Six Ways To Reduce Business Travel Costs

Traveling to make sales presentations doesn’t have to be a time and money suck—or a pain in the neck. Planning and using technology-fueled resources can help you save money, cover every last detail, and make the best presentations possible to as many people as possible.

Here are a few tips to efficient (and cost-saving) business travel:

1. Use Social Media And Mobile Devices

Mobile devices and social media place time and cost-saving resources at your fingertips. Take TripIt—a popular trip organizer that lets you keep colleagues, coworkers and contacts informed of upcoming travel plans in Salesforce Chatter (an enterprise social network). With this tool, colleagues can easily coordinate transportation, client meetings and activities with each other.

Travel apps can help you find cheap flights, check in early, get flight and gate updates, and book meeting rooms on the go. With their iPhone and Android apps, DavinciMeetingRooms.com lets you browse and reserve conference rooms, day offices and a variety of tailored business services in real-time, receive instant confirmations and manage reservation details.

Other popular travel apps include AwayFind, which acts as a filter for your email inbox so you receive alerts for only the messages you want to see; and Packing Pro, which helps you make detailed packing lists and set reminders about everything from booking flights to watering plants.

2. Plan Ahead

There is a saying that 'prior planning prevents poor performance.'Sure, it may seem like a no brainer, but fantastic preparation can also be a real money saver. Before you hit the road, maximize sales calls to avoid business travel expenses whenever possible. Schedule meetings with clients who are located close to one another and map out the shortest routes in between them. Save time and fuel by staying in hotels located along your travel route.

3. Use Davinci Meeting Rooms

Make sales presentations in a professional setting with all the amenities of a large locally owned office. Davinci provides business meeting room rentals in full-service professional business centers conveniently located around the globe.

Davinci Meeting and Conference Rooms gives mobile- or home-operated businesses the option of renting meeting space with all the perks. You can reserve day offices, conference rooms or board rooms as you need them. All workspaces and meeting facilities are fully equipped with the latest technologies and business services.

4. Mapping Solutions

A traveling salesperson’s best friend may be travel-planning software that offers a laptop mapping solution. It’s a fantastic way for you and your team to import client lists into a map so you can see the specifics of each account—even the client’s street address. The maps assign pushpins to groups of potential customers in one area to help identify types of accounts. Options include Garmin Mobile PC, Microsoft Streets and Trips, MapPoint, Delmore StreetAtlas and more. Costs range from $30-$50, and most offer a bundled GPS receiver for under $80.

5 .Expand Your Search Options

It’s easy to use your frequent-flier airline to book your business flights, but it may not be the most cost effective. In fact, the more choices you have, the better. Expedia and Priceline are great choices, but why not try other less-known sites like Which Budget, Airfare Watchdog, Hipmunk and Attitude Travel? You can save hundreds of dollars on each trip and thousands of dollars each year.

6. Find Regional Airports Or Take The Train

While they may be harder to find, you can find lower fares and car rental rates at regional airports. The airports also often cater to business travelers by offering smaller security lines and a smoother travel experience. By adding them to your list, you’ll increase your travel options and your ability to adjust your schedule in emergency situations.

Having trouble finding a reasonable flight rate? Look to see if traveling to your destination by train is a possibility. Beyond saving money, it’s often a much more relaxing way to travel, allowing you time to make last minute changes to your sales presentation. Train travel also means that bad weather, in most cases, won’t prevent you from making it to your destination on time. And you can save money on a hotel by sleeping on the train.

Easier Is Better

Imagine actually enjoying traveling to give a presentation, while having the peace of mind that you’re ahead of the planning game. By using these resources you’ll have what you need to travel the globe, reserve professional meeting spaces and make the best impression. Let Davinci assist you in planning your next business sales trip. Download our meeting room app to book professional conference room rentals today.

About Coco Quillen

Coco is the Vice President of Operations at Davinci Meeting Rooms. She manages the strategic development and operational implementation of services for Davinci. She works closely with all teams to ensure customers are well taken care of. Google