With 53% of the U.S. workforce under age 45, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, meeting and event planners might find a recent survey from Hotels.com helpful in understanding younger employees’ perceptions and desires related to in-person meetings and other business travel.
The September survey of 2,000 U.S. business travelers found more than 85% of those under age 45 consider business travel an opportunity to “upgrade their lifestyle.” During a business trip, 62% have spent their own money to upgrade their airline seat, 73% have spent to upgrade their hotel room and 73% have spent on high-end dining or entertainment.
Also from the survey: 57% of all respondents said the chance to visit a destination they wouldn’t otherwise see is one of the biggest perks of business travel, while 54% said they would extend a business trip to explore a destination. On average, travelers want to spend three extra days in a destination, and 45% of respondents under age 30 wanted to spend at least some of that time with coworkers.
[Related: The Z: Interactive Strategies for Engaging Gen Z Attendees This New Year]
Given these desires, planners who negotiate favorable guest-room rates before or after a meeting for attendees who want to stay longer can help their organizations by boosting the appeal of an offsite meeting, and possibly also boosting employee affinity and loyalty.
Lastly, the under-45 crowd shares its business-travel experiences on social media up to five times more frequently than older colleagues. In fact, about half of younger employees do not want to travel for work if their organization doesn’t allow them to share the experience on social media—another factor for meeting planners and executive stakeholders to consider.
The full results of the Hotels.com survey can be found here.
