Business Edge: Ian Harvey

Going green isn’t just about social responsibility anymore, it’s driving the bottom line of your business.

Environmentally friendly businesses attract and retain customers and also find there’s sometimes a bonus payoff in reducing overheads.

Technology research firm and consultants Accenture, for example, surveyed more than 7,500 consumers worldwide in 17 countries and found more than 90 per cent of Canadian respondents are concerned about climate change.

What’s more, 93 per cent of Canadians said they would switch to an energy provider with products or services that reduced carbon emissions and 71 per cent said they’d pay more – an average of 10 per cent more – to do their part.

“The initial impact may be most evident on energy providers, but it seems likely it will spread,” said Sander van ‘t Noordende, group chief executive of Accenture’s resources operating group.

“From oil and gas companies to retailers to financial services companies to governments, no provider of products or services will be immune from consumers’ scrutiny and action.”

Whether B2C to B2B, showing – and proving – your commitment to the cause is mission critical. Large enterprises don’t want to be exposed doing business with an environmentally dangerous supplier any more than they want to discover they’ve been dealing with a sweatshop using child labour.

Even the most modest business can take some simple steps to clean up its carbon footprint. It’s a great public-relation tool to remind customers they’re not adding to the problem facing our planet and it’s virtually painless.

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