Once spoken by fashion icon Coco Chanel can nowadays be adapted to the modern business traveler. For many years it was common practice to treat one traveler like the other. But not all are alike and there are now ways to take the individuality of every employee on the road into account.
The key words to succeed in addressing travelers individually are “traveler segmentation”. This approach helps to profile travelers and gives you a better understanding about the different types within your business.
So why do so many organizations squeeze their employees into a one-size-fits-all box and wonder why their policy is ignored and their program compromised?
Traveler profiling allows you to specify your employee messages and maximize your travel program.
There are different breeds of business travelers that are starting to shift lines from what we would have traditionally expected. Technology, millennial global trotters and evolving expectations means it’s time to decode what these new tribes might look like.
Characteristics: The Collaborative FOMOs (Fear Of Missing Out) can be found in middle-management. They are engaged, use travel for maximum collaboration and enjoy business trips. This tribe is using technology to the max and searches for all available resources to stay well informed. They value the human element over a commoditized and impersonal experience.
What is important to them: These travelers are not very picky when it comes to accommodations as long as they have a place to work and a great wifi connection. The collaborative FOMO tribe covers a whole spectrum of traveler types from those who want a travel manager or TMC on 24/7 speed-dial, to those who will quite happily turn to an app, a website or a virtual assistant to resolve an issue.