The post-pandemic economic recovery has resulted in a surge in corporate travel transactions. This surge is being driven by businesses of varying types and sizes. Employees engage in domestic and business travel to generate more leads and convert leads into customers.
But they increase carbon emissions and leave carbon footprints consistently while traveling to various destinations for work. Hence, while updating their travel policies after the pandemic, many organizations these days focus on reducing the environmental impact of employee travel.
They have been promoting sustainable business travel by switching from conventional travel to green travel. Likewise, companies and startups these days train, encourage, and incentivize employees to choose green travel options. Every organization can leverage a slew of benefits by adopting green travel.
7 Reasons Why Businesses Should Switch to Green Travel
1. Protect Natural and Cultural Environments
Business travelers consist of 12% of airline passengers. But they account for 75% of airline profits and are responsible for 30% of carbon emissions. The carbon emissions impact natural and cultural environments by causing climate change and warming the planet.
A business can reduce carbon emissions and save the environment only by switching from conventional travel to green or sustainable travel. A company can reduce the carbon footprint per business trip significantly by making several changes to its existing travel policy.
Its sustainable business travel policy must encourage employees to choose airlines that have been taking measures to become carbon neutral. Likewise, work travelers should consider eco-friendly hotels while making business travel arrangements.
At the same time, a company can make business travel sustainable by encouraging employees to follow simple things like using electric vehicles, opting for e-tickets, carrying reusable plastic bottles, and generating minimal waste.
2. Make a Brand Stand Out
According to an independent study commissioned by SmartEnergy, “4 out of 5 people describe themselves as likely to choose a brand with a positive approach to environmental sustainability.”
Similarly, the number of consumers preferring sustainable products and packaging is increasing steadily. A company or startup can make itself stand out from competitors by becoming a sustainability brand.
While planning brand-building campaigns, marketers can highlight how the company has been protecting nature and culture by adopting green travel. Hence, sustainable business travel can be used as a new-age marketing strategy to acquire customers and drive sales.
3. Meet Corporate Social Responsibilities
The social responsibilities of a company can be divided into multiple categories – economic, philanthropic, environmental, and ethical. The environmental social responsibilities of a company emphasize making it environment-friendly.
A company can meet its environmental responsibilities only by minimizing negative environmental impact and maximizing renewable energy adoption. A company or startup can meet environmental responsibilities by switching to sustainable business travel.
The change will make it contribute to keeping the environment clean, reducing carbon footprint, and preventing general waste. In addition to protecting the environment, green travel helps organizations attract and retain talents who passionately believe in working in a sustainable company.
4. Convert Work Travelers into Eco-Warriors
Many websites highlight the fights, contributions, and achievements of many eco-warriors or climate warriors. Likewise, the United Nations picks young eco-warriors from various countries for its climate change campaign – We The Change.
The packed work schedules of working professionals make it difficult for them to become eco-warriors. But a company can make employees traveling for work feel like eco-warriors by switching from conventional business travel to sustainable business travel.
A business will meet the expectations of employees by providing them with options to book green travel business travel products and services. At the same time, the sustainability programs will make them feel like eco-warriors by adopting many changes.
5. Reduce Travel Stress and Fatigue
The aviation industry contributes hugely to global carbon dioxide emissions. But connecting flights use even more carbon dioxide than direct flights.
Businesses can easily reduce the carbon footprint per work trip by allowing employees to book direct flights instead of connecting flights.
In addition to reducing carbon footprint, direct flights help employees reduce air travel time significantly. The decrease in air travel time keeps employees stress-free and boosts their productivity during business trips.
6. Adopt a Hottest Business Travel Trend
The business travel trends change at regular intervals. But green travel is one of the corporate travel trends that do not change with time.
72% of travelers want to stay in eco-friendly or green accommodations at least once. Likewise, 78% of millennials prefer sustainable travel options while planning and booking trips.
Hence, every company can meet the expectations of employees traveling for work by adopting green travel. Its updated travel policy must boost work travel experiences by allowing employees to choose from conventional and sustainable travel options.
7. Control Business Travel Costs
Many decision-makers still believe that sustainable travel is more expensive than conventional travel. But every business can control business travel expenses by adopting green travel.
For instance, it can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by encouraging employees to opt for a budget airline that load additional passengers in the same amount of space.
Similarly, employees can engage in sustainable travel by preferring public transportation to car rentals and reducing the weight of their luggage. However, every organization must prepare employees to adopt green travel by providing training and giving incentives.
Conclusion
The number of companies and startups adopting green travel has been increasing steadily. But no business can keep employee travel sustainable without monitoring and evaluating the carbon footprint generated by every business trip.
While making a sustainable business travel program, decision-makers should not focus on reducing the number of business trips or replacing face-to-face meetings with video conferences. Instead, they should focus on reducing the carbon footprint per business trip consistently.
Leading companies implement the best travel management software to measure and monitor carbon footprints using data analytics. Decision-makers can use the software to track carbon footprints simply by generating reports based on real-time employee travel data.
Also, they can customize the software to recommend green travel products and services to employees when they make business travel arrangements. The customizable travel management software makes it easier for companies to adopt green travel by updating travel policies regularly.
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