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What you need to know about cutting business travel costs

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19th Nov 2007
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Business travel costs have been steadily rising for the last few years, and industry commentators suspect they will continue to grow. Recent research by Hotel Reservation Service, exhibitor at the Business Travel Show, has shown that the average increase in travel expenditure over the last two years sits at nine per cent and prediction a further growth of four per cent by the end of 2007.

Business travellers, whether from SMEs, blue chips or the public sector, generally expect upgrades and perks whilst they’re away from their home comforts and their families. This is understandable but businesses can’t get away from the fact that perks and upgrades affect the bottom line. And it’s all very well to book cheap flights online or hotel rooms via last minute reservations services, but it’s not worth it when a meeting runs late and an air ticket isn’t flexible, or the hotel is in the wrong location and consequently taxi fares are higher than they ought to be.

It's not until a business takes stock of where it is spending, who it is spending with, and when, that it becomes clear that travel can cost a small fortune. The good news is that, even in these times of rising travel prices, there are still plenty of opportunities to trim travel costs by up to 20 per cent.

Getting to grips with expenditure
A good starting point is for a business to undertake an audit of its travel expenditure. As well as flights, hotels, rail and car hire all other costs, such as cash transactions for taxis, parking and mobile phones, plus hotel space booked for conferences or meetings, should be accounted for. This information will identify spending patterns and help refine the company booking process.

Moving forward
Once the level of expenditure is transparent there are various routes to control costs and reduce time spent managing travel itineraries.

Introduce a travel policy to help control business travel costs, and provide employees with clear guidelines about the types and amounts of allowable expenses. A travel management company (TMC) can help set some clear guidelines with simple rules like class of flight, specific price or grade of hotel, etc.

Use specialist suppliers such as TMCs and hotel booking agents (HBAs) that know what they are doing, are aware of the pitfalls and are able to get better deals. However do take care that savings are not swallowed up in fees.

Account for the hidden costs & avoid cancellation/re-scheduling fees

Adopt an online self-booking tool that can be integrated easily with a company's own technology. An online self-booking tool can dramatically cut the time needed to make hotel, flight or rail bookings and will search for the best available prices, including those on the internet.

The Business Travel Show is an annual event, held from February 5-7 2008 at Earls Court in London, where advice from other companies who’ve been through these travel management processes can be gleaned. Finance decision makers can meet with over 200 specialist business travel suppliers and attend educational seminars to help save costs and valuable time. Further details and free registrations at www.businesstravelshow.com

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