How to Make Sustainability More Than a Buzzword
We only have one planet, and your business has only one bottom line. Here’s how to make the two fast friends.
These days, sustainability is much more than a buzzword, and wise business leaders have realized that you don’t have to choose between what’s good for business and what’s good for the planet. Business and environmental objectives can — and should — work together.
Sustainable products are a growing industry, and Nielsen predicts customers will spend as much as $150 billion by 2021 on sustainable, fast-moving consumer goods. That includes products like packaged foods, toiletries and other consumables that are sold quickly at a low cost. While the term “sustainable” can mean different things to different audiences, research indicates that environmentally friendly products are currently resonating strongly with consumers.
But wooing customers comes down to more than the environmental impact of your physical product — it’s about showing consumers that your business approaches sustainability holistically. Just look at Patagonia, which is known both for developing new materials that help the planet and pledging a percentage of profits to environmental groups. Or consider Interface Inc., whose founder, Ray Anderson, earned the nickname World’s Greenest CEO for his efforts to erase the company’s negative environmental impacts. Besides the obvious good these companies are doing for the planet, their sustainability efforts benefit their brands’s images as well. And that image is key to finding success with customers.
To tap into the sustainability movement and unlock a win-win for the planet and your profits, take these three steps.
When it comes to sustainability, education is everything. Consider an ardent recycler who couldn’t bear to send a used pizza box to the landfill. Cardboard is recyclable, right? Unfortunately, just a few items covered with food oils can contaminate an entire load of material. Perry Moss, co-founder of recycling-solutions provider Rubicon Global, calls this tendency of well-meaning people to put trash into the recycling bin “aspirational recycling.”
He points out that this wishful thinking has led to an increase in contamination. Because recycling profit margins are slim to begin with, even small amounts of contamination can make processing a load economically unviable. The lesson? Know what to recycle, but also know what to throw away. Share proper recycling practices with your teammates, and encourage them to use the knowledge at home to amplify the impact. You could even make resources available for any employee who wants to lead a workshop on sustainability at his or her child’s school or at an industry conference. In this way, your team members can become brand advocates for your company’s green values.
