We spoke with multiple Facebook reps and all of their documentation, notifications, and press releases come down to two two things you can do in your Facebook Ad account to prepare for iOS 14.
1. Verify your domain
In your business manager, navigate to Business Settings
Select Brand Safety in the left navigation bar
Any domains associated with your Business Manager account will be listed
Click the blue "Add" button to add any domain is not listed which you advertise for in your ads account
Complete the following steps to verify the domain through DNS Verification, HTML File Upload or Meta-tag Verification
Once a domain has been verified you'll have options to connect the domain to you Facebook page within Business Manager
2. Set up the Conversions API
In your business manager, navigate to the Events Manager
Select the pixel in the left column you're looking to edit
Click the Settings tab
Scroll down to the Conversions API section
You'll have two options and will want to first select "Choose a Partner". If you see a partner that you use on your website then you'll want to select one of those options. If you don't see a partner you use then you can go back and select "Create Access Token" and follow the steps provided.
Note, if you use Shopify for your website you can then follow these steps:
From your Shopify account, navigate to the admin panel and select Facebook Sales Channel
Visit Settings and select Data Sharing settings
You'll see three options for tracking level: Standard, Enhanced, or Maximum. The maximum level combines the power of pixel and Conversions API.
Choose the Maximum level to turn on Conversions API for purchase events on your website
Here are also a couple of bonus tips for those using Facebook Business Manager:
1. Set up two-factor authentication
This will become a requirement soon and business manager accounts that do not have two-factor authentication required will be in violation of Facebook's advertiser policy.
In your business manager, navigate to Business Settings
Select Business Info in the left navigation bar
Under Business Options, you'll see a section for Two-Factor Authentication
Click the dropdown and select "Everyone"
2. Verify your business
This will also become a requirement and may limit you from advertising in the future.
In your business manager, navigate to Business Settings
Select Business Info in the left navigation bar
Under Business Details, you'll see a section for Business Verification Status
If your business is "Unverified" then follow the corresponding steps
Note: Unless your business needs access to certain features or you need to show people more information about your business your business may not be eligible for business verification.
What is changing in Apple's iOS 14 update?
The latest version of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 14, includes a new security feature they are calling "App Tracking Transparency". This includes a new prompt and tracking information for every app in the App Store.
This update advances Apple's efforts to be more transparent with users about what an app will track before they install and then ask permission for the tracking upon install.
For users, this update means greater control over how apps use your data and know prior to installing how the app plans to track your behaviors.
Why does Facebook care about iOS 14?
Facebook has been a vocal opponent of this update as their ad platform relies heavily on tracking users to do things like report on performance, build remarking lists, and target users based on their activity within an app.
Facebook is expecting that a significant number of users will choose not to allow Facebook to track them when using the app. Facebook's ability to advertise to users in a relevant way is significantly impacted as the number of users that opt out of tracking increases.
Over 97% of Facebook's revenue in 2020 came from advertising so they're going to do everything they can to protect their advertising products. Therefore, Facebook's concern is that advertisers will leave the platform as targeting and conversion tracking capabilities decrease as more users adopt iOS 14's security features.
The full impact of iOS 14 is still to be seen and it doesn't necessarily mean the end to tracking. Facebook is taking multiple steps, such as requiring those steps outlined above, to ensure their product is still valuable to advertisers.
