About Hilton Markham Suites Conference Centre & Spa
The Hilton Markham Suites Conference Centre & Spa sits in one of the Greater Toronto Area’s hottest emerging meeting destinations. But here’s the thing about being in Markham: you’re constantly competing against downtown Toronto, Mississauga, and occasionally—inexplicably—destinations like New Orleans and the Bahamas. Before Hopskip, Director of Sales & Marketing, Byron Pope was bidding blind, burning hours on RFPs that were never really winnable, and losing deals he should have had in the bag.
Now? He’s saving up to two hours per RFP submission, pricing strategically instead of guessing, and winning business from clients he’d been chasing for a decade. Spoiler alert: competitive intelligence changes everything.
The Problem: Bidding Blind in a Pay-to-Play World
Let’s talk about Cvent. Sure, it’s the industry standard, kind of like Walmart. You know where everything is, but that doesn’t mean the experience is getting any better. For Byron, the Cvent grind looked like this:
The black box problem: RFPs would come in for Toronto versus New Orleans versus Boston. Markham would get lumped in as “Toronto-adjacent,” but Byron had zero visibility into what he was actually competing against. Was it a Hilton Garden Inn in Boston or the Waldorf Astoria? There’s a difference, and it matters.
Without knowing the competitive landscape, he’d spend hours crafting proposals for business that was never realistically his to win. “We all know Markham is not going to beat the Bahamas,” Byron notes. “But you don’t even get the chance to have that conversation.”
The spreadsheet spiral: Outside of Cvent, every meeting planner seemed to have their own system—or lack thereof. Byron would get RFPs via email, Excel templates, and random formats that required manually re-entering all his property information. Over. And over. And over.
One client still insists on using spreadsheets. “It drives me nuts because it’s just so time consuming,” Byron says.
The communication void: Even when Byron submitted a strong proposal, there was no way to engage with planners or demonstrate Markham’s unique value, like the destination management office offering subsidies and kickbacks. “They just don’t even give you the time of day,” he explains. “They’re basically just playing in the system.”
The verdict? Byron was working harder, not smarter, and leaving money on the table.
The Solution: Enter Hopskip’s Competitive Intelligence
Hopskip didn’t just streamline Byron’s RFP process. It gave him something he’d never had before: real-time competitive intelligence and the ability to actually communicate with planners throughout the sourcing process.
Live competitive analysis: With Hopskip’s premium features, Byron can see exactly who he’s competing against and track pricing in real time. Is he up against a property in Mississauga (where rates just dropped 16%)? He knows to price aggressively. Is he competing with downtown Toronto luxury hotels? He’ll focus on strategic concessions instead of trying to undercut on price.
“If they’re asking for a Hilton Garden Inn in Boston, I have a fighting chance,” Byron explains. “If they’re asking for the Waldorf Astoria, I don’t even know why I’m in this.”
Built-in communication: Hopskip’s chat functionality lets Byron engage with planners throughout the process—not just at the initial submission. He can share information about Markham’s advantages, respond to questions, and actually sell his property instead of hoping his proposal speaks for itself.
“You have the ability to communicate a lot more with your client,” he says. “Rather than trying to play the guessing game, we can make educated decisions and reevaluate our proposals live.”
Streamlined submissions: No more re-entering property details for every single RFP. No more toggling between platforms to populate information. Everything Byron needs lives in one place, saving him up to two hours per submission—time he can actually spend on strategy instead of data entry.
The Results: Winning Business He’d Chased for a Decade
The numbers speak for themselves, but the real story is in the deals:
Up to 2 hours saved per RFP submission – That adds up fast when you’re handling hundreds of RFPs annually.
Higher conversion rate than Cvent – Byron’s winning more often, even with a smaller volume of leads (for now).
$187,000 in largest deal closed – Average deal size through Hopskip sits at $40-50K, with plenty of room to grow as more planners continue to join the platform.
Finally won a white whale client – Byron had been bidding on business from one company for a full decade—three years at his current property alone—with zero traction. Through Hopskip, he had the competitive data to put his best foot forward. “We could see who we’re up against. We had all the data points that we needed. We know how to sell against that other property,” he says. The result? He won the bid.
Beyond the metrics, Byron’s approach has fundamentally changed. He’s no longer submitting proposals and crossing his fingers. He’s strategically positioning his property based on real intelligence, engaging with planners throughout the process, and competing on value instead of just price.
The Bottom Line: Better Intelligence, Better Results
For Byron, the choice between Cvent and Hopskip comes down to this: “The only reason why people prefer to use Cvent is because they have more clients.” It’s the Walmart effect—familiar, ubiquitous, but not necessarily good. “They have no idea and no desire to make it any better.”
Hopskip, on the other hand, prioritizes customer experience for both hotels and planners. The platform creates transparency that benefits everyone: hotels can bid smarter, planners get better proposals faster, and nobody wastes time on business that was never a real fit.
“You guys found a way of saving me up to two hours a day for every submission that we make. The fact that you guys have a really good customer experience is what makes our lives better.”
Byron Pope
Director of Sales and Marketing, Hilton Markham Suites Conference Centre & Spa
The takeaway? In a world where most hotels are still bidding blind, having competitive intelligence isn’t just nice to have—it’s a game changer. For Hilton Markham, Hopskip turned RFP submissions from a time sink into a strategic advantage. For Byron? It meant finally winning business he’d been chasing for years.
Ready to Stop Guessing and Start Winning?
See what competitive intelligence can do for your hotel’s sales strategy. Start for free today or book a demo and discover why hotels like Hilton Markham are never going back to bidding blind.
