These recycling trends and climate-friendly waste strategies will improve your business and the environment.
It might feel a little gimmicky to talk about recycling trends with your clients, but it’s not just a talking point or marketing buzzword. When you step away from the idea that recycling and climate-friendly cleaning is just a fad, you’ll likely find that these practices have direct benefits for your business.
For example, Forbes reported that 86% of businesses consider green initiatives essential to their growth. The drive towards a greener future is indisputable, but what does that have to do with your commercial cleaning business? The rising waste and recycling trends gaining popularity can make it easier for you to run your business while also letting you connect with more sustainably-minded clients.
Simplify inventory management, keep track of budgets, and more with Janitorial Manager. Schedule a free consultation today to learn more about all the great features we offer!
The 5 waste & recycling trends every commercial cleaning business needs to pay attention to
On the surface, some of these waste and recycling trends might seem like just that–trends. But look beyond the catchy words and phrases and you’ll find there are some real benefits to your business. Some will help you appeal to a larger client base, while others can directly impact your bottom line.
1. Zero-waste economy
More businesses want to reduce their carbon footprint on an individual level. To do so, they encourage their employees and their partners to engage with the carbon marketplace.
The carbon marketplace is not a physical location. Instead, it represents a metaphor. Every party who engages in non-sustainable business practices is encouraged to offset that behavior. In theory, these acts should balance out to the point where a person’s interactions become carbon-neutral.
If you want to get more clients in 2021, it’s worth it to explore your janitorial carbon marketplace. Assess what business behaviors are non-sustainable and how you can supplement them. For example, some chemical cleaners are too good not to use. You can, however, replace your single-use plastic with reusable bottles in an attempt to limit your business’s waste.
On an even more practical level, less waste means less spending on products and services.
2. Recyclable packaging and green cleaners
One of the easiest ways to make your business more sustainable is to swap your plastic bottles for recyclable ones. When you shop for recyclable cleaning supplies, you can find materials made out of glass and resin. Many manufacturers even let you refill or reuse their containers at refilling stations. You can take this initiative a step further, too, by investing in products that arrive in recyclable packaging.
It may also be time to overhaul your supply cabinet. More and more businesses want their janitorial teams to take advantage of green cleaners. The good news is that you can pair these two initiatives, killing two sustainable birds with one budget-friendly stone.
3. Composting
Composting practices help you and your clients turn organic waste into healthy garden soil. Anything from banana peels to eggshells can go into a compost pit, where it will break down into rich soil. On an individual level, this practice is relatively straightforward. Trying to translate these practices on a business-wide scale, however, can be a little more complicated.
As a janitorial business, you can take advantage of the rising compost trend in one of two ways. When you first negotiate a contract with a client, you can agree to set up a composting station outside your client’s property. You’ll want to cover this station to limit the smell, but your client’s landscapers will immediately benefit from access to healthy soil.
Alternatively, you can create trash receptacles that separate compostable waste from other debris. Then, when you remove trash from your client’s property, you can deliver that compostable waste to a public composting center or add it to a compost pile on your own property.
Both of these practices require significant work on your part. When you’re able to boast composting initiatives through your janitorial outfit, though, you’ll have a better chance of connecting with sustainability-minded clients, many of whom are willing to pay a premium for the service.
4. Electric fleets
The need for employee transportation isn’t going anywhere. Electric vehicles, however, are asserting themselves as solid contenders when compared to traditional cars. If you have the budget, it’s in your best interest to convert to an electric fleet.
The initial transition will require you to fit your business with charging stations. You’ll also need to make sure you have access to similar stations when working with your clients, be those stations on a client’s property or nearby. After that initial cost, though, electric vehicles tend to cost less to maintain than any that require gasoline.
You even have the option of converting your fleet to hybrid vehicles before transitioning to full electric. Either way, you choose to go, the transition towards a more electric roadway is coming. It’s up to you to determine how you want to interact with that trend. We might also point out that there may be federal or state tax incentives for buying electric vehicles.
5. Tech-based waste management programs
You run a business. Maintaining new initiatives on top of your existing projects and operations is a challenge. Luckily, several new programs are coming online and making management simpler.
Find the right apps, and you can streamline trash pickups from your clients’ offices. You can monitor the amount of trash each client produces and more effectively divide that waste between recyclable goods, compost, and rubbish. You can even explore online marketplaces for buyers looking for a client’s electronic waste.
Sustainable initiatives aren’t going anywhere. If you want to keep connecting with new clients, consider how you can better integrate these rising waste and recycling trends into your business plan.
Get your free consultation call with Janitorial Manager to find out more about how we can help make your business as fresh and clean as you make your clients’ worksites!