Attempting to reduce your carbon footprint isn't just good for the environment and reducing your energy bills; it can also put your business in a great light when it comes to attracting investment, recruiting staff and winning new business.

And this isn't something that can only be done by larger companies. Smaller firms often find it easier to implement such projects as they have fewer layers of bureaucracy to get through before a decision is reached.

According to Barclays, such a policy needs to be carefully planned and the results monitored in order for firms to get the maximum benefit and the best possible reputation as a result.

The bank offers the following tips on how to go about developing an environmentally responsible policy:

Talk to your customers
Are your customers thinking about climate change? Could differentiating yourself on environmental issues be a source of competitive advantage? Find out what they expect from you. This might be having a recognised environmental standard, such as ISO 14001 or BS 8555. Or it might be that your customers would like to see products and services that have a reduced environmental impact

Seek expert advice
There are lots of organisations that can help you understand and reduce your impact on the environment. Envirowise and The Carbon Trust are government-funded organisations that offer independent and practical advice

Targets should be realistic. You might want to set a normalised target that is compatible with business growth: for example, aim to reduce emissions per thousand pounds of income

Develop a strategy
Once you've understood how your business impacts on the environment and what your customers expect, articulate your strategy. If you're silent on climate change then you risk your employees, customers and suppliers thinking you don't care about it.

However, take care when communicating your successes to avoid ‘greenwash'. Credibility with consumers is easily lost, so it's important not to over-promise and to avoid using misleading terms. Be specific about what you are offering

Reduce, reduce, reduce
Most businesses make reducing their own environmental impact their number one priority but rather than trying to reduce everything at once focus on your most significant environmental impact, whether that's energy use, water use, transport emissions or waste generation. Environmental efficiency often means cost efficiency; good news for your bottom line

What gets measured, gets managed
Set targets to reduce your most important environmental impacts to focus attention within your business. Review progress regularly and, where appropriate, link targets to performance development and reward. Targets should be realistic. You might want to set a normalised target that is compatible with business growth: for example, aim to reduce emissions per thousand pounds of income