How Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego Closes High-Volume Group Business Booked Sight Unseen

MEETINGS & EVENTS

Rising over San Diego’s waterfront steps from the San Diego Convention Center, Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego features 1,628 guest rooms across two towers and 140,000 sq. ft. of indoor meeting space (320,000 sq. ft. total event space), with over 70% of business driven by group sales.

Why it matters: We spoke with Lauren Patton (Sales Manager), Marissa Cats (Senior Sales Manager), and Megan Madrigal (Area Director of Marketing) on how they sell an iconic convention property where 85% to 90% of business is booked sight unseen.

Instead of overwhelming prospects with a 1,628-room property tour, the team builds tailored Visiting Media tours scoped to the exact spaces in each planner’s proposal.

Top 3 Core Objectives: At 1,628 rooms and 320,000 sq. ft. of total event space, Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego needed to make an enormous two-tower property feel tailored to each planner while closing 85-90% of group business sight unseen.

Tailor tours by segment: Scope custom 3D and 360° tours to the exact ballroom, breakout, and dining venues relevant to a mid-size or pharma group so planners never feel lost in a massive convention hotel.
Convert sight-unseen RFPs: Replace delayed in-person site inspections with immediate interactive virtual walkthroughs that move planners off the fence and accelerate contracting.
Merchandise every outlet: Embed 3D tours across Hyatt.com guest rooms, suites, meeting pages, and dedicated vanity sites for Top of the Hyatt and Sally’s Waterfront Dining.

Innovators Mentioned

Visiting Media

Marissa Cats

Senior Sales Manager

Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego

"“If a client clicks on just the link to the whole hotel it could be a little overwhelming. But when we create a custom experience and show them exactly what we want them to see, that is a strong selling point.”"

Marissa Cats

Senior Sales Manager

👍 Senior Sales Manager Marissa Cats said that Senior Sales Manager Marissa Cats explained that tailoring a custom tour to only the spaces a group will use prevents small and mid-size groups from feeling overwhelmed.:

"“If a client clicks on just the link to the whole hotel it could be a little overwhelming. But when we create a custom experience and show them exactly what we want them to see, that is a strong selling point.”"

⚖️ The selection process: During their research process, Marissa Cats evaluated Visiting Media's product differentiators, customer support, and holistic value as a strategic partner and ultimately decided that Visiting Media was the best fit solution:

Senior Sales Manager Marissa Cats said, about their decision: "“It’s on our Hyatt.com. All of our guest rooms have the 3D tours, the suites have the 3D tours, and on our meetings and events page every space has the 3D tour attached to it.”"

📈 The results: Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego uses Visiting Media across both group sales outreach and Hyatt.com merchandising to close high-volume group business.

- 85% to 90% Sight-Unseen Group Conversion: The group sales team relies on custom Visiting Media tours to replace or accelerate traditional site visits for remote corporate, association, and third-party planners.
- Faster Deal Urgency on Competing Dates: When prospects propose waiting months for an on-site visit, sellers immediately send a custom tour and host a live remote walkthrough to win the dates.
- Seamless Renovation Asset Updates: As renovated spaces come back online, marketing updates 3D and 360° assets across Hyatt.com and outlet sites without disrupting active sales proposals.