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Press
Release
Conferencing
Technology Seen as Key
to Meeting 2010 Corporate Travel Spend Reduction Targets
Travel
Managers See Imperative but Confused About Appropriate Usage
Situations
Washington, DC –
Even
as the economy stabilizes, corporate travel spending is expected to
remain
under pressure, according to a
new survey of more
than 200 corporate travel managers from around
the world, conducted by Kotler
Marketing Group,
in conjunction with the Association
of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE),
In response, these
managers are increasingly looking to web- and video-conferencing as
travel alternatives.
Enterprises
reduced
travel budgets dramatically last year – by 20% on average in 2009 the
study
found. Nonetheless, most enterprises are now in essence asking their
travel
managers “what cost savings have you delivered lately?” The study found
that:
-
About
half of respondents have reduction targets for 2010 – actually slightly
more than
had reduction targets in 2009.
-
The
reduction targets are not as severe as in 2009, down from 20% on
average last
year to 14% this year.
To achieve these
targets, enterprises are experimenting with web- and video conferencing
as a
travel substitute in a broad range of situations, but reporting mixed
success.
-
When
asked about their reliance on conferencing to achieve travel reduction
targets 55%
said they will rely on conferencing more going
forward; another 32% said
they will rely on conferencing to the same degree as in the past.
-
However,
there was only one meeting type (internal team meetings) for which the
majority
of respondents ranked web- or video-conferencing as a “usually
effective”
alternative to travel.
-
For
most purposes, the most popular description of conferencing was
“sometimes
effective.” Based on respondent comments, many are still struggling to
understand how and
when to best use these
technologies.
Plans
and opinions regarding conferencing usage varied depending on industry,
geographic region, and organization size. The
full report provides detailed analysis of the
findings across these
criteria.
The
study also provides some of the most comprehensive data to-date on the
impact
that web- and video-conferencing had on corporate travel spending in
2009.
-
Surprisingly,
organizations with wide deployments of web- or video-conferencing
achieved only
slightly larger reductions in total travel spend, compared to
organizations
without wide conferencing deployments. The difference between the
groups, in
terms of spend reduction, was not statistically significant.
-
Wide
conferencing deployment did have a significant impact on reducing
spending for
internal travel.
-
The
biggest impact on
travel spend came from combining wide conferencing deployment with
effective
travel policies and user training. Companies doing so reduced total
travel
spend 50% more than their peers, and reduced spend on internal travel
nearly 3X
more than their peers.
The
full report provides detailed analysis of
how conferencing deployment impacted 2009
corporate
travel spending.
For
purchase information, click here.
About ACTE:
The Association of Corporate
Travel Executives (ACTE) represents the global business travel industry
through its international advocacy efforts, executive level educational
programs, and independent industry research. ACTE's membership consists
of senior travel industry executives from 82 countries representing the
€463 billion business travel industry. Our members serve more than 12
million business travellers worldwide. With the support of sponsors
from every major segment of the business travel industry, ACTE develops
and delivers educational programs in key business centers throughout
the world. ACTE has representation in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Canada,
Europe, Latin America, Middle East and the United States. For more
information on ACTE, please go to www.acte.org.
About Kotler Marketing Group
Kotler Marketing Group is a global consulting, research and training
firm, specializing in solving sales and marketing challenges. Our
philosophy is based on the work of Philip Kotler, the world's leading
strategic marketer. For more on Kotler Marketing Group, please go to www.kotlermarketing.com
For more information, contact:
Reuben Silvers
Practice Lead
Kotler Marketing Group
Phone: 202-331-0555
Email: rsilvers@kotlermarketing.com
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