Jason Dodge and Riley Holbrook talk about “the elephant in the room” the iOS 14 update. What does this mean for digital marketers, advertisers with regard to Facebook and Instagram? What’s it mean to the end user? We’ve got you covered.
Apple’s release of the iOS 14 update is rumored to make tracking of audiences a LOT harder for advertisers and marketers, that is, unless you know how to handle the change. The data will not be as clear, accurate, or actionable, as it once was unless you take some actions. This update is upcoming…date TBA – thanks Apple. This seems to be an intentionally vague move by Apple. It’s not IF, but rather WHEN. We have time to be proactive and take necessary actions so we do not lose the rich data on the advertising side.
How does it impact users?
From the user perspective: on the iOS side, it’s “opt in” or “opt out” with regard to personalization of ads and targeting. You likely won’t notice much, but you will have to choose how ads are served up to you. Most people don’t mind ads, if they are relevant so pick your poison wisely or suffer the consequences of impersonal ads [the worst].
How does it impact marketers?
From the marketers perspective: we’re keeping an eye out for CAPI “Conversions API” (API = application programming interface) – which is at the server level. Recall that the API defines interactions between software or mixed hardware-software intermediaries, all the third parties that are not related. Defining requests that can occur, how to make them specifically, data that can or cannot be used, the pathway to follow for a specific engagement, etc. It extends the functionality of a mechanism. Now, this is a big deal, since we are now shifting from Facebook Pixel (browser level) – and will move into CAPI, or a server level update to access where the data “lives.” So, what’s the skinny? If we do not switch over to CAPI you can expect conversions to fall off dramatically. 70-80% of website traffic is mobile and 61%+ of that is iOS – so this is a BIG deal which could result in a LARGE percentage of your remarketing audiences that will not be fed your ads unless they “opt in” to the personalized ads, losing almost ¾ of your potential audience conversion data.
From the BTM bag of tricks: we’re preparing our clients for this big change with a specific series of updates and verifications which have to be made meticulously to insure data historical integrity. Is your business ready? Are you ready? Is your marketing partner being proactive? If not, send us a note to connect and discuss options before your historical data is compromised.
