If you’re a frequent business traveler and spend most of your time on airplanes and in hotels, it’s only natural to prioritize your comfort during those trips. After all, travel is a big part of your life, and it would be a shame if you spent it on sub-par user experience, especially if you can afford to play hard after working hard on your business trips.
That said, if you’re still using your personal credit card to pay for business travel, you may be missing out on the many benefits a dedicated luxury travel card for business can offer.
In this article, we’ll discuss the benefits of having a business luxury travel card, how to choose the best one, and how to get one in record time.
A luxury travel card is a credit card that rewards you with luxury travel experiences when you use it to pay for certain purchases, frequently also related to travel. Traveling can be tiring and arduous, especially if you do it regularly. One solution is to travel in luxury, which means flying business and first class and staying in luxury hotels which can make your trips much more comfortable.
Sure, you can pay for these luxuries with your credit card or even with cryptocurrency using a crypto app, but these payment methods can only get you so far and can make things quite expensive. Plus, you’ll have to pay for things like airport lounge access separately. This is where travel rewards cards come in because most offer these and other perks just for being a cardholder.
So, if you want to make your business trips as comfortable as possible, getting a luxury travel card will make all the difference in the world.
Technically speaking, a personal travel rewards credit card should be more than enough to cover your travel expenses and get rewarded in the process. But why settle for good enough when there is a better way, especially if the alternative can significantly improve your life and your business's operations?
Here are some more benefits of having a luxury travel card for your business:
If you find yourself cheaping out on some of your travel expenses and looking for free stuff for old people when you travel, just because you’re worried about your credit utilization ratio, having a separate card for your business will come in handy.
This is because any business transaction you do with your business credit doesn’t show up on your personal credit history. Therefore, it won’t affect your credit score. This benefit ensures you don’t have to worry about your credit score every time you use your card on your trips.
If you take care of your business finances and taxes, you might find it hard to separate business and personal transactions if you only use one card for both. This problem can make you make mistakes in filing your taxes and potentially lose you some money.
So, instead of risking your finances using a single card, why not segregate your personal expenses from your business expenses from the start by using a separate business credit card? This move will make your life a lot easier and make it easier to manage your business’ finances. This is also heightened by the fact that business cards usually come with great expense-tracking features not available on personal cards.
Since your job requires you to travel a lot and you’ll need to pay for your travel expenses anyway, you might as well earn bonus perks or rewards when doing it.
And that is what owning a luxury travel card does for you and your business. The perks and rewards depend on the card you choose, but you can expect different combinations of airport lounge access, free hotel upgrades, welcome amenities, and much more.
Not only will you travel in comfort and style, but you’ll also earn some discounts for enjoying it!
Sometimes, if you want to scale your business, you need to spend some extra dollars. To do that, you’ll usually need to take out a loan. Or will you?
If you only have one card for you and your business, your spending power is lower, lowering your credit limit. But by taking out a luxury travel card for your business, since businesses move much more money than personal accounts, you’ll have a much higher credit limit helping you scale your business.
So, depending on your situation, having that extra card for your business can give you that extra push, which can save you the hassle of taking out a loan whenever you need a bit of extra financial muscle.
If you’re convinced but don’t know where to start, don’t worry! because we’re here to help. In this next section, we’ll discuss how you can choose the best luxury travel card for your business.
No two businesses are alike. Different companies require different solutions for their specific circumstances. The same is true with choosing a luxury travel card. The card best for your competitor may not necessarily be the best for you.
So, the very first step you should take when choosing a card for your business is to assess what perks or rewards would most benefit you. For example, if you mostly travel by plane and your business doesn’t have a fleet of cars, you probably won’t need the roadside assistance perk on some credit cards.
To help you decide, here are some common perks and rewards you might want in your luxury travel card.
Once you’ve narrowed down your choices based on perks, you can further narrow them down by comparing their offers. You might be surprised that even though two cards offer the same perks and rewards, their offers can wildly differ.
If you’re not sure what to look for, here are some essential aspects you should consider to help you decide which card is the best.
If you’re still left with different card choices after going through the previous step, their customer service can help you choose which one to pick.
To do this step, try calling them to inquire about their card. Take note of everything that stands out in terms of customer service. Are they polite? Are they willing to go the extra mile for you? Do they know where they should refer you?
By now, you should already know what card or cards want for your business. All that’s left is getting it. The problem is that while you can freely apply for many rewards credit cards, most, if not all, high-end luxury travel cards are invite-only. This method of onboarding new customers means that the bank will only invite you if you stand out and meet their membership criteria.
However, don’t let this discourage you because there are tips to increase your chances of getting an invitation:
All luxury travel card providers only offer their cards to existing customers. So, if you already know what card you want to get, you need to start by getting a regular business credit card with your chosen provider.
This step will ensure that you will be on their radar once they start to look for new customers.
After you get your card, it’s time to stand out. You can do this by increasing your credit score through general good practice in terms of credit card use. This means always making payments on time every billing cycle, keeping your credit utilization low, slowly increasing your annual spending, etc.
Doing this will signal to the bank that you’re a responsible, high-spending client, and they shouldn’t worry about you defaulting on your credit.
If everything goes well and you fulfill the credit card provider’s criteria, they will eventually send you an invitation to apply for their luxury travel card. However, even if they don’t, it might be a good idea to write the local branch’s manager a letter requesting the invitation. It never hurts to ask.
Once you get the invitation, all that’s left is for you to accept it and start enjoying a better travel experience on every business trip.
Getting a luxury travel card for your business is not easy, but it is undoubtedly fulfilling. It would allow you to enjoy the fruits of your labor and will make every effort you put into your business worth it.
If you’re a frequent traveler and spend most of your time in airplanes and hotels, getting one of these cards will drastically improve your life. Invest in yourself and give yourself a treat by getting a luxury travel card right now.
Article by Jordan Bishop
