5 Ways to Green Up Your Business
Go green and you’ll see more green. Taking measures to make your brokerage more resource conscious and sustainable will result in positive results for your body, your company, and your community. Check out these simple actions you can take at your brokerage and you’ll see how easy it can be to start implementing a green plan at your office today.
1. Go Digital
What to limit paper waste? There are so many digital platforms available today for document storage that keeping paper
files in the office seems like the work of ancient times. Most systems include backup, encryption, and two-step
verification for security.
2. Be Smarter About Property Brochures
While we’re cutting down on paper, let’s examine why we think buyers and sellers want it so much. Agents typically
place brochures inside sellers’ homes and on for-sale signs outside. These documents are always the last thing to be
replenished, and if there is a price reduction, it can be the devil’s work to remember to make updates – and that leaves
the seller feeling their listing is being neglected. The simple solution is to ditch the stack of brochures in favor of just one
piece that displays the property website and an invitation to text or e-mail for more information. You can place a
laminated brochure on the for-sale sign in front of the property, and another inside for showings and open houses.
3. Turn Off Your Computer
Optimize those computer settings. No machine needs to be left on while you or your agents run out to show a house or
see a client. But that doesn’t mean you’ll remember to turn it off before you leave. Check the energy-saving settings to
make sure your computer turns fully off after a certain amount of time without use. When printers and computers are on
standby they continue to draw power. Consider using a power strip for all devices, including the computer, cell phone
charger, speakers, etc. That way you can switch off the power strip without unplugging everything, ensuring that no
extra power is being consumed while you are away.
4. Don’t Let Single-Use Coffee Pods Take Over the World
It’s been reported that almost one in three American homes now has a pod-based coffee maker. Imagine how that
statistic might increase if we add in all the real estate offices that use these single-cup machines. Reports say that more
than 3 million disposable coffee pods are used daily. Let’s just imagine what that does to landfills. And most people don’t
think about where those plastic pods are made. A quick Google search showed me that the coffee might be placed inside
the receptacle here in America, but the plastic mold is likely made overseas. That’s a lot of traveling and even more
energy wasted so that we can make one single cup of coffee. Leading the way, Hamburg, Germany has banned single-
use coffee pods from government buildings. Let’s follow their example in our real estate businesses and homes. Please,
brew drip coffee in your offices and encourage your agents to bring in reusable mugs. Better yet, give them all
company branded travel mugs so they can take their coffee (and your logo) into the field.
5. Can You Walk To Work?
Even though environmentalists suggest that working from home is the greenest alternative to a commute, while this
works for some, we know this isn’t possible for many real estate professionals. Is your office located in the heart of your
community? Can you walk there? You can reduce your carbon footprint, spending less on gas, and burning more calories
all at once. If the office is more than a walk away consider car-pooling with other agents in your office.
