Green book review for the holidays - part 3: The book you should bring to small business owners

Today we have our third part on our holidays series, where we review green books that will make great presents this holiday season!

Each book will be dedicated to another group and we today we have a group that is the backbone of the American economy - small business owners (and employees!). And the green book we're recommending to give to the small biz owners is:

Greening Your Small Business: How to Improve Your Bottom Line, Grow Your Brand, Satisfy Your Customers - and Save the Planet

Author: Jennifer Kaplan

Jennifer Kaplan founded Greenhance, a business consultancy dedicated to provide marketing and communication strategies to small business going green. She has more than 20 years of marketing experience with companies such as Discovery Channel, Lifetime Television, Conde Nast Publications and Simon & Schuster Publishing. An Adjunct Faculty in Marketing at Marymount University, Jennifer has conducted in-depth research into consumer attitudes about how small businesses can most effectively go green. She is an alumnae of Barnard College and the New York University Stern School of Business.

Publisher: Prentice Hall Press

Published on: November 2009

What this book is about? (from the publisher's website)
The ultimate resource for small business owners who want to go green without going broke.

Greening Your Small Business is the definitive resource for those who want their small businesses to be cutting- edge, competitive, profitable, and eco-conscious. Filled with stories from small business owners of all stripes, Greening Your Small Business addresses every aspect of going green, from basics such as recycling, reducing waste, energy efficiency, and reducing the IT footprint, to more in-depth concerns such as green marketing and communications, green business travel, and green employee benefits.

For companies too small to hire consultants to draft and implement green policies and practices, this guide is designed for easy use, featuring:

• Simple ways to make the workplace greener
• Two plans of action for going green (divided into two levels)
• Definitions for green terminology and jargon

Why it's a great holiday gift for eco-shoppers?
If you know a small business owner or employee, you know small businesses are struggling in the current economy. Unfortunately, there is no magic bullet to get out of the recession, but there are some ways to increase the chances to survive in the short term and prosper in the long term, and one of them is the green way. How you do it? Jennifer Kaplan's book is one of the best places to start with.

Going green has many definitions, but for small businesses it can definitely mean saving money and increasing profits by making your business more eco-friendly. The book is systematically covering all the relevant aspects for a small biz - marketing, transportation, energy, HR, office supplies, etc. In each of these subjects, the small biz owners will find information that will help them to identify their problems and practical advice on how to solve them.

This is in a way a "how-to" guide, but it's different and better of many other green guides that are out there. Firstly, it's very practical - when it talks about an issue, such as direct mailing or waste reduction, it provides effective recommendations and tips for successful implementation. Second, it offers simple ways to make the workplace greener, which is especially important for those who are afraid that going green is equivalent to starting a small revolution. Third, it provides great case studies that help to make everything more relevant and realistic by providing examples of small companies that are really taking the steps the book is talking about.

Now, going green is not a guarantee for business prosperity, but it's a part that is becoming more and more essential, especially when it comes to small businesses. Now, given the fact that it's not really that complicated to implement these win-win ideas, I think each and every one of the 26.4 million small businesses in the U.S. should take it into consideration. So if you know anyone who owns or works in one of these businesses, this is definitely the book for them.

Price: $14.36

Disclosure: We received a copy of this book from the publisher.

More on our holidays series:

Green book for parents - The Looking Book
Green book for eco-shoppers - ECOHOLIC

And don't forget that if you're buying a green book, you can even make your gift greener by adding our holidays special offer to it - trees/stickers and a beautiful holidays gift card made of recycled paper. For further information, please go to www.ecolibris.net/holidays.asp

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: Promoting sustainable reading!

A new book is celebrating green (and Eco-Libris takes part as well)!

A great new green book is out there and it's one big green celebration! I'm referring of course to "Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations & Traditions for the Whole Family" by Corey Colwell-Lipson & Lynn Colwell.

And the authors are also collaborating with Eco-Libris: Although Celebrate Green! is already printed on 30% recycled and 70% FSC certified paper, the authors have teamed up with Eco-Libris to make a even a greater positive impact on the environment. Buyers of the book on the Celebrate Green! website are offered to purchase an Eco-Libris sticker along with each Celebrate Green! book they buy, to plant one tree for it in a developing country. It's simple, spend a dollar, plant a tree and when your book arrives, look for the Eco-Libris sticker on the back.

Also, a portion of the proceeds from Celebrate Green! benefit Treeswing and Healthy Child, Healthy World.

So what's this book is about? maybe the best way to describe it is by presenting what others wrote on the book:

“Celebrate Green! is a wake up call — and it’s a fun, engaging read, jam-packed with hints, how-to’s and humor. Whether you’re an old hand at thinking green or a total neophyte, Lynn and Corey will help you understand why your choices are so important and energize you, too. You’ll discover simple steps to align your life with a healthy Earth, while deepening the meaning and the joy of your celebrations.” Frances Moore Lappé, author of Diet for a Small Planet and Getting a Grip: Clarity, Creativity and Courage in a World Gone Mad

"Corey and Lynn make creating eco-savvy celebrations a cinch. Packed with powerful information and practical strategies, Celebrate Green! maps out simple and straightforward ways to honor what’s good for people, the planet, and communities throughout the year. I love how the authors balance fascinating statistics and the “why” behind going green with some of the most creative and “do-able” ideas I’ve ever seen. They have proven that making memories and making a difference can blissfully coexist in our holidays and traditions. Celebrate Green! is an ideal guidebook to help you live—and celebrate—with intention.” Deanna Davis, PhD, Author of Living With Intention

“Wow, wow, WOW! The book Corey and Lynn have created is itself a glorious celebration--of imagination, innovation, and most important of all, beauty. With their savvy guidance we discover how to celebrate in loving ways that nourish our souls and enrich our relationships, while also tending to the health of our global future. What a wonderful way for a new generation to learn to celebrate “with small footprints” on our shared mother, planet Earth!” Marcy Axness, Ph.D., author of Raising Generation PAX

We are going to review the book in the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned. For more information on the book, please check Celebrate Green! website - http://www.celebrategreen.net

If you want to meet the authors, Corey and Lynn will sign their book in two events that will take place in the next couple of days:

October 4-5, 2008 - Salmon Days Festival

October 7, 2008 - Green October event at Seattle City Hall

Enjoy the book,
Raz @ Eco-Libirs

Plant a tree for every book you read!