| NEW YORK - June 30, 1999- A recent study conducted by the
Businesswomen’s Research Institute (BRI), the research arm of MacDonald
Communications Corporation (MCC), concluded that women business travelers
look for hotels that provide conveniences, small luxuries and safety. Marriott
was cited most frequently as the hotel chain that best caters to the needs
of female travelers.
“Women currently make up 40 percent of all business travelers, numbering
approximately 17.2 million strong,” according to Barbara J. Litrell,
president, MacDonald Communications Corporation, publisher of Working Woman
and Working Mother magazines. “This study was designed to explore the wants,
needs and attitudes of this large and growing market segment, particularly
as they relate to the lodging industry,” continued Litrell. “The results
were significant - respondents to our survey out-travel, out-fly, out-rent
and out-stay the typical US business traveler by a margin of 2 to 1 or
more.”
Nearly 500 businesswomen responded to the survey which was mailed to
Working Woman’s reader panel subscribers, Working Mother subscribers, executives
from the roster of Working Woman’s 1998 Top 500 Women-Owned Businesses
and a random sample of business professionals. An additional group of business
professionals were sampled at random from a compiled list.
Other highlights of the survey’s findings include:
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Respondents took a median of nine roundtrips of more than 100 miles in
the past year and a median of four air trips
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Eighty-five percent traveled for business and 95 percent traveled for personal
reasons or for vacation
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Four in five are members of airline frequent flyer programs
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Nearly two-thirds (63%) used rental cars for business purposes and just
over half (53%) used rental cars for personal/vacation travel.
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Nearly all (95%) stayed in hotels one or more nights for business and stayed
a median of 10 nights for business.
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Better than four in five (83%) stayed in hotels a median of 6 nights for
personal/vacation reasons
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The majority (64%) personally select their business hotels.
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Respondents stay in a variety of properties and price points, both for
business as well as personal/vacation travel
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Experiencing a different city and escaping office routine are what respondents
liked best about business travel. They liked least the fact that business
travel disrupts family routine and takes away from free time.
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Business travelers take advantage of time spent away from home:
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70 percent added vacation days to a trip and/or brought their spouse/children
along, either during the actual business portion of the trip or at either
end.
The Businesswomen’s Research Institute was founded by MCC in 1998. Its
mission is to provide marketers and media with facts about the businesswomen’s
market, insight into what those facts mean and their marketing implications. |
