Take Control of Company Travel Costs

Big or small, companies of all sizes are feeling the effects of rising gas prices. Airfares are on the rise, taxis are more expensive, and you can forget about driving to that meeting. But with a few changes in the way you view and book travel, you just might be able to get your budgets back in line.

Iron. Plastic. Airfare?

Some companies purchase travel in the same way that they purchase raw materials. They view airlines as suppliers to be negotiated with. If your company is large enough, you might benefit from this tactic or from the use of a travel procurement company like Travel Analytics. Along with negotiating with carriers for reduced costs, travel procurement companies offer analytical tools that help you review your current spending patterns and travel policies.

Be Flexible

If you travel to see a particular vendor or client on a regular basis and you have a flexible travel schedule, use a service like Airfare Watchdog. The watchdog will alert your when there are cheap fares to your desired destination.

Travel mid-week when flights are cheaper. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the cheapest days to fly. Believe it or not, there is even a cheapest time of day to book your flights. CNNMoney says that booking in the early morning will get you the best fare. They also suggest checking the price several times throughout the day. Airlines adjust their prices roughly every 5 hours as they try to fill their seats.

If your schedule isn't flexible and you need to find the best rate on the web, try www.kayak.com. Kayak searches all internet travel sites so that you can find the best deal.

Alternate Airports

Choosing an off airport can save you money. Airports near vacation destination, for example, will have lower fares than those used for business travel. This is the case if you compare the cost of flights into Florida's Ft. Lauderdale airport versus Miami. There is only 27 miles between the two airports, but the difference in airfare can be substantial.

The closer an airport is to a major city, the more expensive the ticket will be. This is the case if you compare rates at John F. Kennedy airport versus New York's LaGuardia. The same is true for Dulles airport versus Regan National in the D.C. area. With the rising cost of gasoline, employ the alternate airport strategy with caution.

International Options

If your business involves international travel, you are probably aware of around the world tickets. You can fly to multiple cities for a discounted rate as long as you continue to fly in one direction with anywhere from 3 to 10 stops possible along the way. These tickets are substantially reduced and are generally flexible with dates. But you must start and end your journey in the same place.

Make a Plan

If your employees book their own travel, do you have a travel policy in force? A good travel policy should mandate maximum hotel charges and per diem budgets for food. Travel policies may list most hotel maximums by city, since the average hotel cost in New York will be higher than in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

Stay Home

The best way to avoid the high cost of travel is to just stay home. Consider a web conference or teleconference instead. Both alternatives allow for a large number of participants. Web conferencing adds visuals into the mix with all participants viewing the same presentation via a website. Some services will even allow for remote desktop manipulation.