Pain Points Cause Deep Frustration for Business Travelers

Last week, the first ever GBTA Global Business Traveler Sentiment Index™ in partnership with American Express  revealed how business travelers across the globe feel about their travel experience and how those feelings affect their actual behaviors related to travel.

While most travelers are significantly satisfied with their trip experience, a key finding of the study found a few areas have emerged as significant pain points.

When asked what one thing all airlines/flights should offer both domestically and internationally, no baggage check fees, free Wi-Fi, free food and drinks, and rewards points that don’t expire or have extensive rules are among the leading choices across all countries included in the study. No baggage check fees are significantly more important to travelers in the U.S. (41 percent) and Canada (36 percent) than all other countries.

Getting through security at the airport is the most painful process for travelers, regardless of country. It is particularly painful for travelers from Japan and Germany, where only 39 percent of German travelers and 36 percent of Japanese and say they are “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the security process at the airport. As one travels more, this frustration has a compounding effect. Frequent travelers from Germany who take at least 12 business trips a year are significantly less satisfied with security than German travelers who only take four to five business trips a year. This same pattern emerged with Brazilian travelers as well.

The ratings for completing expense reports were very similar across the countries indicating moderate satisfaction among travelers. Tracking receipts, however, is the greatest pain point for Japanese and Brazilian business travelers when it comes to expense tracking and management. This tepid satisfaction may be in part due to restrictive or complex company policies put into place as less than half of travelers in Japan and Brazil are satisfied with their companies’ requirements. Travelers in the U.S., the UK and Australia, however, have the highest levels of satisfaction when it comes to completing expense reports and tracking receipts.

Addressing these pain points could lead to higher overall satisfaction for the business traveler experience.