Being Eco-friendly on a Budget

Being Eco-friendly on a Budget

As the global market trend turns towards saving the environment, every day manufacturers are researching and producing products that help sustain the earth’s natural resources. Hybrid cars are replacing gas guzzling SUVs. Supermarkets are featuring affordable grocery totes to replace plastic and paper bags. Major corporations, such as GE, are proudly stating their commitment to the environment by producing systems that use less energy and are ecologically sound. While these alternatives are excellent for the environment, many businesses find that the strain on their corporate wallets is too much to bear. So the question remains: is it possible for a company to go green on a budget?

The answer is yes. In fact, there are several affordable eco-friendly options for businesses who want to help do their part to conserve our natural resources. Here are some ways that affordable promotional products can help reduce the strain on the environment without straining your budget.

REDUCE

Reduce Paper Usage with USB Flash Drives

Several companies are going beyond the use of recycled paper; they are cutting out paper altogether. Companies are now providing digital flash memory drives (more commonly known as USB drives) to their employees as a way to eliminate unnecessary paper usage. USB flash drives allow for PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets and Microsoft Word documents to be viewed on any computer by simply plugging the device into an open USB port. Several USB drives (imprinted with the company logo) are available for under $10.00.

Reduce Waste by Providing Mugs and Water Bottles

Each year Starbucks uses 2.3 billion paper coffee cups. Encourage employees to reduce waste by providing them with imprinted travel mugs that they can use during their commute and at the office. Additionally, businesses can hand out water bottles to replace the usage of paper cups at the water cooler or disposable water bottles. Promotional travel mugs can be found for under $2.00 per piece. Plastic promotional water bottles start as low as $0.65, whereas polycarbonate sport bottles range anywhere from $2.00 to $30.00.

Reduce Waste from Batteries with Hand Crank Products

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency:

“Batteries contain heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium, and nickel, which can contaminate the environment when batteries are improperly disposed of. When incinerated, certain metals might be released into the air or can concentrate in the ash produced by the combustion process.”

Items like hand-powered flashlights can help reduce the number of standard lead batteries sold, thereby reducing the number of improperly disposed lead batteries. Hand-powered flashlights can be found for just under $4.00.

REUSE

Eliminate Paper Bag Waste by Providing Reusable Lunch Totes

Many employees choose to “brown bag it” when it comes to their mid-day meal. Distributing promotional lunch bags will give employees a reusable item which will replace the typical paper and plastic bags often used to carry lunches. Employees will appreciate the gifts and your logo will be seen whenever they carry them. Promotional lunch bags come in a wide variety of styles and colors, so you can easily find one to match your logo. Promotional lunch totes start as low as $2.50.

Give Employees Tote Bags for Groceries

More than 380 billion plastic grocery bags are used in the US each year. Many grocery stores today offer grocery totes for a minimal price, yet many shoppers simply bypass these eco-conscious bags and use plastic bags. Why spend the money when the plastic bags are free? Providing reusable non-woven tote bags like the ones available in grocery stores will send a message to employees and customers that you truly care about the environment. They will be doing a service to our planet by using these bags and it will have cost them nothing. Non-woven tote bags are available for under $2.00 per bag.

RECYCLE

Choose Promotional Products made from Recycled Materials

Several promotional products available today are made from recycled materials. Products such as mugs, first-aid kits, and bags can be purchased by businesses looking to send an eco-conscious message to their employees and customers. In fact, several well-known companies are now providing eco-friendly solutions for popular products. Post-It now offers recycled versions of their popular adhesive pads. Bic offers recycled adhesive notes, in addition to promotional pens made from recycled materials. These brand-name products start at $0.50.

Start a Recycling Campaign

A great way to use promotional products is to raise awareness for a cause. One such cause can be recycling. In an effort to increase the volume of recycling, promotional items can be passed around the office. Put your logo and message on an Earth Stress Ball to remind your employees that recycling can help save our Earth. Recycling Bin Key Chains will be a reminder to deposit paper, cans, and bottles in recycling bins rather than the garbage. These items are available for less than $1.00 each.

Choosing the correct promotional products will send a strong message to both your clients and employees. Whether you are selecting eco-friendly products or products to bring awareness to environmental issues, you will prove that your company is responsible and ecologically sound.

Source: http://www.ecomall.com/greenshopping/motivators.htm