A special report by Trainline for Business
The festive season has been and gone for another year. And as we arrive back to work in a daze of mince pies and bucks fizz, we are most definitely starting to plan for the year ahead. And there is plenty to think about. Especially when it comes to budgets. And this couldn’t be more important than when it comes to business travel.
Trainline for Business’ recent study, SME Travel Index, has revealed that a quarter of SMEs have seen falling travel budgets over the past year. Yet, with the average SME business traveller travelling 6.4 times in the UK and abroad each month, small businesses may feel under pressure to make big savings on business travel. On top of that, 37% of SME business travellers are considering switching from petrol or diesel cars in light of the Government’s 2040 ban. This means that it is quite likely that more and more business commuters will be opting for train travel in the near future.
Ananth Ramanathan, Head of SME at Trainline, says: “Our research shows that SMEs are adapting to budgetary pressure by choosing cheaper options of travel rather than reducing the number of trips they’re having to make… Face to face meetings are undoubtedly the best way to build relationships and, for this reason, business travel remains as important as ever. Rail continues to prove a popular mode of transport for business travellers because of the convenience and increased productivity time it offers.”
But how can an SME business source cheaper travel solutions? Trainline for Business may be the answer. Ramanathan also states: “The Trainline for Business SME rail travel dashboard is designed to help small businesses manage their budgets easily so that they can focus on closing the deal rather than fretting about travel costs”.
If you are looking to save on business rail travel over the coming year, here are three ways Trainline for Business can help.
Think ahead
With budget constraints, employees can save by booking before train fares go up. Trainline for Business’ Price Prediction tool allows travel bookers and employees to look at future dates and see when Advance ticket prices are set to increase over time. This helps those in charge of travel planning to pinpoint when their train tickets will be cheapest.
Let your employees be flexible
According to Trainline for Business, 63% of those who travel for business tend to book their own travel. Trainline for Business has tools that make the booking process more efficient for this high percentage of travellers.
Being on the go used to mean communication issues, that could lead to costly expenses with budgets not being managed. With Trainline for Business, employees can sync their app to the business account – meaning full accountability to the office admin, who can see the tickets being purchased. At the same time, employees will have flexibility when booking e-tickets and can potentially book their preferred times – at the best price available.
Expense with ease – and save on admin
Streamlining your expensing procedures is a great way to save. Trainline for Business has a centralised dashboard that will allow travellers to collate all their travel receipts in one place – allowing them to think fast, send their expenses on quickly and thus cut down on admin costs and saving precious time.
With Trainline for Business, your SME could save 33% on business travel. Visit Trainline for Business to see how they could help you save on your business travel.
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