Technology
$73.4M USD
72,000
Undergoing a restructuring of its global operations and travel management department, a computer hardware and data storage company was seeking new solutions to cut costs from its travel program, which is primarily focused on travel to California and Asia and meetings and events activities. The company, a client of American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) for 20+ years, was especially interested in any solutions that could boost policy compliance to stimulate savings.
In order to meet its duty of care obligations and promote savings via its supplier agreements, the company encourages travelers to reserve hotel rooms with all air bookings if an overnight stay is necessary. To a large extent, employees are compliant with the policy, booking with preferred air and hotel suppliers under a single Passenger Name Record. But with its hotel attachment rate hovering around 53%, the client knew it could do better.
American Express GBT suggested to the organization that it begin using its Trip Recommender™ solution, a complimentary hotel booking tool that uses cutting-edge technology to combat noncompliant behavior and promote in-policy hotel options.
Using robust data analytics, Trip Recommender identifies traveling employees who have not booked a hotel with air travel and automatically sends them, either through email or the Amex GBT Mobile app sends them a message, either with up to three hotel options incorporating the company’s preferences, the traveler’s preferences, traveler’s travel history, colleagues travel and company preferences, and previous trip itinerary information.
The tool makes it easy for travelers to review and reserve hotel rooms with its single-click-to-book technology. For those who prefer to make a booking via phone, the Trip Recommender messages contain their customer service number so travelers promptly can connect with an American Express GBT travel counselor at any time.
The client, always supportive of any initiatives designed to improve hotel attachment, instantly became a fan of Trip Recommender and encouraged travelers at all levels of the organization to book its recommendations.
In 2018, the tool sent the client’s travelers a total of 2,358 recommendations, of which 3.3% resulted in a booking. While this number may appear small, the impact is significant.
Last year, simply by implementing Trip Recommender, a free tool available to all American Express GBT clients, the company was able to save 3.5% on its hotel program.
The company also saw a dramatic spike in its hotel attachment rate, which rose 14 percentage points to 67%. This improvement not only helps bolster its negotiations with hotel suppliers, but also enhances the client’s duty of care efforts with more travel data being captured automatically.
As the client shifts its hotel program from being managed by multiple business segments to a unified global operation, Trip Recommender has proven to be a valuable tool in helping the firm achieve this objective.