For buyers and arrangers of business travel and meetings MEAN STREETS...
TO SAY that buyers are ‘anxious’ or ‘manic’ about what’s in store for them during the rest of 2012 may sound exaggerated but it is an accurate description, according to one of the big four TMCs, when reflecting on clients’ state of mind right now.
Generally being asked to cut a further 20 to 30 per cent of spend is at the core of buyers’ mental anguish and it’s this challenge that’s driving TMCs to staff up their consultancy arms, and to people their IT departments to work overtime to integrate more reason codes. In this issue we’re offering lots of help in all the vital areas: how to control hotel spend (page 8), how to build a hotel programme (page 12), what you really need from a self-booking tool (page 16), why it’s worth auditing hotel rates (page 20), how to gain a seamless process for expense management (page 56) and why it’s vital to use Yammer and Chatter and eschew Facebook or Twitter as social media sites for corporate travel (page 10). Saving money on process is equally important as the rates you pay and
this area may offer the incremental savings that corporates are tasked with finding this year. Take a look at our feature on ground transportation (page 34) for examples of suppliers that can help control costs in this area, while our feature on rail (page 24) shows how bookings are being made easier, at last. Corporates are still getting a good deal from hotel booking agents, we have concluded (see our feature on page 62), and particularly now that they commonly collaborate with TMCs. It can be a win-win situation for the buyer, but it’s not without extra effort and extra budget initially at least before the savings begin to accrue.
THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE (Print) ISSN 1754-8543
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CONTRIBUTORS
Mike Swindell TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Mike is a veteran of the travel industry, specialising in business travel, trade technology and aviation. He has been features editor of Travel Trade Gazette and deputy editor of Airline World.
Linda Fox JOURNALIST Linda has worked as a freelance travel writer for over five years and prior to that spent seven years covering the hotels and technology sectors on Travel Trade Gazette.
Dinah Hatch JOURNALIST Dinah began specialising in travel writing nine years ago. Today she contributes to a variety of publications including The Observer, The Times and Travel Weekly.
Dave Richardson JOURNALIST Dave has more than 30 years' experience as a travel industry writer. He is a previous winner in Carlson Wagonlit's Business Travel Journalism Awards and has visited over 70 countries.
Gillian Upton EDITOR
Colin Ellson JOURNALIST Colin is a highly experienced travel journalist, specialising in the aviation sector and the Middle East. Before venturing into the travel sector, Colin was an award-winning journalist on the TV Times.
Roger Gardner CONSULTANT Roger is an aviation environmental expert with nearly 30 years experience of policy development, regulation and research management, currently providing consulting advice to various stakeholders.
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