The travel programs at your company might not be the main factor that determines if people will want to work for you. Still, as corporate travel is a big part of how we do business today, the experience of your employees on their trips is of grand importance.
In the US alone, 1.3 million people travel for business every day. Globally speaking, business travel accounts for over 20% of all travel expenditures.
What does this tell us?
It tells us that a grand portion of the people who travel do this for business purposes. It’s how business is done, connections are made, and companies can grow. While technology has enabled us to schedule online meetings and communicate more easily, this is no substitute for in-person meetings.
The truth is, it’s not always easy to book employees on their trip and match all the preferences they have. Companies struggle with managing reservations and keeping them under budget. Any bad choice or mistake, and their employee has troubles during the trip, lacks comfort, both of which can affect their productivity and success.
According to Business Travel News, 83% of workers see business travel as ‘very important’ to their job success. Hospitality is of great value for business people and in this article, we’ll explore why this matters and what exactly these people need on their work trips.
Handling corporate travel the right way
Let’s say that your company handles corporate travel well. You are planning trips for your employees, organizing events, and planning for other tasks for your worker’s trips. Ensuring that this is handled properly will do the following:
- Keep the traveler comfortable during their stay
- Keep them rested and ready to do their work
- Enable them to do their best work without issues
But, if you handle it poorly, it can easily go the other way. The hotel you booked might not be comfortable, so the traveler won’t get a good night’s sleep. It might not have a good internet connection, which is vital for the work of your employee. They end up being tired during the meeting and struggle to get their job done without a good connection.
Organizing trips and events can be a hassle, especially for companies that do this often. To make sure everything is streamlined and avoid problems along the way, you can simply use a tool to assist you in finding and booking corporate accommodation. AltoVita has the largest inventory for corporate accommodation and housing and can help with everything from budget control to booking management.
There are 3 major benefits of using the right resource to organize corporate travel:
- Ensure comfort. You are making sure that your employee is comfortable on their trip
- Reduce costs. This includes everything from accommodation rates to insurance to airline tickets
- Time management. Manually searching for good accommodation can be a lengthy, time-consuming process. A dedicated tool will help you do it in minutes
Why business travel is important for businesses
To understand how good hospitality affects corporate travelers, we need to start by answering one important question – why is business travel important in the first place?
There’s a never-ending list of answers, but here are the top reasons why this is something your business should be focusing on:
Stronger business relationships
People travel for business to meet others. In-person interactions are much different from talking on the screen. You can build trust and rapport, read the person’s body language, and maintain professional, strong relationships. Very often, meeting in person is vital for closing a deal. It’s more personal and while it requires some time on a plane and days spent away from the office at a hotel, it’s the basis for many business connections worldwide.
Networking opportunities
Networking is a big part of doing business. Corporate travel gives opportunities to meet new people, connect with clients and customers, and much more. There are events like conferences, training trips, and trade shows that cannot be attended over video call. Instead, people travel to the location, network with others, and build strong professional relationships.
Development and learning
Speaking of training, this is one of the reasons for corporate travel – to teach employees something new and advance their knowledge. Companies often send their workers to attend corporate events and educate themselves.
Team building
Business travel is also used for team building. When co-workers travel together or meet people employed in offices in other locations, this helps build connections between them and strengthens them as a team. A more connected team works better together, there’s no doubt about it.
Brand awareness
Corporate travel can also help your business raise brand awareness. People who attend conferences, trade shows, and meetings can meet new people, hand out business cards, and create new growth opportunities.
Boosting morale
Companies today include ‘frequent corporate travel’ or ‘incentive travel’ in their benefit packages. People are attracted to jobs that offer them travel opportunities. They can get out of their comfort zone, are not stuck in the office all the time, and can see different places. If done properly, a corporate trip can make the employee happier and boost their morale.
Good hospitality and the business traveler
It’s not enough just to send a worker to a corporate event. You can’t just search Google for a few minutes, find a hotel, book a plane, and send them on the trip. Many things can go wrong if you don’t pick the right flight or the right hotel or the right transportation.
Flights that take too long tend to exhaust the travelers. They aren’t rested to work when they arrive. They’ll be tired during the corporate event. They won’t learn anything on the first day of training. The list goes on and on.
With that in mind, here are the top reasons why good hospitality is important for the corporate traveler:
1. Convenience
Business travel can be stressful. Some journeys are inevitably long when the destination is far away. If you had little time to organize a trip, several stops in different cities or countries might be the only option you have for the worker.
Truth is, business travelers prioritize convenience. They need to know every detail about their trip. They want it all organized. When they arrive at their destination, they need accessible transportation to their accommodation.
Not just that. Convenience means that their hotel is near the office or venue that they need to visit. They need to be able to commute around the new location without a problem.
If the trip is not convenient, the employee will struggle with getting around, not to mention this will make the stay highly stressful.
2. Comfort
While you might not be able to avoid a long journey, you can offer your worker a good accommodation. Corporate travelers expect premium service and facilities designed for a better experience. You must make sure that the traveler has what they need – a good bed to sleep in, a hotel with breakfast, efficient staff to make their stay more pleasant, etc.
3. Facilities
Corporate travelers aren’t like tourists or people traveling for fun. They don’t have the time to scour the city, take tours or spend hours in hotel restaurants.
What they need, though, are facilities that will help them work. They need conference rooms if the job demands them. They need a good Wi-Fi connection in their room so they can do their job well. They need proper lighting and a desk, room service, and a place to get coffee when they need to freshen up.
Considering that business travelers are always on the move, they might want to refuel and do some exercise. Some of the facilities they often use are for fitness. It’s hard to maintain an exercise routine when you travel for business.
It’s not just about the location of the hotel, too. Business travelers need a comfortable stay at the hotel they’ve booked. They need to be well rested to do their work, and the hospitality of the staff during their stay is of utmost importance.
Do you focus on hospitality for your brand’s corporate travels?
Corporate travel is much different from leisure travel. Business travelers have busy schedules and big responsibilities. They want comfort, the facilities they need for work, as well as reliability. This is why hotels that cater to business travelers work hard to ensure that their guests have all they need at their disposal. Starting from good connectivity to easy transport options to helpful staff – hospitality is key for successful corporate trips.
Author bio:
Nadica Metuleva is a senior freelance writer with 8+ years of experience in producing original, high-quality content for clients. She has a Master’s degree in English Literature and Teaching and speaks 4 languages. Nadica has a passion for storytelling and a deep understanding of SEO principles. You can find her samples and more details about her work on LinkedIn.
Over to you
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