Finding an eco-friendly job is difficult these days. For people who care about the environment, there are simply not enough options to choose from. Even when you find something that is good for the environment, the pay you would get is almost non-existing. It is really sad that someone should be punished to try and preserve the environment in which we live in. Luckily, there is an alternative road you can take – you can become a green entrepreneur.

If there are no jobs you can find that are related to protecting the environment, you can start a green business of your own and work for yourself. Still, most people relate being eco-friendly to recycling only. Caring for the environment doesn’t just mean being thorough in recycling or taking care of your trash. If you want to “work green”, you have to be creative and expand your horizons, while at the same time giving up on waiting for somebody else to come along and give you a job you will like.

Luckily for you, the current hot topic in modern economy is to save money, and this also includes a wide range of green companies who are trying to help save energy, water and other important resources. If you have the ambition to start a business of your own and make it eco-friendly, it is important to know that you have two advantages over businesses which don’t really consider the environment.

The first important thing to remember is that environmentalism is growing quite fast, meaning that your target market is still growing as well. The second important thing to remember is that running a green business is quite rewarding, as you will feel satisfied because you are contributing to the world and making it a better place, while at the same time making a living out of it.

Here are some of the best ideas you can find:

Help people cut their energy costs

Given the fact that the costs of traditional energy resources are constantly going up, there is a clear need for reducing costs and saving the environment from wasted energy. When you combine these two things, it’s obvious that there is a solid ground for creating a business that will deal with these things, and that there will be enough potential customers that will keep your startup alive.

A solar energy based heating system can give enough energy to any facility, while at the same time saving a lot of money on monthly costs. It can provide up to 70 % of a household’s hot water needs for a month, if the system is properly installed.

Since 2008, solar panel based electrical generators have been growing constantly. For a few years, the growth was huge, then it was smaller, but the important thing is that it seem like there is not stopping it. This means that there are a lot of people out there who are interested in installing these kinds of systems, and the fact is that they are not so easily installed. They require expertise and knowledge. If you acquire this knowledge and the necessary equipment, you can make a lot of money by installing similar systems.

Green online store

Even though opening an internet-based store from your home can make it easier for you to reach a bigger market, while at the same time having significantly lower costs than when opening a store in the real world, it could still take a lot of time before your store gets noticed and before people start coming to you. During that time, you will have to invest a lot of energy and some money in order to get noticed in the huge ocean called the internet.

There is much work to be done, and this is not a simple process, as you might think. The first thing you have to do, and this is quite crucial, is to build a website that will represent your business online and be your headquarters for online consumers. Then, you will have to implement e-commerce solutions, billing systems, you’ll have to track deliveries, ship products and, last but not least, market your website online.

When it comes to green businesses, creating a good online marketing campaign is a must, but it is also difficult. This is why you must invest in hiring a good marketing agency, and if you don’t know how to find one, you should look for some reviews at CrowdReviews.com, to make sure you get what you payed for.

You will also have to create eco-products which are in demand. You can either create them all by yourself, to get all the profit, or you can find a producer and buy products from them and sell them through your website. If not, you can take a much quicker path, but it will cost you more.

You can create your ecommerce business on sites such as OnlyGreen4Me, and they will take care of all the shipping, inventory, collection and billing issues for you. You will have to pay $2,500 for the setup process and you will get maintenance and hosting for your first year of operations. Additionally, they already have a customer base and you can almost immediately start selling stuff.

Sell organic food

As you probably already know, organic food is much tastier than artificial products and, more importantly, it’s much healthier. A lot of people are starting to be aware of these facts and they are slowly turning towards organic food. Producing organic food will bring you closer to nature, and you will be happy after each customer has bought some fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables from you. You will directly be helping people lead healthier lives and this is simply an amazing feeling.

The organic food industry is one of the fastest growing ones and the fact that the quality of organic fruits and vegetables grown this way is levels above the typical industrial food, which involves a lot of harmful chemicals, only makes it more in demand. One of the best things about growing organic food is that you only need a little investment to grow your first fruits and veggies. You only need a small piece of land, seeds, and some natural fertilizer to get everything start. Of course, you will have to learn how to take care of your plants and nurture them properly so that they give excellent results.

At the beginning, you can start by offering your products to some small grocery stores and restaurants. If it really starts going for you, then you can start expanding your services and you can even get a place at the marketplace and sell your fresh food on your own.

Green transportation

Help people get where they want to go! As transportation is becoming greener due to high gas prices and because people are starting to realize how much motor vehicles pollute our environments, opening a green transportation business is becoming an attractive business model. Bikes and scooters are becoming an appealing transportation means, and more and more people are embracing them. The first thing is that they can save the customer’s money. Also, they don’t pollute the environment, they are healthy for the person pedaling, and they can get you anywhere without being held up in traffic jams.

If you live in a crowded city that attracts a lot of tourists, it is good to open a bike rental business. Tourists love to rent bikes and go sightseeing this way, especially younger students and millennials.  There are many other green vehicles today, and there are more of them coming out each year. You can even open a delivery business or combine deliveries with selling organic meals. Now, there is an interesting business idea.

Green constructions

Green building is one of the latest trends that can lead to many good business possibilities. Furthermore, the amount of help and good you can do with green building is simply amazing. The entire building process can be eco-friendly. Construction professionals can all specialize in building green objects including designers, contractors, construction companies and architects as well. For example, designers can specialize to create solutions out of materials and elements which are the least harmful for the environment.

Green building requires a lot of eco-friendly products, which can be the foundation of your new business. Building homes using second hand materials can save you a lot of money and time. If the whole building process is green, it is possible to construct buildings which are completely green and save up a lot of energy. A lot of homes nowadays have water-saving toilets and solar water heating systems, and you can base your business either on making them or on providing them during the construction process.

I hope these ideas have inspired you to come up with a green business of your own. Running a green business doesn’t mean that you will not make money; it’s all about the business part and not the green part. What I’m trying to say is that, if you manage to find customers for your business and deliver them excellent green products or services, you will be able to make money just as you would with any other business. Not only that you will be able to make money, but you will also feel great and help the environment you live in.