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SEA staff reviews PlayEasy marketing platform and reports room-night data
Summary
Staff updated the Mitchell Sports and Events Authority on financials, recent event evaluations and the PlayEasy destination-marketing platform, reporting 7,352 year-to-date room nights and leads activity in the system.
SEA staff gave the board a financial and marketing-platform update on Feb. 14, reporting year-to-date room-night figures, recent event evaluations and progress using the PlayEasy destination and event platform.
Staff reported the authority's 2025 revenue budget is $150,000; year-to-date expenses were $28,250 (which included a $12,000 Special Olympics State Basketball payment), leaving an available fund balance of $121,750. Staff said year-to-date room nights sold were 7,352 and that a single past-due collection representing an average of the last three years could add about 1,918 room nights if collected, bringing the adjusted total to just over 9,200.
The staff presentation also summarized recent event evaluations: the Palisade Kiwanis half-marathon reported spectator attendance of 266 and about 33 room nights; the Curse Chains Challenge disc golf tournament reported 63 participants and no room nights; and the South Dakota Fire Instructors Conference reported 78 attendees and 80 room nights and will return in 2026.
On the marketing side, staff reviewed PlayEasy, a platform that hosts destination and event microsites and aggregates leads and RFPs for event organizers. Staff said the destination page lists Mitchell among 319 destinations in the system and that the SEA has added 225 local businesses, attractions and food-and-drink listings to the platform. Staff reported 279 RFPs on the platform overall; PlayEasy flagged 297 leads, 56 of which matched some Mitchell criteria. After filtering, staff said 46 of those leads were seeking far more hotel rooms than Mitchell could provide (many requested 1,000 or more room nights); four leads remained open for follow-up.
Staff described a recent Zoom meeting with Andrew Vorce, president of 5v5 Soccer, to discuss use of local soccer fields for regional 5v5 tournaments. Vorce's organization hosted more than 100 tournaments in 2024; staff said the local association would need to provide field-marking support, referee contacts and local marketing to make an awarded bid feasible. SEA staff also said they submitted a bid for the Move United Education Conference (an adaptive-sports education conference) on Jan. 29 and were awaiting follow-up.
"Within this platform there's 279 total RFPs," staff told the board, summarizing PlayEasy metrics and the system's search and microsite features. Staff noted that, so far, no hotel bookings have been completed through PlayEasy's booking feature for Mitchell.
Board members asked questions about follow-up on open leads and whether PlayEasy bookings could be tracked going forward. Staff said they would continue outreach on viable leads and return with updates.
Ending: Staff then asked if the board would move into executive session, and the meeting proceeded.
