Keeping Black Friday Green!
As non-essential retail outlets have been forced to close their doors for the most part of this year, online shopping has been the subject of an immense amount of growth due to the lack of an in-store shopping experience.
And with Black Friday tomorrow and the small matter of Christmas around the corner, it is likely that previous online spending records will be smashed by this year’s surge in orders.
While this increased focus on online shopping has been an ongoing trend for some time, the changes in peoples lifestyles as a result of the pandemic has really accelerated the shift to online with it now being the only way many can guarantee a safe shopping experience.
With this in mind, we must not ignore the effects that this change in behaviour has had on our planet and continue to try and shop as environmentally friendly as possible, which can be easily achieved online!
In many circumstances, receiving your item in the quickest possible time can feel like a necessity and more often than not, shoppers will opt for next day or even same day delivery regardless of whether they need the item urgently.
However, with customers opting for regular delivery conditions, it is much more likely that a delivery vehicle will already be in their area completing other deliveries and therefore won’t have to venture as far as a vehicle making a special delivery.
Another common problem which clearly has an impact on your carbon output whilst online shopping, is the fact that in many circumstances items can take two or three attempts to be successfully delivered, which is often due to poor preparation and communication from the buyer or sender.
The availability of item tracking is now widely available from most online retailers and courier services, allowing us to plan for the delivery of our items and make adjustments if there are barriers preventing first time delivery. The use of these features can play a key role in ensuring the safe delivery or collection of your item at the first attempt.
The carbon footprint of ordering online can then be seen to increase further if the buyer chooses to return the item, which roughly one in three people do according to a recent German study.
And with more and more “Buy now pay later” schemes becoming widely available, it is now even more likely that customers will return their items.
Clothing items in particular are responsible for extremely high return rates, due to customers not being able to try on in store before buying and companies offering free returns. Therefore, the attitude taken by many is that they should order various sizes to then try on at home, before returning the items that do not fit.
This type of behaviour, especially with clothing can be extremely damaging for the environment, as there will be increased emissions from travel as well as some companies taking the position that it is cheaper for them to throw away returned items that have been worn, rather than cleaning them to be sold.
This end destination for these items is particularly harmful for the environment….
What can I do?
By considering the above factors when making an online purchase, you could quite easily have a positive impact on the environment whilst still receiving the items you desire!
Let’s start from the beginning…
Keep shopping locally!
Covid-19 has had a huge effect on local businesses with the doors closing on many that have been established for years.
This has caused many to take their businesses online for the first time, with different levels of success.
Keeping your trade local will not only give these local businesses the support that they need at this challenging time but will mean that your delivery will stay in a very local network and therefore have far less distance to travel through various delivery methods.
Choose sustainable businesses!
Given the amount of information available to the average internet shopper today, there really is nothing in the way of you choosing to shop with a sustainable company.
Check out the sustainability sections of the company’s website where you can find out more about their commitments to remaining sustainable through this busier period.
Do I really need it tomorrow?
With many company’s offering free next day delivery to attract customers, we are often guilty of choosing this option regardless of the urgency in receiving this item.
By accepting the standard delivery time, it is far more likely that your item will be delivered on a local route and therefore reduce the emissions caused by drivers having to travel for a special delivery item, which if your item isn’t required urgently is an easy sacrifice to make!
Prepare to not return
Being able to return items bought through online retailers for minimal or zero cost has driven the shift from online shoppers only returning items when completely necessary, to returning almost as often as they are purchasing.
The ease of returning items therefore means that many are guilty of buying before thinking or failing to research properly before purchasing.
In the instance of clothing, which is a particularly harmful item to return, most websites offer customers accurate measurements on their items which can be used to find your ideal size.
By taking this extra care before ordering, returns can be massively reduced and therefore less carbon will be emitted by the disposal of returned items!
So what are you waiting for?! Lets all take responsibility this year and make Black Friday and Christmas a green time for everyone!
