Budgets keeping you up at night?
Thanks to COVID, the next few months promise a little more scrutiny on a company’s business travel. Although we’re all Zoomed out and ready to go, you can expect questions like ‘is this trip essential?’, ‘is it safe to travel?’, ‘can this meeting happen online?’, and ‘can we afford this right now?’.
After safety and duty of care, money will be the most significant factor when it comes to reigniting your business travel programme.
But (now for the great news) controlling your travel costs doesn’t need to be a complicated process.
Sound good? Here are just five fool-proof ways you can manage your budget – and deliver impressive savings.
Five ways to control your business travel spend
1. Flex some buying power
Choose a travel management company (TMC) with the negotiation smarts and global buying power to secure the best possible rates – and latest deals – on the market.
Corporate Traveller’s in-house procurement experts are the best in the business. They’ll do the leg work for you, making sure you have a huge selection of budget-friendly (and policy compliant) airfares, hotels, car rentals and rail tickets at your fingertips.
2. Use an online booking tool
Make no mistake, travel consultants are the unsung heroes when it comes to post-COVID travel. They are invaluable when it comes to navigating flight availability, protocols and changing travel restrictions.
Do you know what else you can’t do without? A cutting-edge, ultra-intuitive and speedy OBT.
Corporate Traveller’s new digital booking experience, Melon, ticks all the boxes when it comes to managing your business travel. You’ll be able to:
- Browse an impressive range of rates and fares, including exclusive deals you won’t see anywhere else.
- Create and manage all traveller profiles online, including passport information, contact details, travel history and travel preferences like meal and seat preferences.
- Chat with your dedicated travel consultant directly in the platform.
- Track travellers when they’re on the move.
- Receive destination information ahead of time – and up-to-the-minute travel alerts when you are on the move.
3. Make reporting your friend
Reporting, done right, can be a powerful tool. Especially if you work with a TMC who can pull real-time reports at the drop of a hat. Corporate Traveller will help you analyse your team’s travel behaviour and spend; alert you to any unusual departure from your budget; recommend areas where you can save; and (drum roll please) suggest ways to deliver the best return on investment from your travel spend.
4. Take a fresh look at your travel policy
Now more than ever, your travel policy needs regular reviews and updates. Not only to meet the demands of COVID-safe travel, but to make sure you’re delivering savings wherever – and however – you can. For example, you might consider switching your preferred airlines to better value ones, and relook at your most commonly used routes to see where savings can be made.
Happily, your TMC can help! They’ll help you identify any gaps in your travel policy and help you build your policy into your OBT. This way, any out of policy requests are easily flagged, requests are always sent to management for approval, and your policy is always adhered to. No leakage here!
5. Commit to one partner
By dropping the juggling act and consolidating all your travel bookings through just one travel provider or TMC, you’ll receive just one invoice per month. This means you’ll easily see your true travel spend.
Even better? With greater booking volumes coming their way, your chosen TMC will be able to negotiate better supplier deals for you too. In other words, put one partner at the helm and enjoy increased savings, more control over your travel spend, solid reporting and the best ROI possible!
Looking to control your travel spend better? Let's talk
