How Apple’s iOS 14 Update Is Impacting Facebook Marketing

In September of last year Apple rolled out it’s latest software update, iOS 14. Along with its many new features, the update announced the forthcoming implementation of additional security enhancements requiring all apps to show users a prompt asking for permission for the app to track them outside of the platform.

The announcement led to a war of words between the CEOs of Facebook and Apple, with Mark Zuckerberg warning that the update would hurt “millions of businesses around the world” and Tim Cook responding by stating that any business built on data exploitation deserves reform.

With all the back and forth and posturing by two of tech’s largest companies, one thing has remained unclear and that’s how this update impacts digital marketers and what they can do to prepare their clients to ensure continued success.

iOS 14’s Digital Impact

Once fully launched this spring, the data privacy update will impact the way in which apps are able to receive and process events from website pixels and tags - ultimately leading to diminished reporting data and less effective Retargeted and Lookalike audiences. This is especially impactful across apps like Facebook and Instagram where a reported 80% of users are on mobile, a majority of which use iOS devices.

This is a cause for concern for many marketers as some experts predict that the iOS 14 privacy update could impact up to 60% of small business owners’ ad revenue, with some marketers already experiencing a 30% decrease in conversions as apps prepare for the rollout.

So with these critical business impacts, how can brands advertising on Facebook and Instagram prepare?

How Brands Can Prepare For iOS 14

With the data privacy update set to launch any day now, Facebook has released the following steps which brands can take to counteract its effects:

• Verify Your Website: Make sure to verify your website’s URL via Facebook Business Manager which marks your website as trustworthy, making it eligible for ad delivery.
• Prioritize Your Events: Facebook will now only allow for up to 8 events per pixel - this change also implements a ranking system so you must prioritize events from most important to least important.
• Auto Advance Matching: Turn on this feature in order to use information past consumers have provided to better target potential new customers and retargeted customers.
• Use Conversions API: Because the update weakens pixel data, turn on Conversions API to connect directly to your websites server which helps improve reporting.

What This Means For Digital Advertising

While this update is a step in the right direction for consumers and app users who want more data privacy, it could lead to less effective ad spend for marketers who rely heavily on digital efforts to drive conversions. However, actions taken now will be beneficial to advertisers when internet servers take similar steps to protect data privacy at the end of this year.

Ultimately this means that marketers will need to create more robust sales channels that work from the top down, driving awareness and showcasing product benefits in an effort to get consumers converting in-store and through e-commerce channels.

Questions? Drop us a line at hello@praytellagency.com

Paige Kelton is a Paid Media Supervisor at Praytell and has worked at the agency since 2017. She has supported a diverse portfolio of clients, working with the strategy and comms teams to build out, execute, and report on paid media campaigns.