The pandemic reduced our business travel to a mere video call, but since then, it has resurrected with even more force.
Many leaders agree that business travel fuels business growth and global success, so the demand for business travel will increase further in the coming years.
To keep the creative edge, businesses prefer face-to-face meetings even when social media is their first point of contact. Because of this, more and more companies are advocating for in-person meetings over messaging on LinkedIn and meeting up on Zoom.
Result? More business trips!
So, let’s explore how business travel fuels global success in the golden era of social media.
The strategic value of business trips
For companies looking to grow, business travel is much more than just plane tickets and hotel accommodation costs. Planning a virtual meeting via Zoom is easy, and interacting via LinkedIn is even simpler, but they can’t match the personal connection of face-to-face meetings.
Why?
Business travel is about annual company meetups, conferences, initial sales meetings, closing sales meetings, and client lunches—it’s more about building relationships that transcend geographical boundaries.
With continuous business activities running through your mind, managing every aspect of travel becomes challenging. That’s where corporate travel agencies come in.
Agencies like TravelPerk manage everything from organizing transportation to booking the desired accommodations. They have access to reputed vendors worldwide and recommend cost-effective and efficient business travel solutions. These agencies create detailed travel itineraries while allowing employees to cancel or re-book their accommodation in case of any itinerary change, helping you focus on business growth.
Here’s why business travel is a must, even when you have virtual meeting options:
Builds business relationships
What’s the foundation of successful business relationships?
TRUST.
Meeting face-to-face shows your company’s commitment to invest time and effort in nurturing the relationship. Building personal connections creates trust organically, especially for clients who value a human presence in important business matters.
For instance, if you’re offering a high-risk investment to your client, communicating its benefits during a personal meeting is much easier. You can sit down with the client, answer all their queries, and tell them about the potential risk associated with it and the return they can expect.
When you take time and spend money to travel to brief your client, it communicates commitment and sincerity.
Indirect conversations make you look more secretive than you intend to.
Helps you understand the market
Can you understand the sentiments of your target market without face-to-face interactions? You can run surveys on Facebook or Instagram to know about your market, but will the remote research insights match your first-hand experience of interacting face-to-face with your customers?
Obviously not!
You learn everything about your target market by observing their behavior, understanding local business practices, and adopting the cultural nuances.
Seals more deals
The pandemic taught us one thing: nothing can beat face-to-face interactions. Whether you’re meeting for the first time or sealing a deal, the bond formed through a personal interaction is impossible to transmit over a Zoom call or a social media message.
In-person meetings build trust, rapport, transparency, and authenticity more effectively than virtual communication, helping you close more deals. Through in-person meetings, your employees better understand the client's needs and preferences, allowing them to customize their pitches and promptly address concerns.
Displaying such promptness shows your company’s commitment to meet the client’s requirements, increasing the probability of closing more deals.
Gives you a chance to make your company sustainable
Sustainability in business travel is not an oxymoron; it’s very much achievable, and hundreds of companies are using sustainable travel options. With 76% of companies already incorporated or planning to use sustainable travel initiatives, choosing greener options reduces your company’s carbon emissions.
What’s more interesting is that amplifying your green travel initiatives on social media builds a stronger brand. Ask your employees to include photos of your sustainable practices on your company’s Instagram, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter handle to increase your reach and improve your brand’s reputation.
Using narratives on your social media, you create content that emotionally connects with your employees and clients, helping you foster a culture of sustainability.
Investing in a green travel initiative saves money on travel expenses, promotes sustainability, and reduces its carbon footprint. Employees and clients prefer companies that adopt sustainable practices in their operations.
Some sustainable travel practices include:
Combine nearby trips
Choose eco-conscious accommodations
Use eco-friendly transportation on the business trip
Focus on carbon offsetting
Implement sustainable travel policies
Ensure paperless travel
The physical and emotional benefits of travel
Think from the perspective of your employee. Did they get time to prepare a healthy meal during their most recent business trip? Keep up with their yoga routine? Ensure 7-8 hours of sleep?
To help keep your employees on track, mentally and physically, include wellness initiatives in your travel itinerary.
Through yoga classes, mindful activities, and retreats, wellness initiatives reduce stress, increase morale, and improve your employees' well-being. Here are some wellness initiatives to promote the physical and emotional well-being of your employees on a business trip:
Wellness retreats
Wellness retreats are an approach to rejuvenation, relaxation, and personal growth for employees on business trips.
Retreat programs like yoga, meditation, and mindfulness reduce travel stress and give your employees inner peace. When your employees' mental clarity is enhanced, they perform better in their workplace and are ready to take on new challenges.
Don’t restrict your employees from sharing about the wellness retreats on their social media.
Posting about these retreats increases your brand’s credibility among young talent and potential clients. By encouraging a culture of openness, you show the positive impact of these retreats and highlight your commitment to employee well-being.
When your employees humanize their wellness journey on a business trip, it works as a powerful recruitment tool, helping you attract like-minded individuals. Organic sharing can spark conversations on social media and generate positive word-of-mouth, positioning you as a thought leader in promoting a healthy corporate culture.
Flexible work opportunities
Even during business travel, your employees require flexible workplace opportunities. Accommodating your employees' needs and preferences helps you provide a culture where they grow without stress. Flexibility allows employees to balance their work commitments and personal lives, reducing travel-related stress.
A business travel-related flexible work opportunity improves job satisfaction and motivates your employees to perform better. You quickly adapt to changing circumstances and overcome unforeseen challenges.
Sound sleep
With 80% of travelers struggling to sleep on a business trip and with travelers losing 58 minutes per night, encouraging employees to sleep soundly improves their overall well-being. Working long hours and jet lag are two primary contributing factors, and overuse of phones, laptops, and tablets adds to their misery.
Focusing on their circadian rhythms and monitoring their exposure to sunlight can help you encourage everyday sleeping habits on a business trip.
Choose hotels that use natural lights in their guest rooms and airlines that promote sleep through well-designed cabin lighting. A bit of internet research provides you with numerous options, helping you improve your employees' well-being.
The role of social media in business travel
Who said social media is only for increasing brand visibility? Social media is a game-changer for business travel (only if companies realize how to use it effectively).
Many companies prohibit employees from posting about their business trips. On the contrary, asking them to share their travel stories and their learnings on professional social media websites like LinkedIn creates stronger relationships. You can educate your audience about the key industry insights from an international conference or seminar your employee attended on a business trip.
Also, social media enables real-time updates and instant networking opportunities. Platforms like LinkedIn allow your employees to connect with local professionals before arriving in a new city. They can use Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to share live updates, making it easier to connect with clients, partners, and other colleagues.
Social media improves your brand’s image. Companies sharing travel-related information often see higher engagement on social media platforms, which helps them connect with new partners, clients, and even talent.
This is important in a highly competitive business environment where being unique and giving value helps you climb the success ladder.
What’s more important is that your employees can use social media to gather insights and feedback about their business trips. Platforms like Twitter Chat and LinkedIn Groups offer forums for discussing challenges, industry trends, and innovations, helping your employees grow.
Benefits of using social media in business travel:
Provides global networking opportunities
Enhances brand visibility and reputation
Increases audience engagement
Helps you share business trip-related information
Turn your business travel into a differentiator
Despite the rise of virtual communication, business travel remains a cornerstone for business. From helping you seal business deals to improving your customer relationships, the numerous benefits of business travel are undeniable.
As face-to-face interactions continue to be the heart of the corporate world, the importance of business travel will remain unwavering.
