While competing against the biggest players, small businesses need to take advantage of every tool available to them. They need to be more responsive and make the right decisions as they have less room for error.
Whether you have bricks and mortar business or an online marketing store, you need to stay ahead of the marketing and advertising trend to beat your competition. And cutting the carbon footprint through eco-friendly hosting is a great way to stand out.
We know how web hosting takes a toll on the environment and hence green web hosting simply makes sense to save the environment from the internet carbon footprint.
But the environmental benefit is not all green hosting has to offer. In fact, there is much more to be gained like financial and marketing benefit which can be a game changer for the start-ups.
Importance of Green Web Hosting
Before getting into the benefits, let us first consider why green web hosting is crucial for businesses.
Have you ever thought about the real-world mechanics that keep the online world running? What you don’t realize is the internet that you are using every second is actually a carbon-emitting beast.
Do you know every time you browse a simple website, 20 milligrams of carbon dioxide is generated in the process? For a more complex website, it can be 300 milligrams per second.
With 3.5 billion internet users around the world, now you can imagine how worse the picture can be. We don’t realize how potentially damaging the increased online use can be.
Every website is on a server in a data center that powers all the audio, videos, applications and web pages we access. With 70 million servers being used in the world, you can estimate how huge amount of electricity has been used to keep it running in a cool, controlled environment.
And much of the electricity is produced from burning fossil fuels. As a result, the annual amount of carbon produced by the internet is increased to a great extent.
So, what can you do? Fortunately, there is a simple solution, and that is green web hosting. If you really care about your green credentials and want to minimize your carbon footprint, green web hosting is the way to go.
What is Green Web Hosting?
Green web hosting is a service that enables the host to only use electricity from renewable sources. It not only takes eco-friendly initiatives to mitigate the impact on the environment but also aims to minimize the amount of electricity.
Powered entirely by renewable energy, the datacentres of green web hosts are built specifically with energy efficiency in mind. Here are some awesome benefits that green web hosting has to offer to small businesses.
Benefits of Green Web Hosting :
1) Energy Efficiency
The main reason that most of the giant companies prefer green web hosting is its energy efficiency. As we know, running websites and internet requires a lot of energy and avoiding the use of the internet is no more optional in the tech era.
With green hosting services that use efficient methods, practices, and hardware, it is easier to reduce energy consumption.
2) Marketing Impact
Going green is the trend right now and opting for green web hosting actually becomes a marketing resource.
When you explain exactly how you are protecting the environment with a host that powers its servers using renewable sources, you will be able to gain the trust of potential clients which will ultimately boost your revenue.
Moreover, the customer will not mind paying a little more for an eco-friendly web hosting. And if you capitalize on it, you will be able to improve your profit margin.
3) Green Impact on Your Company’s Reputation
Now, let’s talk about a slightly less tangible benefit of green web hosting. You will enhance your public image by including green credentials to your company’s name.
When people get to know that you care enough to make some changes to the hosting service to reduce its environmental impact, they will definitely want to work with you. This way, you will also improve the reputation of your company in the eyes of many customers and potential clients.
4) Cost Savings
With a green web host, you can also save a lot of money in the long run. Reducing the human impact on the environment is a good reason to go green, but you will also cut on cost this way.
Those who implement greener technologies will have to spend less on utility and electric bills. That means green web hosting is not just eco-friendly, but it is also pocket-friendly.
You don’t need to pay any utility company if you are creating your own energy through solar panels or wind-powered sources. While there can be some upfront cost associated with the green energy source setting but once it is in place, you will soon start saving money.
It will not cost much more than traditional hosting but can help your business to gain customer trust by using eco-friendly web hosting. Green web hosting will save you some money while keeping your emerging business online and available at all times.
5) Reduced E-Waste
With green web hosting, you will get an opportunity to reduce e-waste. Including recycling plans for e-waste, you will be able to minimize the sheer volume of e-wastes like metals, plastics, and computer chips.
What to Consider While Choosing Green Hosting Services?
1) Are They Really Green?
Go through their policies and carefully analyze how they want to be green. Also, don’t forget to check the Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) to know more about the authenticity of the green web host and verify their legitimacy. Make sure that the host is using energy-efficient hardware and software to protect the environment.
2) Certification
Now the question arises how to check whether a web host is eco-friendly. Well, the answer is simple. Just go through any one of the many green web hosting certifications on their website, and you will see how green your host has gone. Don’t forget to check Energy Star ratings and Carbon Neutralization certification.
3) Loading Time
Another point that you need to look for is the website speed of the hosting provider. No one will like to wait longer to see a stuttering web page. So, apart from the green factor, the host must have the fast loading capacity that is essential to boost your search rankings, traffic, and overall sales.
4) Customer Experience
Don’t just believe their words blindly. In fact, do research and find out what other customers have to say about their hosting features. It is important to know how good their customer support team is. Before deciding to opt for the hosting, try to connect with their customer support team.
5) Final Words
While jump-starting an online business, environmental concerns are probably the last thing that comes to your mind. You are more focused on profit in the early stages of your business. But remember, green hosting is a critical part of modern business, and it not only saves the planet but also contributes to your business growth.
Switching your web hosting to a greener outfit will reap you the above benefits. Get started now, and you will see how your relationship with green web hosting can make your revenue grow even more in the foreseeable future.
