5 Reasons Business People Should Fly Business Class Even When Economy Class is Cheaper

Any business trip in today’s world is definitely very important because advances in communications for live group chats and video conferencing practically eliminates the need for in-person meetings. Hence, if your company must have a physical presence in a meeting; then that meeting is very important and it is in your best interest to ensure that your representative is able to hit the ground running.

For a startup founder, private business owner, or freelancing professional, you might need to do some serious data crunching before you pay for a business class ticket. The need to double check that you can afford the price is increased if looking through your financial situation indicates that you have too many debts, bills, and other financial obligations. However, the following points could help you weigh the pros against the cons to know if it makes economic sense to fly business class instead of cheaper options such as premium or premium economy.

Zero/faster queues
Business class often have zero of shorter queues in the check in/security queues. For businesses, time is money and you won’t need to waste two hours in a security queue hoping that you’ll make it to gate 96 in time to catch your flight. At the end of the flight, business class passengers also disembark ahead of other passengers. The worst-case scenario when deplaning as a business-class passenger is that 19 people will leave the plane ahead of you.

Comfortable seats
Flying business means that your business representative gets to sit in comfortable seats that provide lie-flat options for sleep. In essence, the professional flying first class will be more rested than a professional flying economy after a long haul flight. Interestingly, business people often leave long-haul flights to head straight into meetings where they have to negotiate deals or close a sale; hence, every bit of rest they could get prior to the meeting is very important.

Complementary chauffer
Some airlines such as Emirates and Etihad provide complementary chauffer services to people flying business class for up to 100 miles on both legs of the journey. In essence, your business professional won’t have to worry about getting a taxi or a limo service in order to arrive at their destination in good time. Interestingly, Uber could be expensive in some places and a complementary 100 mile chauffeur service could save you as much as $100 in places such as Dubai.

Access to lounges
Many people erroneously think that people who fly business class are entitled rich folks who just lie in their seats and drink expensive champagne all through the flight. However, business people are often on the job before boarding, while in the air, and as soon as they deplane. Hence, access to a lounge where they can get Internet (plus a proper office in some places), a shower, a haircut, or a massage could make it easier for businesses people to do meaningful work while on the go.

Sometimes, expensive is not expensive
In some instances, a business class flight might not be outrageously more expensive than other class such as premium economy. Sometimes, the price difference between economy and business class is may be little over $300 to $500 on regional flights and a little over $1000 to $1500 on long haul flights. Hence, it might make more sense to pay little extra in order to enjoy the perks listed above instead of having a tired and grumpy executive representing you in an important business meeting.