Data can show what’s happening in a destination, but it takes context to explain the “why”. The gap between the numbers and their meaning can determine whether a stakeholder report simply informs or actually makes an impact.
Terri Reifsteck has spent four years closing that gap. As VP of Destination Branding & Development at Experience Champaign-Urbana, she covers five counties in central Illinois, anchored by a Big Ten university town that loses about 60,000 residents every summer. She works in Z5 almost daily, and her reports have become a model for many DMO teams.
At our September Zartico Connect, Terri shared how she structures her stakeholder reporting. Her rule is simple: start with the stakeholder’s question, then find the data that answers it.
Here are four ways that plays out.
Experience Champaign-Urbana’s funding is matched by local municipalities, and the city of Champaign carries the largest share by a wide margin. So Terri built Champaign a report that answers the question every funder eventually asks: what does our funding return?
The answer was clear. Outside the University of Illinois campus, Champaign draws 26.8% of all regional visitors. It captures 64.6% of all visitor spending, at an average of $199 per person per day. Five of the region’s top 10 food and drink destinations are in Champaign.
Yes, Champaign carries the load. It also receives the vast majority of visitor spending. Terri presents this in person every year before the funding ask, then follows up with a PDF that explains where the data comes from and which dates it covers.
| When to use this: Before budget season, or whenever a funder asks what its share buys. Showing where visitors spend lets funders see their contribution as a return, not a cost. |
The Rantoul Family Sports Complex opened in 2021 in a small town north of Champaign-Urbana. In season, Rantoul drew 7.4% of all regional visitors, the highest share outside Champaign-Urbana. But only 4.4% of overnight visitors stayed in Rantoul, while Champaign-area properties held at least 48.9% of hotel stays.
The spending followed the beds. In season, visitors spent $139 a day in Champaign and $75 a day in Rantoul. Families finished their games and drove south for dinner, shopping and a hotel room.
That story serves two audiences. Champaign sees how they benefit from the complex. Rantoul’s economic development team gets a visitor profile to share with restaurant and hotel developers: 57% of spending cardholders are aged 25 to 54, and 53% have children at home.
The same thinking shows up in Champaign. Jupiter’s at the Crossing draws 2.7% of Champaign visitation, likely because it can seat a youth sports team. Terri shares that with city economic development staff so they recruit more group-friendly restaurants.
| When to use this: When a new venue opens, or when an economic development team is recruiting businesses. Showing where visitors go after an event, and where their spending leaves town, tells developers what to build and who they would be building for. |
On the first Monday of every month, Terri emails a one-page report to local businesses, board members and community partners. It is branded, consistent, and clear.
Big events get a spotlight. When the Hot Rod Power Tour stopped for a single day in June 2026, the report showed a 13.5% increase in total visitor spend, a 26% increase in hotel demand nights and a 93.6% increase in hotel revenue. Less than 24 hours of hosting, made visible to everyone who benefited.
The rest of the page rotates with what matters that month. In summer, when students leave, the report focuses on local visitors, who come mainly to shop and eat. In June 2026, 32% of local visitors went to a mall or shopping center, up 45% year over year. That gives businesses a reason to market close to home, and gives funders a reason to support it.
| When to use this: Every month, with the businesses, board members and partners who feel tourism most directly. A steady report keeps tourism’s impact in front of them between the big asks, so the numbers are already familiar when you need their support. |
Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery, one of the region’s top agritourism stops, wanted to build an education center. Terri pulled data on the strength of the agritourism sector, visitor spending, and the farm’s visitor-to-resident ratio to support its grant application. The farm received a $200,000 grant.
Requests like this are now routine. Event organizers ask for data about every two weeks. Business owners planning an expansion ask about once a quarter. Economic development teams reach out often, especially when a hotel developer is in the picture. When partners and local businesses need clear insights, they work through Experience Champaign-Urbana.
Terri sees that as a strength. In her words, the partners “see that as a reason why they should fund us.”
| When to use this: When a partner is applying for a grant, planning an expansion or pitching an investor. Your data strengthens their case, and every win shows partners why the DMO is worth funding. |
Each of Terri’s reports moves from what happened to what it means:
Stakeholders want to know four things: who is visiting, what they are doing, how they contribute and what is changing. Terri picks the one her audience cares about most and answers it in their language.
Design matters too. Her reports look like Experience Champaign-Urbana, not like a data export, and that consistency makes them easier to trust and easier to share.
Start with the question. The data will follow.
“They see that as a reason why they should fund us: we’re helping them with this data.”Terri Reifsteck, VP of Destination Branding & Development, Experience Champaign-Urbana |
|
SHARE THIS STORY Take Experience Champaign-Urbana’s Story to Your Stakeholders Download the case study to share with your board, funders or city partners. |
See what your visitor data can tell your stakeholders. Talk to our team.