Business travel can cost organizations significant amounts of money, and if not managed correctly, it can soon eat into budgets. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses have embraced remote working; however, business travel is often a necessity that cannot be avoided.
There are many ways in which businesses can save money on travel, corporate travel discounts being one of them. Many travel service providers understand that loyalty is important and rely on establishing relationships with businesses. With the right tools, your organization can also benefit from corporate travel discounts, saving your company time and money.
What’s in this guide:
- What are the benefits of corporate travel discounts?
- How to get the best corporate travel discounts
- How to save money with Gett
What are the benefits of corporate travel discounts?
Corporate travel is a huge industry, worth $1.28 trillion U.S. dollars, so understandably travel companies are keen to capitalize on this monopoly. Establishing partnerships with travel service providers such as airlines, car rental companies, and hotels can lead to special rates. These corporate discounts can be fixed or they can be negotiated directly with the travel service provider.
Travel discounts can come in various forms, from corporate hotel rates to frequent flyer airfares, or corporate car rental to rideshare discounts. Enrolling your business into a corporate travel discount program can see your company benefit from:
- Convenience – Organizing your business trips can often cause headaches, but with a corporate travel discount program, planning is made easy thanks to a range of booking tools at your fingertips.
- Control – Gain more transparency over your spending with corporate travel discount programs, which can help you enforce your travel policy.
- Employee perks – With corporate travel discount programs, your employees can enjoy many of the same lower rates.
- Savings – Corporate discounts will save your business a lot of money, while also giving you more visibility over your spending.
How to get the best corporate travel discounts
It’s a common misconception that corporate travel discounts are just for large organizations. Discounts on business travel are now more accessible to smaller businesses thanks to a change in budgets, spending and external economic factors. Whether your business is a start-up, SME or a global organization, here’s how you could benefit from corporate travel discounts.
1. Loyalty and reward schemes
Does your company have a preferred airline or hotel that you use frequently? Many travel providers offer loyalty programs or reward schemes for businesses – the more you use their services, the more money you save. There are many perks of signing your company up to a loyalty scheme, from late room check-outs to more check-in luggage, which can help you reduce your business travel expenses.
However, don’t be fooled into thinking that they are always cheaper than competitors. It’s always important to shop around before booking, as other travel providers could work out cheaper.
2. Research before you book
Although it may seem obvious, it’s important to dedicate time to comparing prices for any accommodation or travel employees need. Allocating a proportion of your resources to researching travel prices could pay off in the long run, reducing your business’ overall travel expenditure.
3. Travel during weekdays
Booking travel between Monday and Thursday could help save your business significant amounts of money. Fewer people travel for leisure during these four days, which means accommodation and travel can providers offer cheaper rates. With fewer people traveling, there are more seats and rooms available to book. It’s a win-win.
4. Negotiate your rates
Travel providers may often hide their corporate rates unless you specifically ask for them. Always ask for a corporate discount and if you’re unsuccessful, negotiate the price for a lower rate. Never pay more than you have to, especially as most travel providers typically have room for negotiation.
5. Set budgets and track expenses
Setting a business travel allowance can help your business stay on top of its expenses, especially when it comes to meals, entertainment and ground transportation. Using an expense tracking system can help you monitor your travel expenditure more closely, so you can review all expenses on a regular basis to identify areas where you can cut costs.
With Gett, you can track all your ground transportation expenses in one place. Integrate your travel policy into the Gett platform and get alerted when a booking is made outside of company guidelines to prevent unnecessary costs.
6. Corporate travel credit cards
Most banks and credit card providers offer corporate credit cards designed specifically for business travel. These credit cards offer a number of benefits, from:
- Access to VIP airport lounges
- Cheaper booking rates
- Free hotel stays
- Point-based reward schemes
Although corporate credit cards often incur an annual fee, the likelihood is that your business will make that money back in savings throughout the year. If your employees make regular international business trips, you could save huge amounts of money that could be invested in other areas of the company.
7. Choose travel management packages
There are many travel management tools available, which enable you to plan and book everything from flights to hotel stays, to ground transportation, all in one platform. Travel management packages allow you to track and monitor bookings and expenses, so you have more control over your outgoings.
8. Enforce compliance with travel policies
Allowing your employees to book travel and accommodation without approval can lead to an increase in non-compliance. Controlling business travel booking is vital to companies cutting costs, especially when employees are traveling on a regular basis. Using booking tools that allow you to integrate your travel policy into the booking requirement can allow you to identify patterns that could save you money. It also encourages corporate travel compliance throughout your organization, giving you visibility over bookings that are not compliant with your travel policy.
How to save money with Gett
Control the cost of your business ground transportation with Gett and save up to 45% each year. View all of your bookings and expenses in one place to track how your travel budget is being spent and identify areas where costs can be reduced. Gett allows you to consolidate all your ground travel data in one platform for in-depth reports that help your business make informed decisions. Using Gett’s travel policy tools, manage costs amongst your teams with existing templates or create your own.
Discover how your business can reduce ground travel costs with Gett. Take advantage of our innovative, easy-to-use platform and start managing your business expense more effectively. Request a demo today.