How to Choose the Right Corporate Travel System for Your Business

Managing business travel is an old practice with a new set of demands. Today’s companies need to empower remote teams to meet in person, enhance business traveler experience, promote sustainability, and reduce costs amid rising travel prices. 

The right corporate travel system can help you meet these challenges. 

Here’s how to find the right fit for your business.

Assess your travel needs

The first step to finding the right corporate travel system is to look at how your company travels today. You want to understand how many employees take business trips, how often, and to where. Next, consider the geographic footprint of your business and how much you expect it to change and grow over the next five years. 

It’s important to keep sight of your company’s needs and take the time to find a corporate travel system that supports you today and can evolve to accommodate your future business needs.

Prioritize user-friendliness 

User-friendliness is vital for a corporate travel system to support your business goals. We all plan and book travel in our personal lives — employees expect an elegant experience when they book a trip for work. 

Nearly 40 percent of business travelers say their travel technology is the worst part of their company’s travel program, according to the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA).  

This mismatch of expectation and reality comes at a cost to companies. Employees forced to use outdated systems are going to book directly with suppliers or through Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) like Expedia and Booking.com. This practice drives up costs, reduces travel policy compliance, and leads to incomplete data for administrators. 

Look for a corporate travel system that’s, above all, easy to use and doesn’t require hours-long training seminars or tutorials. 

Travelers should also be able to use the system anywhere. Many providers say they’re desktop and mobile capable but provide limited functionality through their mobile apps. It’s vital that travelers are able to modify and cancel trips on their own without having to contact an agent, as well.

Corporate travel systems built on a modern technology stack like Spotnana provide travelers with an easy-to-use interface across desktop and mobile devices that offers self-service functionality however a traveler likes to use the platform.

Examine content range and availability

Business travelers want a good deal. The urge to shop around is another carry-over from personal travel to work travel. 

Business travelers think they’re missing out on choices and better fares when a corporate travel system limits flight, hotel, and rental car content. 

Look for a corporate travel system that delivers a broad scope of inventory, via various sources, including global distribution systems (GDS), direct connections, aggregators, and new distribution capabilities (NDC).

NDC has been a hot topic in recent months after American Airlines pulled 40 percent of its fares from traditional distribution channels.

A corporate travel system’s ability to support NDC should go farther than the booking phase. Travelers should also be able to make self-service itinerary changes, cancel fares after booking, and get support from travel agents seamlessly. 

With Spotnana, you get the best prices and the widest range of unbiased global content, including NDC. Travelers can book, manage, change, and cancel NDC fares on their own using an online booking tool or desktop. 

Look at travel management tools and reporting

The right corporate travel system will empower you to streamline your company’s travel management program and save money in the process. 

Policy enforcement capabilities are critical. By enforcing your company’s travel policy at the point of booking, you will increase traveler compliance, prevent budget-busting decisions, and support sustainability initiatives. 

Spotnana’s platform provides a personalized experience while staying within the guidelines of your company’s travel policy. It also delivers advanced policy features, including a dynamic policy engine that can be configured for specific teams, departments, and individual travelers. You can also set and support a sustainable travel policy to curb your company’s carbon emissions. 

The right corporate travel system will also offer capabilities around reporting and analytics, as well as duty of care. 

The Spotnana platform provides global analytics with real-time data to help you build a more effective travel program. You can also keep travelers safe on the road through real-time traveler tracking and the ability to contact a traveler by phone or text in one click.  

Determine system flexibility

Travel isn’t one-size-fits-all for your employees. Yet, most legacy corporate travel systems don’t allow you to customize technology or processes to meet your company’s specific needs. 

You want a corporate travel system that can evolve and change with you as your company grows. Look for back-end capabilities that support customization. Also look for a pricing model that doesn’t punish your company for reduced travel volumes or increased customer support requirements. 

Your ideal platform should connect to the technology services you already use, including expense and human resources information systems (HRIS). Connecting these systems will give you the insights you need to improve your travel program and grow your business. 

Spotnana’s cloud-based-infrastructure supports seamless integration with other vendors, including HR, expense, and other travel technology platforms. Our pricing model offers an all-inclusive flat fee per trip and eliminates deployment fees, subscription costs, customer service fees, and cancellation fees.  

Find out about traveler support

Trip disruptions and itinerary changes are unavoidable for business travelers. You want a corporate travel system that can help you with both, plus any other scenarios that require assistance. 

When weighing your options, find out what kind of service is available. Travel doesn’t work on a 9-to-5 schedule.

Ensure your provider offers 24/7 support, including access to travel agents who can help with complex itineraries or last-minute changes. It’s also critical to have omnichannel support through chat, phone, and email. Modern corporate travel systems are built with both travelers and travel agents on the same platform, so it’s easy for global travelers to receive service whenever they need it.

Spotnana travel agents are available around the world 24×7 through chat, email, and phone. Plus, you never pay an out-of-hours support fee to reach agents that use the same platform as your travelers. 

To learn more about how Spotnana is revolutionizing corporate travel systems, get a demo today.