If you are running or planning to run Facebook Ads, you’ve probably heard about Apple’s iOS 14.5 App Tracking Transparency update.

In short, we now have OPT-IN rather than what we’ve had which has been OPT-OUT of tracking of our browsing and shopping habits.

In short, all your iOS apps will not need to show a prompt for users to gain their permission to track them across other apps and websites (including 3^rd party ones).

(source: businessblueprint)

On Apple’s website they define tracking as:

• Displaying targeted advertisements based on user data collected from apps and websites owned by other companies.
• Sharing device location data or email lists with a data broker.
• Sharing a list of emails, advertising IDs, or other IDs with a third-party advertising network that uses that information to retarget those users in other developers’ apps or to find similar users.
• Incorporating a third-party SDK that combines user data from the app with user data from other developers’ apps to target advertising or measure advertising efficiency.

If people choose to OPT-IN – nothing changes, you can still target, retarget and measure ads against these audiences.

BUT if they don’t OPT-IN, then clearly they are opting out of any and all tracking and Facebook’s ability to target ads based on people’s actions and reactions will be impaired – basically remarketing will become a heck of a lot less effective in your marketing.

SO HOW WILL IT AFFECT YOU?

If you use Facebook ads to make sales through e-commerce or other on-site actions (lead generation, event sign-ups), these outcomes will be significantly affected.

It will be harder to measure the performance of your Facebook Ads campaigns as our ability to track add to cart, checkout, purchase or other events will be under-reported.

As we know, Facebook builds its audiences by collecting vast amounts of data on what we do both on and off Facebook.

It’s been an argument for a long time whether this is a good thing or a bad from a consumer’s point of view.

Facebook’s ability to do this, with the new OPT-IN system has been severely affected.

But without being able to collect this data, Facebook will no longer be able to serve us up “interest based targeting” in our Facebook Ads.

This, for advertisers, will be a significant negative, as interest-based targeting has been a fabulous asset for targeting people who will be interested in what we have to sell and are more likely to buy – therefore ensuring a successful ads campaign.

SO, WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

Verify your domain through your business manager.

Go through the process, step by step, as directed by Facebook.

Here’s a step by step guide, from Facebook, to help you.  Click here.

Update your Facebook app so that it’s compatible with the new iOS update (in fact update all your apps on your phone!).

Set up your 8 conversion events in Facebook’s new Aggregated Event Measurement.  Sounds confusing and for some if just maybe but here’s a link to Facebook’s Business Help Centre walking you through what it is and how it will work.  Click here.

Remember this is an Apple thing – so if you’re on android you may or may not see significant changes – keep your eye out and although you may not be an Apple user, keep yourself up to date with what’s happening, because chances are you WILL be impacted, somewhere along the line and it’s better to be across it than stunned by it!

This is not ALL bad.  Yes, it will significantly limit what some businesses have been able to do with paid marketing on Facebook, however, as a consumer and a human, knowledge is power.  So having more control in knowing when we’re being tracked and having the ability to OPT-IN if we want, seems reasonable.

FINAL WORDS

Paid digital marketing is changing – this is the first of the battle of the giants – Facebook, Google and Apple.  Watch, take notes and keep reading about it – know what’s happening.

But if you’re leading with value and enjoying organic reach with your audience – keep doing that too.  Show up, be you, give value!

And finally, two words EMAIL MARKETING.

Want to have more control over your audience – then start list building.

Email marketing is becoming one of the BEST marketing tools you can have in your toolbox. 

STOP relying on platforms you don’t control, because, well, all the stuff above that happening that we have NO control over.

Embrace email marketing!

I hope this article has helped.

Reach out if you have any queries or questions – jenn@jenndonovan.com.au