Greendimes: A Forest of Profit from the Trees

As the world of sustainability broadens, the distinction among for-profits and nonprofits has tended to blur somewhat. Companies increasingly are engaging in voluntary actions that border on the philanthropic -- offsetting their travel emissions, for example. And nonprofits are working to incubate green- and clean-technology companies, and to stimulate markets for environmentally preferable products.

And then there are hybrids -- and I'm not talking about cars. I've written in the past about the concept of "B-Corporations" -- "for-benefit" companies that donate their profits to charity -- the Newman's Own model, since replicated by others. And in between are companies that see new market opportunities -- and significant profit potential -- in solutions, both high-tech and low, that can have a measurable environmental and social impact.

That last category describes greendimes, a new start-up that aims "to figure out if social good can meet capitalism in some happy place and make change faster than government or activists can," in the words of its founder, Pankaj Shah. (Disclosure: I sit on greendimes' advisory board.)

greendimes' value proposition is simple and straightforward: for $3 a month (a dime a day -- hence the company name), greendimes will keep you off junk-mail lists while planting one tree every month for each of its subscribers.

You've no doubt heard about free list-removal services that purport to put you on a "do-not-mail" list. Turns out, these don't really work. Actually, they work for a while, but the minute you move, apply for credit, refinance, or do any of a number of other things, you're back on. Hence, the seemingly unstoppable deluge of credit-card come-ons and other solicitations that passes for your daily mail. To stay off these lists, you need to submit your name on a regular basis to fifty or so different list-removal services, something few mortals are likely to do.

greendimes' value proposition is that it does all this for you, automatically, every month.

Shah is a successful serial entrepreneur whose previous companies -- a mobile phone search company and a provider of high-speed wireless Internet access -- afforded him an early, albeit brief, "retirement." During his tenure at home, he saw for the first time in years the steady stream of junk mail arriving each day and wanted to do something about it. He also came to learn the environmental implications of all that mail -- the 100 million trees and 28 billion gallons of water used each year to manufacture the paper, for example.

He began to see three opportunities in one: providing a service that could help people regain control of their snail-mail boxes, creating an environmental benefit, and helping individuals recognize how small actions, done collectively, can have big impacts. Oh, yes: And potentially making a chunk of change.

"I think we've found this really cool spot where we're providing a service to consumers to rid them of a nuisance that they can't stand," he told me recently. "We're helping the environment and building a valuable business." Shah seems fascinated with finding the sweet spot between business and social good. "There are a lot of ways I could have structured this. It could have been a nonprofit, for example, or I could have donated a lot of money to some treehuggers. But business is what I understand. I think we can run faster and do more if it's run as a business."

Shah thinks big. He won't be satisfied if the number of members fails to reach into the millions. I asked him what would constitute "wild success" for him, and the answer came straight out of the dot-com mold of the late 1990s: "If we had 15 million U.S. households engaged with us, we'd be saving or planting over 100 million trees a year. That's a big deal."

Wild success, indeed. Suffice to say, at $3 per month, 15 million households represents a lot of green. You do the math. (Never mind, I'll do it for you: It's just north of a half-billion dollars a year in revenue.)

And stopping junk mail is just the beginning. Shah has up his entrepreneurial sleeve a suite of other services greendimes could offer its members. Once greendimes has aggregated a significant number of green-minded consumers, I'm guessing those opportunities will multiply.

Says Shah: "There's not a lot of time left to start doing drastic things to help the environment. The fastest way we can make change is to figure out if capitalism and social good can marry each other have a happy existence."

Here's hoping they can.

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Comments

[PK - Jetson Green]

This is pretty cool. Thank you for the information. I know you've already written your post, but I noticed another company on Hugg the other day at the domain www.41pounds.org. I don't know if you'll respound to this, and I understand that you won't be able to speak to their company, but I'm curious if there is a difference (other than pricing) in what the companies are trying to accomplish and how they execute. Thanks...

[Ed Reid]

As you point out, the three opportunities in one seems to be the difference in creating value for participants. Anyone can easily register with the Direct Marketing Association's Mail Preference Service to be removed from prospect mailing list. To have a group provide this service while bettering the world physically and the consumer consciously is a wonderful thing.

[Frances makower]

Hi, Joel: I am very impressed by you and Shah's vision in saving so much of natural resources. I think he has found the perfect solution to removing the pesky spam that we are all so tired of receiving. Good luck!

[Bill Thomson]

Jetson Green (first post); my neighbors kid was selling subscriptions to 41Pounds.org for a fundraiser and the service is similar. The cost was $41.00 (with $20 going to the school) and they submitted my name to around 40 bulk mailers (good for 5 years). I am guessing the only real difference is with 41Pounds.org I paid up front and they also dealt with all the catalogs I have been getting (Dell, Pottery Barn, etc...). It works great my only complaint was I had to wait 2-3 months before my mailbox was 'clensed'. Either service will work just as well I am sure.

Bill

[Rajiv]

In looking at the offerings, the difference between greendimes.com and 41pounds.org is that greendimes will contact direct mailers on a continuous basis and plant a tree for you every month in Senegal, Haiti or India (places that need them badly). With 41pounds.org, you pay 1 time and they will contact direct mailers once - nothing about tree planting. If you start getting junk mail again with 5 years, you will have to contact them again.

[Libbey]

I want to do this and encourage my friends to do this, but they are concerned it is just a hoax. Any additional information I can share to put their concerns at ease? They are especially concerned about the trees actually being planted.

[Ken]

According to the 41pounds.org site, they will remove even 'occupant' and 'resident' mailings; something greendimes says they can't do. Also, 41pounds.org commits to donating 50% of profits to environmental organizations, where I can't find any information about percent of profits donated by greendimes. A little more transparency would be nice so that I can be sure my money isn't just going into the pockets of some greedy millionaire who drives 4wd's and oil-heats his mansion.

[Jill Finlayson]

Hi Ken,
GreenDimes actually does reduce "resident" mail including contacting the companies that send Penny Saver and Advo - who send that big wad of newspaper-like coupons. We do mention that smaller local businesses may not use national mailing lists, but we do our absolute best to reduce the junk mail members receive, and we go back periodically to keep them off the lists. Additionally, GreenDimes plants a tree for each member every month. We don't have a formula for donating a percentage of profits. We're doing the most good we can with the membership revenue we generate, starting with our tree planting partnership with Trees for the Future. I'd be happy to answer any other questions you might have.
Thanks for your interest in reducing junk mail and keeping the planet green.
Jill

[Shawn]

I'm going to give this a try, and I've contacted about a dozen friends. The price tag is within my budget, and yes, it would be fantastic to not have to deal with the 3-8 pieces of junk mail every single day.

If I'm not satisfied in 3 months and I'm not seeing a noticeable drop in my junk mail, I'll note it here.

[Brett]

I've used 41pounds.org and I think the service is great – everything from subscribing online to the actual service has been very professional and up front. It's nice to know where your money is actually going too. It does take time for the service to take hold, but once it does, there is a noticeable change.

[Janine]

I have been complaining, and recycling, and shredding for YEARS! And if greendimes can stop my deluge of unsolicited mail, I am going to do all I can to get the word out! I am so disgusted with our society's unstoppable consumption of resources that I hardly ever buy anything new anymore - how much stuff can a human being need? If greendimes can do what it claims, and make a profit at it, I am all for it! And I have bought memberships for relatives, on faith that this will actually work - Better than buying them some unusable and unwanted present...

[Sammy Johnson]

GreenDimes.com – What are you doing? I have been a proud member of www.41pounds.org for months now, and YES, I am really happy with their services. Why are you picking on them so much?
Laurie David of www.StopGlobalWarming.org is FULLY supporting this company. Laurie David wants to stop unwanted postal junk mail. She wouldn't have gotten involved unless she knew what she was doing...right! As a matter of fact, www.41pounds.org is on www.stopglobalwarming.org home page.
I see you have Matt Damon on your Board of Directors because he wants to stop unwanted postal junk mail. Good job! Also, I see that Oprah Winfrey and Ellen Degeneres give a “dime”. I hope they all conducted “due diligence” and researched your company before getting involved with it. By the way, your CEO, Pankaj Shah, used to be with 4Info... correct? I now see that 4Info is sponsoring www.StopGlobalwarming.org as a partner, your www.41pounds.org competitor. I guess it really is a small world.