Hacks for travel managers

Being a travel manager is like being a travel programme air traffic controller – thankfully, Travel Management Companies are like an upgrade to the latest radar detection. And here’s your upgrade - a guide full of hacks to help you optimise your travel programme and keep your travellers happy at the same time.

As Clarity’s Customer Success Manager, it’s my job to help our customers get the most from our business travel booking platform, ClarityGo. So, understanding what our customers need, and how we can help, is at the heart of what I do.

1. Your TMC wingman

Don’t fly solo – work hand-in-hand with your Travel Management Company (TMC) Account Manager. Align on your company’s goals (for example, sustainability, cost savings, great service or policy compliance) and share traveller feedback regularly. This tag-team approach means your travel policy will balance cost control with traveller experience and wellbeing, boosting policy adoption and programme performance​.

Try this: A monthly check-in call or QBR with your Account Manager, armed with a wish list of programme improvements.

2. The data detective

Your travel data isn’t just numbers – it’s a treasure map. Dig into booking and expense reports to uncover hidden gems like rogue bookings or savings opportunities. Travel data tells a powerful story and can lead to smart, strategic decisions for your programme​. Spot trends: maybe Mondays are your priciest flight days or a particular hotel is a budget black hole.

Try this: Clarity Insights turns thousands of lines of data into a dashboard of charts and actionable insight.

3. Traveller feedback

Your travellers and bookers are a goldmine of insight – so start mining! Open up channels for feedback: post-trip surveys, a suggestion email, even grabbing coffee with frequent travellers. By gathering feedback directly from colleagues, you can pinpoint pain points in the travel programme and find opportunities to improve. Maybe a particular hotel on the programme just doesn’t cut it – now you’ll know. When travellers feel heard, they’re happier (and way more likely to stick to the travel policy you worked so hardon).

Try this: Anonymous surveys or an informal Teams chat each quarter. A little listening goes a long way.

4. Flex your travel policy

Travel rules shouldn’t feel like prison rules. Keep your travel policy clear, fair, and a little flexible. Remember, travel is personal – your policy should reflect your company’s culture and the ‘why’ behind each trip​. Ditch any bizarre rules that tie your employees’ travel plans in knots and focus on guidelines that make sense. Allow some wiggle room and empower travellers to do the right thing for them, while staying within a sensible policy framework – happier travellers = more productive trips​.

Try this: Regular policy tune-ups (at least annually) and involve a few frequent travellers in the rewrite.

5. Tech it easy

Why do things the hard way when technology can save the day? Embrace self-service booking tools like ClarityGo and MeetingPro. A simplified booking process with user-friendly tools saves time and empowers employees to book within policy quickly​.Encourage using your online booking tool (OBT) for everything – no more juggling 10 travel sites. Automate approvals and integrate travel policy into your booking tool.​

Try this: Platforms like ClarityGo and MeetingsPro, while also downloading ClarityGo mobile for useful itineraries and keeping tickets and confirmations to hand.

6. Safety dance (duty of care edition)

You can’t put a price on peace of mind. Prioritise traveller safety and duty of care as your number one dance move. Make sure travellers know you’ve got their back with resources for emergencies and make sure they sign up to real-time travel alerts from your dedicated Clarity team. Letting employees know you put their safety first demonstrates duty of care​. Partner with a TMC like Clarity that offers travel tracking services, when a crisis hits (volcano eruption, anyone?), you’ll already know who’s where and how to reach them, making you the calm hero in the chaos.

Try this: Ask us about ClarityTrack, travel risk management tools and our 24/7 hotline for around the clock support.

7. Smart trip planning

Great travel management starts before the trip even begins. Encourage travellers and bookers to plan ahead, optimising schedules to avoid unnecessary peak-time costs. A 9am meeting in London might mean an overpriced last-minute train ticket – so why not start at 10:30instead? Or encourage travellers to consider booking in advance where possible. Smart trip planning can save thousands per year on peak pricing and rushed bookings.

Try this: Booking guidelines that encourages off-peak travel times (and meeting start times) or using Advance tickets to take advantage of lower fares

8. Preparing for RFP season

Your TMC is your best ally during rate negotiations. Use RFP season to better understand rate caps and travel allowances that truly support your travellers’ needs, while also aligning with market pricing. Collaborate with your TMC to analyse key markets, compare rates and select hotels that align with your programme goals. They have the insights and leverage to negotiate the best deals on your behalf. A well-planned RFP strategy ensures your travellers get the best locations, perks and pricing without the headache.

Try this: Annual strategy sessions with your TMC to review travel spend, market trends, and business objectives before RFP season kicks off.

9. The power of nudge messaging (done right)

Nudge messaging isn’t just about post-booking pop-ups anymore – it’s gone proactive. With in-flow messaging now embedded into the booking journey, you can shape behaviour at the point of decision-making. Take rail travel, for instance: if someone tries to book a journey within an 8-day lead time, a gentle nudge appears mid-flow, encouraging them to book further in advance for better fares and availability. Simple, but effective.

Even better, you can capture the reason behind short-notice bookings, so repeat offenders can be supported (not shamed!) into making smarter choices next time. Plus, hosting your full travel and expense policy within the platform gives travellers easy access when they need it most – no need to go digging.

But you can’t overlook the power of a push message to support your latest campaign. Add a dashboard prompt that champions early booking, backed up with a link to all the benefits of planning ahead.

Try this: Oten, the real value comes from tailoring campaigns to your company's specific spend profile. Work with your TMC to review your current in-flow messaging setup. Need help spotting repeat booking behaviours or want to surface key campaigns to travellers? Get in touch with your account manager.

10. Travel school 101

Policies and tools only work if people know about them. Train your travellers and bookers – early and often. Host fun onboarding sessions for new employees about how to book travel and refresh everyone on policy changes regularly. Ongoing education and clear communication about travel policies drive compliance and programme success​, so make it engaging. A well-trained workforce means fewer out-of-policy bookings and “I didn’t know” excuses landing in your inbox. That’s less stress for you and smoother trips for them.

Try this: Ask about our travel booker sessions to educate travellers and bookers, as well as offer a refresher of our booking tools. We also offer online resources and video guides to support your people whenever they need it.

11. Automate the boring stuff

You have bigger fish to fry than manually approving every single booking. Wherever possible, automate and integrate. Use tools that combine travel booking, tracking, meetings and reporting in one place – it gives you better visibility and control while cutting down administrative work​. Set up automatic policy enforcement(so that deluxe suite upgrade gets flagged before it’s booked). By automating approvals and reports, you reduce errors and free up time to focus on strategy rather than paperwork​.

Try this: Integrated travel, reporting and meetings platforms and use approval rules that auto-approve low-risk items and auto-flag the unusual stuff.

12. Keep It current

The business travel world moves fast – stay ahead of the curve. Industry regulations change, new tech emerges, traveller preferences evolve. Managing a travel programme can be challenging in today’s fast-paced and ever-changing travel environment”, so treat your programme as a living project. Keep tabs on travel news (airline mergers, policy updates, global events) and be ready to adapt. Update your travel policy and practices as the landscape shifts – what worked last year might not work next week. Being proactive means fewer surprises.

Try this: Subscribing to newsletters like ours, joining a travel manager association (like ITM or the BTA), and networking with peers to swap tips at great customer events like our Knowledge Exchanges. The more you know, the more you’ll shine when turbulence hits.

13. Give your platform a health check

Your booking platform isn’t a set and forget tool. Overtime, even the most well-oiled systems need a tune-up.

From new features and policy updates to changes in team structure or business priorities, it’s worth checking in regularly to make sure your setup still works for you.

Promote release notes and product roadmaps internally – if there’s a new feature that supports your company’s goals, don’t let it go unnoticed. If you’ve been using the tool for 12 months or more, book in a travel tech MOT.

Our customer success team can give your platform a once-over, highlight quick wins and help you get more from your investment.

Try this: Book a health check with your TMC and ask for a platform review session. You’ll get fresh insights and some simple wins to improve the end-user experience and policy performance.

Now let's put it into practice

By embracing these hacks, you’ll not only optimise your travel programme in partnership with your TMC but also create enjoyable experiences for your travellers and bookers. An efficient, productive and well-managed travel programme? Now that’s the kind of trip we all want to take. Got any questions – get in touch!