Every year, there are over 400 million individual business trips in the U.S., with businesses shelling out $111.7 billion per year to shuttle their employees to and fro. Those are big numbers, and travel managers have to make sure these trips have a good ROI to make the massive investment worth it. And that starts with finding the most suitable accommodation.
More often than not, so much focus is put on finding the best deal on flights that accommodation is an afterthought. Not much effort is put into finding the best hotel for that trip, and that affects the quality of the trip, employee satisfaction and productivity and ultimately, the trip’s ROI. Check out how CrewFacilities.com ensures that business travelers have the best accommodation at the right price.
What is the trip’s objective? First ask yourself, what is the priority for this trip? Is it a quick in and out? Or is it a convention that’s going to take an entire week? Is it a group or individual trip? These questions will give you a better idea of the kind of accommodation your employees will need. If it’s a short trip, a simple, basic room may be enough, but if the trip is a long one, they might need accommodation with more amenities and comforts.
Efficient transport over proximity. Many travel managers and employees choose proximity to the office or event they’re traveling to, rather than the time it takes to get to the venue from the hotel. Not only are hotels closer to the city pricier, but the streets are much more likely to be filled with pedestrians who will slow you down. A two-mile walk can take longer than an 8-mile subway ride in some busy cities.
On top of that, hotels that are far from the city center are sure to be cheaper, so you can save more all while ensuring traveling employees can get to and from the venue quickly and in time.
Travel policy compliance. Most businesses are in the game to earn a profit, and travel policy compliance is central to that. Ideally, you should be using booking platforms to book flights and accommodation. These platforms allow you to plug your policy in, and they filter out any results that aren’t within policy, making it a lot easier to maintain near-perfect travel policy compliance.
They also help to maintain the balance between cost-cutting and employee satisfaction. If you provide a variety of options for employees to choose from, even if they’re slightly cheaper, they’re likely to be more content and productive during their trips.
Have you thought about alternative accommodation? These days, there’s a lot of options for the average business traveler. Apart from hotels, there are alternative options like Airbnb and HomeAway. Airbnb launched its Airbnb For Work program back in 2014, and by the end of 2019, over 700,000 businesses were using the platform. These alternatives are often cheaper and they offer a much more relaxed environment. They’re also the best options for group trips as they allow team building and cooperation.
Have any questions concerning hotels, Airbnb or sourcing for accommodation? CrewFacilities would love to help! Contact us here.
Andrea Tsakanikas - CrewFacilities.com 