It’s officially summer at last. After a long, cold winter and a soggy spring here in the Northeast, even the most jaded city dweller can’t help but be a little warmed by the leafy trees, lillies and odd forget-me-nots stubbornly pushing their way through cracks in the sidewalk (who planted those things, anyway?).

It’s also hard not to notice the electronic devices proliferating like kudzu in the upturned palms of just about everyone – tourists and hardened city denizens alike. It makes you think: season to season the flowers come and go, but what happens to all that tech gear?  And more importantly, are we in the industry doing all we can to ensure a future that’s both technologically advanced and perpetually green? It’s a question solution providers should ponder and a call to action they’d be wise to answer.

For decades the world’s electronics manufacturers have cranked out products designed mostly to be purchased, used, enjoyed, and ultimately thrown away. Not anymore. There’s a growing and stark realization that there really is no “away.” Product lifecycles that move in a straight line from raw-materials supplier to the local landfill aren’t sustainable. It’s bad for businesses, bad for consumers, bad for the planet.

Vendors like Samsung do their part by signing on and adhering to directives like those set down by the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition. These guidelines hold manufacturers’ feet to the fire to maintain socially and environmentally responsible global supply chains that properly manage all of the material and labor that goes into products.

It’s a good cause, but far from enough. In the larger lifecycle of consumer electronic goods, it’s really just the beginning. That’s where the channel comes in.

The most important work happens when technology assets approach their end-of-life, far beyond the purview of the most vendors. We’ve all seen IT closets bulging with years’ worth of old gear, or encountered end users reluctant to upgrade or implement new technologies for lack of a decent way to decommission and dispose of their existing stuff. Lest you think I’m talking strictly about altruism here, let me be clear: this isn’t just about some convenient recycling program. Asset recovery and IT waste management is both a responsibility and a tremendous business opportunity.

Building these professional service elements into a solution provider’s practice makes for a valuable differentiating service and greases the skids for ongoing sales of new and better devices. Clients that are comfortable moving IT assets in and out of their organizations in an organized and responsible way tend to buy more and upgrade more often.

Some key elements to consider when developing and marketing asset recovery and IT waste management services:

Start with the data. Nearly every piece of IT gear being replaced contains vital, often sensitive business data that needs to be migrated to a new unit, or properly and securely deleted. As an established trusted advisor to its clients, the solution provider is uniquely positioned to handle to task of data migration as the first step in the asset recovery process.

Consider asset remarketing. While some older tech gear is simply carted off to a recycler for proper disposal, many units retain at least some value, which can help a customer offset the cost of upgrades or new purchases. Partnering with an asset remarketer with connections to OEMs, leasing companies and refurbishers can help you squeeze every last penny from decommissioned gear and dramatically improve the value of your service in the eyes of a client.

Think and sell green. More and more today, businesses want partners who share their social and environmental concerns. Offering a detailed account of how old, unused IT assets will be properly handled not only increases your value, but also lets your customers share the wealth by trumpeting their own environmental awareness and green compliance.

Document, audit, report. IT asset recovery and waste management isn’t akin to simply taking out the trash. It’s not unusual for clients to need to recover hardware profiles from wiped devices, or to provide serial numbers for a destroyed hard drive as part of compliance audit. Show the client you’ll be on top everything coming in and going out control right down to the smallest detail.