“Want to power your pipeline? Maybe it's time to re-prioritize.”

In today’s group sales landscape, too many opportunities start out as little more than a mass email blast from third-party lead platforms. During the early exploratory stages, planners often send multiple RFPs across several different markets—even before they have a clear sense of budget, preferred location, or program approval.

For sales teams, this means hours spent tailoring proposals, building out detailed responses, and chasing opportunities that were never likely to convert in the first place. It’s frustrating, it’s exhausting, and—most importantly—it pulls focus away from the business that truly matters.

The truth is, every hour your team spends on unqualified leads is an hour stolen from high-value opportunities. We know from experience that direct leads coming in through your hotel’s website or by phone convert at a significantly higher rate.

These planners have already seen your property, explored your meeting space, reviewed your capacity, and decided you’re a potential fit before reaching out. They’re typically far more engaged, have the necessary authority and approvals and are better positioned to move quickly through the booking process.

Instead of sinking time into responding to every single inquiry that comes through a mass-distribution channel, sales leaders need to rethink their team’s priorities. The goal should be to identify, qualify, and respond to leads that have the greatest chance of turning into confirmed business.

That means creating clear criteria for what constitutes a high-value lead, aligning sales and marketing to drive more direct inquiries through the hotel’s own channels, and empowering the team to say “no” to opportunities that don’t meet the mark.

Shifting the balance from reactive to proactive sales isn’t just about saving time—it’s about creating better outcomes. Your best leads should get your best energy, your fastest turnaround times, and your most customized proposals.

By focusing on the opportunities that are already well-matched to your property, you not only improve your conversion rates but also free your team to spend more time cultivating relationships and pursuing the business that will have the biggest impact on revenue.

The bottom line is simple: stop letting low-quality leads dictate your sales team’s day. Develop a pipeline of engaged planners who come to you directly-get to know them well, and create targeted proposals designed to convert. When you shift your focus from quantity to quality, you’ll see the difference—not just in your close rate, but in your team’s morale and productivity.