Eliminating wasteful expenditure is a key focus for most companies today. Many consider paying a travel expert to book a flight as unnecessary expenditure when it can be done online. What they don’t realise is that a travel management company (TMC) can actually help you make significant savings.
Oz Desai, GM Corporate Traveller says there are 5 ways that TMCs can help your company make the most of your travel budget:
1. Increase your global buying power:
Size matters when it comes to travel, and the volume of your travel book can certainly mean better rates. However, negotiating corporate agreements with suppliers such as airlines, hotels and car rental companies can be a challenging and time-consuming process.
By partnering with a TMC with some serious global negotiation clout, such as Corporate Traveller, you can take the hassle out of the negotiations. As part of the Flight Centre Travel Group, Corporate Traveller offers a very wide range of airfares, as well as thousands of flexible corporate rates at hotels all over the world.
What’s more, travellers can benefit from some great perks.
2. Teaching you the tricks of the trade:
Simply by booking your flights at the right time, you can make considerable savings. A TMC’s specialist Air Product and Airfare team will keep up to date with the latest fares, ensuring their clients always have access to the best rates.
Your TMC will also advise you that rather than choosing fully flexible fares, you can actually save with semi-flexible fares, which allow changes.
Also, that booking different cabins for the outbound and inbound journeys can, in fact, reduce the overall price of a return ticket, especially when flights are busy.
3. By helping you see the bigger picture:
“Making savings is not about shaving a few rands off the cost of the flight, hotel or transfers,” says Desai. “It’s important to look at the bigger picture. For instance, if Corporate Traveller’s data reveals that a client is using 500 different hotels in 50 cities, we would advise reducing this number and negotiate a discount with the remaining hotels.
It is all about creating efficiencies.” If you work with a TMC or other travel partner to book your travel, the easiest way to gain a clear overview of your spend is to ask for a few key reports each month. That way, you can summarise the most useful data and won’t be overwhelmed by figures
4. By placing the latest travel technology at your fingertips:
It’s essential to keep abreast of the latest developments in travel technology, as these can be your gateway to booking stress-free, discounted travel. For example, an online booking tool, designed for simple point to point domestic travel, could increase productivity for your travel bookers, as well as offering discounted transaction fees.
It has also become widely accepted that employee productivity is intrinsically linked to their well-being, which is why it is vital to allow road warriors the opportunity to recharge their batteries. To this end, Corporate Traveller’s new chatbot, Sam, suggests which restaurants and attractions to visit at their destination and alerts travellers about traffic delays.
By saving you time: Do you really want your executive team to waste valuable time browsing the Internet for the perfect travel deal?
Recent surveys suggest that, on average, business travellers spend 20 minutes reading hotel reviews before they book. “High earning top executives should not waste valuable time trying to pick the perfect hotel, or spend hours on the phone with airlines trying to rebook a ticket,” says Desai.