I saw a story about travel predictions for 2010 that reminded me of the importance of factoring in the rising costs of travel-related fees into meetings budgets.
The piece drew predictions from several sources, including the U.S. Travel Association, which has worked so hard to shine a positive light on the meetings industry and prove that managed corporate events are productive rather than wasteful.
Unfortunately as the pressure for supplier profitability mounts, we will be certain to see un-budgeted travel costs rise due to ancillary fees imposed on consumer and business travelers. Anyway, here are a few fees to consider when budgeting, sourcing and reporting for travel related services:
- Airline fees for checking bags (e.g. $20 for the first and $30 for the second), booking tickets via a reservation center ($20), choosing seats, flying in prime time (like spring break), even switching to an earlier flight;
- Hotel and resort fees, for example, $15 a day for Wi-Fi use (whether you use it or not).
Aside from the fee issue, there's some good consumer-type advice in the article that can work just as well for your company meeting planners to help them lower costs, for example:
- "Take a step or two down from what you chose when you had money to burn." That means source for sleeping and meeting room bargains at lower-star yet comfortable hotels.
- "Don't overpack your carry-on." It's happened to me; I've seen airline personnel at security direct passengers back to check-in to check their overstuffed carry-ons. Because so many people are trying to avoid checking bags and paying outrageous fees, the overhead bins inside planes today are as stuffed as the top of the wagon on the "Beverly Hillbillies." And have you noticed that the size of the carry on bags are WAY over the specified limits? Seriously I saw someone the other week bring on a hard sided garment bag that was twice the size of the standard carry-on. I'd like to know how they got past security -- much less the gate personnel.
But travel fees don't have to be a surprise. You can use your e-sourcing tool to query hotels and airlines on their list of fees to make sure you stay in budget. Plus, you don't have to take fees lying down. When sourcing for hotels, try and negotiate those fees away.
And use your attendee management tool to inform attendees of fees, link to an airline or agency booking tool, as well as to provide helpful communication on avoiding fees. In short, SMMP automation offers a lot of different avenues to help avoid and manage fees.
Now a bit on how I feel about this: While the corporation is struggling to reconcile these extra fees and create new policies on reimbursement of the fees, the government and suppliers keep adding them to the total cost of the trip. At the end of the day, consumers are starting to rebel. Someday I hope that the marketplace realizes that for every action, there's a consequence. If you want travel to continue to be cut and frozen, keep adding more costs to it so the customer (corporations) cut even more!
Whoever coined the term "downward spiral" couldn't have come up with a better descriptive of the current situation!
The piece drew predictions from several sources, including the U.S. Travel Association, which has worked so hard to shine a positive light on the meetings industry and prove that managed corporate events are productive rather than wasteful.
Unfortunately as the pressure for supplier profitability mounts, we will be certain to see un-budgeted travel costs rise due to ancillary fees imposed on consumer and business travelers. Anyway, here are a few fees to consider when budgeting, sourcing and reporting for travel related services:
- Airline fees for checking bags (e.g. $20 for the first and $30 for the second), booking tickets via a reservation center ($20), choosing seats, flying in prime time (like spring break), even switching to an earlier flight;
- Hotel and resort fees, for example, $15 a day for Wi-Fi use (whether you use it or not).
Aside from the fee issue, there's some good consumer-type advice in the article that can work just as well for your company meeting planners to help them lower costs, for example:
- "Take a step or two down from what you chose when you had money to burn." That means source for sleeping and meeting room bargains at lower-star yet comfortable hotels.
- "Don't overpack your carry-on." It's happened to me; I've seen airline personnel at security direct passengers back to check-in to check their overstuffed carry-ons. Because so many people are trying to avoid checking bags and paying outrageous fees, the overhead bins inside planes today are as stuffed as the top of the wagon on the "Beverly Hillbillies." And have you noticed that the size of the carry on bags are WAY over the specified limits? Seriously I saw someone the other week bring on a hard sided garment bag that was twice the size of the standard carry-on. I'd like to know how they got past security -- much less the gate personnel.
But travel fees don't have to be a surprise. You can use your e-sourcing tool to query hotels and airlines on their list of fees to make sure you stay in budget. Plus, you don't have to take fees lying down. When sourcing for hotels, try and negotiate those fees away.
And use your attendee management tool to inform attendees of fees, link to an airline or agency booking tool, as well as to provide helpful communication on avoiding fees. In short, SMMP automation offers a lot of different avenues to help avoid and manage fees.
Now a bit on how I feel about this: While the corporation is struggling to reconcile these extra fees and create new policies on reimbursement of the fees, the government and suppliers keep adding them to the total cost of the trip. At the end of the day, consumers are starting to rebel. Someday I hope that the marketplace realizes that for every action, there's a consequence. If you want travel to continue to be cut and frozen, keep adding more costs to it so the customer (corporations) cut even more!
Whoever coined the term "downward spiral" couldn't have come up with a better descriptive of the current situation!
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