It’s a global corporate world out there, and business travel is more common than ever.
However, everyone who has taken a business trip knows how taxing it can be—between the jet flights, living in hotels, and having to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, while you meet with possible partners, clients, or buyers. Further, the costs can amount to staggering numbers. In the text below, we’ll discuss some ways to make these trips more profitable.
Only if you really have to…
Avoiding needless business trips is the easiest method to save cash on work travel. Your coworkers may need to travel to give a presentation at a conference, engage with a distant team or customer, or seal a big transaction. Each of them is an acceptable reason to travel for business.
But first, consider this: Why is this employee traveling? Teach your executives to inquire about this issue before anyone gets in the car, and you may discover that more needless trips are avoided, resulting in less human influence and more productivity.
If your organization can undertake a yearly or quarterly review of business travel, it will be able to identify issues that, in retrospect, may have been prevented. The cost of these travels, together with HR and company financial data, could provide useful information for future travel decisions.
Saving on tickets
Airline tickets may be costly, so choose your flights wisely. You might save just by being flexible with your trip dates and airline, and by buying only economy tickets. However, once you’ve booked, it’s typically cheaper to stick to a set itinerary. Only purchase flexible tickets with multiple return dates if they are absolutely required for your trip.
Believe us, as the team at Telios explain, if you book your trip on time, you can save a lot of money while providing your employee with an overall better experience. This way, you’ll save money while still being able to travel comfortably and affordably.
Data on revenue
This is one instance where a cost-cutting mindset might backfire. Consider the following example:
You send a staff person on assignment abroad. To save money, this new employee flies the economy. There’s not much room to move, and it’s tough to sleep. Your team member travels with little to no activity and arrives jetlagged and exhausted.
Implementing travel ai solutions could optimize itineraries and enhance the overall travel experience for employees. By leveraging advanced technologies, companies can ensure their staff are better rested and more productive upon arrival.
However, if that staff member had been permitted to pay a few dollars more to upgrade to a business-class seat, he would have had significantly more space to maneuver and work. It would also have been a much more pleasant location for resting on the trip. Your employee would have done a lot on the journey and would have landed feeling as bright and energized as possible.
Furthermore, rather than paying for a higher level of service, a business travel firm might negotiate status upgrades, which may save money while providing the same advantage.
That is why it is critical to consider factors other than cost reduction. Instead, concentrate on statistics about productivity lost or gained during travel time.
Is your organization keeping track of the expense per hour of travel? A typical work journey lasts 7 hours. HR can assist you in converting that amount into pay, and you can start to evaluate how much it costs for your team members to fly. If that time is used productively, the vacation will start to pay for itself.
Work on your travel policies
When developing a business travel policy, there is a lot to think about, from booking flights to food allowances to handling bills. That implies plenty of things may slip through the cracks. Examine your current business travel policy and consider if it is comprehensive enough to cover all areas of travel expenses within your organization.
Concentrate first on the fundamentals: a suitable approval procedure, as well as booking and reservation criteria, on-site expenditures, and expenses. Establishing clear rules will assist your business travelers in making judgments that adhere to your policy and do not incur unnecessary charges that harm your bottom line.
One thing that should be incorporated into your business travel policy, are eSIMs. Simplifying communication for your employees abroad should be a top priority, allowing them to stay connected and never be without data. Visit this page to make travel communication seamless for your employees.
Hotel rooms and costs
Room costs might vary greatly, even within the same hotel, so planning ahead of time can result in significant savings. You may opt to let your business travelers select their own accommodations. That’s great; just make sure you include a budget or a star rating. You should also mention that standard rooms are the preferred accommodation type and clearly state whether you will cover minibar expenses, Wi-Fi prices, and so on.
In the realm of corporate travel, it’s usually a good idea to book flights and hotels ahead of time because their prices might skyrocket closer to the departure date—a tip that might save you a lot in the long run. And when it comes to accommodation, consider using a corporate housing platform to secure cost-effective and comfortable lodgings for your business travelers.
Allowance
Giving employees choices over their meals and transportation costs may actually cut overspending. Meal expenditures can be established as a daily allotment, allowing employees the option of how much they will spend on breakfast, lunch, and supper.
There will always be exceptions, so save that five-star meal for your most important client appointments. When it comes to transportation, you should clearly urge employees to select the most cost-effective option, taking into account travel hours. This may entail driving their own cars from point A to point B and then refunding them.
Last but not least, plan ahead
This is most likely the golden rule of money saving. In the realm of corporate travel, it’s usually a good idea to book flights and hotels ahead of time because their prices might skyrocket closer to the departure date—a tip that might save you a lot in the long run.
