When it comes to corporate travel, many companies see it as a necessary expense rather than an opportunity to reap benefits. However, there are several business travel perks that companies aren’t completely aware of.
From enhancing professional relationships to improving employee satisfaction, business travel offers a plethora of benefits that can significantly impact a company’s success.
Here is an infographic explaining a few major business travel perks you should be aware of as a company owner.
To understand corporate travel perks in detail, read on.
1. Negotiate Contracts and Onboard New Clients
One of the most useful business travel perks is leveraging offline interactions to negotiate deals and onboard new clients. In-person meetings have a touch of emotion that can help build trust and establish rapport. When you are both seen and heard, you can more effectively convey your message and be more persuasive in your negotiations.
Research has shown that face-to-face meetings can be highly effective in building long-term relationships and negotiating important contracts. In a survey conducted by Harvard Business Review, over 2000 respondents indicated that 95% of them believed that face-to-face meetings were critical in establishing lasting relationships.
2. Expand your Network and Gain Insights
Attending conferences and networking events is one of the best corporate travel perks. It is a powerful way to strengthen your business relationships and expand your professional network. These events bring together like-minded individuals who share common interests, goals, and challenges, creating a platform for valuable conversations.
By attending such events, you can connect with industry experts and potential clients to whom you might not have had access otherwise. One essential tool to bring along to these events is your business card. By handing out your business card, you make it easy for potential clients or partners to follow up with you after the event and continue the conversation.
Furthermore, conferences and networking events often feature keynote speakers and educational sessions that provide a wealth of knowledge. These sessions offer an opportunity to learn about best practices and new technologies, which you can implement to overcome challenges you might be facing in your business.
3. Strengthen Existing Business Relationships
Business travel has proven to be an effective way to strengthen existing client relationships.
By meeting clients in person, it is possible to discover new projects, understand their problems and needs better, and offer more effective solutions. This can lead to better decision-making, ultimately contributing to long-term relationships with clients.
4. Experience New Ways of Working and Finding Inspiration
When you travel to a new location for business, you have the opportunity to interact with people who may have different customs, languages, and ways of working than you’re used to. By observing and learning from these cultural differences, you can gain new insights and perspectives that can improve your own work practices.
In addition to this, research has shown that multicultural learning experiences can facilitate creativity by exposing you to new ideas, perspectives, and ways of thinking.
As thought leader David Burkus explained in an article for Forbes, taking a break from familiar surroundings can help you release fixation on the same old solutions and open your mind to new possibilities. This can lead to “eureka moments” and innovative ideas that may not have arisen without the influence of unique cultural experiences.
Therefore, creative inspiration and breakthroughs in your work are a few significant corporate travel perks you can get while traveling for work.
5. Research New Markets
Researching new markets is one of the most practical business travel perks. Exploring a new market is a great way to gain valuable insights into the local business environment. By observing the practices of local businesses, you can learn about the successful strategies that work in that particular market.
Moreover, business travel allows you to talk to potential customers and understand their needs, preferences, and pain points. This gives you the information you may need to customize your offerings to the local market.
Furthermore, you can learn about the local laws and regulations that apply to your industry and identify potential challenges and opportunities in the market. By doing so, you can develop a business strategy that is more aligned with the demographic of the new market.
6. Create Brand Awareness
Building brand awareness is one of the most important corporate travel perks. Through face-to-face interactions with potential customers, you can get multiple corporate travel perks like introducing your brand to new people, making valuable connections, and generating leads.
Another key benefit of corporate travel is that it can enhance your brand’s credibility and reputation. When you represent your brand at local events, it demonstrates your commitment to building strong relationships with customers.
In addition, business travel provides the opportunity for in-person product demonstrations or presentations, which can be more effective than virtual ones. By allowing potential customers to see and experience your offerings first-hand, you can better communicate the value and benefits of your products or services. This can help to build confidence and trust in your brand, leading to increased sales and revenue.
7. Establish Industry Leadership by Sharing Knowledge
Becoming an industry leader offers a multitude of advantages, including the ability to command premium prices due to the brand’s status. Additionally, it leads to increased customer loyalty and a longer product life cycle, resulting in enhanced profitability.
One of the business travel perks includes establishing industry leadership by speaking at events and various other offline channels. When you share your knowledge and experience with others, it can demonstrate your authority and expertise in a particular area and position you as a thought leader.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that these opportunities should be approached in a way that prioritizes providing value to the audience rather than simply promoting your business. Further, you can use actual examples and case studies to provide concrete examples of how your expertise can be applied in practice.
8. Increase the Productivity of Employees
To promote productivity among employees during business travel, companies should consider offering some leisure time, also known as “Bleisure” time as one of the business travel rewards. According to a study commissioned by London City Airport for its Bleisure Travel Report, the majority of respondents (61%) reported being more productive after taking bleisure trips.
This suggests that incorporating leisure activities into business travel can help employees feel more refreshed, energized, and motivated, ultimately leading to increased productivity. Furthermore, business trips can give employees time to reflect on their work and personal lives, which can enhance their self-awareness and help them gain clarity on their goals.
9. Support Team Building
Business travel can be an effective way to enhance team building within an organization. When team members travel together, they have the opportunity to get to know each other on a more personal level and develop stronger relationships. This is why team building is one of the business travel perks that can lead to improved communication, collaboration, and teamwork when they return to the workplace.
In addition, traveling as a team can help to build trust and create a shared sense of purpose. Working together to overcome business travel challenges, such as navigating a new city or dealing with unexpected changes in itinerary, can help to build resilience and foster a sense of companionship.
When planning business trips, you can integrate team-building activities such as group meals or sightseeing tours into the travel itinerary.
10. Enhance Skills and Personality
A recent report by The Economist Intelligence Unit and Lucidchart found that almost half of the employees (42%) believe that misunderstandings at work can be attributed to differences in communication styles. Traveling can provide an opportunity to experience and better understand diverse communication styles, which can be applied and beneficial upon returning to the workplace.
Moreover, corporate travel can enhance adaptability and time management skills by encouraging employees to manage travel schedules and workloads efficiently. Traveling can also foster self-reliance, as navigating new surroundings can boost independence and confidence. Additionally, it can enhance critical thinking abilities by exposing individuals to unexpected situations and requiring them to think creatively to solve problems.
All of these experiences can ultimately contribute to a well-rounded and skilled employee, making business travel a valuable experience for both personal and professional growth.
11. Increase Employee Satisfaction
According to a recent study, corporate travel appears to have a positive impact on employee satisfaction, as 64% of business travelers reported enjoying their jobs less when they were not traveling. This suggests that business travel may provide employees with a sense of purpose and excitement that they may not experience in their day-to-day routines.
Additionally, the study found that nearly half (48%) of employees are even considering a change in occupation, indicating that the lack of travel opportunities could lead to disengagement and turnover.
Furthermore, a study by GBTA suggests that corporate travel experience impacts the job satisfaction level of employees. This is especially true for millennials (88%). Therefore, employers may want to consider offering corporate travel as a potential perk to attract and retain employees who value new experiences and challenges.
These Business Travel Perks can Boost your Company’s Success
If you want to maximize the benefits that business travel can offer, you must start by investing in an advanced travel management solution. Explore an array of business travel perks and rewards.
ITILITE is an advanced corporate travel management software application that can help you plan your business travel and give you access to the most economical flight and hotel options. Plus, you can streamline your operations by giving self-booking options, live-tracking your employees while they are on a business trip, and optimizing your approval process.
Get the free demo of ITILITE now to experience the features.
