Amid speculation about Sabre's strategy for the business market in terms of how GetThere and Travelocity Business could overlap, the latter at this week's National Business Travel Association convention tried to clarify by sending away clients they thought were in GetThere's purview. Travelocity Business on Monday made its launch official after announcing in April plans for $5 touchless and $20 agent-assisted transactions
(BTN, April 28).
"GetThere provides a corporate online booking tool to large corporations, and they have agency distributors," said Ellen Keszler, president of Travelocity Business, during an interview yesterday with
Business Travel News. "They are a corporate online booking tool company and also a full service provider. By contrast, Travelocity Business is an online-oriented, full service travel management company leveraging GetThere technology with unique Travelocity content and fulfillment capabilities. In terms of customer segmentation, we're focused on companies that lightly manage travel. It is very difficult to draw a line on what that means, but we think it's up to the range of $5 million to $8 million in ARC volume. It's companies that don't have a significant need for customization."
Aside from volume, Keszler said, clients who have more than three policy rules or want to retain their agency of record are generally in GetThere's market. "There will always be a gray area for some companies," she said. Travelocity Business would consider servicing larger clients, "if a large customer were to say, 'I have simple travel management requirements.' "
Travelocity Business is offering free enrollment and a guarantee that its San Antonio call center will answer the phone within 60 seconds or the call is free. Keszler said the company is not putting service-level commitments into contracts. Launch clients include Norcross, Ga.-based Hitachi Electronic Devices USA Inc., Denver-based W.J. Bradley Co. Home Mortgage, Honolulu Symphony and Atlanta-based J Boss Group.