All News

BUSINESS TRAVEL BUYERS HOLDING BACK ON HOTEL SPEND

Friday, January 13, 2012
A survey of business travel buyers by the Business Travel Show has revealed that budgets are on the increase for 2012 but that extra money won’t necessarily end up in the hotel community. 

One quarter of the 252 buyers surveyed confirmed their budgets will increase for 2012, while 15 per cent will have less money to play with and nearly half (46 per cent) will see no change. Despite this, 27 per cent of buyers will be booking more travellers into lower class hotels. 

“It’s really positive news that budgets are on the increase and everyone is feeling a renewed confidence in the business travel market after a very difficult period,” commented Business Travel Show event director David Chapple.

“By the same token, buyers are still under massive pressure to cut costs and stretch budgets so it comes as little surprise they are still being very shrewd with their finances. We have three hotel-focused sessions on the Business Travel Show conference programme, as well as hotel chains including Premier Inn, Travelodge, Best Western and Pestana Hotels exhibiting, which can help all hotel buyers to get more out their contracts.”

These sessions are:

Buyer case studies: Hotels - why I use a travel management company/why I use a hotel booking agency (moderator: John Melchior, Managing Director, Travel Group Consulting)

One of the most heated debates in corporate travel is whether to use a one-stop-shop TMC or a specialist HBA to manage your hotel programme. In this not-to-miss session, a TMC client and an HBA client both explain why they made their choice.

John Melchior, managing director, Travel Group Consulting, commented: “For far too long the hotel industry was the ugly step sister of travel procurement. It is in fact a fascinating area with lots of opportunities and it is great to see the focus not only TMCs and travel buyers are putting into the science of hotel buying but also the important role The Business Travel Show has attached to this area and I can’t wait to participate in the debate”

Buyer case studies: Get more out of your hotel contracts (moderator: Ally Dombey, Director, Revenue by Design)

This has been the toughest year since the recession began for negotiations with hotel suppliers. What are buyers doing to win the best deals possible?

Buyer masterclass: Hotel deals – is it time for a radical re-think? (facilitator: Michael Hill, European Travel Manager, The Coca-Cola Company)

Every year, travel managers and hotel suppliers go through a fiddly, time-consuming RFP process – but is it worth the effort? Compliance levels for hotel bookings remain frustratingly worse than for air. Could there be a better way to negotiate, or should you simply set travellers a destination cap? And is dynamic pricing worth revisiting?

To register for a buyer pass and for any of the sessions outlined above, simply visit www.businesstravelshow.com

-end-

About the Business Travel Show:

The Business Travel Show runs from 7-8 February at Earls Court in London. With in excess of 200 exhibitors and 6,000 buyers responsible for a travel purse of more than £10.3billion, the Business Travel Show is the flagship event in the European industry calendar. London is the sister show to business travel events in Dusseldorf and Dubai and runs alongside complementary event Travel Technology Europe.

For more information:

Please visit www.businesstravelshow.com or contact Charlotte Le Rougetel or Ravi Vijh at Bastion
020 7269 7900
bts@bastion.co.uk

Follow us on www.twitter.com/btshowlondon
Join us on LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/groups?mostPopular=&gid=2048219
Like us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/businesstravelshow