How the Navan Rewards Program Drives Cost Savings for Companies

Cost savings. It’s a topic that’s top of mind for just about everyone right now.

But how can companies save money without hindering growth? Making wholesale budget cuts just doesn’t, well, cut it. In order for a business to grow, employees have to keep traveling, and they have to keep spending. Navigating today’s economic environment requires a more strategic approach.

That may mean looking for cost savings in new places. And forward-thinking companies are finding one of those places is a travel rewards program—a solution that, for Navan customers, can drive savings of 30% or more on hotel spend. It’s just one of the incentives Navan employs to drive travel program success, and it’s an essential tool for companies today.

How Does the Navan Rewards Program Work?

First off, the Navan Rewards program is different from a traditional travel loyalty program, which offers benefits to frequent travelers. The Navan Rewards program, on the other hand, incentivizes any traveler booking through the platform to choose a hotel that saves the company money.

It’s a feature that flipped the switch from traditional travel programs, which put a dollar cap on hotel rates. That practice incentivizes travelers to come as close as possible to the cap—i.e., spend more company money—so they can get a better room. As long as it’s in policy, why not?

Navan, however, moved away from this blanket maximum, to focus instead on what a booking should reasonably cost. To do that, a sophisticated algorithm calculates, in real time, the fair market price for hotels in that destination on the requested dates. When travelers book hotels priced lower than the fair market price, companies save money. And they can choose to split the savings with the traveler—incentivizing them to make choices that benefit the company.

Those rewards could come in the form of Amazon gift cards, credit toward personal travel, or business travel upgrades. Either way, travelers searching for hotels will clearly see what their benefit will be when booking. And why not book the hotel that nets them, say, a $25 Amazon gift card? Of course, even with that kickback to employees, companies still save money: It’s a true win-win.

Who’s Driving Cost Savings With Navan Rewards?

One of the companies saving money with the Navan rewards program is EMJ, a commercial general contractor. By incentivizing employees with Amazon rewards, EMJ has saved 30–35% on hotels and 9% on total bookings since switching to Navan. The significant savings are especially welcome in today’s turbulent economy.

“With Amazon rewards, employees have some skin in the game to save the company money,” said Ashley Hagaman, an accounting manager at EMJ. “And if we had not switched to Navan, we would have continued spending more on hotels.”

Learn more about how your company can take advantage of all the innovative ways Navan drives cost savings.