How to choose a corporate travel agency for a small business
Managing resources can be a challenge for any small business owner, especially if employees are frequent travellers. If bookings aren’t made in one channel and there’s no consideration to travel policies, a business can quickly lose time and money.There are many options readily available for small businesses to maximise resources and centralise travel spend. More small to medium-sized businesses are choosing travel agencies to manage their business travel. If you’re unsure if your small business would benefit from enlisting an agency or if you’re wondering if there’s a better solution out there, this guide can help you.What is a business travel agency?
As the name suggests, a business travel agency specialises only in business travel. What they’re responsible for will depend on each companies needs, but generally, they’ll:- Book and manage all company travel, including meetings, conferences, and events
- Provide support for cancellations, modifications, and on-trip assistance
- Track and report travel spend
- Create a suitable company travel policy
- Process travel expenses
- Negotiate rates for corporate and group bookings
Like businesses, there are many different types of corporate agencies with different expertise. Some agencies may be large, with international offices and multiple language support, whilst other agencies focus specifically on region or industry. The typical costs for using an agency varies and some charge per transaction; others by a fixed monthly fee.What makes a travel agency a good fit for a small business?
A travel agency is one of the options available to small businesses. Rather than trying to manage everything with no travel manager, or in-house team, a corporate travel agency can provide the services needed, leaving employees to focus on the job they were hired for.A travel agency should understand your business needs and enforce a travel policy to meet budgets and save costs.What are the advantages of using a travel agency for and SMB?
There are many reasons why a small business may seek the help of a travel agency. Here are some of the top advantages:- Increases company efficiency: agencies can report spending by team, department, or project, giving a business the opportunity to control spending and optimise budgets
- Saves valuable time: businesses won’t need to spend time booking itineraries, gathering invoices, or interacting with 3rd party customer support
- Save costs through negotiated discounted rates: corporate travel agents can negotiate rates for their clients which may not be available to the public
- Agents have the expertise: if your company has a complex travelling system or makes frequent changes, agents have the knowledge and experience to help
- Maintain travel policy and expenses: an agency will streamline a companies travel programme and ensure bookings fit within a travel policy
- Offer travel support: in the case that something goes wrong whilst travelling, or a reservation needs to be changed last minute, a travel agency is usually available 24/7 to help the employee
What are the disadvantages for small businesses?
There are other options available for small businesses to manage business travel that are more flexible and cost effective. Before signing on with a corporate travel company, it’s worth considering the disadvantages and the alternatives.- No freedom for the traveller: more business travellers want the opportunity to book for themselves easily and within company policy, which isn’t an option with a business travel agency
- Lack of control for management and administrators: instead of having easy access to reports, administrators will need to reach out to the agency to request information in advance
- Technology isn’t as advanced: travel agencies often contact clients over the phone or by email, there is not one user-friendly location to view all trip information
- Limited inventory: while travel agencies have partnerships and deals, most agencies don’t usually offer low-cost vendors which means they can’t book the cheapest option available
- High fees: business travel agencies increase overall travel spend due to their fees and service markups
What small businesses should look for in a travel agency
If you own a small business, it’s important that energy and resources are focused on what will make the biggest impact. Here are some things to consider when finding an agency that meets your business needs.- Clear costs: it’s important that you’re aware of how the agency will charge for its service. Set payment agreements and look out for any extra charges and commission
- Consumer-grade travel inventory: more choice means you can book the cheapest option and lower your travel spend. Options that are available to regular consumers should be available to business travellers.
- Great support: what kind of support does the agency offer? Is it 24/7? Does it support your language? This is extremely important and where the agency can offer real value.
- Travel spend reports: to improve budgets, insight into travel spend is essential. Look for an agency that can process expenses and can provide in-depth reports and analysis.
- Specialised and scalable: make sure the agency has connections in the locations you travel to the most and has the ability to scale and develop as your company grows
Is there a cost-effective alternative?
If you don’t believe a travel agency is the best fit for your small business, or you have financial concerns about using an agency, there are alternatives readily available that help businesses in the same way as a travel agent.Travel management tools can help small businesses to book, manage, and automate business travel without the need of hiring a corporate travel agent. Most tools allow the traveler to make their own travel arrangements, whilst adhering to travel policies and budgets. The management and finance teams can get easy access to reporting, with a clear overview of employee spends.There’s a tool out there that can help your business at each stage of the travel process, and it’s likely that there is a free version that you can access; making them a cost-effective option to manage small business travel.What's the best travel agency for small businesses?
In short, the best travel agency for a small business is no travel agency, but a travel tool. The objective of hiring a travel agency is to save time and resources on the booking and management process. Travel agencies used to be the best option available for this. However, tech tools with 24/7 support like TravelPerk offer the support of a traditional travel agency with all the advantages of an online booking platform.Click below for a more detailed comparison between both platforms:
Why choose TravelPerk over FCM Travel?Click below for a more detailed comparison between both platforms:
Why choose TravelPerk over Travelbank?Click below for a more detailed comparison between both platforms:
Why choose TravelPerk over CTM?Click below for a more detailed comparison between both platforms:
Why choose TravelPerk over Corporate Traveller??)
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