Corporate travel platform Concur, owned by SAP, has integrated listings from home-sharing service Airbnb into its platform.
A recent announcement from Concur said Concur Travel will now show listings available from Airbnb directly within its platform, making it the only corporate travel solution to do so, the company said. Airbnb listings will now appear alongside traditional hotels within the online travel booking solution operated by SAP Concur.
The integration of listings is an extension of SAP Concur’s existing work with Airbnb. Previously, Concur’s TripLink solution enabled corporate travelers to book and pay for Airbnb accommodations, while ensuring the purchases remained within company policy.
Last year, SAP Concur announced its plans to integrate Airbnb bookings into its Concur Travel solution. In its announcement, SAP Concur also revealed that bookings on Airbnb have risen for business travelers using Concur solutions. The number of corporate users expensing Airbnb rose 42 percent between 2016 and 2017, the company said. Among Fortune 500 customers, that growth reached 63 percent.
“Looking at the growth of Airbnb expenses within SAP Concur, along with regular conversations with customers and travel managers, we realized the need to bring Airbnb into the Concur Travel online booking tool,” the company said in its announcement.
David Holyoke, global head of Airbnb for Work, said in a statement, “Business travelers continue to look for extra comfort and flexibility when on the road, and we know it’s key to provide these attributes within company travel policies. SAP Concur is a natural partner for us to bring the uniqueness of Airbnb to more people, and we’re looking forward to bringing Airbnb listings to Concur Travel.”
SAP Concur added that the integration will heighten control and visibility among corporate travel managers into the expenses that traveling employees make on behalf of the company.
Airbnb has been enhancing its services as a result of increased use by corporate customers, too. Last year, the company introduced a new search function that marks listings as “business travel ready.” Search results are identified as optimal for corporate travelers if at least 60 percent of their reviews are five-star, and if bookings provide 24-hour check-in, high-speed internet and a work station of some kind.
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