Lower Costs and Keep Your Travel Budget on Track
As a travel manager, you must wear many hats and possess several and varied skills. Perhaps one of the most important abilities, though rarely considered during the hiring process for a travel coordinator, is negotiation. The word may bring to mind haggling, and in some cases you could end up doing exactly that, but the real spirit of negotiation is coming to a decision both your company and the vendor can be happy with. That means you don’t have to take the listed price as final, but you also shouldn’t offer drastically reduced bids to the hotels, airlines, and transportation services. With some simple tips and tricks, you could find yourself saving money on every aspect of travel for your executives, and over time, that money will add up—making you the hero of the day for lowering travel costs.
Simply Ask
Too many people take the listed price as final, and it does indeed save time to book hotels and flights at the stated cost. However, just asking could open up a world of discounts you’ve never experienced before. When booking hotels, call the specific hotel to reserve the rooms instead of using the corporate website. By speaking with the desk attendant directly, you could learn of on-site promotions or last-minute deals you couldn’t otherwise find. The same is true when buying plane tickets. If you contact the desk directly rather than using a discount travel site, you could use your membership clout to negotiate better prices.
Use More Effective Words
Sometimes just asking for better prices won’t get you anywhere. If, however, you know which words to use, you could get exactly what you want and need. Instead of saying “Is there anything you could do?”, ask “How could I save more money?” By asking how, you will engage the customer service professional in a conversation about money-saving techniques. You could learn about upcoming special offers, loyalty programs, last-minute deals, and many other opportunities to take advantage of savings. In many cases, you could end up speaking with management professionals who have the authority to give better prices.
Turn Last-Minute Price Inflation into Last-Minute Deals
In many cases, booking flights or hotels at the last minute could be a nightmare of inflated prices, but you don’t have to settle for the quoted costs. No airline or hotel wants empty seats or rooms, and this is where you can really put your negotiation skills to the test. Simply asking won’t get the job done here, either. You’ll need to get a bit more aggressive to get the prices you want. Be prepared to flaunt your loyalty status to lower your costs, including how many flights or nights you’ve personally booked for your traveling executives. By showing your history with the airline or hotel, as well as your intention to continue using their services, you may be able to finagle rock-bottom prices for a last-minute trip. If you get what you want, write down the name of the service agent who helped you, and don’t be afraid to contact that particular professional in the future. By remembering names and circumstances, you could parlay one good deal into a whole future of better prices.
Quote Lower Prices
In most cases, you get exactly what you pay for, so jumping on board with the lowest-priced ground transportation could end in disaster. You can, however, use the lower quotes to get good deals from the companies you do trust. For instance, if you have seen savings of 25 percent with an untested limousine or town car company, don’t be afraid to call up the company you often use and ask why they can’t offer similar prices. You may not get the full discount for your executives’ trips, but you might receive a significant cut in costs.
Follow Through on Threats
The beauty of loyalty programs is the reward you receive for continued use of one particular company. However, even the best companies can relax over time and begin offering sloppy service and inflated prices. Your first instinct may be to threaten a switch to other companies, but losing those reward points could be a serious blow to your savings record. By registering for several different loyalty programs and spreading your company’s travel plans between them, you could build a nice nest of credits with several, giving you the ability to jump ship without panicking over points.
As you continue to build great relationships with travel vendors, you'll learn even more ways to save money.
Image credit: freedigitalphotos.net/David Castillo Dominici
