In the wake of the Apple iOS 14 privacy changes, Facebook wants to ensure that the advertiser is actually the true advertiser who they are claiming to be. Cookies and conversion tracking from the Facebook pixel are no longer possible with the new iOS 14 changes. The iOS 14 changes from Apple’s new AppTrackingTransparency framework will prompt all iPhone users to explicitly provide apps with permission to track their data which will have a significant impact on any applications that utilize this data for advertising.

It is recommended that businesses verify their domains themselves on Facebook Business Manager rather than have a digital marketing agency that works for them do so. Ensuring the business completes this verification allows for all aspects to be more transparent and offers the business absolute control of their domain.

Verify Your Domain: Step-by-Step Tutorial

1. First, access Business.facebook.com, navigate to “Business Settings” on the left side-bar menu. Scroll down and select the drop-down menu for “Brand Safety” and select “Domains”. Type in your root domain name (yourname.com) as prompted within the search bar and when it appears select it and press the blue Add button. 

2. Next, Facebook will ask you to verify the domain by adding the provided “TXT” record pulled from Facebook and onto your domain registrar. To do so, log in or access your domain registrar, navigate to the DNS records section. Domain Registrar Examples: GoDaddy, Bluehost, or Cloudflare. In the DNS records section, add a new Host Record. 

3. Within the new host record, the “Type” of DNS record that is to be selected from the drop-down menu is “TXT”. For the Name field enter and add an “@” symbol, if required. Inside of the content field section, paste the “TXT” record that was provided by Facebook to copy. Save the record.

4. Next, navigate back to the Facebook Business domain verify page and select “Verify”. This may take up to 72 hours for it to load or properly propagate. Once verified, a pop-up window with a green check symbol will appear stating that your domain has been verified.

Domain verification will allow the creation of aggregated web events. If your domain is not verified on Facebook, this will not be allowed. Without the ability to create aggregated web events, you will not be able to effectively track iOS users who access Facebook on iPhone devices.

The post How-To Verify Your Domain: Quick Facebook Tutorial to Survive iOS 14 Changes appeared first on SiteProNews.

Apple is currently testing the privacy update in a beta version of iOS 14, which is expected to roll out to all users in early spring. Apple has announced changes with iOS 14 that will impact how companies receive and process conversion events from tools such as the Facebook pixel. Businesses that optimize, target, and report on web conversion events from business tools will be affected. Apple first announced upcoming privacy changes last summer, which provided advertisers and app makers time to prepare. However, this has become a major point of conflict for ad-supported companies since they could lose revenue from the upcoming changes.

Review 42 reported 44% of local businesses say they depend on social media to generate brand awareness, and 41% depend on it to drive revenue.

Specifically, Apple will begin to require that all applications in the App Store show a discouraging prompt to users on iOS 14 devices, in accordance with their AppTrackingTransparency framework. Apple’s policy will prohibit certain data collection and sharing features unless people opt into tracking on iOS 14 devices. As more users opt-out of tracking on iOS 14 devices, ad personalizations and performance reporting will be limited for both app and web conversion events. Now when a user installs or updates the new iOS 14 update, an alert will appear asking the user to opt-in or opt-out of sharing this information. Tinuiti reported about 70% of IOS users currently share their IDFA with app publishers but after this change it’s estimated that this number will drop to 10% to 15%.

Apple commented on the update stating, “Privacy is a fundamental human right and at the core of everything we do. That’s why with iOS 14, we’re giving you more control over the data you share and more transparency into how it’s used.”

In response to these changes, Facebook will also start processing pixel conversion events from iOS devices using Aggregated Event Measurement. The provided action list will support business efforts to preserve user privacy and run effective campaigns.

Response Actions for iOS 14 Privacy Changes:

1. Domain Name Verification: This will grant the ability to optimize a maximum of 8 conversion events per domain for optimization and reporting. Domain name verification needs to be completed for the effective top level domain, plus one. 
2. Manage Preferences: For preferred conversion events, prioritize up to 8 conversions that drive maximum impact.
3. Compare Attribution Models: To fully understand the impact, compare the new 70 attribution model to the old. This will help companies better anticipate any changes in the reported conversions that are a result from moving to a 7-day window.
4. Conversion API: Measure conversions using website servers rather than only relying on browser-based cookies.

Changes May Limit Abilities For:

Remarketing Campaigns: As more users opt-out of tracking, campaign audiences will become smaller.

Audience Delivery: Audiences that were previously created may be affected as ads need data to deliver the most relevant audiences at the correct frequency.

ROAS Optimization: Eventually predicting and optimizing costs per action will change, depending on the data available.

Ad Personalization: Personalization might be limited based on the information collected about each customer.

Reporting: Measurement and reports created for conversions from specific customers will be affected.

The post 4 Actions Advertisers Need to Take in Response to iOS 14 Privacy Changes appeared first on SiteProNews.

Robust Social Media Campaigns

When the pandemic hit, the top combined social media applications saw an increase of 44% in user time across their platforms as reported by Statistica. Social media applications offered brands an increased opportunity for targeted advertising within their customer niches.

Social media is the ideal platform for retailers to expand, as it allows for the extension of the brick and mortar experience with the use of creative ad formats online. A popular industry favorite is the “Instant Experience” format which is available on Facebook and Instagram. The Instant experience is optimized for mobile devices and allows companies to “shorten the distance between your marketing message and the customer” letting users browse showcase videos, swipe through products, and purchase directly in-the-app. Consumers Kitchen & Bath, a multi-location Kitchen & Bath Cabinet retailer located in Long Island, NY leveraged the format to help customers visually discover kitchen designs, and included a call-to-action that prompted users to book a free design appointment.

Medical communities have utilized social media ads as a strategy to generate new leads for socially responsible in-person appointments, as they still have to rely on their brick and mortar locations to perform procedures. James Christian Cosmetics, a plastic surgery firm specialized in Botox and Fillers with locations in NYC, Long Island and Miami leveraged the lead generation ad format to book appointments from Instagram.

Companies that gambled heavily on social media during the pandemic are now seeing their retail businesses not only surviving, but also thriving during a time of uncertainty. A key element for success includes the ability to retain a digital retail balance. Emarketer predicts U.S. retail social commerce is expected to grow by 35% in 2021.

IMPACT Strategy

To achieve this balance during eCommerce expansion, focus on IMPACT – a unique methodology utilized when developing digital to retail social media advertising strategies. Three components contribute to the formation of this methodology.

1. Revenue – Diversify your revenue stream and discover new audiences using the social media channels customers use every day. This does not mean it is necessary to be on every channel, just the right ones. 
2. Loyalty – Social media is an extension of a brand. The ads and profile built needs to be a digital experience that customers fall in love with. Social media should represent a company and product in the best light possible.
3. Engagement – The more users that engage, the higher the results of success will be with social media ad campaigns. Engagement on social media is generally a product of smart creativity. Ensure to invest real thought behind the social media ad formats that are utilized and the stories they tell.  

Social media ads aren’t new, but for many retailers the advancements in ads have made it crucial for SMB retailers to leverage platforms for future growth. If retailers follow the IMPACT method, they can take the first step towards pivoting a retail business into one that thrives.

The post Social Media Ads for Retailers: Adapting & Thriving appeared first on SiteProNews.