New Marketing Approach
Becoming kinder to the planet can be a brilliant marketing and PR drive for your company and help you to carve out a point of difference to your competitors. With the number of consumers and businesses choosing the brands they deal with by their green credentials on the rise, being able to market your business as having an ecological mission helps. Research shows that millennials, in particular, place more value on green and sustainable companies, so if this is your target demographic, take care to align yourself with their values. It can also be a good source of free publicity. Making smarter business decisions that are good for the planet and good for your customers is a move that shows you have their best interests at heart – all the more valuable if you are an SME looking to compete with larger corporations. So communicate clearly your choice to use sustainable materials and greener energy – expressing this commitment can be a big win. Just make sure that you’re following up and being transparent, as you don’t want to be accused of ‘greenwashing’.
Supporting The Economy
A thriving economy means more chance of your business succeeding, and by using greener power sources, you will be helping to boost other businesses. You have power as part of the buying chain that spreads beyond who you directly employ and into the wider macro environment. By switching to renewable energy forms, you’re boosting this effect. Geothermal, solar and hydro-electric energy all require more manpower than traditional fossil fuels. By making the switch, you’re creating higher demand for these forms of power, which in turn encourages the creation of more jobs – and more jobs mean a general boost to the economy that can trickle down to the customers that use your services.
Altruism, great PR and reduced costs? Greener energy should be your number one business concern this year.