With corporate travel on pace for a rebound in 2010, cost saving lessons from the past two years remain top of mind for individual business travelers. According to Orbitz for Business data, 70 percent of business travelers feel personally obligated to save their company money when booking travel.

“With corporate travel managers focused on getting more out of their travel budgets, companies continue to turn to the Internet for choice, cost savings and a great user experience,” said Frank Petito, president, Orbitz for Business. “Of course, we believe that Orbitz for Business is uniquely positioned to deliver those benefits to our customers, online and off.”

Cost Cutting Continues Amidst Cautious Optimism

After a decline in corporate travel the last two years, the trend report highlights an ongoing commitment by companies and individual employees to reduce travel costs, even as they fly more:

- A Personal Commitment: 70 percent of travelers felt personally obligated to save their company money when they travel.

- Fly Economy Class: 38 percent of respondents stated they have flown economy class on domestic flights to cut travel costs.

- Booking Ahead: To help avoid higher fares associated with last-minute bookings, only 6 percent of business travelers said they book their flights less than a week in advance. Thirty percent of respondents said they book at least eight days in advance, with the remaining 64 percent booking at least two weeks before a trip.

- On the Bright Side: Nearly 20 percent of business travelers said no cost cuts have been made so far in 2010, and the majority of respondents (54 percent) said they were planning to have the same number of business trips in the next three months as they had in the first quarter.

Compliance and Online Adoption

With corporate travel managers setting their sights on compliance as a pathway to cost reduction and adoption, more attention is being given to converting out of policy travelers. According to the trend report, reigning in these ‘rogue travelers’ will depend on how a company adopts self-service and online booking tools as part of their managed travel solution:

- Self-Service: 91 percent of business travelers surveyed book their own travel. And 73 percent of respondents cited convenience and self-service as the primary reasons they chose a specific airline carrier.

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