Business travel

Business travel, or travel management as it is often referred to, is on the rise especially with foreign business markets opening up. Business travel is generally accepted as being a corporation's 3rd or 4th biggest expense after staffing, rent and rates and possibly IT and communications.

Many airlines began to concentrate on providing premium service on long haul flights especially for the first and business class business traveler with the development of more sophisticated business traveler needs over the last 15 years.

Airlines have also been working on tools that benefit the business travellers such as: Improved and competitive mileage programs, quick check in and online check in, lounges with broadband connection, etc. Hotels are not far behind. They are also on the competition for the business travellers by offering flexible points programs, broadband connection in all rooms and fast check in and check out services.

While internet booking engines have become the first destination for around 60% of leisure travelers, business travelers, especially with the need for itineraries that may include more than one destination, have still found that a knowledgeable travel agent may be their best resource for better ticket pricing, less hassle and better air and land travel planning. For larger business travel accounts these travel agents take on a travel management role, and are referred to as Travel Management Companies (TMCs), providing services such as consultancy, traveller tracking, data and negotiation assistance and policy advice.

Recent trends in this market have extended to the implementation of Self Booking Tools (SBTs) which allow automated booking of trips within company policy, an increase in the inclusion of Duty of care practices in the booking and monitoring process and more consideration for the environmental impact of business travel.

The Facts from MeetingsMeanBusiness.com (2009):

• Business travel creates 2.4 million jobs nationally.
• Meetings and events are directly responsible for 1 million jobs.
• The U.S. Travel Association estimates that 200,000 travel jobs were lost in 2008 and expects another 247,000 to be lost in 2009
• Business travel accounts for $39 billion in tax revenue at the federal, state, and local levels.
• Meetings and events are responsible for 15% of all travel-related spending.
• Business travel supports more than 200 hotel and convention centers across the country.
• According to the results of a Meetings and Conventions magazine study, 52 percent of respondents claim that the backlash against meetings has been extremely or moderately influential on their company’s decisions to hold events.
• In a recent survey, 87 percent of Americans say that encouraging people to travel recreationally within the U.S. could improve the country's economic landscape.
• Each meeting and event traveler spends an average of $1,000 per trip.
• According to a recent survey of Fortune 1,000 Chief Marketing Officers, meetings and events provide the highest return on investment of any marketing channel.

Top three expense categories for business travel:

• Airline expenses
• Hotel expenses
• Food and beverage expenses

Given the financial impact involved with business meetings within business travel, it's important to seek resources that will help maximize the investment in business travel so that it delivers a strong return on investment.