Consumers are becoming more conscious of the environmental impact of having products shipped to their home. Implementing green shipping options at your company can not only help you improve the environmental impact of your shipping operations but can help you attract customers who are looking for ways to shop more sustainably. These are eight of the ways you can make your shipping practices greener.

1. Select Shipping Companies Committed to Green Practices

A large part of the environmental impact of shipping comes from the harmful emissions emitted by the vehicles used to transport your packages. Seek out shipping companies that have committed to making their practices greener by taking steps such as using delivery routing software to reduce their fuel consumption. Also, look for companies that offer green and sustainable programs to customers. These programs may include paperless invoicing and tracking, recycled shipping boxes and mailers, and other green options.

2. Use Recycled Boxes and Mailers

Major carriers such as UPS, FedEx and USPS use recycled materials in their shipping boxes and mailers. You can also purchase used boxes and boxes made from recycled materials from retailers such as EcoBox, Treecycle and Globe Guard. If you receive shipments of products at your business, save the boxes and mailers and re-use them to ship your products to customers.

3. Use Eco-friendly Packing Materials

Packing peanuts made from polystyrene take a long time to decompose and are one of the least eco-friendly options. Instead, choose biodegradable, starch-based packing peanuts or other sustainable packing products. Try replacing plastic bubble wrap with bubble wrap made from recycled cardboard waste. Inflatable air pillows are ideal for filling space in boxes.

4. Do Not Use Over-sized Boxes

It may be tempting to order one size box to ship everything in, but if some of your products are smaller than others, you could be wasting a lot of money on shipping costs and harming the environment. Larger boxes take up more space, which leads to more frequent trips for shipping companies. Additionally, they require more packing materials to fill the space in the box. It is better to choose a box that is just large enough to accommodate the item you need to ship, plus enough packing material to protect the item.

5. Print Thermal Labels

Thermal labels are more environmentally friendly than labels that are printed with ink. They also remove the need to use tape to fasten labels to packages.

6. Offer Green Shipping Options

Impatient customers may not choose more environmentally friendly options, such as consolidating small purchases into one shipment, without some sort of incentive. Try providing your customers with information about the impact of choosing green shipping options and offer some sort of discount or another perk for consumers to go with greener options.

7. Schedule a Pickup

Delivery trucks are already out driving around your area. Scheduling a pickup can be greener than driving to a shipping location to drop off packages.

8. Plan for Green Returns

The best way to reduce the impact of product returns is to reduce the number of returns. However, all companies will get some product returns, so it is best to have a plan in place that reduces the environmental impact. For low-value products, it may make sense to send out a new product without asking for the defective or incorrect product in return. For more valuable items, consider refurbishing and re-selling the returned product to reduce waste.

As consumer use of online shopping increases, the importance of finding greener ways to ship products also increases. These eight tips can help you make your shipping process greener.