Selling Green IT in an economic downturn

Increased concern for the environment by businesses and customers has driven the creation of green products.

As consumers become savvier about environmentally friendly products and begin to understand the terminology behind words such as "organic" or "free range", businesses are now looking at ways to take their environmental initiatives a step further. Many are considering adopting "Green IT" and reducing their carbon footprint, as well as achieving a greater level of sustainability through their day-to-day operations.

Companies have reviewed their procurement practices to look at ways to reduce their carbon footprint. They demand products that are more energy efficient, use less supplies such as paper or toner or have product take-back programs at the end of a product's lifecycle. In understanding how the supply chain significantly contributes to a company's carbon footprint, corporations such as the ANZ Bank are able to define sustainable procurement policies to ensure vendors and suppliers produce goods and services that have a reduced impact on the environment. Government agencies such as the Queensland Government have embraced green procurement by recently issuing a tender for printers and multifunction devices that required bidding vendors to have an ISO14024 Type I environmental labelling.

However, the current economic climate has presented a series of new challenges to vendors promoting Green IT brands. As budget cuts descend into IT departments, resellers are increasingly faced with objections when it comes to promoting greener products to their customers. This often comes about as decision-makers associate Green IT with a premium pricetag over "non-green" options in the market.

In an economic downturn, arguments for the adoption of Green IT are shifting from a common concern for the environment to an argument about how sustainable friendly products can help companies achieve cost savings. For resellers, handling objections to greener products starts with educating buyers about how Green IT can improve a bottom line.
Some common objections and their counter-arguments are:

I must cut costs and can't pay extra to buy Green IT
The evaluation to purchase IT equipment needs to be made from a total cost of ownership (TCO) perspective. Green IT is about the efficient use of resources and this goes hand in hand with cost cutting. Business owners cannot simplify a decision-making process by looking at a pricetag. In considering the TCO, business owners need to evaluate ongoing running costs such as energy consumption and use of supplies. Resellers can challenge objections by having a TCO argument prepared in advance to highlight the savings that can be achieved.

My company is too small to make a difference
There are more than two million small businesses in Australia and all small businesses are inherently linked to large corporations through their supply chain. Resellers can point out that large corporations are looking at ways to reduce their carbon footprint by reporting their carbon emissions and supply chain risks to shareholders and carbon registries such as the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme. Small businesses will be required to report on how they are reducing their carbon risks in supplying products and services to their large corporate clients. If they don't try to reduce their own carbon footprint, small businesses may lose their competitive
edge or miss opportunities to work with large corporations.

We don't have a green procurement requirement
It makes financial sense to adopt a green procurement policy in any company. Resellers can visit the Good Environmental Choice Australia's (GECA) Green Procurement website to discover the benefits of green procurement. Besides being able to reduce an organisation's impact on the environment, having a green procurement policy improves a company's brand image. Customers and employees have a positive association with companies that choose to do the right thing. There are also financial implications to consider if a green procurement policy is not adopted.

For example, resellers can highlight the additional costs from having to dispose of equipment at the end of its life if companies purchase equipment from vendors that do not have a take-back scheme. Products certified for green procurement purposes also consume less resources, leading to greater cost efficiencies.

We are doing our bit for the environment by recycling While energy efficiency and recycling can help companies reduce their carbon footprint, organisations need to adopt the concept of continuous improvement to reduce their impact on the environment. An investment in new energy-efficient hardware or equipment to digitise business workflow is an example of continuous improvement. While these investments may seem costly, the outcome of using less resources over the long term, paired with other responsible environmental practices carried out in an organisation, creates greater environmental outcomes over time.

I still don't believe that green products are genuine
Resellers can help buyers make informed decisions by educating them about industry standards such as Energy Star ratings or ecolabelling certifications such as the GECA ecolabel. These are standards supported by companies that have green procurement practices. Vendors are governed by the ACCC Trade Practices Act when they make green marketing claims and resellers should receive evidence or data to support any environmental claims.

Resellers can take an active role in educating customers about approaching IT investments from a TCO perspective, and show customers how investing in Green IT can actually save them money, if it is positioned correctly during this downturn.