A busy RFP inbox can feel like progress, but it doesn’t always mean you’re attracting the events that fit your space. That gap usually shows up when your comp set is off, because the numbers you rely on, such as RFP volumes and conversion, stop reflecting the market you’re actually competing in.
The leakage that follows isn’t about weak product; it’s about strategy built on assumptions instead of planner behaviour. Once the foundation is off, every decision moves off course just enough to cost you the MICE business you should be winning.
What is a comp set?
A comp set is the group of venues planners naturally compare you against when they’re deciding where to book an event. It’s the reference group that shapes how your performance makes sense, who you lose to, who you win against and what “competitive” means for your space.
Comp sets become ineffective if not created correctly and kept frequently upated. Many venues inherit a list that was created years ago and never checked again. Others copy whatever their local market considers “similar,” even if those venues attract a completely different type of event demographic and attendees.
A proper comp set reflects the events you win or lose based on when planners compare you directly with others. When that list matches the market, your performance data starts making sense. When it’s wrong, everything looks stable on paper, while the business you should be winning is going somewhere else.
Five ways a wrong comp set can impact your MICE business
A misaligned comp set doesn’t create obvious problems at first. The numbers still move and the sales team still sees activity. But there is a quiet issue brewing. The signals you depend on stop matching the reality of your market, and the decisions built on those signals start leaning in the wrong direction. Over time, that gap shows up in lost opportunities that were completely avoidable.
1. Pricing drifts away from what planners expect
When you track venues that don’t compete for the same type of event, your pricing decisions lose context. You may adjust rates because your “competitors” dropped theirs, even though those venues are chasing a different audience. The opposite also happens. You hold firm during dates where your real competitors are increasing their rates because demand is moving in your direction. The result is a pricing strategy that looks deliberate internally but feels out of step externally, especially for planners who compare you to venues you aren’t watching.
2. Your response strategy targets the wrong events
If your comp set doesn’t reflect your true position in the market, you end up prioritising the wrong leads. The team might spend time chasing inquiries that were never a good fit while overlooking signals that should have triggered a faster or more complete proposal. Planners move quickly, and their expectations vary by event type. When your competitive picture is blurry, your entire response rhythm shifts in the wrong direction: slower when it should be faster, generic when it should be specific and reactive when it should be confident.
3. Marketing and messaging lose relevance
Most venues build their content based on what they believe their competitors highlight. When that group is wrong, your messaging starts sliding in the wrong direction. You may emphasise features that don’t influence planner decisions, or downplay capabilities that matter far more for the events you want. Even strong visuals and polished sales collateral can miss the mark if they speak to the wrong comparison set. The risk isn’t that planners dislike the content; it’s that they don’t see themselves or their event in it.
4. Investment decisions slide in the wrong direction
Capital improvements often rely on competitor positioning. If your comp set is outdated, the upgrades you prioritise may not match what your real market values. You might push the budget toward areas your “competitors” are improving, even though your actual buyers are choosing venues for entirely different reasons. Over time, this creates a widening gap between what you’re upgrading and what planners need. And that gap becomes harder to reverse once resources are committed.
5. You misread demand patterns and lose events you should have won
When the competitive picture is off, demand signals are easy to misinterpret. A drop in inquiries might look like a market slowdown when it might be because the business is shifting to the venues that planners compare you against. Similarly, a spike in volume may seem like interest, even if those events would never convert. Without a relevant comp set, you can’t see why demand is moving, and you can’t respond with the proper adjustments. That’s how venues end up losing the events that fit perfectly while chasing the ones that were never coming their way.
How to create an accurate comp set
1. Revisiting your strategy through event data
If your list hasn’t changed in years, it’s likely not reflecting the market you’re competing in today. The fastest way to recalibrate it is to evaluate the recent events you’ve won, the events you’ve lost, the shortlists you’ve appeared in and the opportunities that moved to other venues without reaching you. Planners often compare venues based on capacity, capability, space configuration and event needs. Using that lens helps you build a comp set that reflects what planners are choosing and not what the venue believes they should select.
2. Using venue competitive analysis to remove the wrong comparisons
Competitive analysis only works when the competitors make sense. A venue may think its closest rivals are those that “look” similar, but planners often compare venues across neighbourhoods or even cities when the event format demands something specific.
A clearer picture emerges when you evaluate your space next to the venues that solve the same problems for planners. This removes properties that never overlap with your demand and adds the ones you weren’t tracking but consistently appeared in the same sourcing cycles as you.
3. Refreshing your comp set as your business mix shifts
Comp sets stay accurate only when they evolve with your business. Any renovations, changes in meeting space, shifts in segments and updates to amenities can all reposition a venue in the market. If you’re attracting more corporate groups than before, your competitive group changes. A comp set that reflects these moves gives you a more reliable view of where you stand and how your performance should be measured.
Why accurate comp sets improve MICE business pricing
Event pricing doesn’t behave the way room-night pricing does. A hotel can adjust best available rate (BAR) rates daily without significantly altering how planners evaluate the property. But MICE pricing carries more weight. It signals capability, scale and a venue's preparedness to deliver the type of programme a planner is running. When the comp set behind that pricing is wrong, the signals planners receive stop lining up with the experience they expect.
Meeting planners weigh capacity, layout, AV strength and flexibility before they even look at numbers. If your competitors don’t reflect these factors, your prices can sit in a range that makes sense internally but feels mismatched externally.
MICE pricing is also sensitive to context. A meeting room that seems expensive next to a leisure-focused hotel may feel completely reasonable next to a venue equipped for hybrid sessions.
With an inaccurate comp set, it’s easy to misread what the market values and how much it’s willing to pay. When the comparison group aligns with the actual events you’re attracting, MICE business pricing becomes clearer. You’re no longer adjusting based on assumptions. Instead, you’re responding to the patterns of the planners who are actively choosing between you and a specific set of properties.
Conclusion
When your comp set reflects how planners compare venues, things start making sense again. The numbers stop pulling you in the wrong direction, and pricing and positioning feel easier to get right. It’s not a big overhaul; it’s a shift in perspective that clears up a lot of confusion.
If you want help getting there, the ebook lays it out without overcomplicating anything. Download What Is My Hotel’s Comp Set? and rebuild your comp set with a clearer view of your real competitors.
About the author
Sohini Das is a senior product analyst for Cvent and Venue Directory. Her responsibilities are focused on bringing customer value by actively listening to venues and translating their needs into roadmap priorities. She is part of the product development team that delivered Competitive Sets, using data and KPIs that drive ROI for our supplier partners.
