Most of the brands just uses the direct link, or they have a specific referral code to see the conversion rate, but the one who do the latter probably short term ones and conclude too soon that advertising on Bitcointalk is not effective.
The job of a campaign manager is to ensure the quality of the participants and it aligns with the interest of the brand they are promoting but they are not responsible for the conversion rate in my opinion.
Anyone who expects from a signature campaign that they will get a large number of clicks and significantly increase traffic, is seriously mistaken, or maybe they just don't know marketing.
It certainly contributes to some extent, but the biggest benefit is brand building and of course, what bitmover mentions. Although backlinks from bitcointalk are not up to follow, they really have a positive impact on strengthening domain authority