iOS 14.5: Should you panic?

Should you panic? The short answer is no. Although the future of Facebook ads isn’t clear, as with any uncharted territory it takes trial and error to find the best way forward. As iOS14 updates roll out, it's time to start preparing for the changes, especially for small businesses who have smaller volumes of data to leverage. In our last blog, we looked at the pros and cons of the update, and this week we are sharing a few predictions on how brands can adapt to this changing landscape.

Prioritize Events

iOS14 requires a limit of 8 events per pixel per domain, including custom conversions, so its important brands go back to the drawing board and reprioritize the events that drive the most impact and value. Investigating the most common user journeys that drive conversions and prioritizing the actions taken can help to decide those 8 events. There are also assumptions you can make for events, e.g. if a user "purchased" (purchase event), they likely have visited the site (view content event) and added to cart (add to cart event). 

Understand Conversion Data

The new attribution model will only keep a 7 day click / 1 day view attribution window, meaning the measurement will only report a conversion if a user saw an ad and converted within a day, or clicked on an ad and converted in 7 days. Brands might have a longer conversion window because of price point or the type of products sold, and can utilize the 28 day attribution window currently to capture more conversions. Brands should begin comparing how many of the existing conversions are coming from the 7 day vs. 28 day attribution window, and brainstorm ways to shorten the conversion window as Facebook moves away from 28 day attribution. This will help brands be sure they are capturing as many conversions as possible.

Redesign Marketing Channel Mixes

As reporting and targeting potentially become less accurate, there's no better time for brands to plan out future proof marketing channel mixes. Setting up additional measurement for digital, such as integrating Google Analytics, will help brands determine the value of each channel, whether it's organic, owned, or paid. Knowing what levers can be pulled among all the channels will help brands adapt and make changes quickly without drastically impacting overall business revenue.

Test and Learn

There are no perfect strategies to adapt to this change, but for smaller brands with limited resources, data or paid media experiences, it can be even more difficult to navigate through these changes. It's important to adopt the test and learn mindset, make sure every dollar spent drives impact or provides actionable insights for future optimizations. Working with external resources will also help brands leverage insights and experiences to navigate the updated changes with less mistakes along the way.