Sustainability in Ecommerce: What Are The Possibilities?

Table of Contents

1. What Is Sustainability?

2. Sustainability In Ecommerce: The Significance

3. How Consumers View Sustainability: The Gen Z Perspective

4. How Entrepreneurs Can Incorporate Sustainability Into Their Brands

5. Sustainability in Ecommerce: What Are the Possibilities?

What Is Sustainability?

According to the charter for the UCLA Sustainability Committee, sustainability is defined as the integration of environmental health, social equity, and economic vitality in order to create thriving, healthy, diverse, and resilient communities for this generation and generations to come.

In today's world, sustainability is important for individuals and businesses. People want to buy products from brands that care about the environment and the impact that the environment has on the world.

The goal of a business owner is to build a brand that creates the best products while creating a better environment for future generations.

There are ways to incorporate sustainability into your business: examples include providing recyclable products, reducing chemical pollution, generating renewable energy, and collaborating with other organizations towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Incorporating sustainability into your brand not only improves environmental health, but it creates a more humane brand image that is good for sales and customer retention.

Sustainability in Ecommerce: The Significance

Ecommerce is evolving: businesses online are working on becoming more eco-friendly and conducting business in a manner that is environmentally and socially responsible.

Online businesses over the years have been known for their use of plastic packaging, which is known to be bad for the environment.

Amazon UK, for example, has switched to the use of recyclable paper and cardboard envelopes for deliveries.

This is better for customers who want a reduction in plastic waste production as well as the environment.

Consumers are more concerned about sustainability now when they decide to make purchases online.

More than half of European consumers claimed that they would choose an online store with less environmental impact on delivery given two online store options.

Consumers who buy your goods online want eco-friendly products with reduced and recyclable packaging.

They also want green shipping, so you may want to consider shipping carriers that offer carbon-free and carbon-reduced delivery options. If you do not provide green shipping and other eco-friendly services, you may find yourself losing customers.

This will be bad for business and your brand in general: your brand may even be boycotted on social media, and you would be contributing to environmental pollution.

How Consumers View Sustainability: The Gen Z Perspective

Gen Z consumers are one of a kind: the majority of these buyers prefer sustainable brands, and 10% would pay more for a sustainable product.

In addition, 40% of the Gen Z population say that their investment decisions are driven by "companies with a purpose."

One study revealed that 82% of Gen Z have exposure to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG).

Gen Z consumers are driven by a brand's stance on sustainability and are very vocal about their preferences on social media.

They will share video, audio, and written content from "green brands", resulting in more sales for such a brand. 

A survey conducted by Do Something revealed that 75% of Gen Z respondents said they wanted to see that brands were ensuring employee and customer safety.

If brands are not authentic, Gen Z would most likely raise an alarm. Gen Z consumers are the most sustainable generation so far: more awareness has been raised about the impacts of fast fashion, excessive packaging, and carbon production on the environment.

Gen Z is invested in the waste generated by your products, how these wastes are managed, your employee working conditions, and the effect of your production process on the environment.

How Entrepreneurs Can Incorporate Sustainability Into Their Brands

There are different ways entrepreneurs can incorporate sustainability into their brands. The first step in creating a sustainable brand is sustainability training for both the business owner and staff.

As an entrepreneur, you need to learn everything about sustainability and adapt your knowledge to your business. You can also organize and set up environmental programs with your workers and manufacturers.

You should create a free and inclusive working environment with pay that is above minimum wage and good employee working conditions.

Your workspace should be set up to reduce energy consumption, waste generation, and water wastage. You can also design your products so that they are recyclable, convertible, or reusable.

You can include customer incentives like discounts, refills and cash backs for returning containers.

As an entrepreneur, it is important that you consider what your brand offers and apply that to your social media strategy.

You can also do customer surveys to find out what your customers are looking for in a sustainable brand.

You can also see what your competitors are doing to make their brands sustainable, and replicate their ideas after adding your unique selling point.

You should also ensure that you are transparent with your customers and investors: brands that are not upfront and honest about being sustainable lose trust.

Create a unique sustainable content strategy for your business blog and social media accounts. Make the content match your brand persona: be it funny, quirky, or straight-up serious.

You can also set up social media challenges, and ask your customers to share videos that display your sustainable products.

At the end of the day, measure your results by tracking sales, page views, and any other indicators of your choice.

Congratulations, you have successfully incorporated sustainability into your brand.

Sustainability in Ecommerce: What Are the Possibilities?

The Environmental Release Defense Fund claims that since 2014, there has been a 20% growth in sustainable products.

In addition, there has been a four times higher growth rate in sustainable products as compared with conventional products.

As of 2014, there were already 972 environmental regulations affecting the manufacturing industry in the United States. Sustainability will revolutionize product transport, product packaging, and waste generation.

It will also reduce the resources expended by businesses: for example, the cost of higher energy consumption or single-order deliveries.

Sustainability in ecommerce will contribute to the growth of a culture that is environmentally friendly, socially responsible, and waste-reducing.

This culture will be good for our environment and future generations.

Sustainability in ecommerce has and will continue to reduce the burden of ecommerce waste produced globally.

It has also given more room for small businesses to display their "green" products and reach out to customers online.

Sustainability has also reduced environmental pollution: a study showed that online shopping contributes 36% lesser carbon emissions than shopping at physical stores.

In addition, sustainability encourages collaboration for social good. Business owners can collaborate with different organizations within their communities to improve skill acquisition and employee engagement.

This is great for young people who want to acquire skills, employees, and business owners themselves.

Sustainability in ecommerce has come to stay, and it is one of the ways your brand can contribute to your community while making a great impact.