It’s happening. Apple has confirmed that their new IOS update will give users the option to opt-out of IDFA (Identifier for Advertiser), taking a firm stance in protecting the privacy of their millions of users.
This is a huge blow to Facebook’s largest revenue stream, advertising dollars. Although Facebook generates the majority of their dollars from large corporations, this platform has been a massive part of small business advertising. It’s a safe assumption that Facebook is panicking. In the wake of the news Facebook has released less than flattering responses to the new IOS update. Accusing Apple of prioritizing profits from in-app purchases over their user’s privacy.
How Does This Impact Your Facebook Advertising?
Ad Targeting
A staggering 79% of Facebook users access the platform from a mobile device, with a high percentage likely using IOS.. If Facebook is no longer able to track users behavior from their mobile devices, this severely weakens the strength of their targeting segments. The biggest impact will come from Facebook pixels, which directly affects the ability to retarget users cross-device, build lookalike audiences, and optimize campaigns based on conversions.
Ad Measurement
Historically, mobile data has been used to attribute web sales across devices. With the loss of this tracking ability advertisers will be confined to in-app tracking framework which is limited and less accurate from a cross-device view.
How Can You Continue to Utilize Facebook Advertising Effectively?
Begin testing different audience structures to prepare your overall strategy for these changes. You can project audience sizes by limiting mobile placements on Android devices only, note audience availability changes and test results of this new audience.
Explore other Facebook optimization strategies. Instead of setting your campaign up for conversions, use it to drive website traffic and use internal tracking structures to measure conversions.
The Future Is Uncertain
While none of these solutions are permanent, they can help you prepare for a change that is going to dramatically alter the future of digital advertising as we know it. When times are uncertain we apply the one steady tactic of digital advertising, testing & optimizing.
