Travel Megatrends 2018: Business Travel Startups Go Direct to Consumer
Photo Caption: More business travelers want to travel for work like they do on their own time. A bevy of new startups are looking to capture the business of those who blur the line between business and leisure. Bing Qing Ye
Skift Take
Companies have finally realized that creating happier business travelers starts with empowering them instead of ordering them around. Now the rush is on to land those road warriors as customers with the understanding that they are experienced consumers.
Skift Megatrends 2018
In January 2018 released our annual travel industry trends forecast, Skift Megatrends 2018. You can read about each of the trends on Skift, or download a copy of our magazine here.Business travelers around the world are stressed out. Travel disruptions, along with limitations placed on how they travel by their companies, make them feel a lack of control when they have to travel for work.
More companies, however, are finally realizing that serving business travelers and tweaking their behavior should involve reaching them directly instead of pushing down mandates.
Both new entrants to the market and established players are targeting small-to-midsized businesses with a different kind of value proposition than usually applied to giant companies seeking corporate travel management solutions. By focusing on traveler behavior, and giving them incentives or personalized service and recommendations, smart players are looking to redefine the business travel experience.
This also requires marketing to business travelers directly instead of pushing down rules and restrictions from on high that they won’t follow.
Two leaders hav
