La hotel reservation platform HRS shows a significant impact of virtual payment solutions on direct business travel costs in its white paper "Savings through Transparency". The study analysed 30,000 hotel bookings, half of which were made before the introduction of virtual payment and half after. This white paper highlights an average reduction of 12 % in the reservation pricefrom €112.3 to €98.6 following the integration of a centralised virtual payment solution.
To explain this phenomenon, HRS identifies two factors, longer reservation times. With the introduction of centralised payment, business travellers are tending to book their rooms earlier - 11 days ahead of their trip on average, compared with 8.5 days previously, i.e. 2.5 days earlier. This earlier booking often translates into lower rates.
On the other hand, the adoption of a virtual payment system also seems to be leading to a change in habits among business travellers. In place of establishments run by major international groups, business executives have a greater propensity to look for independent hotels or regional chains, which generally charge lower room rates. According to the study, while these establishments accounted for only 30 % of bookings before the solution was introduced, their proportion subsequently rose to 40 %. The final beneficial effect is that the no-show rate, which causes additional costs for companies, has also fallen from 4.1% to 3.5%.
"Study shows that the transparency provided by virtual payment solutions steers travellers towards cheaper hotelssays Christian Gall, Vice-President of Payment Solutions at HRS. Their behaviour is changing and they are making savings... without even realising it. This phenomenon sheds a new light on the discussions surrounding the advantages of virtual payment, since until now we have been talking mainly about indirect savings."
Virtual payment solutions, such as those offered by HRS partners AirPlus and American Express, nonetheless retain their cardinal virtues for companies and their employees alike. In other words ease of use with a payment card created on demand to guarantee and pay for bookings, integration into company management tools that no longer require the tedious processing of expense claims, and a consolidated view of travel expenditure for companies.
