It’s iOS 14.5 day!

iOS 14.5 just dropped! 

The update introduces two big changes that will impact app marketing on iOS 14.5 .

• First is App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy, which will require apps to ask users for permission to track their IDFA. With most users expected to opt out, this means that most exchange bid requests will not contain IDFA.
• Second is SKAdNetwork (SKAN), which will become the primary attribution framework for iOS 14.5 devices. With SKAdNetwork, postbacks will not contain any user level information (including IDFA) and are delayed. This means that there will be less data to track and optimize off of.

So what does this mean for buying traffic on iOS? We now have 3 different traffic types on iOS

1. Pre-ATT – iOS 14.4 devices and older, which will continue to use MMP for attribution
2. Post-ATT – iOS 14.5 devices in SKAN compatible apps, which will use SKAN for attribution
3. Non-measurable – iOS 14.5 devices in SKAN incompatible apps, which will not be measurable

We expect Post-ATT traffic to ramp up over the next 30 days with Pre-ATT traffic and non-measurable traffic to scale down over time.

Prepared and Ready to Go

With big changes to supply and measurement on iOS, we at Liftoff have taken proactive steps since Apple’s announcement last June to help our customers make a smooth transition to iOS 14.5

First, we scaled up our buying of Limit Ad Tracking traffic (iOS traffic without IDFA) to train ML to bid and optimize efficiently without relying on IDFA. We helped customers like Playrix, Yubo, and IMVU increase spend on IDFA-less traffic while driving strong performance.

Second, we launched the No IDFA? No Problem. campaign to help educate the industry on the impact of iOS 14.5 and the steps everyone needs to take to be prepared. This includes working 1:1 with our customers to ensure that their apps are SKAN compatible and that they’re passing back conversion values.

Third, we created Post-ATT campaigns for our customers (in addition to their existing iOS Pre-ATT campaigns) so they’re ready to capture both Pre-ATT and Post-ATT traffic when iOS 14.5 drops (today!). Post-ATT campaigns are set to be in their most optimal state at the time of launch with efficient ML bidding and the best performing creatives from their Pre-ATT campaign counterparts. 

Finally, we’re auto-adjusting the budget between Pre-ATT and Post-ATT campaigns proportional to supply changes so our customers are spending efficiently. This means that as Post-ATT supply increases, we’ll increase Post-ATT spend and as Pre-ATT supply decreases, we’ll reduce Pre-ATT spend accordingly. 

Given our preparation, we’re confident in our ability to help customers drive continued long term performance on iOS 14.5. To learn more about how you can get started on iOS, reach out to your customer success manager or if you’re new, let’s talk.

To see what percentage of the inventory is SKAN compatible, check out our Mobile Ad Performance Tracker here.