Time Consuming Manual Payment Processes Challenge Travel Businesses

Businesses operating within the travel industry are spending a significant amount of time handling payments – even more than you might expect.

Recent research conducted by Phocuswright, which was co-sponsored by WEX, investigated the European travel payments landscape and found that businesses are challenged by time consuming manual payment processes.

Infographic: How Much Time Does Handling Payments Take Up?

One in four travel businesses are tracking payments manually, which takes up a great deal of time and occupies resource that could be used elsewhere within businesses.

For both travel companies and suppliers, it is true that the larger the company the more time and staff required to track payments, reconcile invoices, manage fraud, process chargebacks and handle other payment related tasks.

Almost three quarters of businesses with over €10 million in sales a year typically have at least 4 staff each spending around 16 hours a week handling and processing payments. This adds up to 64 hours or 8 days a week of business resource spent managing payments and over the course of a year this could amount to as much as 416 days.

For businesses with between €1 million and €10 million annually in sales, the majority also have 4 or more staff each spending around 15 hours a week each managing payments – 60 hours or 7.5 days a week. Annually this could amount to 390 days.

Smaller businesses with less than €1 million annually in sales, most have at least 1 member of staff spending 12 hours or 1.5 days per week handling and processing payments. Over the course of a year this adds up to 78 days.

View the infographic

Virtual Payments Help Reduce Time Spent Handling Payments

The payment method travel companies choose to use when paying suppliers can significantly reduce the time spent handling and processing payments for both sides.

For travel companies, strong relationships with suppliers can dictate the ability to win customer bookings by offering the right mix of options at an attractive price.

Understanding the challenges that suppliers face in accepting payments, including time spent managing payments, can help travel companies in building strong relationships with suppliers.

For more in-depth insight into the payment challenges travel suppliers face download our whitepaper, which also looks at how virtual payments address these payment challenges, while also benefiting travel companies.

Download 5 Reasons Why Travel Suppliers Love Virtual Payments now.