What Is Travel Management Software? A Complete Guide for Travel Professionals

What is a Travel Management Software?

Travel management software is an all-in-one system for organizing business travel. With the rise of business travel, there’s a need to simplify the travel management process. Travel agents using travel management software can add products (such as flights and accommodation) build trips, manage customer data, track payments, and much more all in one place.

In this article, we’ll guide you through the key features of travel management software and how to choose the right one for your business travel. Moreover, we’ll share insights on future trends in travel management software.

4 Key Features of Travel Management Software

While searching for travel management software, you’ll encounter options on the market with various features. We’ve highlighted the most important ones for business travel:

• Easy way to manage contacts 
• Comprehensive trips overview
• Add and access all products and services in one place
• Simple payment processing

1. Easy Way to Manage Contacts

Travel management platforms provide integrated CRM. Instead of using Excel spreadsheets or having a separate CRM system, easily manage customers’ data within the platform. Add new contacts to the list, modify information, and update statuses with a few clicks. You can also take notes and search the contact list, just as in CRM.

2. Comprehensive Trips Overview

Replace sending offers in PDF with a link to a comprehensive trip overview. Travel management systems have impressive trip builders to create the most complex itineraries. Travel agents can share itineraries with customers and make requested edits and updates.

There’s no need to go back and forth or send multiple documents. All the details the client needs are one click away. Additionally, if you have customers with similar business travel needs, you can copy and adjust the same itinerary for each client.

3. Add and Access All Products and Services in One Place

With the travel management platform, you can add product and service inventory in a few steps. Access your inventory to add all the hotels, experience, and transportation. Organize your list in categories – accommodation, transportation, experience, and more. Update the product details such as Google Maps location or upload images. After choosing and adding your products and services to the inventory, it’s easy to build itineraries.

4. Simple Payment Processing

Lastly, the modern travel management system provides simple payment processing. Eliminate collecting individual invoices or monitoring multiple accommodation and transportation booking platforms. Most travel management platforms have integrated and automated booking processes.

Within the travel management software, you’ll have a detailed payment overview. Access all the information on business travel costs and invoice history in the payment overview.

Benefits of Using Travel Management Software

Using a travel management platform increases efficiency and saves time. Instead of combining different tools to manage business travel, switch to all-in-one software. Save time with centralized software for tracking payments, creating itineraries, and adding client data. Additionally, you’ll boost your productivity with easy-to-modify itineraries.

The travel management system provides an overview of business travel costs. Monitoring costs enables travel agents to stay within the client’s allocated business travel budget.

With travel management system automation and pre-made travel packages, booking a trip has never been easier. Moreover, using travel management systems decreases inquiry response time. Creating offers is intuitive and customers can access detailed trip information in one place. 

It’s crucial to have flexibility when booking business trips. Sometimes, flights get cancelled, or business plans change. The travel management platform provides rebooking and cancellation options. Additionally, making any itinerary changes can be done quickly.

Travel agents can choose from extensive travel options within a travel management system. Compare different providers depending on the customer’s business travel needs. Filter out options based on the business travel budget, location, and other preferences.

Other benefits of using a travel management software:

• Reducing operational costs
• Expanding market reach and increasing sales
• Better data security
• Comparing supplier prices in real-time
• Easily tailoring offers based on previous customer data
• More time for building relationships with clients and promotional activities

How to Choose the Right Travel Management Software

Investing in travel management software is a long-term decision. To choose the right travel management system, request a demo. Participating in a demo is an excellent way to understand software possibilities. Furthermore, the travel management platform demo will give you an insight into the user experience.

Ensure the travel management software is cloud-based. When working remotely, you should be able to access all the data. With cloud-based travel management software, you can log in, view, and update any information from your laptop, phone, or tablet.

Explore the pricing options before making a purchase decision. Pricing plans for travel management platforms on the market can significantly vary. Evaluate your budget and make sure it’s worth the investment. Alternatively, some travel management platforms offer commission-based pricing plans.

Make a list of the priority features. Consider what are the main features that would improve your travel business. If you’re expanding your offerings, operating worldwide, or specializing in a niche, look for a travel management system with external products and service options.

Future Trends in Travel Management Software

The market for travel management software is expanding quickly. According to Allied Market Research, the worldwide business travel industry was valued at over 700 billion US dollars in 2020. By 2028, the market for business travel will have grown by 188% globally. 

More travel agencies are using travel management systems to plan corporate travel for their customers. Travel management software providers are creating fresh approaches to meet consumer demands to remain competitive.

Here are the main future trends arising in the travel management software industry:

• AI-driven solutions
• Advanced cybersecurity
• Sustainable and eco-friendly travel options
• Virtual reality (VR) technologies

1. AI-driven Solutions

AI-driven solutions are already making an impact in the travel management software industry. In the future, AI will provide tailor-made and personalized travel options for clients based on historical data. Moreover, we can see the use of AI-powered chatbots for customer support and booking assistance.

2. Advanced Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity will be a priority for travel management system providers moving forward. Advanced cybersecurity is critical, considering client’s personal information are on travel management platforms. Facial recognition and fingerprint scans to access mobile travel management platforms are some of the ways cybersecurity will evolve.

3. Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Travel Options

With the rise of climate change impact, there will be demand for more eco-friendly and sustainable business travel options. Some options will include staying in hotels embracing sustainable practices or choosing a means of transportation with a lower carbon footprint impact. Furthermore, travel management software will provide carbon footprint tracking.

4. Virtual reality (VR) technologies

Virtual reality (VR) technologies are making their way with 360-degree videos. In the future, travel agents will include VR videos showcasing products and services in the itinerary via travel management software. It’ll go even further with a combination of virtual and augmented reality. Customers will be able to experience immersive hotel tours or fly business class before their booking decision.

Conclusion

Travel management software is a powerful system for simplifying business travel. Integrating features like customer data management, comprehensive trip overviews, centralized product and service access, and simple payment processing significantly improves organizing business travel.  

As the industry evolves, future trends such as AI-driven solutions, advanced cybersecurity, virtual reality, and sustainable travel options will shape the next generation of travel management systems.

Investing in the right travel management software is a strategic decision that can result in long-term benefits for any travel agent.

Contact us for a demo and discover how TripMatrix can streamline your business travel management.