Today we’re going to talk about what sustainability is: what it looks like in practice—especially in ecommerce—and the real steps you can take to make your business more sustainable (without losing money). But here’s the thing: You don’t have a choice. Consumers expect all businesses, big, small, brick-and-mortar, and digital to embrace environmental stewardship. In fact, 81% of global respondents—across gender and age—told Nielsen they agree with the statement: “It is extremely or very important that companies implement programs to improve the environment.” So how do you make sure your growing digital business can meet buyers’ expectations? This guide will help you understand the basic principles of sustainability for ecommerce and arm you with the tactics to bring it to life for your target customer base in your marketing and email campaigns. Make your business more sustainable.

What is sustainability, exactly?

From business models to product packaging, sustainability can take many forms—and all of them will have a huge impact on ecommerce businesses in the coming years. At its most basic, sustainability refers to an enduring balance that allows humans (and everything else that lives on this planet) to get what we need from the earth without overusing it and overextending its resources. As sustainability has grown into a Google Trends buzzword, its meaning has gotten a little hazy. And that’s okay, because it’s nearly impossible to explain what the complex concept of sustainability looks, feels, acts, and smells like in just a few quick sentences. That said, there are a few basic principles.

The five principles of sustainability

Sustainability is a pretty heavy concept, encompassing a multitude of practices across multiple industries with an impact on many aspects of life. A good framework is Michael Ben-Eli’s five-pronged explanation of sustainability for the Buckminster Fuller Institute. It’s a concrete interpretation that will give you an overview of how sustainability applies across five core domains: