So you’ve personalized your shopping experience, now what about your loyalty program?

blog article loyalty program personalizationWritten by:

Benny Yonovich
CEO & Co-Founder at Arbitrip

In the fast-paced and competitive world of retail, businesses are constantly searching for innovative ways to keep their customers engaged and loyal. While personalized shopping experiences have become a standard practice, many brands and loyalty programs are yet to tap into the power of personalized perks. In this blog post, we’ll explore how personalization in  loyalty program can significantly increase engagement and retention, help program operators reduce liability, and foster lasting relationships with customers. These tips are even more effective when we’re specifically looking to enhance bank loyalty programs.

Tailored Rewards for Individual Preferences

Personalization allows brands to offer rewards that resonate deeply with each customer’s unique preferences. By analyzing customer data and behavior, brands can determine what motivates each customer. Providing rewards that align with individual tastes strengthens the emotional connection between customers and the brand, making them more likely to engage actively with the loyalty program. Armed with this knowledge, businesses can design loyalty programs that cater to the specific interests and needs of each individual, making them feel valued and appreciated.

Driving Engagement and Retention

Engagement is the lifeblood of any successful loyalty program. Personalization can transform passive customers into active participants, fostering a two-way relationship. As customers receive relevant rewards and personalized offers, they are more likely to interact with the brand, provide feedback, and actively participate in the program.

Moreover, the sense of exclusivity created by personalized perks motivates customers to continue their engagement with the brand. As they accumulate loyalty points and experience the benefits of the program, the desire to unlock even more rewards keeps them coming back for more.

Building Brand Advocates

Happy and engaged customers can become powerful brand advocates. Word-of-mouth marketing is incredibly influential, and when customers feel genuinely connected to a brand, they are more likely to share their positive experiences with friends and family. Personalized loyalty programs can turn customers into vocal advocates, leading to new customer acquisition and organic growth.

Respecting Privacy and Transparency

While personalization is undoubtedly valuable, it’s crucial to handle customer data with care and respect for their privacy. Brands must be transparent about their data practices and ensure that customer information is safeguarded. Establishing trust is essential for maintaining long-term relationships with customers.

In conclusion, personalization is no longer limited to the realm of shopping experiences; it’s a game-changer for loyalty programs across all industries. Brands that embrace personalization and tailor their loyalty programs to individual customers’ preferences will undoubtedly see a surge in engagement, customer retention, and advocacy. By making customers feel special and appreciated, brands can forge lasting connections that will keep customers coming back for more.

Learn how Arbitrip helps brands to personalize their rewards with unique travel experiences.

/by

Leveling Up Customer Loyalty: The VIP Treatment That’ll Make Them Stay!

Elevate Customer Loyalty with the VIP Treatment

Want to unlock the secret to winning customers’ hearts and keeping them for life? It’s all about treating them like total VIPs! Let’s dive into why the VIP treatment is the ultimate game-changer for your business.

Forging unbreakable bonds

You know how you feel when someone goes the extra mile to make you feel special? Well, customers are no different. When you personalize their experience, shower them with exclusive perks, and cater to their unique tastes, they’ll be over the moon! It’s like becoming besties with your brand. Watch those satisfied customers turn into your biggest fans, spreading the word far and wide.

 

The cool kids’ hangout

We all wanna feel like we’re part of something exclusive, right? Roll out the red carpet for your loyal customers. Give them early access to the hottest products, invite them to exclusive events, and treat them to behind-the-scenes stuff. They’ll strut around like rockstars, knowing they’re part of the elite squad. Say goodbye to your competition’s charms because your customers won’t be swayed.

 

Word-of-mouth magic

Here’s a pro tip: when you treat your customers like royalty, they’ll sing your praises to anyone who’ll listen. Word-of-mouth marketing is pure gold, my friends. People trust recommendations from friends more than any ad. So, when your VIP customers start raving about your brand, you’ll have an army of new customers at your door.

 

Sticking around for the long haul

Customer retention, folks! The VIP treatment is like a superglue that keeps your peeps coming back for more. They’ll be loyal to you through thick and thin because you’ve made them feel like they matter. Even if you mess up a little (hey, we’re all human), they’ll forgive you because you’ve treated them right all along.

 

Results don’t lie! 

Oh, and did we mention the sweet sound of cha-ching? Treating customers like VIPs isn’t just warm and fuzzy; it’s a smart financial move too. They’ll keep coming back for more, spending more money on your products, and becoming your A-team players. Hello, increased profits and success.

 

Stand out from the pack

In a sea of businesses, you have stand out, amirite? Treating your customers like the VIPs they are is your secret weapon. It sets you apart from the competition. Anyone can copy products or prices, but the connection you build with your customers? Priceless. You’re a superstar in your own league!

 

Bottom line: Roll out the VIP treatment!

So there you have it, business pros. Give your customers the VIP treatment, and watch your biz soar to new heights. Forge those unbreakable bonds, make them feel special, and enjoy the perks of word-of-mouth magic. Get ready for a customer loyalty boost like never before. Let’s do this.

 

Contact us to learn how Arbitrip can help you treat your customers like VIPs > click here

/by

Unlocking the Potential of Hotel Bookings: Key Differentiators for Banks Loyalty Programs

bank loyalty programs

As banks fiercely compete to retain and attract customers, they must adapt to new and innovative ways of enhancing their loyalty programs. One such opportunity banks should capitalize on is integrating hotel bookings as a core component of their loyalty programs.

In this blog post, we will delve into why hotel bookings can be a game-changer for any successful loyalty program and how it benefits both customers and banks.

Savings: Your Customers’ Pocket Friendly Companion

One of the main attractions of hotel bookings as a loyalty program feature is the potential for significant savings. Using Arbitrip, loyalty customers saved up to 20% on average when booking hotels compared to popular online booking platforms. This alone provides a compelling reason for loyalty program managers to incorporate hotel bookings into their programs, giving their customers a reason to use their cards or services more frequently.

* Key takeaway: offering savings on hotel bookings can encourage customers to use your services more often and result in increased customer loyalty. *

Experience: Elevating your Customers’ Travel Journey

Hotel bookings within loyalty programs are not just about saving money. They also grant customers access to exclusive experiences, upgrades, and amenities. By weaving hotel bookings into your loyalty programs, your bank can provide memorable experiences that not only delight your customers but also reinforce their loyalty to your brand.

Some examples of enhanced experiences can include:
– Room upgrades
– Breakfast addition
– Lounge access

* Key takeaway: upgrading travel experiences by giving access to adding special perks and features will amplify customer satisfaction and encourage repeat bookings. *

Service: Delivering Exceptional Customer Support

In addition to savings and experiences, the integration of Arbitrip hotel bookings tool into loyalty programs also presents the opportunity for banks to offer unparalleled customer service through dedicated booking assistance and support.

By working closely with Arbitrip, banks can ensure seamless integration into the loyalty program framework while also providing their customers with personalized attention and service during their travels. This further boosts customer engagement, improves customer satisfaction, and ultimately, drives brand loyalty.

* Key takeaway: excellent customer support rendered during hotel bookings can result in not only higher customer satisfaction but also better engagement and repeat business. *

Issued Credit Cards turnover: a big opportunity

Hotel bookings present a significant opportunity for banks to increase the turnover of their issued credit cards.

By using Arbitrip, the bank can make sure that only authorized credit cards are charged. This can help the bank to increase its credit card turnover and applicable fees such as interchange fees and cross-border fees.

Conclusion: Why Hotel Bookings are a Win-Win for Banks and Customers

In summary, incorporating Arbitrip hotel bookings tool into a bank’s loyalty program is a winning move for both customers and banks. Offering savings, enriching travel experiences, and personalized customer service helps strengthen the bank-customer relationship while driving engagement, brand loyalty and credit card usage.

Loyalty program and marketing managers, it’s time to unlock the power of hotel bookings. Explore Arbitrip‘s capabilities and enhance your loyalty programs to stand out among the competition in today’s banking landscape.

/by

Current Hospitality Industry Challenges and Solutions

Current Hospitality Industry Challenges and Solutions

It has been a little more than two years since the corona epidemic broke into our lives, and already closures and travel restrictions seem like a distant reality. With the return to normal life there is also a significant increase in the demand for domestic and international travel, both business and leisure.

While occupancy levels have recovered faster than expected in the hospitality industry (nearing 2019 levels in most markets), this industry, and the travel industry in general, are facing many difficulties in returning to their pre-pandemic performance.

The leading difficulty, experienced across many industries, is a shortage of qualified manpower.

Due to the nearly complete halt of travel in the first year of the pandemic, many hospitality employees found themselves unemployed for a long period of time, which led many of them to a career change.
Now, many of them are reluctant to return to this industry that feels insecure at times, not as financially rewarding and far too demanding. These concerns are even strongly felt by people from outside of the industry that are in search for a job.
Some hotels had to rebuild their workforce from scratch and are still struggling to do so while occupancy levels are extremely high.

On the customer side, the shortage of manpower leads to long queues, delays, lower levels of customer service, lower availability and an unproportioned rise in rates.
As we have shared back on our June review, the global hospitality analytics company STR has recently conducted a study on hotel ADRs (average daily rates) across US and Europe, comparing April-May 2022 rates to April-May 2019 rates. The results show an average 14% increase in ADR in the US and 6% increase in ADR in Europe.

This manpower shortage will most likely force the hospitality industry to adapt to new ways of working. One of the leading trends we see is the fact that this industry is focusing on implantation of digital and automation technologies, across several departments.

Hospitality human resources departments now utilize digital platforms in the process of hiring and training.
On the one hand those platforms allow job seekers to create profiles that demonstrate their skills, and on the other hand the employer can select the most fitting candidates to specific positions more easily.
This promises a more accurate, efficient and cost-effective hiring process.
Digital platforms also can be used in the process of training employees by centralizing the learning process and getting direct feedback on their training programs.

Operations departments deal with the manpower shortage by increasingly using mobile and SaaS-based technology to simplify operations and enhance costumer experiences.
These uses include automating administrative tasks (room assignment, check in and report scheduling), guest messaging platforms that allow a single employee to manage multiple requests at once, and a mobile property management system (PMS) that automatically delegate tasks among team members like the housekeeping team to maximize efficiency.

Hotels also reduce the workload by using mobile check-in or kiosk-based contactless self-check-in, a digital payment system and keyless entry system that allows guests to get into their rooms in a matter of minutes.

Digital platforms are also supporting from the customer side. Using smart booking platforms helps to facilitate the booking experience and avoid some of the nuisances due to manpower shortage.
Booking with Arbitrip for example will not only help you save at least 15%-25% on you travel expenses, but also give you access to exclusive deals, 24/7 costumer service centralized payment options and access to valuable analysis reports – and all of that free of charge.

One thing is certain – that technology can not completely replace human interaction. There is of course a great importance in the hospitality industry for that personal touch between the costumer and the hotel employees. However, automating some of the tasks and using digital platforms, results in a more personal and exceptional service from the hotel staff.

For more information on the Arbitrip platform and how we can help make your booking process better – please contact us at [email protected].

/by

Rising Hotel Rates & Pro Tips On How You Can Save

After a couple of challenging years in the travel industry, hotel prices worldwide have already soared beyond pre-Covid rates. This is attributed mainly to the fact that after two years of lockdowns and travel restrictions there’s a newfound lust for travel, both for leisure and business purposes, which is leading to a prompt increase in occupancy levels. This presents an opportunity for the hospitality industry to try to regain some of the lost revenue from the long months of the pandemic.   

The global hospitality analytics company STR has recently conducted a study on hotel ADRs (average daily rates) across US and Europe, comparing April-May 2022 rates to April-May 2019 rates. The results show an average 14% increase in ADR in the US and 6% increase in ADR in Europe.

The leading countries that presented the highest ADR increases in Europe were Italy (23%), Ireland (21%), Portugal (18%), Spain (14%) and the UK (12%).

London, which is a leading business oriented destination, reported its highest monthly occupancy since 2020 in May 2022. These high occupancy levels have a double impact – both on hotels availability and of course on the ADR, which has increased by 46% from last year in this location.

Comparing 2022 hotel rates to 2021, Bloomberg research presents a staggering rise of up to 69% on hotel ADR across US central destinations (with an average of 33% increase).
As expected, New York has shown the highest increase of 69% in hotel ADR, Chicago hotels ADR showed an increase of 41%, Miami hotels ADR showed an increase of 55%, and San Francisco hotels ADR showed an increase of 37%.

When you add to the equation the significant rise of flight ticket cost in the past few months (airline fares presented a 18.6% increase in April 2022 alone) – traveling for leisure or business has become much more expensive than we can recall.

The current indication from the combination of the above trends is that travel cost is now considered the biggest inhibitor to travel.  

And yet, regardless of your destination, there are a few things that can be done in order to reduce travel expenses.

Our travel specialists have gathered the top tips that can help you save money when you plan your next trip:

  • Book in advance.
    Since we can see a steady increase in travel prices on a weekly basis, we recommend booking in advance in order to guarantee a lower price. If you want to feel more reassured, choose hotels that offer a free-cancellation policy or a flexible rate that allows you to change the dates without penalty, so you can always update your booking if there’s any need.
  • Book new hotels.
    Try to scout for hotels that have just recently opened, as sometimes their opening rates might be lower for a limited period of time – and you’ll get a chance to enjoy their new facilities at a very special rate.
  • Go outside of the city center.
    If you are staying in a location where there is reliable and convenient public transportation, we recommend you to stay in hotels just outside of the city center. This usually helps you decrease expenses dramatically and can give you higher value for your money. Also, take into account that many business centers in big cities are actually located just outside city centers, so when you travel for business this can be a big plus.

  • Match the hotel type to your dates.                                                                                                      As mentioned above – hotels determine their rates according to availability, and you can use this to your advantage. Business oriented hotels for example will usually offer better deals on weekends, and Leisure focused hotels will offer better rates on weekdays.
  • Book with Arbitrip!
    Booking with Arbitrip smart platform helps you save at least 15-25% on your travel expenses. Through our user-friendly platform you can access exclusive deals, plus you get to enjoy 24/7 customer service, centralized payment options and access to valuable analysis reports – and all of that free of charge!
    For more information please contact us at [email protected] .

 

Follow our blog to be updated on the latest hospitality industry news and trends.

 

/by

The top 7 Tech conferences in the coming year

As the world is finally coming out of a long period of travel limitations and social distancing, it seems like it’s the perfect time to get back on that in-person networking & career development horse, and what better way to do so than attending some of the top conferences worldwide?

For that exact purpose, we at Arbitrip have put together an “A list” of our client’s most popular tech conferences that are due later in 2022 and early 2023:

  1. CES

The annual CES (Consumer Electronics Show) event, owned & produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), is considered one of the world’s largest and most significant technology events.
To cut a long story short – this is where tech magic happens!

CES is considered to be the place where the most innovative, futuristic and breakthrough technologies, in almost every tech sector (including healthcare, automotive, VR, sports, robotics, machine intelligence and more), are being revealed.

CES 2023, January 5-8, Las Vegas NV & Digital Find out more

 

  1. RSA Conference

If you are a cybersecurity professional, RSAC 2002 is the right place to be seen this year. This 4-day conference will be held in San Francisco and will offer a high-level learning experience along with the opportunity of gaining valuable knowledge & new insights regarding the latest cyber threats, newest solutions, and most popular trends.

This conference will present a rich lineup of high-level speakers from leading organizations such as ISSA, IBM, SAP, BDO, GOOGLE, APPLE, LINKEDIN, and more.

RSA Conference San Francisco, Moscone Center & Digital, June 6-9, 2022 Visit website

* Note that a digital pass is also available for those of you who cannot attend in person this year.

 

  1. MWC Barcelona

Over 61,000 attendees from almost 200 countries visited the MWC (Mobile World Congress) 2022 held in Barcelona.

This annual 4- day conference is considered to be the largest mobile event in the world and the most influential in the connectivity industry.

Each year, this event features speakers & exhibitors from world-leading companies such as Amazon, HP, Amdocs, AT&T, Huawei, Nokia, Vodafone, and many more.

MWC Barcelona, February 27 – March 2, 2023 – Read more

 

  1. Black Hat

With a record of 25 years of events, the Black Hat Technical Security Conference series is highly recognized and well respected by the global security community.

The Black Hat events aim to bring forward the most relevant information, technical research, and new developments, together with an exclusive technical training experience.

This year, the next Black Hat events will be held both in Singapore and Las Vegas, and in both you can expect a 4-day hybrid event where the participants will be able to choose whether to attend the live, in-person, conference or to connect remotely.

Black Hat USA 2022, August 6-11, Mandalay Bay / Las Vegas + Virtual – go to event page

 

  1. Affiliate World

One cannot address the subject of affiliate and e-commerce conferences without mentioning “Affiliate World”. This is a top-notch event that will be held in both Europe and Asia, connecting the world’s top affiliate marketers and e-commerce entrepreneurs of the industry.

Attending this conference will provide you the opportunity to engage with the industry’s top experts and be exposed to new visions, different approaches and advanced ideas on affiliate & e-commerce marketing. Read more about Affiliate world

Affiliate World Europe, Fira de Barcelona, Spain 6-7 July 2022. Event website

Affiliate World Asia, Bangkok, 30 nov-1 Dec 2022. Further details will be published soon.

 

  1. Affiliate Summit East

At the iconic venue in the heart of Times Square, New York, ASE22 will be the place where 3,000 of the best e-commerce entrepreneurs, affiliate marketers, media buyers (and more) will join together for learning, networking, and exploring the latest and most cutting-edge technologies and innovations of the industry.

This will be a 2-day conference packed with over 60 sessions – workshops, meetups, and lectures – combined with fun perks such as a rooftop party and a VIP lounge.

Affiliate Summit East 2022, May 24 -25, New York – at the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square. Learn more

* Won’t be able to attend this year? No worries! You can already mark your calendar for next year – Affiliate Summit West 2023 will take place on January 23-25, 2023 in Las Vegas.

 

  1. AWS Summit

AWS Global Summits are free of charge events held in 30 major cities all around the world.

These events are designed to expose new customers from all industries to the AWS platform, but also to provide existing customers with a deeper learning experience by hearing from AWS leaders, experts, and partners, as well as attending technical sessions, demos, workshops and team challenges.

The next AWS Summits:

  • May 18, 2022 | Tel Aviv, Israel
  • May 18-19, 2022 | Atlanta, USA
  • May 23-25, 2022 | Washington DC, USA
  • Jun 21-22, 2022 | Milan, Italy
  • Aug 02 – Aug 03, 2022 | Seattle, Washington, USA
  • Aug 31, 2022 | Canberra, Australia

Find an AWS Summit near you

 

There is no doubt the world has gone through so many changes in the past two years, but it finally feels like it’s “getting back on its feet”. Business travel is back with a bang and so is attending those in-person events and world-leading business conferences.

The list of international tech conferences and events is long, and we hope that the hand-picked A-list we have compiled above can help you find the ones that are best suited to your business needs.

From our experience, the demand for accommodation during these top tech conferences is high and room supply is limited, so we recommend planning ahead and booking in advance.
The best way to prepare is building an annual event calendar and pre-book all the hotels in order to enjoy the best rates and availability.

Our team is here 24/7 to answer your questions and assist you with any reservation needed – contact us on [email protected].

Want to recommend another event not on the list above?
Send us a note! We’d love to hear from you.

 

/by

New Business Travel Trends in 2022

As worldwide vaccination levels increase, and Covid restrictions are gradually being lifted, our clients return to their business travel routine with a surge of individual and group travel bookings.

While booking numbers increase, and Q1 2022 figures already exceed 2019, we at Arbitrip identified a few interesting trends among our business travelers that we wanted to share with you.

 

Equipped for work

More organizations have shifted to hybrid work models, allowing employees to do work practically from any place on earth. Salesforce for example, launched Success from Anywhere, which offers their employees the flexibility to work from any location and at any convenient time for them.

This change allows more travelers to work while traveling around the world, and we can see the rise in demand for hotels that offer work-friendly rooms that are quiet, equipped with a more convenient work station, and stream fast and reliable Wi-Fi.

These travelers will also usually prefer hotels that have shared working spaces for the use of the hotel business guests. The Hoxton Chicago for example has a “Work-Stay-Play” package, which allows guests access to the facility’s in-house co-working space.

 

Tech and Modern

With the progress of technology accelerating rapidly, and rising number of corporate travelers from high-tech organizations, another characteristic of the new business traveler is to search for modern, futuristic, high-tech hotels.

Those travelers expect to have the most up-to-date technology in their hotel rooms. Extra USB sockets and docking stations are a thing of the past, when the new hotels now offer a variety of features from smart rooms, underwater speakers and mood-themed LED lights to signature-scented meeting rooms.

The room design in these increasingly popular hotels will usually be modern, clean and artsy. For example, you can have a look at a typical room design of the Copenhagen CitizenM, the trendy Netherlands-based boutique hotel chain, which has properties in cities like London, New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

“Bleisure”

After 2 years of scarcely traveling the desire to enhance the experience during the business trip became ever more important. And so, it does not come as surprise that another trend is one that we have already started seeing pre-Covid, but is now picking up.

We are of course talking about the traveler’s desire to combine their business trip with a vacation – and create the perfect blend of business and leisure. There’s even a name for this trend – they call it “Bleisure”.
A standard “Bleisure” travel is usually comprised from a 3-4 day work trip, to which the traveler add a few vacation days at the beginning or the end.

For this type of trips, the travelers seek to stay in an extraordinary unique hotel, whether this is exhibited in the hotel design, its’ offered culinary experiences or its’ shared spaces and culture events concept.

Also, while booking these trips our travelers usually gave a much higher importance to the hotel location and its distance from the city center or popular attractions.

 

As we progress into Q2 2022 it seems that business travel is finally back to stay.
Live worldwide conferences are being scheduled, companies re-build new travel policies for 2022 and re-recruit for travel positions.
As stated by GBTA in Q4 2021, YOY increase of 38% is expected in 2022, with a further increase in 2023.

We will of course keep our eyes open for spotting new trends and share the latest news with you, so keep following for more.

 

/by

Companies to be more optimistic about Business Travel, survey says

Industry leaders give higher importance to safety and health than ever before.

During the past few weeks, we conducted a large-scale survey, in order to measure the Coronavirus effect on Business Travel industry. The survey included companies from all over the world and was answered by industry-leading professionals. We are excited to share the results with you. The full report is available here.

Among the main findings:
Most of the respondents, 53% to be exact, assume their company will return to business travel between July and September (Q3) of 2020.
However, almost half of the respondents (48%) assume it will take more time to get back to the same volume of travel as it was before the Coronavirus, expecting it to be back to normal only in Q1 2021.

Nearly half of the respondents believe that virtual meetings and video calls will replace business travel in 30-70% of business trips following the Coronavirus pandemic, and 74% believe that only essential trips will be allowed in the near future.

Furthermore, 26% anticipate that additional approval process will be required and 21% have already implemented that kind of process within their company.

Approximately 75% of companies would be willing to pay more for using hotels and airlines with strict health and hygiene practices.
As it seems by the results, the most crucial factors when choosing a hotel is health, safety, and hygiene standards. Hotel cancellation policy and distance from the destination point, which were previously very important factors for choosing a hotel, come only after health and safety. Surprisingly enough, only 36% of respondents said price is important in their decision when choosing which hotel to book.

To summarize with cautious optimism, the Travel industry will gradually increase its activity and hopefully will return to the same volume as known prior to the pandemic. However, our world will look different, and it will be necessary to make adjustments; by travellers, travel coordinators, hotels and suppliers

/by

Top 5 Business Travel Tips

5 Useful Business Travel Hacks

When it comes to travel, you’re always worried you’ll forget something at home or make a mistake with your booking. At least when it comes to your hotel plans, we’ve got you covered. So when you’re planning your next on-site client meeting or annual conference, you’ll want to make sure you’re all set.

Check out our top business travel hacks to keep you organized and on-track:

1 – Extra Phone Charger

Ok, this one’s kind of obvious, but you know what they say about assumptions. The last thing any business traveller wants is to have low battery or – dare we even say it? – no power. Bring another charger & keep at least one of them in your briefcase or purse. 

Travelling internationally? Make sure you’ve got some converters so you can stay connected, uninterrupted.

2 – Back It Up, Baby!

Have you ever watched someone’s presentation on stage and the screen suddenly goes dark? Do you live in fear that you’ll misplace contracts or strategic plans or forget them in your hotel room? Awkward…

So backup everything: presentations, audio & video files, client & staff contact details, medical info, emergency contacts, whatever you’ve got. Use cloud storage or just stick a USB thumb drive in your pocket.

3 – Play it safe

We can’t say this one enough. It happens far too often that a client cancels at the last minute, or an important meeting has to be rescheduled. Hey, it happens; we get it & you can’t control that. But what you can do is stay a step ahead of the game. Before travelling, make sure that you have a ‘no cancellation fee’ deal; that way, if the unexpected happens and you need to cancel, you’re covered. An extra few minutes now can save a lot of stress later.

4 – Pack Smarter

Pack light, just for what you think you’ll need. You don’t have to bring everything to survive a nuclear apocalypse, just enough for your actual time away. Use versatile outfits. Pack 1 black set of trousers or a pencil skirt and a few shirts or tops that go together. It’s a lot easier to mix & match vs. bringing half your closet.

5 – Bring a Pen

Even in the Information Age, this little device is a sure-fire way to stay organized. Have you ever exchanged business cards with someone, only to completely forget who they were later? Have a pen with you & jot down notes on business cards. You’ll easily be able to follow-up with new connections days later.

Forgot to bring your pen with you? Steal one from your hotel room as suggested by CitizenM.

Have you got other #travelhacks that work for you? Share with us in the comments below! 

Happy travels!

/by

7 Reasons to Attend the 2019 PA Show in London

Seen one corporate conference, seen ‘em all, amirite? BZZZT! I’m wrong. (That was the wrong-answer buzzer sound, for those of you who aren’t into game shows.)

 

I personally am looking forward to the London PA Show, coming up next week on February 26th and 27th at the Olympia London convention centre. Meant for PAs, EAs, VAs and Office Managers, the two-day trade show is the largest of its kind in the UK.

 

If you’re in need of a hotel, check out our list of top business hotels in London.

 

Keep reading to find out why you should come out from behind your office computer screen and join us at the PA Show.

 

  1. Become a pro

 

 

I’ll admit it, you seem to be pretty good at what you do. (I’m guessing.) But don’t you want to be even better? Don’t you want to be the best PA/EA/VA/Freakin’A the business travel industry – nay, the world – has ever seen? Well, now’s your chance. Come hear industry experts (yes, that includes me!) speak and share their insider knowledge with you. The exhibition is a great way to become more professional at what you do and advance in your career.

 

  1. Make your life easier

 

Be the first to find out about the latest innovative technologies and tools that can help you work more efficiently. Whether it be a handy business travel management platform or a user-friendly project management system, the PA Show is the place to discover useful methods to make your workdays smoother.

 

  1. See and be seen

 

The thought of networking can sometimes make the best of us want to call in sick and crawl back under our covers. But once you get out there, it can be fun. More importantly, it can be game-changing for your career. 87.6% of business is about who you know. I may have just made up that statistic, but you get the point. Meeting face to face with relevant people in your industry can get you far. Not to mention, there’s even a Networking Bar.

 

  1. Meet suppliers

 

It’s one thing to do research online to find potential vendors you can work with. But actually meeting them in person is so much more effective. You can skip all the first steps of endless research, emails, scheduled phone calls, and rescheduled phone calls. Talk to suppliers or vendors and make a deal on the spot, or at least form a personal and memorable connection and get business cards for later.

 

  1. Get inspired

 

Workin’ 9 to 5 can get you feeling like you’re stuck in a rut. Sure, you’re getting your work done, but you’re probably also getting sick of the monotony of office life. Routine can lead to less motivation, resulting in less productivity. Attending the PA Show will let you remember why you do what you do, will give your brain a kick in the behind, and will boost your creativity. Hearing from other individuals in the industry will give you new ideas and improve performance.

 

  1. Get a live demo

 

We’ll be presenting Arbitrip’s personalized business travel program on February 26th. Come visit Booth H40 and experience a live demo of our travel platform. We’d love to meet you! Email us to schedule a demo at [email protected].

 

  1. IT’S FREE

 

Need I say more?

 

***

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Where: Olympia London, Booth H40

When: February 26th-27th

Register Here

/by