According to GBTA (Global Business Travel Association), global business travel spending continues to grow, with projections surpassing pre-pandemic levels in 2025. With spending expected to reach new highs, businesses are increasingly turning to TMCs to streamline travel management, enhance traveler safety, and maximize cost savings in an evolving travel landscape.

Partnering with a TMC has always been beneficial, but now, more than ever, businesses see tangible returns from leveraging expert travel management. Traveler safety, cost efficiency, and policy compliance remain top priorities for companies seeking to optimize their corporate travel programs.

We’ve put together a list of the top 7 benefits of using a TMC:

1. DUTY OF CARE. One of the most important roles of a TMC is to help your company with Duty of Care. This includes not only monitoring travel and travelers but also assisting with HR risk management.

Many TMCs take into account your Duty of Care requirements and then customize booking tools to be in line with those requirements, and your travel policies—all for the safety of your travelers and your company. In addition, in the event of an emergency or travel disruption—weather, pandemic-related, or other—TMCs can rebook travelers much easier and faster than a stranded traveler.

Stacie Schmahl, Vice President at AAA Corporate Travel says “If you have travelers who book themselves either directly on a supplier’s website, or with an online leisure travel agency, and something goes wrong, you won’t know where travelers are or how to get them home safely. At AAA, we’ve invested heavily in technology that tracks every traveler's check-in—from airline to rental car to hotel. We even offer a reporting tool for clients to track travelers themselves.

2. COST SAVINGS. A TMC provides measurable ROI through negotiated discounts, strategic policy enforcement, and proactive cost avoidance.

In terms of tangible benefits, a TMC like AAA ensures you get the best rates on bookings for airlines, hotels, and even rental cars through long-held partnerships, negotiations, and industry knowledge. In addition, says Cathy Grubbs, “We do analytical reports for clients upfront to identify current spend, traveler behavior, and company travel policies to see how we can help save money from the start.” In today’s rapidly changing environment, it’s even more important than ever to ensure you capture all of your travel spend with your selected partner.  If only 50% of your travel goes through your preferred TMC, you only get credit for 50% of your spend, directly impacting your ability to negotiate the best rates.

A TMC can also offer intangible advice, like suggesting your travelers book 14 days in advance for a less expensive ticket or advising you on your travel policy to require travelers to take the lowest fare since many travelers booking on their own don’t have this mindset. And TMCs are your go-to for hassle-free experiences. Expertise makes a very big difference when it comes to corporate travel.

(Be aware that all TMCs should do these things, however, it doesn’t always happen, so make sure you cover this in interviews with potential partners.)

3. UNUSED TICKET MANAGEMENT. Many TMCs are able to track unused airline tickets and often get refunds you could not get on your own. AAA is especially mindful of this.

Airline policies continue to evolve, making effective ticket and travel credit management a priority for businesses. AAA Corporate Travel ensures clients never leave money on the table by automatically tracking and reapplying unused ticket values.

Transferring ticket value to other employees if an employee leaves or a traveler gets sick and can’t travel is something only a TMC can do.

“If a ticket expires, that’s money on the table,” says Cathy Grubbs. “Our system auto transfers tickets and also, depending on the carrier, we can ask for a refund of even a non-refundable ticket or have the ticket value credited to a travel credit card.”

4. 24/7 SUPPORT. Most TMCs are going to have people ready to take your call or a traveler’s call 24/7/365.

It’s the job of the TMC to be there because you never know when a travel emergency or issue might arise—domestically or internationally.

Without a TMC, the person in charge of travel for a company would have to be “on call” should a traveler get stranded and need help or run into a personal emergency or incident. Or possibly there would be no one to call, which is a risky position when it comes to Duty of Care.

AAA watches the weather and other alerts so if a traveler’s early morning flight is delayed or cancelled, we can often rebook much better flight options than those offered by the airline, and alert you and the traveler. That’s peace of mind.

5. INSIDER INFORMATION AND CONNECTIONS. Don’t kid yourself, having someone on the “inside” like a TMC is going to make traveling immeasurably easier.

Often what seems like a small thing is actually the thing that takes the greatest time to deal with and/or has a significant cost attached to it.

Leveraging TMC professionals means you have access to suppliers (think airlines or other travel-related companies), and your TMC can represent you and your travelers so neither of you are stuck on the phone or, in the case of your travelers, are waiting in a long line when things go wrong.

Stacie Schmahl relates this story that happened:

“We had a client flying back from South Africa. When she got to New York her flight was canceled due to bad weather. She was traveling with a couple of other people who did not book through AAA. She called us as she stood in an impossibly long line with her friends at the airport. We were able to quickly secure the last seat on a flight for her the next day, however she needed to switch airports. We also found her a hotel close to the other airport. Her friends were still in line when she checked into her hotel. Our client got home with barely any inconvenience.”

With a TMC, you are not competing with hundreds or sometimes thousands of other travelers. That is the power of having a professional travel consultant you can call.

6. STATE-OF-THE-ART TRAVEL TECHNOLOGY. The technology that most TMCs use continues to evolve to make travel easier and less risky for companies.

The sophisticated technology platforms that a TMC uses internally, as well as the suite of products they offer their customers, enables travel to happen in the most seamless fashion, and customized to the unique requirements of each company.

Our technology is designed for flexibility. We work with each client to customize their tech package, ensuring it aligns with their travel policies and business needs.

A key offering is our AAA FareSaver and AAA HotelSaver, which continuously scans for lower fares post-booking and automatically rebooks when savings are found. The same technology applies to hotel rates, ensuring clients always secure the best possible pricing.

7. MEETING & EVENT PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT. For companies, meetings and events planning can be a huge drain on time and budget.  Having a partner who knows the ins and outs of meeting planning can help you create the most impact without draining your resources.   

Planning corporate events, incentive trips, and large-scale conferences requires expertise. AAA Corporate Travel’s Cvent-certified meeting planners provide end-to-end support for both in-person and virtual events, including:

• Venue sourcing & contract negotiation
• Automated registration
• Group air travel coordination
• On-site logistics & risk management

AAA acts as an extension of our clients’ teams, handling the details so they can focus on business objectives. From supplier negotiations to attendee management, our expertise ensures seamless event execution.

Stacie Schmahl also notes that many companies offer incentive trips for employees reaching sales or other goals, and a TMC should be able to handle all of this for you—from beginning to end.

If your company is looking to optimize travel spending, improve traveler safety, and enhance corporate travel experiences, partnering with a TMC like AAA Corporate Travel is the strategic move for 2025.

Let’s connect and take your travel program to the next level.