Supplier Web Sites That Reach Out To Corporate Buyers

<B>Supplier Web Sites That Reach Out To Corporate Buyers</B>

By Jay Campbell

Not all travel suppliers are up to speed when it comes to offering online information, let alone resources, specifically for corporate travel buyers. Often citing the value of the corporate marketplace, many supplier Web sites do offer a brief description of their sales programs and a phone number or e-mail link to their corporate sales manager or department. But standout suppliers are developing resources for both travel/meetings managers and for people in smaller companies with those responsibilities but not those titles. Developing a comprehensive Web site, in fact, can give suppliers access to smaller or new companies without an extensive, and expensive, sales force.

Searching Web sites for information on corporate supplier programs is a very likely way for the newer generations of travel and meetings managers to start new travel programs, so Business Travel News set out to find what supplier sites can expedite the establishment of vendor relationships. Following is a listing and description of Web sites run by traditional suppliers--that is, non-technology companies in the air, hotel, car, card and travel management segments--that give more than just lip service to managed business travel. BTN considered only freely available sites and pages; in other words, pages available only to a given vendor's existing customers (via a password) were not included.

<B>Airlines</B>


American Airlines' Web site contains a substantial amount of information, and some resources, for corporate buyers. The Business and Consumer Programs section, linked via a pull-down menu at www.aa.com, contains a description and contact information for AA's various corporate products, such as the AAirpass prepaid air travel program and the small company rewards program. AA's site also features an application for its Corporate Travel Program using Universal Air Travel Plan, the former Air Travel Card. For meetings, visitors can fill out a company meeting travel request form for groups of at least 10. It includes fields that identify the appropriate travel management company, by ARC number and pseudo-city code, and allows buyers to have their agencies do the ticketing. American promises that all requests will result in a faxed quote or contract within 24 hours of submission between Monday and Friday.





Like Delta and Southwest, Alaska Airlines is part of a select group that offers corporate travelers the opportunity to earn incentives online with the EasyBiz program, at easybiz.alaskaair.com. Travelers can fill out an online information request form, which will prompt Alaska sales representatives to contact them by phone or e-mail. Among other features, EasyBiz provides user-defined travel management reports, support desks and periodic online fare sales. On its main Internet site, Alaska also offers corporate travelers the option to check in and print boarding passes from their computers.





At www.british-airways.com, buyers can apply for the BA Corporate Card, resulting in an e-mailed response from the airline. On the www.baventureclub.com site, small companies can enroll in BA's incentive program for that market. The enrollment form requests corporate profile information as well as optional business travel information, such as volume figures, preferred suppliers and travel management firm.





Canadian Airlines' site at www.cdnair.ca includes an extensive matrix of the carrier's domestic and international meeting fares, complete with ticket designators, percentage savings and fare rules.





Group travel buyers can solicit an agreement for discount travel to meetings that pre-register with Continental Airlines' at www.continental.com using the event's unique "Z" code. Agreements can be faxed or mailed to the corporation or its agency, which can be catalogued by ARC number. Administrators for the program, called MeetingWorks, process all registrations daily by 3 p.m. central time, and a confirmation letter is sent within 24 hours. Meanwhile, small businesses can enroll online in Continental's RewardOne incentive program.





Delta Air Lines gives meeting buyers the opportunity to request online bids at www.delta-air.com, to which Delta said it responds within 24 hours. However, Delta offers no information on its site about Internet booking for corporations, which is still in the early stages of development.





Frontier Airlines appears to be the only carrier that allows corporations to enroll in a transient travel incentive program. Frontier's Business Travel Program, at www.frontierairlines.com, gives companies that buy a minimum of four roundtrips a year a 5 percent credit for every purchased and flown ticket, which can be accumulated and used for future travel. The airline provides quarterly statements.





On www.lufthansa-usa.com, corporate travel planners can access a quarterly newsletter, Connections, that updates the carrier's product offerings, including its Corporate Mileage Plan and special offers for business travelers. Readers can sign up to be notified by e-mail when the latest issue is posted.





Northwest Airlines, too, offers an e-mail newsletter for corporate clients, as well as enrollment for its E-Biz Perks small business incentive program at www.nwa.com. For meetings, Northwest responds within 24 hours to online applications for domestic corporate fares, and within 48 hours for international requests.





Southwest Airlines' corporate booking service, at www.swabiz.com, includes an application for meeting rates.





US Airways also offers an online event proposal form at www.usairways.com.

<B>Car Rental Suppliers</B>


At www.alamo.com, buyers can fill out a simple application for a corporate rate program to which the car rental vendor will respond within three business days. The corporate buyer is required to give Alamo a volume commitment. Travelers then can use a corporate identification number to book discounted rates online.

Avis offers an equally simple application for a corporate rate program at www.avis.com, which allows travelers to book online using an identification number. For meetings that require five or more cars, buyers can apply for special rates online.





Dollar Rent A Car details its corporate rates at www.dollar.com, and offers an online corporate account application. The site indicates that Dollar "will get back to you immediately" after the form is submitted. The site indicates that customized programs can be explored via a mailed RFP. For meetings, Dollar also offers an online rate request form.





Hertz segments its Web offerings for small and big businesses using a threshold of $25,000 in annual spending on car rental services. For the bigger volume companies, buyers are encouraged to fax a profile printed from the site, www.hertz.com. Buyers for smaller U.S. companies can fill out an online profile and are promised a membership kit via mail "within the next few weeks" for special rates and other promotions. Hertz's site also offers a rate proposal request for meetings--and indicates the company will respond "quickly."





The National Car Rental site, at www.nationalcar.com, invites buyers to join the vendor's Business Partners Program for special rates and other benefits by applying through a brief e-mail form. The National Car site does not indicate how or when the company will respond. A similar setup exists for meeting and convention programs.





Thrifty also offers a small business account application at www.thrifty.com, but with a twist: Buyers who enroll instantly receive a temporary identification number valid for 60 days. A permanent number then is mailed or Thrifty would contact the buyer for a more customized program.







<B>Corporate Card Vendors</B>


Corporate card providers are developing extensive reporting and program administration capabilities for existing accounts via the Web, but for new accounts, resources are slimmer.





In the "corporations" section of www.americanexpress.com, buyers can fill out a brief profile indicating which of the American Express charge card services they are interested in, so that they can be contacted by a sales representative. Paymentech offers a similar contact service in www.paymentech.com.





A different kind of Web resource is US Bank's series of industry links for corporate travel managers, at www.usbank.com/corp_card/links.html.





Meanwhile, Universal Air Travel Plan, formerly the Air Travel Card, gives users the ability to notify the company when the card is not accepted via an e-mail form at www.uatp.com/corp/accept.cfm. UATP also offers an online account application, which is forwarded to the airline or airlines of the applicant's choice, provided that it is accompanied by a "statement of financial history." Corporate travel buyers are asked to allow four weeks for processing the application. The issuing airline or airlines sends a contract to the buyer.





<B>Hotels</B>


Resources for buyers on hotel sites focus almost exclusively on meetings.





At meetings.basshotels.com/ buyers can search for hotels by brand, location types, city, state, region or country, as well as such facilities as boardrooms and banquets. Planners then can create an online RFP in which they can indicate "response due date" and "decision date." Although the same site handles meetings for such brands as Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn, Inter-Continental Hotels and Resorts has a slightly different navigational setup at www.interconti.com/rfp.html.





Hilton offers an online RFP and hotel directory at www.hilton.com, with such features as group value dates and floor plans.





Hyatt's Meeting Planning Index, at www.hyatt.com, contains a facilities guide, request for rates and dates, meeting dividends, meeting services, extra value dates, planning information, an online newsletter and online group reservations. The RFP page offers a slew of fields for details about the meeting, but Hyatt also notes that Word or Excel documents can be forwarded as an e-mail attachment.





Marriott offers a meeting planner hotel search at www.marriott.com, as well as an online RFI to which the company will respond within 24 hours. Marriott's Renaissance brand offers similar features at www.renaissancehotels.com.





Starwood brands at www.westin.com, www.luxurycollection.com, www.sheraton.com and www.fourpoints.com offer a common interface for meeting planning, including an online RFP via www.planitonline.com which requires registration.







<B>Travel Management Companies</B>


Though many travel agencies offer online traveler profiles, most are behind a password to ensure that applicants work for the agency's corporate account. However, the profile forms on www.austintravel.com, www.balboa.com and www.strattontravel.com are freely accessible, which could prove a handy reference or sample for new travel managers or agents. Austin's survey of traveler satisfaction also is available.

At www.carlsonwagonlit.com, www.journeycorp.com and www.rosenbluth.com, corporations can fill out an e-mail form as a way to contact the corporate sales team to potentially become an account. Garber Travel, at www.garber.com, goes a bit further in offering a complete online RFP process.





Maritz Travel's Travel Wizard, at www.maritz.com, offers an online tool kit with a variety of product evaluations, assessment worksheets and other tools. The current Wizard focuses on corporate travel expense reporting systems with a detailed "How to Buy" guideline. Archived Wizards include a guide on buying self-booking tools, with a Q&A evaluation to determine whether a given corporate environment is a good fit, and a product evaluation grid that compares systems.