Four Tips to Increase iOS Campaign Results From ADVGO42 UA Team

Introduction

Launching and optimizing iOS campaigns has been challenging for digital marketing specialists for several years now. With the release of iOS 14.5, advertisers must now seek user consent to access Apple’s advertising ID (IDFA) under the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework. This change has decreased the availability of IDFA for iOS apps, which presents new challenges for ensuring accurate attribution. While SKAN provides a viable option for aggregate app measurement, it needs more data freshness, campaign breakdown, and optimization capabilities.

This article will discuss the approaches to launching and evaluating campaigns worth using if you plan to promote your App Store application: what traffic sources to use and how to track campaigns’ performance.

Advanced Privacy Frameworks in AppsFlyer

The AppsFlyer Aggregated Advanced Privacy (AAP) framework prevents tracking across apps and websites owned by different companies and the ability to identify a user or device uniquely.

While AAP is disabled on the app level, user-level attribution data is available for advertisers, and the Advanced Privacy setting per partner can be set individually. If AAP is disabled on the partner level, advertisers can set the Advanced Privacy setting for each ad network individually.

Disabling AAP allows for attributing installations based on an ML model from AppsFlyer. It’s still probabilistic, and the IDFA will not appear upon disabling. However, due to the vast amount of data AppsFlyer has, this model works well and is trusted.

The ability to disable it depends on the type of traffic source: for SRN (self-reporting network) sources, such as Google Ads and Meta Ads, it cannot be done, but for non-SRN sources, it is possible. The type of source can be checked in the AppsFlyer integration settings. 

If you’re running TikTok campaigns, consider using Advanced SRN integration. Developed with AppsFlyer, this new feature provides more accurate measurements while safeguarding user privacy. With SRN, advertisers can accurately track installs and measure the lifetime value of all TikTok users while preserving their privacy.

Two attribution methods are involved in this process. For users who have given dual consent, the standard SRN integration will be used. It means that when a launch is sent to TikTok by AppsFlyer, TikTok will respond with attribution details. On the other hand, for non-dual consented users, attribution will be based on ad exposures that TikTok sends to AppsFlyer in a privacy-compliant manner. This method is similar to how a click network operates.

A new integration has been introduced to ensure advertisers can measure their TikTok campaign performance effectively while keeping their data safe. With this integration, advertisers can benefit from complete performance measurement for TikTok campaigns on iOS, with real-time campaign details and full LTV measurement on AppsFlyer reporting. Additionally, advertisers can access advanced attribution metrics, including enriched engagement types such as engaged views and clicks. They can also have full control over lookback window configuration for each engagement type in AppsFlyer and on TikTok Ads Manager, including for Engaged View-Through Attribution, a new touch-point based on six-second video views on TikTok. These improved signals will ultimately lead to better campaign learnings, more substantial overall delivery, and better optimization performance over time.

Web2App campaigns

The term “web-to-app” refers to the path a user typically takes, often directly, from an advertiser’s website to their app. Brands can use landing pages to showcase visually appealing content and creative designs to entice users to download the app.

The main advantage of W2A is primarily the user acquisition with bypassing the SKAN framework, as the data will be tracked normally. Also, with W2A, retargeting is possible, which is not feasible in SKAN.

As we mentioned earlier, the release of iOS 14.5 has affected the way advertisers measure the performance of self-reported networks (SRNs) campaigns. With this release, advertisers will no longer have access to accurate attribution data for SRNs, nor will they be able to utilize deferred deep linking for users who come from SRNs in their user acquisition efforts. While the SKAdNetwork can still be used, it only provides limited visibility and does not offer granularly accurate attribution due to its 24-48-hour delay and lack of support for deferred deep linking.

W2A campaigns, on the other hand, offer advertisers a great advantage. They allow advertisers to direct users to their mobile site and then to their app while still retaining the ability to measure their effectiveness. With W2A campaigns, advertisers can accurately attribute users in real-time and support deferred deep linking, all without making any changes to the app code or submitting an updated version to the store.

Don’t start with UAC in Google Ads

According to Google’s probabilistic model, analytics will only be available in Firebase, and data from other sources is not considered (due to Firebase). Therefore, it’s impossible to integrate this into a unified picture with MMP, as Google will attribute most events to itself.

  • Search is not attributed in MMP due to iOS 14.5
  • YouTube traffic is not attributed in MMP because YouTube does not request ATT permission
  • Display & Video 360 is only attributed if the user has given ATT permission (has IDFA)

Launch Apple Search Ads campaigns

ASA (Apple Search Ads) ads appear in the App Store’s search results and search tab. These ads enable advertisers to reach users searching for specific keywords, making it easier to connect with the target audience. The undeniable advantage of the source — ASA uses its own analytics method and is capable of properly tracking results.

iOS Search ads have various useful features to help you target your ads more effectively. These include search match targeting, automatically linking your ads with relevant search terms, and saving you time and money on keyword research. You can also customize your ads to target different customer types, such as those who have used your app before or are new to it. Other features include keyword targeting, demographic targeting based on age and gender, and location targeting, which allows you to reach users in specific regions or countries. Overall, iOS Search ads offer a powerful tool for reaching the right audience with your message.

Apple Search Ads come in two formats – text ads and creative ads. Text ads include your app’s icon, name, ratings or App Store award, subtitle, text description, and the “Get” button. Creative ads, on the other hand, have an app preview or screenshots but no text description. These ads are displayed at the top of the App Store search results and can be recognized by their light blue background and ad disclosure icon. This icon helps users distinguish them from organic search results.

An effective campaign structure can maximize the impact of your ad campaign. The Advanced campaign operates on a cost-per-tap (CPT) model, which can increase the chances of users downloading your app.

To create an efficient campaign, consider different types, such as the brand, category (generic), competitor, and discovery campaigns. A brand campaign can protect your brand by selecting keywords similar to your name. For category campaigns, you can use frequently used keywords by your target audience while searching for your app category. Competitor campaigns can include keywords that involve the name or variations of your competitors. Lastly, discovery campaigns can help you discover new or alternative keywords you’re not already using, which can help you reach a wider audience.

A fly in the ointment: it should be noted that the traffic is expensive and limited, as there is less inventory compared to other major platforms.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the release of iOS 14.5 has significantly changed the way advertisers launch and optimize their campaigns on iOS devices. However, viable options are still available to ensure accurate attribution and campaign optimization. By utilizing advanced privacy frameworks and exploring web-to-app (W2A) campaigns as well as Apple Search Ads opportunities, advertisers can continue to promote their app store applications effectively while safeguarding user privacy and measuring their campaign’s performance in real time.

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