What a promotional event should actually report back

Foot traffic tells you where you set up, not whether the activation worked. A busy corner produces a big number and can still produce nothing a brand can use.

The reports worth reading start with qualified conversations: how many people engaged long enough to hear the offer and were plausibly in market for it.

Then conversion — sign-ups, samples redeemed, appointments booked — measured per staffed hour, so two events of different size can be compared honestly.

Then cost per outcome, all in: staffing, materials, permits, travel. This is the number that decides whether the program scales.

Finally, the qualitative return: the objections heard, the questions asked, the competitor mentioned unprompted. Field teams sit closer to the customer than any survey panel, and that intelligence is often worth more than the day's conversions.