HOW TO MAKE YOUR ONLINE STORE MORE SUSTAINABLE?
E-commerce was one of the fastest growing industries, even in the pre-COVID world. However, it accelerated after the global pandemic broke out. This increasing trend has severe environmental consequences. Both consumers and online store sellers must play their part to make the world more sustainable.
More than 2 billion tonnes of waste ends up in landfills every year. Though this is not all from e-commerce, a lot of packaging materials and discarded tech are there.
Although sustainability is not a legal requirement everywhere, modern consumers are well-educated on the subject. They know about plastic wastage and the crucial role recycling in preserving the world's resources.
With a growing number of eco-conscious consumers, having a sustainable online business can be a significant advantage. By adopting sustainable practices, you not only attract a larger audience but also enhance your credibility.
Consumers are more likely to trust and support sustainable brands. This blog post provides a brief guide on how to make your online store more sustainable, offering tips and tricks to get you started.
Sustainability Principles: What is Sustainability?
The focus of sustainability is to create a better world. A world with such a versatile economic and social system that benefits every life on this planet and the earth itself. Here are some basic sustainability principles to follow:
- You must control and reduce three things: carbon dioxide emissions, water consumption, and waste production.
- You must make working conditions feasible and reasonable for employees.
- You must work on creating new jobs.
How Sustainability Would Bring Your Profit?
Embracing sustainability in your online store can be a game-changer for your company's revenue. Here are some of the most notable benefits:
Greater Customer Satisfaction
Customer trust is a key driver of long-term profit, and sustainable brands are more likely to earn this trust. According to the E-commerce Delivery Compass report , 50% of consumers expect online retailers to provide environmentally friendly delivery options, and 60% believe online retailers use excessive amounts of packaging. Statista platform claims that more than half of Amazon users share a similar opinion.
Lower costs
It is also great for cost reduction. You do not use unnecessary packaging to make customers happy, which means lesser materials costs to prepare the product for shipment. It has another benefit: You can increase the margin of the offered products, which would eventually increase the profit as well.
Recycling is another name for sustainability. But upcycling is also dominating the modern market. Upcycling means giving waste products a second life and creating a product with more value than its original version. You could make furniture from wooden pallets, lamps from bottles, or toys for animals from discarded cardboard. Lovers of zero waste will also love such creative products, and you could multiply your profit.
Better brand positioning
Public opinion can strongly impact customers' purchasing decisions. Price is also a key factor, but the brand's reputation is equally important. Building a credible brand is an indispensable part of running a business.
If you have many positive customer reviews, new customers will also trust you easily. If you apply sustainability principles, your audience will steadily increase. Commitment to the environment improves customer loyalty.
Main Reasons Why Online Stores Are Not Sustainable?
Online shopping is great. It is convenient for both seller and buyer. In many cases, neither has to step out from the comfort of the home. However, there are consequences. It may not come as a surprise that Amazon emits 44.4 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere per year while transporting orders. A lot of the world's waste comes from packaging.
Basically, e-commerce impacts the environment in the following two ways:
Shipping and return of products: Huge amounts of carbon dioxide emissions are the result of shipping.
Excessive packaging: When small items are delivered in huge boxes, or a single order is delivered in multiple packages, that leads to unnecessary waste.
Sustainable Packaging & Shipping
So, let's see how we can make our online store sustainable. Making sustainability one of the brand values can have a significant impact on sales. Let's explain some tips that can help us incorporate them into our processes. Of course, it starts with packaging.
Reduce Packaging Waste
There is so much you can do with packaging methods. Do not use large packaging for small-sized products. Keep packaging simple and minimal.
Most online stores buy and use standard-size boxes. If a product is smaller, they fill the leftover space with packing materials when shipping. This further worsens the situation by increasing the quantity of solid waste. Using less is always better.
Offer Eco-Friendly Delivery Options
Use eco-friendly transportation ways to make your online store sustainable. For example, you can deliver via hybrid and electric cars, electric scooters, bicycles, and drones. It would be great if you come up with a way to provide carbon-neutral delivery. Try to partner with shipping companies who follow green practices.
Encourage Customers to Reuse
One of the best tricks is to incentivize customers who return packaging. Many online stores offer free returns, which does the opposite. If you are also doing this, immediately stop doing it.
Use Refillable Packaging
A consumer purchases a product in receptacle-style packaging, such as a bottle or jar. Every time they run out of the product, they buy a refill, usually at a discounted price. A bottler or jar is replenished with that refill. It promotes reusing goods and makes your online store sustainable.
Also, you can use biodegradable materials, recyclable paper, or compostable materials.
Give Up Plastic Packaging Whenever Possible
Try to reduce plastic use as much as possible. We dump almost 10 million tonnes of plastic into the oceans every year , which is horrible for the environment.
Smart Use of Returned Items
Instead of sending them to the landfills, repackage and resell them at discounted prices.
Ship Multiple Orders in a Bundle
Most consumers today are also eco-conscious. They will be happy to wait a little and get multiple orders in a bundle since they know it helps reduce their carbon footprint.
Optimise Your Online Store
So, we have talked enough about packaging and shipping. Let's mention the changes you need to make directly on the online store.
Write Detailed Product Descriptions
This way, you reduce the chances of getting returns. Upload high-quality photos and write accurate descriptions.
Website Efficiency
Yes, your website also needs to be energy-efficient. If you minimise the number of images and videos, it will reduce your website's carbon footprint. Also, speed optimisation is a must-do because it reduces the energy consumption of the servers that run your website. Reducing loading speed and minimizing the number of images and videos also result in an incredible user experience for your customer.
Consider Green Web Hosting
Every website needs web hosting. Think of web hosting as a server or place where your website files are kept. Web hosting ensures that anyone can see your website online. Try to partner with a web hosting provider who also follows sustainability principles.
Avoid Greenwashing
Sometimes, businesses use marketing practices to trick customers into thinking that they follow green practices, but they do not. This is called greenwashing. Marketing is designed to make customers believe that the company's policies and products are green, while the reality is different. In the 1980's, Chevron launched a program with the message that they do not hurt nature. On the other hand, they were also dumping waste in wildlife habitats.
Conclusion
Sustainable online business is completely a realistic idea. You can achieve it with some amendments to your website and changing your packaging and shipping accordingly. All efforts are worth it, and they can make the world a better place for your children and grandchildren.
If you are looking for an eCommerce platform to launch your online business, WowCommerce is one of the best options. Build a beautiful online store that stands out with WowCommerce.