As a business owner, traveling for work can be exciting. After all, who doesn’t like going to a new place and meeting new people? But, travel for work can also be time-consuming, complicated, and frustrating. That’s why we’ve put together some travel tips to make travel for work more manageable. Keep reading to learn how to make travel for work a breeze.
8 Travel for work tips
No matter where you are going, traveling for work can be a fun and enriching experience. But that doesn’t mean that traveling for work is always easy. To make your next business-related trip a great experience, here are eight travel tips for work.
1. Create a travel policy if you don’t already have one
Before you book anything, make sure your company has a firm travel policy. Travel policies can help make travel for work easier for you and your employees, save money, and promote safety when employees are away from the office.
Travel policies may include:
- Approved travel companies
- Booking procedures
- Preferred company vendors
- Reimbursement processes
- Permitted and unpermitted expenses
- Approved travel insurance provider
So before you do anything, have a good travel policy in place. And if you feel the need to update it, make sure you keep your employees in mind and keep everyone in the loop.
2. Book everything early
With travel, sometimes things can move quickly. If you want to avoid endless headaches, make sure you book things early for your next work trip. No matter your transportation, you’ll have more choices if you book in advance.
Here are some perks of booking early:
- Cheaper costs for tickets and rentals than if you book last minute
- More options to choose from (e.g., seats on a plane or types of cars to rent)
- Less stress thanks to preparing from the get-go
3. Organize in advance
Being organized at work or home is one thing. If you lose something, chances are you’ll find it again soon. But when you travel for work, being organized is entirely different.
Travel organization can be as simple as good carry-on luggage or checked luggage with wheels (a must!). But, organization is just as essential once you reach your destination.
Here are some ways to take your travel organization to the next level:
- Create an email folder to store all electronic receipts, confirmations, and communications. Think of this folder as a catch-all for electronic information related to your business trip. Confirmations and departure times are important, but this can also be a great way to keep track of receipts.
- Use a day bag to organize your everyday items. A day bag could be a backpack, tote bag, or suitcase. It doesn’t matter what bag it is, only that you dedicate it to your daily needs.
- Get a pouch for smaller items. You can quickly misplace hotel room keycards, rental car keys, and name tags. A zippered pouch can help keep smaller items from disappearing.
- Put receipts in the same place. If you need to prove expenses or plan on taking business-related deductions at the end of the year, you’ll want a way to organize receipts on the go. Pocket-sized accordion folders are small enough to carry easily and can help you organize receipts chronologically. Whatever you choose, make sure that it’s something you don’t mind taking with you. If you have your organizing tool with you when you need it, you’ll have a better chance of storing your receipts properly.
4. Prepare for power shortages
It’s easy to take for granted how often we have to plug in our devices to recharge. At home or the office, it’s second nature. When on the road, keeping the charge on your devices can be extremely important. So, plan ahead.
If possible, pack an extra cord for each item you have to charge. That way, you have a backup if you misplace a cord or leave one in the wall socket. Another option is investing in a power bank, just in case. Power banks can save the day, from the last-minute top-ups to the moments when you’re away from an outlet. Make sure to charge your power bank before starting your day.
5. Print out your travel documents
Sometimes things go wrong. You can’t afford to lose or damage your devices when traveling for business. More often than not, your phone or laptop is your direct link to all the information you need. To avoid any issues, print out all of your travel documents.
Here are some documents you may want to print out:
- Confirmations for hotel rooms or car rentals
- Travel and business itinerary
- Important phone numbers
If the worst-case scenario becomes a reality, you’ll have hard copies to help you get to where you’re going.
6. Simplify flying the friendly skies
Everyone knows that the quickest way from point A to point B is to hop on an airplane and fly the friendly skies. But if you’ve ever been through an airport, you also know there are plenty of ways to make air travel as time-consuming as possible. If you’re flying, make sure to make the process as easy as you can.
If you’re planning on booking a flight, consider:
- Registering for TSA precheck. In July 2022, 95% of travelers who registered for TSA precheck waited less than five minutes. Some of the perks of TSA precheck include not having to take off your shoes, belts, or light jackets when going through security.
- Booking nonstop flights. It may cost extra money, but nonstop flights can cut out the dreaded layover. If a layover is unavoidable, make sure it isn’t too short. You don’t want to spend any part of your business-related travel running for your life. Also, watch out for layovers that stretch on forever.
- Checking your bags. Checking your bags can speed up the process of getting to your seat.
- Using carry-on bags. You may find that a checked bag is too large for your travel items. Leave the checked bag at home and consolidate everything into a carry-on. With a carry-on, you don’t have to worry about checking your bag or waiting for it at baggage claim.
- Dressing appropriately. Everyone knows you should dress to impress. But when traveling, we can bend the rules a bit. When flying, you don’t have to worry about hard-to-lace shoes or complicated jewelry. Dressing in comfortable clothes that make the screening process as easy as possible reduces stress and frees up time.
7. Bring a wide-mouth water bottle
Trust us on this one—a water bottle is a must-have when you are on the move. You aren’t going to be anywhere near your A-game if you aren’t hydrated. Why a wide mouth? You never know how you’ll be able to fill up your water bottle. The wide mouth makes everything more manageable, regardless of if it’s a filling station or a water fountain.
8. Avoid travel weary clothes
When it comes to business travel, your clothes don’t have to look like unfolded origami. You need to know how to pack properly so travel doesn’t take a toll on your clothes.
If you want to dress to impress (you know you do), here are some things to remember next time you pack and unpack your business attire:
- Try bundle wrapping. Bundle wrapping is a different way to fold your clothes for your luggage. Instead of individually folded articles of clothing stacked on top of each other, bundle wrapping your clothes strategically wraps clothes together around a central, soft core (e.g., socks). As the bundle of clothes grows, creases become more and more impossible.
- Invest in a wrinkle release strategy. Travel steamers or wrinkle-release sprays can help reduce the wrinkles in your clothes once you unpack. If you’re already at your destination and don’t have a steamer or a wrinkle-release spray, think about hanging your clothes near the shower and turning on the hot water. It’s not as exact as a travel steamer, but it should do the trick.
- Use your hotel’s laundry service. Most hotels offer laundry or dry cleaning services. Connect with your hotel before you set out on your trip to know precisely what’s available. If low-cost laundry or dry cleaning is available, you’re in luck. At that point, do you even have to fold your clothes at all?
A word on travel expenses
Chances are you don’t have to pay for all of your travel-related expenses when traveling for business. Your business could have a travel reimbursement policy, and there are always deductible travel expenses to keep in mind.
Travel reimbursement
A travel reimbursement policy is when your business reimburses you for expenses you incur while on a business-related trip. The expenses covered depend on the policy.
Policies may cover things like:
- Airfare
- Car rental
- Car insurance
- Gasoline
- Lodging
- Meals
Look out for the fine print. There may be limits on prices for meals or hotel accommodations.
Deducting business expenses
You can deduct travel expenses come tax time. Keep your receipts and know what travel-related expenses are covered.
Deductible travel expenses can include:
- The costs of travel to the destination and while you are there
- Lodging and non-entertainment-related meals
- Dry cleaning and laundry
- Tips for services related to any travel expenses (e.g., tipping a server or cab driver)
The evidence an employee presents for travel-related expenses must be both documentary and adequate. Documentary evidence is anything that shows the expense of a given item. But, documentary evidence isn’t necessarily adequate for a deduction. For instance, a canceled check is technically documentary evidence, but it doesn’t prove that the expense is a business expense. In this case, you’ll need additional evidence to prove the expense is business-related.
Adequate evidence usually includes the following:
- Name of the business
- Dates the expenses occurred
- Amount of the expense
- Details related to the expense (e.g., whether the expense was food, lodging, etc.)
Pro tip: Don’t worry about which expenses do or don’t count as business-related expenses. Keep every receipt you can and worry about qualifying expenses when the trip is over.
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