Travel Services – Buying is just the beginning.

I have encountered many of what I would call classic buyers in my career selling travel services. By that I mean very professional people who know exactly what they want and how to get it at the best rate. They are well practised in procedures and buying protocol and have a clear plan. Good stuff, but is it enough? I do not think so.

I think there are better deals to be done and improved return if two other abilities are learned and brought into play. They are presentation and selling skills. Buyers should know how to buy but there are often other considerations that come into play when buying a service like travel. For example unless you really are going to issue a mandate that is capable of monitoring and enforcing there is likelihood you could lose 20% volume from the programme. You will also probably be buying from people who are frankly not up to dealing with professional buyers. This brings me back to selling and presenting.

Most travel suppliers are becoming more and more cynical and suspicious about the ability of buyers to deliver volume negotiated in travel deals. They are now starting to hold back a little and only give the best package to those that convince them they can deliver volume where there mouth is. The most mutually successful deals I have seen are where buyers are able to ‘sell’ their ability to deliver in a way that has credibility. I once helped a buyer create their own volume delivery agreement which they gave to a delighted supplier and got a fantastic market leading deal.

The deal itself is the beginning not the end of the project. There are numerous ways people can get round a policy and I have seen them all. I could write a book about it! However many loopholes can be closed , or at least made harder, by the ability of the buyer to get to the right internal audience along with a strong sponsor and present their case. To me this is more important than the deal itself.

I have always tried to tell myself that to be successful I should out-sell the salesman and successfully communicate how clever I (the company) has been. After all if you have used you selling skills to get an exceptional programme you might as well you communicate the benefits to ensure everyone knows and acts upon it.

There is so much talk and activity around apps, social networking et al. perhaps if we used some of these fast developing tools to focus on compliance and rationales then companies would have greater control and diminished leakage. A better ROI than repetitive tendering and programme changes to keep a leaking travel bucket full.

Travel Compliance – So very easy.

After 42 years in the business and 3 years out I am still aghast that almost all corporations I meet and hear about have not been able to crack the compliance issue. By this I mean their directors, executives and workforce being given a travel policy and complying with it.

I cannot really see the point of building a technology and service infrastructure, buying new innovation and deeply detailed specifications only to fail in the most basic and obvious areas of communication and buy-in. You can have the smartest schemes, the keenest deals and the best online and offline support but if you do not tell people what you have done, why you have done it and got the unflinching support of ALL your board then there is very little point for the time and effort put into it.

To me it is so glaringly obvious that, before anything else, the fundamental communications groundwork must be in place. This should include:
a) What you are doing.
b) Why you are doing it.
c) What will be achieved?
d) A clear rationale for change.
e) Unequivocal evidence of executive management support.
f) A total mandate from the man at the top.

All this as a minimum should have total distribution to existing travellers and new entrants to the company. It should be kept alive by updates, progress reports, competitive performance tables and possibly even a ‘bad boys’ list.

There also has to be two areas that MUST be addressed and the both have equal importance as, without both, you will get nowhere. Firstly you have to clearly answer all the criticism and arguments against compliance before they are ever raised. This is easy as everyone should know what they are. They will range from ‘what if I find a better fare’ to ‘the timings offered were all wrong’ to ‘it’s my budget and I can spend it as my business demands’

The last comment raises the second biggest issue which is managing the cost, savings and credits of policy compliance. If you cannot do this one then I doubt you will move forward from where you are today. The answer could be anything from internal ‘incentives’ to central budgets but you must find it.

So there you are. Easy! No I am not being flippant, it should be easy. After all, if travel is really that commodity you buy then it should be treated like computers, software or anything else you purchase and get the same type of compliance. Then and only then can you move on to all the aids and gizmos available to keep the policy fresh, interactive and easy to follow.