Traveling is increasingly becoming an essential part of business operations. As the expenditure on traveling continues to rise, so do the prices of everything from hotels to flights and transportation.
No matter the size of your business, traveling economically doesn’t have to be a challenge. There are ways to cut costs efficiently while enjoying just as many amenities on a business trip.
We’ve compiled the perfect guide to help you save money on your next business trip.
Today, corporate travels are not just associated with big firms, small and mid-sized businesses are also making such trips to grow their business.
Research suggests that the cost of business travel is on a constant rise. With the rising prices of hotels, food, and transportation everywhere, funding business trips can be a challenge, especially for small and mid-sized business owners.
If you are looking to reduce your travel expenditure, begin by planning everything out and being on the lookout for resources. Let us take a look at some of the ways you can save money on your upcoming business travels.
1. Invest in a Travel Management Software
Travel-management software is a one-stop shop to manage all your travel needs. They are specialized platforms that book business trips, manage them, and keep records of previous trips.
They also automate your corporate travel policies for you.
If you are looking for an efficient and affordable option, go for the travel management software by TravelPerk that offers premium features to help you track your spending on a trip.
TravelPerk also offers free software for businesses looking for a quality tool to help with their travels without the extra cost.
Other than booking and managing your trips, your travel management software also takes care of the corporate travel policies. It allows you to customize them as per your needs.
Moreover, everyone has access to them, thus, helping the management and the staff be on the same page regarding existing rules and new changes.
2. Set the Rules Straight
Though it is advisable to have a corporate travel policy, there has been a rise in out-of-policy bookings. Around 50% of companies don’t have any sort of policy for mobile bookings when it is rapidly becoming the more commonly used way to book travels.
One of the most effective ways to save money in travels, in the long run, is to take care of the rules and regulations surrounding it.
Create a policy framework if you don’t have one, tweak it around to make sure it covers every aspect if you already do. Go through the additional rules to see what works best for you.
A) Simplify the Policies
Policies often go unread, because they are cumbersome and hard to read. You should strive to simplify your policies for a better understanding. They should be readable, practical, and available to all employees.
When the policy is available to all employees, it vastly reduces the chances of out-of-policy bookings. Make sure to be specific in the policy, including everything from flight bookings to hotel expenditure and local transportation.
Get the fundamentals right, clearly define approval procedures and guidelines regarding spending. Invite input suggestions from your employees to help make it better.
B) Set a Food and Transport Allowance
Instead of setting a rigid allowance structure for meal and transport expenditure, try to be flexible in it. Giving employees control overspending on a trip helps you save better.
So, instead of setting an allowance for per meal or per ride, you set it for a whole day or even the entire trip.
How they spend it is up to them. First, it makes them make their own choices, enhancing their enjoyment of the trip. Secondly, it shows them that you are not micromanaging them.
That you trust them to spend wisely on a business trip.
3. Monitor the Expenses
Once pre-planning is taken care of, it’s time to get into the actual process of managing your travels. The key is to keep an eye on the travel trends and deals that you can capitalize on.
You can even ask your employees to keep you posted on reward programs that you can take advantage of.
A) Transportation
As the airlines can take a good portion of travel expenses, you should look for ways to minimize expenses on it.
First and foremost, determine if a trip needs air travel or not. In many cases, alternative modes of transportation such as railways, public transportation, cabs, or employees’ personal vehicles work just as well.
In fact, they may be more feasible for a shorter distance.
In the event of air travel being necessary, try to book your tickets in advance. Booking a flight as early as 8 days in advance can help you save up to $148 on a ticket. Using search engines can also help you land cheap deals.
Read the rules and regulations on the tickets carefully to know the right carrier for yourself. This helps you avoid the unnecessary expense of airline fees. Travel light all the time as a rule of thumb to save up on needless expenses.
Airport parking is another kind of expense that can be easily avoided. Simply take a cab to the airport and escape the high airport parking fees.
B) Hotels
When booking hotels, try to look for package deals. Such deals may cover transport rental or meals along with the stay of the hotel, saving you the trouble of paying for those other expenses individually.
You may not have to book a 5-star hotel either. A simple room at a moderate hotel works just fine so long as the service at the hotel is adequate. Hotel chains (and airlines) often offer reward programs for frequent customers.
Choosing the same chain of hotels every time can get you a few free stays and flights the next time. It may not save you a lot, but it’s still a great saving for your traveling expenses, especially if you are a smaller business.
C) Local Transportation
Look for deals that cover ground transportation along with airfare or hotel stays. Bundling them up with either will help you save more as opposed to booking a fresh rental car every time.
You can also look for cheap rentals locally if you have some time. Asking around may help you find some.
You also have the option to go for services like Uber and Lyft that let you share expenses. If you are comfortable with it, you can even go carpooling. Think of it as an opportunity to meet and engage with new people.
D) Meals
As discussed earlier, giving the employees the freedom to spend as per their wish on a corporate tour is the smarter option. Moreover, look for options that can help you save on meals.
Most hotels have their own restaurants that offer meals that are often cheaper than what you will get in restaurants outside.
A cheaper option is to scout around for local cuisines. Not only are they cheap, but they offer you a new experience as well.
If entertaining a client, you may want to go to a more expensive restaurant than simply the one in your hotel. In that case, skim through the menu beforehand to know what to order that sticks with your budget.
4. Watch Out for Additional Expenses
You may extensively plan your trip, choosing the most economical options at every turn, and yet find yourself with an exorbitant bill at the end if you don’t protect yourself against “add-on” expenses.
Research by Concur revealed that the basic ticket price of a flight remains the same more or less, it’s the additional expenses such as luggage fees, seat upgrades, and meals during the flight that truly add to the total bill.
So, look out for these expenses levied as hidden charges in your bill.
The same applies to hotel accommodations too. Additional charges like wifi and parking can cost you unnecessarily.
You can always decline to use the hotel’s internet service and simply use the one on your smartphone.
Conversely, using payment options that get you rewards and bonus points to be spent on travel can prove to be a great aid on your trips. This is especially helpful if you take business trips often.
Many credit cards and UPI payment methods offer lucrative rewards that can come in handy when booking a hotel or flight.
5. Plan in Advance
Some of the most expensive trips — business or not — are always going to be the ones that happen at the last minute. So, the golden rule of saving money while traveling in business is to simply plan in advance.
It helps you stay ahead of the curve, grab the best deals and prepare extensively. You also get the time to estimate the budget of a trip and gauge how much travel you can afford in a period of time, say, a calendar year.
Conclusion
Recent years have seen the rise of video conferencing in lieu of physical travel. They are indeed a great option, especially for small businesses. Though sometimes, face-to-face meetings and physical travels are essential.
Instead of losing out on business opportunities because of high travel costs, try cutting expenses by planning wisely. Travel-management software will help you manage your trips with ease.
Let us know in the comment section what tips and tricks you use to save money on your business trips.
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