Published 2026-09-22
How to send a sponsor a results report they actually read
DealPage is a creator deal page builder that turns the clicks on your sponsored links into a report a sponsor can open from a single link.
Why most creator reports go unread
The typical report after a sponsored post is a handful of screenshots: the post's view count, maybe the engagement panel, maybe a chart from a link shortener. It arrives as a message attachment, it takes effort to piece together, and it answers a question the sponsor did not quite ask.
Sponsors read reports that answer their questions quickly. Their questions are simpler than creators expect. Did people click? Where did they come from? Was this better or worse than last time? Would booking you again be a reasonable bet?
Lead with four numbers
Put a small number of headline figures at the top, before any chart. Total clicks. Unique visitors. The share of clicks that came from your main post versus everything else. And one comparison: this deal against your previous one.
Four is not a magic number, but it is about as many as someone reads before deciding whether the rest is worth their time. If the headline numbers are clear, the sponsor scrolls down. If they are not, nothing below them matters.
Keep the definitions plain. If a number excludes bot traffic, say so in a short note under it. If unique visitors are estimated rather than exact, say that too. A sponsor who understands how a number was counted trusts it more than a bigger number they cannot interpret.
Show the curve, and mark when you posted
A chart of clicks over time is the most persuasive thing in a report, if it is annotated. Mark the moment your main post went out. A visible spike right after that marker is evidence the post caused the clicks, in a way no total can be.
If you posted follow-ups — a reminder a few days later, a newsletter mention — mark those too. The sponsor can then see which ones moved the line.
Split by source
Break clicks down by where you shared the link: the main post, replies, DMs, groups, newsletter. This is the part sponsors usually cannot see on their side. Their analytics show traffic from a platform; they do not know that half of it came from a reply thread rather than your post.
To do this you need a separate link for each place you shared, set up before you post. It cannot be reconstructed afterwards.
Be honest about what you do not have
If you only have click data, say so. Do not estimate sign-ups or sales from clicks and present them as results. The sponsor has the real conversion numbers on their side, and a creator whose figures do not match theirs is not booked again.
Saying “conversions are tracked on your side; here is everything up to the click” is a perfectly good answer. It also invites the sponsor to share their numbers with you, which is how you learn what your audience is worth.
Send a link, not a file
A live report page is easier for both sides. The sponsor can forward it to their team, open it again next month, and see the same numbers you see. You do not have to rebuild it if they ask for an update.
Make sure the link is private enough: it should not show up in search results, and you should be able to turn it off when the relationship ends.
How DealPage builds it
In DealPage each Deal has a brand report with exactly this shape: four headline numbers, a click curve with your posting time marked, clicks by source, the top five countries, a comparison with your previous Deal, and a button for the sponsor to book the next one. Conversions are labelled as not connected rather than shown as zero, because DealPage does not receive them.
The report page is marked noindex and its link can be revoked. You can view the report on any plan; sharing it as a link requires Pro. If you are setting up a sponsored post now, the guide to sponsored post landing pages and the page on tracking clicks by source cover the setup that makes this report possible.
Frequently asked
- What should a sponsor results report include?
- A few headline numbers, a click curve with your posting time marked, clicks by source, top countries and a comparison with your previous deal.
- Should I estimate conversions from clicks?
- No. Report the clicks you measured and leave conversions to the sponsor's own data. Mismatched estimates cost more trust than they gain.
- Is a report link better than screenshots?
- Usually. A link can be forwarded, revisited and kept up to date, and it shows the same numbers you see.