There are so many hidden costs involved when traveling for business that you probably didn’t know about. Let me take you on a journey of hidden costs to look for and how to avoid them.
1. Hotel bills
2. Food bills
3. Internal flights
I travel quite frequently about 10-12 times a year, I’m away for about 8-15 days at a time. Staying in a foreign country is not an easy thing to do, in fact, it is quite strenuous. So for all those wives out there who think it’s a vacation away from home, it is and it’s not.
Staying in a hotel and sleeping in someone else’s bed is uncomfortable, and staying in a 5-star hotel is not in the budget. But I can tell you how you can do it within your budget. You need an agent in China to help you
You need your China agent to book all your hotel accommodation for you. By allowing you to make all your reservations, you will receive a discount ranging from 30 to 50%. That is a great saving. It allows you to upgrade your accommodation class by at least 2 stars and live like a businessman should.
This upgrade allows you to sleep like a dream and allows you to wake up in the morning feeling positive and refreshed and enables you to do your China shopping effectively and efficiently.
To save even more on your expenses, take your China agent out for lunch and dinner, and let them pay for the meals. He already knows what the deal is with the discount and if he didn’t offer to pay, he should tell you to and then you can refund him after the meal. He will save 15-25% on all his grocery bills. This allows you to dine in style, and by eating well, it allows his brain to work well so that when he’s working and buying from China, he’s on top of his game.
When traveling internally in China, I always let my China agent book my flights. You are not their first client and will always use a preferred travel agent. The travel agent knows him well. The travel agent, in turn, will give their China agent a discount for the flights booked, due to the relationship they now have.
You will receive a 5-15% discount on internal flights, possibly also international, I have never tried that. I can also tell you that on occasions I have had to change my internal flight reservations, without an agent from China who can help you. That is connected to a travel agent, you will pay a 10-15% charge for any changes to your flights. I have had the experience that this charge was suspended due to the relationship between my China agent and the travel agent.
You have now saved approximately 25% of your travel expenses. Buy more products from China or go on vacation; either way, you win.