American Express Global Business Travel in November marked a grim milestone for corporate travel buyers, reporting that carrier-imposed surcharges this year exceeded $2,000 for business class roundtrips to London Heathrow originating at New York JFK. Although added to international ticket prices (labeled as YQ or YR), these charges are not subject to negotiated corporate discounts….
The concept of “lowest logical fare” has always been open to interpretation. Traditionally, it’s the cheapest, in-policy fare returned when the traveler or travel agent searches in a booking system. But various market dynamics are making it harder to pin down, prompting industry professionals to reconsider it. New challenges in point-of-sale shopping comparisons due to…
Partnership Travel Consulting launched auditing services to ensure corporate clients are getting the lowest fare offers, comparing ticketed fares with what’s on carrier websites, booking negotiated corporate hotel rates and adding lodging to air bookings. PTC partnered with three firms to deliver these and other related services. In January, it will invest in Fare Audit,…
The New Distribution Capability is not designed to generate less revenue for airlines. Some argue it’s about increasing yields through upselling and neutered comparison shopping. Many corporate travel buyers’ most notable experiences with NDC are related to surcharges or inaccessible fares. Airlines are using it to reduce distribution costs. One of the purported win-wins is…
Eighty percent of U.S.-based executives and managers believe their companies could use their travel budgets more wisely to achieve strategic goals. On average, they said, 20 percent of company trips were “low-value” and one-third could be replaced by virtual meetings. Among 410 respondents to an April survey by tClara, 174 executives ranked achieving successful business…
If you take airline execs at their word, American’s first-quarter “managed” corporate revenue grew far more slowly than Delta’s and United’s. Growth in managed travel drew outsized attention in the most recent airline earnings season, partly because observers wanted evidence for the success or failure of AA’s dramatic changes to corporate sales and distribution. But…
Consultant Scott Gillespie of tClara has spent a lot of time examining high- and low-value trips, and advocating for travel policies that account for that distinction. It’s not just about cutting down on wasteful spending; he also implores companies to consider business travel’s environmental impact. In his latest contribution, Gillespie does some math to depict…
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