Best Western's Travel Blog - You Must Be Trippin' - Do You Fit Into One Of These Pigeonholes?

Do You Fit Into One Of These Pigeonholes?

August 2 2011 by Chris McGinnis

When trying to understand or sell something to large and diverse groups, it's human nature to try and fit different types of people into neat categories or pigeonholes. Divide and conquer as they say.

Hoping to get a better grip on the large and fast growing population of business travelers, the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) recently released a study identifying five segments of business travelers in the market today based on their travel goals, characteristics, technology usage and demographics:

* The Veteran
* Passionate High-Tech
* Road Weary
* Wide-eyed and Anxious
* New Recruits

The study goes into detail explaining the characteristics of each type of traveler. But what I found most interesting is that, after spending the last 25 years traveling on business, I could see a little of myself in every single category (and remember some of the lessons I'd learned) at various stages of my career.

Where do you think you fit in?

The Veteran - Experienced and relaxed
- At a glance: Average of 12 trips taken per year with four nights away per trip; 88% are 35 or older. This group enjoys business trips.
- Typically older executives who have no problem with managing travel, handling arrangements and keeping track of expenses. Good work/life balance.
- While receptive to new technology, their most important goal is ensuring they are not hindered by a lack of equipment or connectivity.

* After nearly 25 years on the road, I think I can put myself into this category of
"smooth operator" who cruise through business trips relatively unruffled, even under stressful circumstances. We value the importance of face-to-face meetings, have learned the rules of the road, adopted a Zen-like serenity and don't let the occasional bump ruin a trip. But we hate getting tripped up by a poor, complicated or expensive internet connections that prevent us from communicating with family or the office back home.

Passionate High-Tech - Enthusiastic early adopters
- At a glance: Average of 13 trips per year with four nights away per trip; almost all are younger--91% are less than 54.
- They love to travel for work and look to technology to make them more productive and stay in touch with their friends and family.
- They embrace new technologies such as tablet devices and many say that videoconferencing technology has actually reduced the number of trips they take.

* I think this group is most likely to try and enjoy new mobile apps such as Best Western to Go, and are probably big-time users of in-flight Wi-Fi.

Road Weary - Frequent ... and reluctant
- At a glance: Average 15 trips per year with three nights away per trip; 74% are older than 35.
- Their most important goals are feeling safe and staying in touch with family when on the road. They see business trips as a hassle.
- They drive more than fly on business trips, so are most likely of all groups to bring along a portable GPS device.

* In this category you'll find a somewhat jaded business traveler who does not find his or her trips enjoyable, and doesn't really think that face-to-face meetings are all that important. They also tend to take most of their trips by car. It's a sad lot, but I've been there--the reason I quit one of my first jobs (as a management consultant) was because I traveled too much and had a very unhealthy work-life balance. Since there were few positions at my company that offered lighter travel schedules, I made the decision to resign--which was probably one of the smartest decisions I've ever made since it ironically led me to a more fulfilling career writing and consulting about business travel.

Wide-eyed and Anxious - Face travel challenges
- At a glance: Average of 11 trips per year with an average of four nights away per trip; typically younger travelers, 89% are less than 55 years old.
- Since they have less experience on the road, they enjoy travel but get nervous navigating new destinations and following policies.

* This group travels less frequently than others, so business trips are more disruptive to their routine, and their lack of experience on the road makes them more anxious and uncertain. I hear frequently from this type of traveler--- they are typically the ones that complain loudest about the "hassle factor" of airport security, the occasional surly flight attendant, or noisy hotel room. After a few more years on the road, they will adopt the cooler, wiser, more accepting view of the veteran traveler.

The New Recruits - Less experienced, eager to share adventures
- At a glance: Average 14 trips per year with six nights away per trip; 98% are less than 54 years old.
- Generally this group of younger travelers is eager to explore new destinations while on business. They are eager to travel more and share experiences via social media to meet up with friends and other colleagues on the road.
- More likely to travel for education or training.

* This group prizes seeing new destinations more than getting work done--which is a good thing since they are most likely to be traveling for training and development and not always expected to be a peak performance. These young bucks remind me of those training boondoggles to New York or San Francisco where the lure of the nightlife frequently affected my business performance the following day. Since they are so early on in their careers, sticking to a budget, following corporate travel policy and filing expense reports are relatively new concepts and seen as a big hassle and concern.

What about you? Which category do YOU fit into? Please leave your comments below.

Email This Comments (0)