Connections Housing
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1986
- HeadquartersSuwanee, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Connections Housing firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Connections Housing
- Legal name
- Connections Housing
- Website
- https://connectionshousing.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1986
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Connections Housing industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Event Housing & Convention Accommodation Services
- NAICS
- All Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (561599), Other Traveler Accommodation (72119), Traveler Accommodation (7211)
- SIC
- Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744), Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Attendee Management & Communications (Invites, RSVP, Housing) (THACAFAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Guest Experience & Concierge Services (THAMAKAJ), Venue & Facility Reservations (Private Rooms, Event Spaces) (HSACALAJ)
Keywords
Where Connections Housing is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Suwanee
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Connections Housing business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Event Housing Management Services: Core revenue stream from providing housing management services for conventions, trade shows, and events. Services include hotel contract negotiation, room block management, call center operations, and on-site event management. Clients include associations, convention bureaus, and corporate event planners.
- Meeting & Logistics Management: Full-service event management including site selection, project management, budgeting, speaker management, AV contracting, registration, and exhibitor/sponsorship management.
- Travel Services: Travel booking services including air, auto, train, and hotel reservations. Revenue generated through corporate discount programs, VIP and packaged trips, and concierge services.
- Connections Express Meetings: Custom strategic solutions for small to mid-size groups in sourcing, site selection and contracting. Services offered complimentary to organizations as a value-add.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom enterprise pricing based on event requirements |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels4 records
Connections Housing product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Connections Housing delivers full-service event housing and meeting management for conventions, trade shows, corporate meetings, and sports tournaments. Its core services include hotel contract negotiation, room block and sub-block management, reservation call center operations, on-site housing oversight, exhibitor and attendee housing marketing, travel booking, and ancillary meeting logistics such as registration, budgeting, speaker and AV management. Service delivery is anchored by the CVENT Passkey reservation platform and proprietary in-house tools (SmartBlock, WaitList2, GroupMAX ME).
Product overview
Connections Housing is an event housing and logistics management company offering a unified platform of services centered around hotel housing management for events, conventions, and sports tournaments. The core technology stack includes CVENT Passkey™ for reservation management, proprietary SmartBlock™ for sub-block management, WaitList2™ for wait list management, and GroupMAX ME™ for reporting and analytics. These technology products are complemented by service offerings including Event Housing, Meeting & Logistics Management, Exhibitor Housing Marketing, Sports Housing, Connections Express™ Meetings, and Travel Services. The company operates with East and West coast offices and serves over 400 events per year.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Event Housing Management Comprehensive housing management service for events including site selection, hotel contracting, room block and sub-block management, reservation reporting, call center operations, on-site management, block auditing, and attendee support, offered to associations, convention bureaus, and corporate event planners.
- Meeting & Logistics Management Full-service event management covering event architecture, project management, budgeting, site selection, venue contracting, speaker management, program design, A/V management, registration, exhibits, sponsorship sales, and on-site management for meetings and conventions.
- Exhibitor Housing Marketing Marketing services designed to engage exhibitors, attendees, and VIPs through personalized support, economic impact development, reservation flow management, and hotel incentive programs tied to event housing.
- Sports Housing Specialized housing service for youth sports tournaments and large sporting events ranging from 100 to 100,000 attendees, including team housing management, sub-block coordination, and Stay-to-Play policy implementation.
- Connections Express Meetings Custom strategic solutions for small to mid-size groups, covering sourcing, site selection, and contracting, offered complimentary to organizations as a relationship-building value-add.
- Travel Services Full travel booking services including air, auto, train, and hotel reservations, corporate discount programs, VIP and packaged trips, concierge services, and alternative housing options for event attendees and corporate clients.
- SmartBlock Proprietary in-house sub-blocking tool that streamlines the sub-blocking process for event housing, eliminates spreadsheet tracking, and integrates directly with the CVENT Passkey reservation platform; exclusive to Connections Housing.
- WaitList2 Advanced proprietary wait list management tool that provides more options and a better overall experience for handling sold-out or relocation scenarios during events.
- GroupMAX ME Proprietary advance reporting engine that allows customization of housing reports, sharing and saving templates with event and sub-block contracts, and analysis of housing trends to inform future events.
Quantifiable outcome
- 98% client retention rate
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Connections Housing
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Connections Housing technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Connections Housing partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and key account.
- CVENTcore19+ year partnership using CVENT Passkey as the primary reservation solution. Provides one-stop online booking across hotels with sub-block management capabilities. Connections Housing has developed proprietary SmartBlock tool exclusively for this platform.
- IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group)key accountKey account partnership covering 5000+ IHG hotels across almost 100 countries. Shaun Mathewson serves as Key Account Director for global sales relationship.
- Caesar's EntertainmentcoreStrategic partnership for event housing providing winning experiences for attendees, properties, and mutual clients. Integrated reservation technology allows monitoring of room inventory.
- Station CasinoscoreCorporate partnership providing seamless experience with reservation technology and attention to client, hotel and attendee needs. 21st century approach to housing experience.
- Convention and Visitor Bureaus (CVBs)key accountPartnerships with CVBs across major meeting, trade show and convention markets in US, Canada, Mexico, South America, Asia and Europe.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Connections Housing competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- onPeak: onPeak is a group housing management company that negotiates hotel blocks and operates reservation call centers for associations, conventions, and corporate events — the same core offering as Connections Housing. Direct head-to-head competitor for association and convention housing contracts.
- Experient (Freeman): Experient, now part of Freeman, is a long-established event housing and registration services provider serving associations and tradeshows. Highly comparable to Connections Housing in target customer (associations/conventions), service scope (housing, registration, lead retrieval), and scale.
- ConferenceDirect: ConferenceDirect is a meeting-sourcing and event-housing company that negotiates hotel contracts and manages blocks for corporate and association clients. Direct competitor for housing management and contract negotiation services, comparable to Connections Housing's value proposition.
- HPN Global: HPN Global provides meeting planning, site selection, and event-housing services for associations and corporations. Overlaps with Connections Housing on housing management, group block negotiation, and CVB relationships, serving similar enterprise customers.
Broad incumbents
- Cvent: Cvent is the broader event-management platform vendor whose Passkey technology Connections Housing builds on, and which (post-HelmsBriscoe acquisition) also offers housing services directly. A critical ecosystem participant and partial competitor with much greater scale and capital.
- BCD Meetings & Events: BCD Meetings & Events is a global corporate meetings and events management firm, including housing and registration services for large enterprises. Targets many of the same corporate and association buyers as Connections Housing at larger deal sizes.
- American Express Global Business Travel (Meetings & Events): Amex GBT's Meetings & Events division provides corporate event housing, sourcing, and logistics for multinational clients. A scaled incumbent that overlaps with Connections Housing on housing management and contract negotiation, particularly for enterprise travel programs.
- Maritz Global Events: Maritz Global Events is a large corporate events and incentive travel provider that historically operated Experient. Comparable to Connections Housing on association and corporate event housing, but with broader event production and incentive travel offerings.
Others
- Encore Global: Encore Global (formerly PSAV) provides on-site event production, AV, and venue services for meetings and conventions. Adjacent rather than directly competitive; Encore and Connections Housing frequently work together to deliver events end-to-end.
Emerging players
- Meeting Expectations: Meeting Expectations is an association-focused event management and housing services firm. Smaller than Connections Housing but directly comparable in target customer (associations) and core services (housing, registration, on-site management).
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Connections Housing social profiles
Digital presenceConnections Housing financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Connections Housing leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Connections Housing funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Connections Housing M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Connections Housing
What does Connections Housing do?
Connections Housing delivers full-service event housing and meeting management for conventions, trade shows, corporate meetings, and sports tournaments. Its core services include hotel contract negotiation, room block and sub-block management, reservation call center operations, on-site housing oversight, exhibitor and attendee housing marketing, travel booking, and ancillary meeting logistics such as registration, budgeting, speaker and AV management. Service delivery is anchored by the CVENT Passkey reservation platform and proprietary in-house tools (SmartBlock, WaitList2, GroupMAX ME).
Is Connections Housing a public or private company?
Connections Housing is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Connections Housing founded?
Connections Housing was founded in 1986. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Connections Housing based?
Connections Housing is headquartered in Suwanee, United States, in the North America region.
How does Connections Housing make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Event Housing Management Services are the primary driver. The others are meeting & Logistics Management, travel Services and connections Express Meetings.
Who are Connections Housing's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are onPeak, Experient (Freeman), ConferenceDirect and HPN Global. Broad incumbents are Cvent, BCD Meetings & Events, American Express Global Business Travel (Meetings & Events) and Maritz Global Events. Encore Global is listed as an others. Meeting Expectations is listed as an emerging player.
Does Connections Housing have an API?
No public API is recorded for Connections Housing.
What industry is Connections Housing in?
Connections Housing's product category is Event Housing & Convention Accommodation Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THACAFAG, Attendee Management & Communications (Invites, RSVP, Housing), with a secondary code of THAMAKAJ, Guest Experience & Concierge Services. Its NAICS code is 561599 and its SIC code is 8744.