Large Number of Business Trips Are Planned on Smartphones, Study Says
The report also shows that one company dominates online booking for trips.
By Carly Okyle •
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Businesses are leveraging smartphones more and more to search for hotels and flights, but they're still not following through when it comes to using their corporate cards through their mobile devices, according to a new report.
While 55 percent of corporate travelers search for flights and 44 percent search for hotels via smartphones, actual bookings from mobile platforms are relatively low -- only 20 percent of airfares and 35 percent of hotel rooms were booked with phones, according to travel industry research firm Phocuswright.
Related: 6 Ways to Save on the Costs of Airfare
What's more ubiquitous is the use of online booking tools for business trips, with 92 percent of companies using platforms such as Concur Travel. In fact, Concur dominates the field, with 70 percent of respondents using the service.
Increasingly, ride-hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft are becoming a part of the business travel experience and businesses are coming to accept this, though perhaps at a slower pace than individual employees. The report states that 39 percent of businesses allow or are planning to allow the use of ride-hailing apps, which is more than double the 18 percent of companies who accept private accommodation services. However, 35 percent of companies don't plan to address either option in their official policies.
Related: The 10 Most Expensive U.S Cities for Business Travelers
The biggest concerns for travel managers are lowering costs and complying with company policy -- according to 59 percent and 47 percent of responders, respectively -- while 39 percent of those surveyed reported they were concerned with making sure they were living up to the legal standards for providing reasonable care.
