Is Travel Managing You or Are You Managing Your Travel?
The Signal - Business Section, September, 2006
There’s a nationwide trend happening right now that you might not even be aware of: companies are migrating back to the retail, brick and mortar travel agency for some good old-fashioned customer service that the Internet simply can not provide. High-touch transactions are coming back in a big way, rebounding from the past few years of no-touch, virtual ticketing and travel planning done by the boss’s secretary on the web.
The popular consensus driving many small and medium-sized businesses to the travel e-commerce super highway was that by booking your own travel online it actually saved time and money, and eliminated paying agent fees. However, it never really worked that way.
Do-it-yourself travel planning ended up costing companies and individuals lots of time, loads of money and the result was not always the best schedule and no one to call for assistance while on the road. The lack of accountability offered on the Internet is especially problematic when a traveler needs re-routing due to a delayed or cancelled flight. Whom do you turn to for help getting the next flight out, certainly not a website? A travel agent would be available to monitor travel and trouble-shoot in such a circumstance.
Even those of us in the industry rely on our own travel agents to help navigate the process of trip planning. Planning travel is a skilled profession in a constantly changing environment and it takes a committed expert to negotiate rates, book appropriate rooms and secure the best options. It requires time and a rolodex of industry connections to deliver a travel schedule that meets the standards and expectations of most seasoned corporate road warriors.
Now companies have learned. You hire a professional administrator to run your office; you hire a travel agent to book your trips and manage your corporate travel planning. It really is that simple.
The magnitude of a company’s travel spending can be quite significant, and requires the finesse of a trained specialist. For many firms, travel is right behind personnel on the list of biggest expenses they incur each year. By returning to high-touch managed travel provided by people with a personal relationship, rather than a self-serve computer screen, businesses are not only reducing the time spent on trying to book their own travel, they are also saving money in several ways. Thanks to professional networks and consortiums, travel agencies are able to extend lower industry-negotiated corporate rates, secure upgrades when available, and keep track of the total travel spend and track usage for an organization, ensuring all travelers within a firm are adhering to company travel policies and per diems.
An agent also offers accountability. Should you unexpectedly become stranded and think you have no way out, just call your travel agent for a creative solution. If you need a better room or if your passport is stolen, there are fewer worries when you have a trusted travel professional working on your behalf to make things right. No website I know of offers this level of personalized service.
You would not cut your own hair or do your own corporate tax preparation after reading a how-to website; you would surely seek a professional to perform these services. The same holds true for travel. High-touch, professionally managed travel was an old-school way of the past, and now it is the wave of the future. Have your travel agent’s number on speed-dial and use it.
For more information
contact Nicole Stinson, Public Relations
(310) 312-3368
