Home topics small-business-resources general General Travel General Business Travel Management Adeline Teoh March 1, 2006 SMEs account for a substantial portion of the travel pie, but they often miss out on discounts due to low individual volumes of travel. Adeline Teoh considers a range of options to see how business owners can maximise travel budget. Whether it’s across the country or across the world, chances are your business will need to fork out for travel throughout the year. Setting a company travel policy can trim costs, avoid confusion, and give you more control over expenses. If you don’t already enforce a policy, start with some definitive ground rules that outline what is expected of travel arrangements. For example, stipulate all domestic travel must be economy class, and rental cars must be medium-sized or smaller, saving money on petrol as well as rental costs. You might give a meal allowance of $80 a day, but does that include room service and mini-bar raids? Being specific about what you expect to spend on a business trip can make a big difference in the long term. Air Travel The air travel market has expanded, giving business travellers a greater choice of airlines and schedules. The increase in booking traffic prompted all the airlines to provide internet booking, making it easier and quicker to search for flights. Sites like Webjet.com.au will search various airline websites so you can compare prices, schedules and flexibility. While it’s tempting to buy the lowest fare, schedules can be