From Guest Blogger Brooke Chaplan: Conscious and Effective–What New Businesses are Doing to ‘Go Green’

When launching a new business, you need to find a way to make a splash with your target audience and to differentiate yourself from the competition. Going green, or being environmentally friendly, is an excellent way to stand out from the crowd and to entice customers to do business with you. In addition, it can help you to feel great about your business, and you may even qualify for tax credits or other financial benefits in some cases through various efforts. These are some of the exceptional ways you can go green with your new business today.
Make Your Office or Warehouse Energy Efficient

Completing an energy audit on your facility is a great way to identify ways for you to improve your work environment. The audit may reveal that you can upgrade your HVAC system, seal doors and windows, add insulation to the walls, update your light fixtures, and more to reduce the amount of energy that you spend. In addition, focus on water waste, and look for low-flow features that you can add to your space. Some of these improvements can be expensive, but tax credits may be available to you in some cases. Remember that these upgrades can help you to lower energy consumption on an ongoing basis.
Use Recycled Supplies and Materials

Another idea is to use recycled supplies and materials. This may include using recycled paper products for office use, in the breakroom and more. It may also include using recycled cardboard boxes for shipping, recycled plastic components in your products and more. Even your office furnishings and décor may be partially made out of recycled or reclaimed materials. If you are planning to renovate your space before you move in, you have another great opportunity to use recycled materials in your work area. There are many great ways to incorporate used materials into your office or warehouse environment to minimize unnecessary waste.
Use Efficient Appliances and Equipment

Many businesses in all industries use a wide range of appliances and equipment, and you have the ability to invest in green equipment right from the start when you are opening a new company. These may be machines that use alternative energy sources, appliances that have an EnergyStar rating and more. Pay close attention to what type of energy they use, how much energy they use and what type of emissions they create. This can also mean updating your equipment. If your ribbon mixer is 10 years old, you can surely find a more energy efficient model.
Choose Alternative Energy Sources

In many areas of the country, businesses can take advantage of energy deregulation to choose their energy provider. Different providers offer different rates for electricity, and this gives you the opportunity to save money. More importantly, a few providers offer alternative energy sources. This means that you can enjoy partially or fully green energy sources in your building simply by choosing a green plan.
Use Green Work Vehicles

If your business will use work vehicles for deliveries or other needs, choose green vehicles. These may be electric or hybrid vehicles. They may use alternative energy sources, and they may produce lower carbon emissions than other vehicles. Be sure to market your company’s name or logo on the side of the vehicle so that you can advertise to all passersby that you are a green company that cares about the environment.

With many choices that you need to make when starting a new company, your decisions will have some impact on the environment. This may be through waste, emissions, consumption or something else. These tips can help you to go green in some of the most prominent ways. However, always pay attention to how your decisions will affect the environment, and continue to make green decisions in other areas of business as well.