A recent survey by an online travel and expense management software provider called Certify had surprising results for those who don’t travel for business.
The survey is called “What Business Travellers Prefer”, and results were taken from 495 employees doing functional roles at both small and large companies.
The CEO of Certify, Robert Neveu said that their survey shows that employees prefer efficiency and convenience when travelling for work. They also choose their vendors based on lifestyle factors and availability of service. What was particularly interesting, is that the results also showed that they make their purchases as if the expense is coming out of their own pockets, and choose based on value.
Most business travellers are taking 2-4 trips per year (45%), followed by once per year or even less (29%). 15% of people are taking 5-9 trips per year, while 11% are taking 10 or more trips.
For ground transportation, the majority of travellers prefer to use rental cars (41%), with hotel shuttles the preference of 25% of people, closely followed by licensed taxis (20%). Ride-sharing was preferred by just 7% of people, and 6% liked to travel in a limousine (although this may have more to do with company budgets than preference).
When it came to hotels, business travellers said that the most important factor is how close it is to their client or meeting (54%). This was followed by the quality of the hotel at 20%, the room rate (11%), and the rewards program (8%). Surprisingly, less than 1% of business travellers choose their hotel based on how close it is to the airport.
The travellers also ranked their hotels based on which have the nicest amenities, and the Marriott came out on top at 33%, followed by the Hilton at 27%, and Hyatt at 21%.
Airline preferences were interesting, with 41% of travellers choosing their carrier based on their scheduling needs, followed by price at 27%, company policy at 17%, and the mileage rewards they would receive (10%). Just 6% of those surveyed said that they would choose their carrier based on the connecting flights.
40% of business travellers surveyed said they stick to the same diet, while 35% said they just indulge a little bit. Only 3% said they take advantage of their company’s expense account. 14% rely on convenience and fast foods.
When it came down tot he healthiest options for food, 47% ranked Panera as the best, followed by Chipotle at 27%. Only 3% considered Starbucks healthy, even though Starbucks is the most expensed restaurant over the last two years.
Most business travellers treat the expense account as if it’s their own (46%), followed by how convenient the purchases are (31%). 20% purchase according to price, and just 3% make their purchase as a “reward” for travelling.
When it comes to the top concerns after travelling, most employees are concerned about catching up on their email (27 %), while 24% say that family comes first.
