NFIB

On the Go!
04/ 30/ 2002

by Shannon Scully and Lisa Waddle

There's good reason they call frequent travelers "road warriors." Yet business travel doesn't have to be a battle. Some small business owners have learned the best ways to save time and money on the road, while also staying connected to their companies.

The terrorist attacks of last year introduced an extra worry--safety. Airports and the government are doing what they can to make the skies secure, but the climate has made everyone wonder about personal vulnerability to crime, whether traveling by plane, train or automobile.

One travel safety expert, Terry Riley, says there are simple things small business owners can do to travel smarter.

"Be involved in making your travel plans to cut down on unknowns," says Riley, who publishes a newsletter on travel safety, Err Travel, at www.errtravel.com. Also, travel unobtrusively; that is, don't display your business card on your luggage or wear your company name on your clothing. "You may be proud of your company, but that gives the crook a way to start a conversation," Riley says. "He can buddy up to you and find out your plans and you could put your guard down."

Small business owners might have an advantage in the game of smarter travel, Riley says, because they tend to take control of their itineraries, rather than relying on a corporate travel department. Their flexibility and responsibility are the key to travel safety.

In the following article, small business road warriors share the tactics they've learned to make travel less expensive, less time-consuming and less of a headache. You'll not only discover how to keep your business running while out of the office, but also how to do business without even hitting the road.

Frequent travelers learn from experience how to ease business trips. Now you can benefit from their mistakes. MyBusiness collected the top travel tips from small business owners for whom travel is a way of life. Here's their advice on how to run your business while on the road.

Have a Base

Sandy Patak, president of Tidewater Consulting Inc., spends 90 percent of the year on the road conducting training or meeting with clients. For her, having a part-time assistant based in Atlanta lets her keep up with Tidewater and her eight employees.

"I found a co-op student who is a junior at the local high school, and she handles the administrative things and serves as a check-in point for me and my employees," she says.

A similar system works for Martin Mayorga, who relies on an administrative employee when he has to travel for his coffee wholesale business Cafe Mayorga, at www.mayorgaimports.com.

"The best tool is having people in place who know our system and goals so I don't have to be calling in all the time, checking to see if an order got done," Mayorga says.

Hardware Help

Two tools that road warriors swear by are cell phones and laptops.

"The cell phone is absolutely critical to staying in touch with internal employees and my business contacts," says Pat Powell, vice president of sales and marketing at the family-run Old Hickory Clay Co., in Hickory, Ky., at www.oldhickoryclay.com.

He fires up his laptop after hours for answering e-mail and writing reports on his client contacts, rather than waiting until he gets back to the office.

Mayorga, who mainly travels by car for his coffee roasting company in Rockville, Md., relies on a Nextel two-way radio for a cheaper connection with the office when he's within a 100-mile radius.

Software Smarts

Contact management software helps Old Hickory Clay's Powell organize his client contacts while on the road three to four days a week selling the company's clays, which are used in ceramics. He also has an America Online account, which lets him check his e-mail less expensively, through a local phone call.

Another software tool Powell swears by is Microsoft Streets and Trips, at www.microsoft.com/streets, which gives detailed directions to a client's or hotel's address.

Patak has found a low-cost intranet that lets employees at Tidewater access company documents securely while on the road. From client contacts and tax information to documents and calendars, the intranet lets employees or even clients (for select documents) log on securely. Different levels of access are password-protected, so even private documents are available to those on the road.

"It's the best way to stay connected when we're in different time zones and need different things," Patak says. "An employee can get a training document or I can pull up my appointments."

She uses Microsoft bCentral's SharePoint service, found online at www.bcentral.com, which provides an intranet for about $350 a year.

Staying Sane

Other favorite tools cited by small business road warriors don't apply directly to running their business, but aid in lowering stress while on the road.

Powell listens to books on tape when he has long road trips. "It's a way to keep up-to-date on my reading, and not feel my time in the car is wasted," he says.

For Patak, logging on to the Web site www.myfamily.com lets her keep in touch with distant family members during her downtime in hotel rooms.

And--little surprise--Mayorga rarely goes anywhere without his own French press and plenty of his own freshly brewed coffee. "I can't drink convenience store coffee," he says.

Business and Pleasure

Whether it's taking along family members,visiting relatives or squeezing in personal time, small business owners know that sane business travel is rarely all business.

In fact, 90 percent of travelers combine business trips with pleasure, according to worldwide travel consultants Runzheimer International.

"Bringing family on business trips is a wonderful way to spend good quality time together and not feel the need to separate parts of your life," says Eva Wisnik [above], owner of the legal training company Wisnik Career Strategies Inc., at www.attorneytraining.com. She conducts 60 training programs a year, and her 8-year-old son David has accompanied her to Boston and Washington, D.C.

Here is some advice on melding business with pleasure on trips:

"Planning is the key," says Manhattan-based Wisnik. She's asked clients for baby-sitter recommendations weeks in advance of a trip and found many hotels helpful in lining up reliable one-on-one care. "What works best is having a baby-sitter take David out for half a day, say to a museum, then I meet up with him after lunch. That's better than having a baby-sitter watch him in a hotel room." The National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies can put you in touch with recommended caregivers. It tracks 700 child care providers nationwide (at www.naccrra.org, or 1-800-424-2246).

Remember why you're there. "If you take along family, you have to have a backup plan, in case a baby-sitter gets sick or doesn't show up," Wisnik says. "You don't want to get in a position where you can't deliver what you're there to do."

Ask for help. Hotels and airlines are becoming increasingly hospitable to people traveling with children. Wisnik reports that she's frequented the Omni hotel chain because it offers a special program for children that includes a bag of activity books, games, a guide to the city and postcards to mail.

Indulge yourself. Rather than going from airport to rental car to hotel to convention, catch the local sights or even just a movie. "As a working parent, going to a movie alone is a treat, so I take advantage of it," Wisnik says of the times she can't bring family members along on trips.

Travel policies

Sending your team out on the road shouldn't break the bank. Save yourself from the shock of an expensive steak dinner charged to your company credit card by establishing a few guidelines for employees who travel.

Rick Stark, owner of Perry, Ohio-based South Shore Control, distributes a written travel policy among the 37 employees at his control panel manufacturing firm. The formal policy's objective is to curb travel costs, since most of the company's travel is billed to clients.

"Controlling travel costs is just another form of customer service," Stark says.

His policy specifies that the company will pay for one personal call a day but it won't foot the bill for hotel room upgrades or room service by employees.

Not everyone wants a structured policy. Instead of having a one-size-fits-all travel policy, smaller companies have the advantage of working with employees to meet their individual needs.

David Larson doesn't have a written policy at his Wichita, Kan., manufacturing company because of the inconsistencies in his employees' travel schedules. If an employee is traveling a lot, Larson might give her or him an extra day off.

"Not having an official policy lets me work with employees on a case-by-case basis," says Larson, owner of 32-year-old Westland Corporation. As a perk, Larson often covers the cost of an extra night in the hotel and a nice meal if an employee is traveling to a city where friends or family members live.

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Travel Aid

Hotel discounts for NFIB Members are available at more than 4,000 participating locations throughout North America. You can save 15 percent to 30 percent at hotels like Days Inn, Howard Johnson and Ramada. Click on "Member Benefits" for details.

More room deals can be found online at www.hoteldiscounts.com or www.quickbook.com.

Plane, hotel and car rental planning can be done at www.expedia.com, www.orbitz.com or www.travelocity.com.

Cybercafe search engine helps you find almost 5,000 places worldwide where you can access the Internet, for when your laptop dies or you find yourself without it. Go to www.cybercaptive.com

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How to save on your next car rental:

1. Ask about mileage charges. Many companies offer unlimited miles, but policies change often.

2. Consider renting at an urban or suburban location, to avoid an airport surcharge.

3. Return the car with a full tank, unless you've chosen the refueling plan, to avoid excessive charges.

4. Don't pay for loss damage waiver unless you have no personal car insurance or your policy doesn't cover a rental car.

5. Don't return the car late. Some companies charge you an entire day's rental even if you're just an hour or two past the return time.

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This article originally appeared in the April/May 2002 issue of MyBUSINESS magazine.

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