How to measure City Deals without fake numbers
Track seven separate numbers after a mail drop: pieces, scans, sessions, coupon opens, redemptions, inquiries, and sales. Includes an empty table to fill in.
- Keep seven numbers apart. Do not add them together.
- A scan is not a visit. A visit is not a sale.
- A redemption proves a deal was logged at your counter under your method. It does not prove extra profit.
- Write down your numbers from the four weeks before the mail, so you have something to compare.
- Ask us what reporting is available and how each number is defined. Keep your own counts too.
Who this is for: Owners who want real numbers after a mail drop
Measure a mail drop by keeping the numbers apart. Seven things get counted, and each one means something different. If you mix them, you will believe a number that is not real.
The seven numbers
- Mail pieces: how many copies went out for your issue. Ask us for the figure for your area.
- Scans: events recorded by the tool behind the code. A scan is not proof that a person read the page.
- Sessions: visits to your page as counted by your tool. Sessions are not people, and unique users depend on analytics identifiers and consent.
- Coupon opens: how many times the deal page was opened, not how many people opened it.
- Redemptions: offers that staff actually accepted and applied under the merchant’s terms. Record each accepted redemption using a consistent business log or configured system.
- Inquiries: calls, texts, walk-ins asking about the offer, even if they buy nothing.
- Sales: money in the register from those people.
Your reporting table
Copy this table. Fill one column per week. Leave a cell empty if you did not count it. An empty cell is honest. A guessed number is not.
| What I count | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mail pieces | ||||
| Scans | ||||
| Sessions | ||||
| Coupon opens | ||||
| Redemptions at the counter | ||||
| Inquiries (calls, texts, walk-ins) | ||||
| Sales from redeemed deals |
Set your baseline first
- Before the mail goes out, write down the same rows for the four weeks before.
- Tell your staff to ask every new customer one question: how did you hear about us?
- Keep the redeemed deals in one place, a drawer or a note on the register.
- At the end of each week, fill the table the same day. Not from memory a month later.
- Compare week to week. Do not compare your shop to anyone else's shop.
Also check what happens after the mail in search: people look up your name. Questions about your own numbers? Contact us.
Frequently asked questions
Will you tell me how many people scanned?
Ask us what scan data is available for your ad, how the tool counts events, and whether a comparison uses the same method and period.
What is a good result?
Define success against your own business goal and costs. Compare equivalent periods using the same method, and ask what campaign reporting is available. A change after a mailing does not by itself prove the mailing caused it.
How do I know a sale came from the mail?
A logged redemption shows the deal was used under your method. It still does not prove the sale would not have happened anyway. Ask every new customer how they heard about you, and label estimates as estimates.
Put your shop in the City Deals magazine.
One printed page. Two codes. People open it on the phone.
Advertise your business
