How to Select Suppliers to Save on Travel Costs

A few years ago, to prepare a trip, a company used the services of a traditional travel agency , today you can find suppliers present on the internet thanks to e-commerce. These providers also facilitate the booking process, allowing companies to use different agents without using intermediaries. Today, thanks to these online suppliers , one can buy a train or plane ticket, make a reservation in a hotel or rent a car. From there, we need to identify the best provider for each service concerned.

In any case, it is necessary to take into account all the variables. It has been shown that certain operations are sometimes more expensive, not because of their final cost, but according to different services that it was not possible to obtain. For example, some agencies can provide us with detailed statistics by type of expenditure (hotels, car rental, etc.), others, a reconciliation with the credit card or billing designed to adapt to the needs of the services. company accountants, or even integration with company accounting or ERP programs. So many services which also have a cost and which can facilitate the drafting of expense reports for traders. The situation is no longer the same as a few years ago and there are now different purchasing channels. For example, we can call (as we did before), we can send an email, or even make a reservation or a purchase with a tablet. We now have the necessary tools to carry out rapid, direct, immediate actions, which do not require the intervention of a third party.

How to Select Suppliers to Save on Travel Costs

But there is also another factor to consider. If we pay using a smartphone, without any verification, we risk becoming dispersed and no longer controlling our volume of purchases. This leads to a decrease in the weight we weigh in negotiations with suppliers. It is therefore advisable to have an analysis carried out, as an audit, and to buy according to the results obtained for the different options.

When it comes to complex trips (several visits to the same continent with different flights, or a very distant destination) it is best to avoid the web so as not to risk making an intuitive purchase, and taking a flight direct, certainly more convenient, but also more expensive. Thanks to its experience, a specialized agency will be able to advise us on a stopover in Europe or combine several flights with different companies.

We therefore conclude that it is necessary to make comparisons between the different providers to clearly see what services they offer us and at what prices. It will thus be possible to assess our level of satisfaction both qualitatively and economically. However, the information thus obtained is not set in stone and certain details can often change. It is therefore advisable to carry out regular audits.