Key Drivers
Fee-driven avoidance
CT charges $27 per hotel booking ($12+$15 chargeback). Only 7% of CT bookings are hotels.
Two systems, no single view
Flights in CT, hotels booked direct. Finance reconciles across 880 scattered card transactions.
Zero duty of care
671 unmanaged bookings with no traveller tracking - a compliance risk for a medical company.
Period: 23 Feb 2025 - 22 Feb 2026 • All figures ex GST • CT statement total inc GST: $330,833 • Unmanaged travel: 12 months ending Jan 2026
12 months of CT-managed travel, separating original bookings from change-related costs. WBT charges on upfront travel only - reducing the effective fee base by 24%. All figures ex GST.
| Category | Amount (ex GST) |
|---|---|
| Original Travel | |
| Flights, hotels, car hire, transfers | $220,382 |
| Airline ancillary (baggage, seats) | $4,141 |
| Other | $232 |
| Upfront Travel Subtotal | $224,755 |
| Change-Related Travel | |
| Changed booking fares | $69,537 |
| Airline change fees (QF EMD-S) | $200 |
| Change Travel Subtotal | $69,737 |
| Total Travel Spend | $294,493 |
Why this split matters
WBT charges its percentage on upfront travel cost only. Change-related fare differences and airline fees don’t attract a WBT fee - reducing the effective fee base by ~24%.
Corporate Traveller charges four separate management fee types totalling 4.20% of travel spend. Every booking incurs fees regardless of its size - a $150 motel gets the same fee as a $5,000 international flight.
| Fee Type | Amount (ex GST) |
|---|---|
| CT Management Fees (12 months) | |
| New Booking Fee | $7,198 |
| Change Fee | $3,375 |
| Chargeback Handling Fee | $1,545 |
| Sector Booking Fee | $250 |
| Total CT Management Fees | $12,368 |
Note: CT also charges an Agency Account Fee ($1,625 ex GST) for credit terms. This finance cost is included in the three-scenario comparison on Slide 12.
$12,368 in fees on $294,493 travel spend (12 months, ex GST)
84% online adoption
Niagara’s travellers are already booking online. Only 16% of CT bookings go through email or phone - a strong fit for WBT’s self-service platform.
Fixed fees push accommodation off-platform
CT charges $12 per booking + $15 chargeback per hotel = $27 per accommodation booking. On a $150 regional motel that’s an 18% effective rate. Only 38 of 376 CT bookings are hotels - just 7%. The rest is booked direct to avoid fees.
23% of bookings had changes - a high rate likely driven by the medical therapy industry where schedules shift. When a trip changes, costs stack up.
Including fare differences, airline fees, and CT change fees (ex GST)
| Change Component | Amount (ex GST) |
|---|---|
| Changed booking fares (fare differences) | $69,537 |
| Airline change fees (Qantas EMD-S) | $200 |
| CT change fee (agency charge) | $3,375 |
| Total Cost of Changes | $73,112 |
Webjet Business advantage
WBT does not charge its percentage fee on change-related costs. No change fees, no additional margin on fare differences. That’s $3,375 in CT change fees alone that would be eliminated.
Change cost breakdown
Webjet Business charges a simple percentage on upfront travel cost plus a monthly platform fee. No booking fees. No sector fees. No change fees. No chargeback fees.
CT model: 4 fee types adding up to 4.20% of travel
New Booking Fee ($12) + Chargeback Fee ($15 per hotel) + Change Fee + Sector Fee - a hotel booking costs $27 in fees before travel spend. A $150 motel room attracts an 18% effective rate.
WBT model: One simple percentage on upfront travel only
3.5% on a $150 motel is $5.25 - no reason to book outside the platform. No fee on changes, no hidden charges. The percentage model eliminates the incentive to avoid the platform for small bookings.
Applying WBT Premium’s percentage to upfront travel cost ($224,755 ex GST) plus the monthly platform fee. Management fees only - finance costs included in the full comparison on Slide 12.
| Corporate Traveller | WBT Premium | |
|---|---|---|
| Fee base | $294,493 all travel |
$224,755 upfront only |
| Management fees | $12,368 | - |
| Travel fee | - | $7,866 3.5% |
| Platform fee | - | $3,588 $299/mo |
| Annual fee cost | $12,368 | $11,454 |
| Effective rate | 4.20% | 3.89% |
| Annual saving | - | $914 |
All figures ex GST • CT Account Fee ($1,625) excluded here - see finance cost analysis • CT statement total inc GST: $330,833
$914 saved annually on management fees (ex GST)
Annual fee comparison (ex GST)
Like-for-like: WBT is cheaper
Even on the existing CT-managed travel alone, WBT saves $914/year on management fees. But the real value is in what comes next - consolidating $233K in unmanaged travel onto one platform.
58% of Niagara’s travel ($416K) is booked direct - completely unmanaged. CT’s flat fee structure - $27 per hotel booking - made this a rational decision. But the cost is total loss of visibility, duty of care, and rate leverage.
CT fees on typical unmanaged bookings
| Booking type | CT fee | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|
| $120 regional motel | $27 ($12+$15) | 22.5% |
| $250 mid-range hotel | $27 | 10.8% |
| $500 multi-night stay | $27 | 5.4% |
If CT managed these bookings
~550 hotel bookings × $27 + ~50 flights × $12 = $15,450 in CT fees for transaction processing alone - no platform, no reporting, no duty of care. Avoiding CT saved Niagara $15K, but cost them all visibility.
The typical trip today
1. Someone books a flight in CT. 2. The centralised booker finds a hotel direct via Booking.com. 3. The traveller uses a prepaid card for a taxi. 4. Finance reconciles both systems. 222 unmanaged transactions ($46K) overlap with CT-booked trips ($85K).
Who manages it - the centralised booker model
Two people book for ~20 field marketers
A primary centralised booker handles 118 bookings ($84K) across 5 budget codes. A second booker manages their own travel plus some lead gen ($86K total). Most field marketers don’t even have their own cards.
Accommodation dominates
$352K accommodation (85%), $43K car/taxi (10%), $22K flights (5%). This is a field sales team running multi-day regional road trips - Shepparton, Kingaroy, Echuca, Dubbo. Most drive; flights are the minority.
Not all unmanaged spend is bookable online. $233K in hotels and flights can be managed through WBT. The remaining $183K (Airbnb, caravan parks, car hire) stays off-platform - that’s true of any TMC.
Platform-bookable - $233K
| Segment | Spend |
|---|---|
| Hotels/motels (own travel) | $141,732 |
| Hotels/motels (booked for field staff) | $71,235 |
| Flights (direct airline bookings) | $19,609 |
| Total addressable | $232,576 |
Not platform-bookable - $183K
| Segment | Spend |
|---|---|
| Airbnb (not on any TMC) | $83,277 |
| Holiday / caravan parks (regional, independent) | $55,073 |
| Car hire / Taxi / Parking / Tolls | $44,853 |
| Remains direct / unmanaged | $183,203 |
Where accommodation is currently booked
| Channel | Spend | WBT-bookable? |
|---|---|---|
| Hotels/motels direct | $168,750 | Yes |
| Airbnb | $83,277 | No |
| Holiday / caravan parks | $55,073 | Unlikely |
| Booking.com | $35,765 | Yes |
| Wotif | $6,132 | Yes |
$42K already on OTAs
$36K on Booking.com and $6K on Wotif. These hotels are already available on travel platforms - WBT can book them with duty of care, policy controls, and consolidated invoicing at 3.5%.
Negotiated rates stay
Existing negotiated direct hotel rates can be loaded into the WBT platform - the field team keeps their rates while gaining platform benefits.
Bringing $233K of unmanaged travel onto one platform isn’t just about cost - it’s about visibility, safety, and leverage that Niagara currently has zero access to.
Duty of care restored
671 bookings with zero traveller tracking today. 20+ field staff travelling to remote regional locations - Shepparton, Kingaroy, Dubbo - with no emergency location data. For a medical company, this is a significant compliance risk.
Accommodation consolidated
$213K in hotels through one platform. Negotiated rates loaded in. Each booking produces one consolidated invoice with full itinerary - replacing dozens of separate OTA and direct hotel transactions.
Reconciliation transformed
880 scattered unmanaged transactions across 5 budget codes and dozens of merchants. With WBT, each booking generates one invoice from one merchant - one platform replacing Booking.com, Wotif, and direct hotel websites.
Airline discounts on flights
QBR (Qantas) and VABF (Virgin) corporate discounts applied at point of sale - free to join. $22K in unmanaged flights currently booked at retail rates would benefit.
Fee comparisons miss the biggest cost: human time. Every unmanaged booking requires someone to search multiple sites, compare rates, manage cards across budget codes, track confirmations, and reconcile transactions. That labour adds up to 515 hours per year.
Time per booking by channel
| Channel | Mins/booking | Bookings | Hours/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unmanaged direct (search, book, reconcile) | 30 | 880 | 440 |
| CT-managed (Serko platform) | 12 | 376 | 75 |
| Status quo total | 1,256 | 515 |
With WBT managing all bookable travel
| Channel | Mins/booking | Bookings | Hours/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| WBT platform (one platform, auto-reconcile) | 7 | 976 | 114 |
| Still direct (Airbnb, parks, car) | 30 | 280 | 140 |
| WBT total | 1,256 | 254 |
515 hrs today → 254 hrs with WBT • $54/hr loaded rate
Why unmanaged costs more per booking
Each of the 880 unmanaged bookings requires: receiving the request, checking budget codes, searching Booking.com/Wotif/hotel direct sites, comparing rates, entering card details, and tracking confirmations. 30 minutes of human time per booking - prepaid cards ease reconciliation, but the search and booking effort remains.
WBT eliminates 261 hours of manual work
WBT's faster UI (7 min vs 30 min direct) plus consolidated invoicing. The ~280 direct bookings (Airbnb, parks, car) remain manual - but that's true regardless of TMC.
What would it cost to bring the $233K in addressable unmanaged spend under management? CT’s flat fees make it expensive. WBT’s percentage model makes it viable.
| Corporate Traveller | WBT Premium | |
|---|---|---|
| Addressable spend | $232,576 | $232,576 |
| Hotel bookings (~550) | $14,850 550 × $27 |
$8,140 3.5% of $232,576 |
| Flight bookings (~50) | $600 50 × $12 |
|
| Platform fee | - | $3,588 $299/mo |
| Total management cost | $15,450 | $11,728 |
| WBT saving | - | $3,722 |
All figures ex GST • CT: $12 new booking + $15 chargeback per hotel • WBT: 3.5% on addressable travel + $299/mo platform
24% less than CT - and WBT includes full platform management
What you get for the fee
CT $15,450: Transaction processing fees only. No platform, no reporting, no duty of care, no consolidated invoicing. Same scattered booking workflow.
WBT $11,728: Full platform management. One invoice per booking, duty of care, airline discounts, corporate rates loaded, policy controls, centralised booker workflow.
The fee structure solves the root cause
CT’s $27/hotel made it rational to avoid the platform. WBT’s 3.5% means a $150 motel costs $5.25 in fees - no reason to book outside the platform.
$183K still booked direct
Airbnb ($83K), holiday parks ($55K), and car/taxi ($45K) remain unmanaged - not bookable through any TMC. These ~280 transactions still require manual search, booking, and reconciliation time.
The true cost of travel management includes fees, finance costs, and the internal labour of booking and reconciling. When you factor in the 515 hours your team currently spends managing travel, WBT frees 261 hours worth $14,094 - for just $1,471 more in direct costs. That's a net benefit of $12,623.
| Status Quo CT + Unmanaged |
CT Manages All Hypothetical |
WBT Premium Recommended |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Managed travel | $294K | $562K | $562K |
| Management fees | $12,368 | $27,818 | $20,829 |
| Finance cost | $1,625 | $3,125 | $8,747 |
| Subtotal (fees + finance) | $13,993 | $30,943 | $29,576 |
| Internal labour cost booking, admin, reconciliation @ $54/hr |
$27,821 515 hrs |
$18,101 335 hrs |
$13,709 254 hrs |
| True total cost | $41,814 | $49,044 | $43,285 |
| Hours spent on travel management | 515 hrs 0.29 FTE |
335 hrs 0.19 FTE |
254 hrs 0.14 FTE |
vs Status Quo: $12,623 net benefit
WBT costs $1,471 more in direct fees - but frees 261 hours worth $14,094. Net benefit: $12,623/year plus full visibility and duty of care.
vs CT All: -$5,759
CT's Serko platform takes 12 min per booking vs WBT's 7 min. Combined with lower fees, WBT is $5,759 cheaper than CT for the same coverage.
261 hours freed
Time returned to the business. Duty of care for 20+ field staff. Corporate hotel rates loaded. One invoice per booking. ~280 direct bookings remain - same for any TMC.
All figures ex GST • Labour: unmanaged 30 min/booking, CT/Serko 12 min, WBT 7 min, direct 30 min @ $54/hr loaded rate ($80K + super + payroll tax) • CT: $12 new booking + $15 chargeback per hotel + account fee • WBT: 3.5% + $299/mo + Visa/MC 1.5% • ~280 direct bookings (Airbnb, parks, car) not bookable via any TMC