Apple Search Ads View Through Announcement 

By Julie Gaylord, Senior Manager, Search & Social, M&C Saatchi Performance

Apple Search Ads just released Campaign Management API 5, introducing new View-through reporting metrics. This enhancement helps advertisers gain deeper insight into the overall effectiveness of their campaigns.

By tracking the number of installs from users who saw your ads but did not immediately click on them, you can better understand the extended influence of your ad impressions. These insights are crucial for optimizing advertising strategies, allowing marketers to assess the true value of ad views beyond direct clicks and taps.

In essence, new View-through reporting metrics allow advertisers to break down performance into three buckets. These three reporting types are Total, View, and Tap and include net new metrics such as:

• Installs (Total) 

• Installs (View-Through)

• Installs (Tap-Through)

• Downloads (Total)

• Downloads (View-Through)

• Downloads (Tap-Through)

What is the impact?

This change in reporting will be particularly important for upper-funnel ad placements such as Today Tab, where direct clicks are less frequent, but brand exposure is significant. 

Due to the incremental view conversions, advertisers now have transparency on performance across campaigns, which will improve as long as advertisers choose to incorporate view-through data into their reporting. 

How does this benefit marketers? 

This will benefit advertisers as View-through metrics provide a fuller picture of ad performance, ensuring that they are not solely reliant on click-through data, which might undervalue the true effectiveness of their ads. 

“View-through attribution is so important in today’s digital advertising landscape. It reveals the unseen influence of ad impressions, providing a deeper understanding of how brands can effectively convert users over time.”

Julie Gaylord, Senior Manager Search & Social, M&C Saatchi Performance

What should advertisers do now?

Customized reporting – Develop customized reports incorporating view-through metrics alongside traditional click-through data.

Strategic planning – Provide insights and recommendations based on a holistic analysis of campaign performance, highlighting the extended value of ad impressions.

Campaign optimization – Use the new metrics to identify trends and patterns in user behavior. Optimize campaigns by adjusting bids and keywords based on the insights gained from view-through data.

Contact us to find out how we ensure Apple Search Ads fulfill client goals or any other media planning & buying questions.