Navigating the Pitfalls and Powers of Apple Search Ads: Insights from CMA.

In the competitive landscape of digital advertising, Apple Search Ads (ASA) have emerged as a powerful tool, especially when compared to traditional platforms like Google Ads. At CMA, we have delved deep into the intricacies of ASA, uncovering both its advantages and the traps it can lay for the unwary. Here’s what every marketer needs to know.

The Power of Precision and Control

One of the significant strengths of ASA is the ability to bid per term, providing unparalleled control over your ad spend. This granular bidding system, coupled with API access for bid adjustments, allows for Cost Per Purchase strategies that can lead to more than a 20% uplift in Ad Groups performance. However, this power comes with a caveat—its complexity can be a double-edged sword.

The Traps of ASA

ASA is fraught with pitfalls for the unsophisticated marketer. Apple's platform can sometimes mislead advertisers into viewing metrics that may not accurately represent their campaign's effectiveness. For instance, "view-through" metrics often count organic interactions as influenced by ads, misleading marketers into overestimating the impact of their campaigns on brand awareness. In reality, since ASA is a high-intent search channel, many users who view ads might end up in the organic listings, skewing the data.

Brand Cannibalization and Misleading Data

ASA's setup in the App Store can lead to significant brand cannibalization. The ads occupy a large portion of the screen, appearing as highlighted results which users often tap on, potentially diverting traffic from organic downloads. This is exacerbated by the fact that ASA data is not separated in the App Store Connect (ASC) dashboard, leading some marketers to mistakenly attribute organic search improvements to ASA.

Moreover, the integration of ASA and ASC data without clear demarcations can mislead marketers into selecting the most favorable reports to impress management or stakeholders, without truly understanding the underlying dynamics.

The Experiment with "Snow Storm Sounds"

To illustrate, consider our experiment with the keyword "snow storm sounds." We tested whether ASA would attribute an interaction to an ad when a user ignored it but then searched for the app organically in a different session. The results were telling and showed that ASA often attributes organic searches to ad interactions under certain conditions, such as when searching with brand terms or when the app ranks in top positions organically.

Broad Keywords and Discovery Challenges

The use of broad keywords in ASA can lead to excessive budget wastage. Unlike Google Ads, where broad match keywords are well-defined, ASA can sometimes include your brand terms in broad matches, leading to artificially low CPAs. This can be mitigated by employing negative keywords strategically, but it requires a deep understanding of the platform and vigilant monitoring.

CMA’s Approach to Maximizing ASA Efficiency

At CMA, we are committed to ensuring that our clients’ budgets are spent efficiently and transparently. We leverage our deep understanding of ASA’s nuances to help our clients avoid common pitfalls. By exploiting deficiencies observed in competitors' strategies, we help our clients achieve better results without unnecessary expenditure.

Conclusion

ASA offers a potent tool for marketers willing to dive deep into its complexities. It requires a well-informed, cynical approach to navigate its challenges effectively. At CMA, we assist our clients in cleaning and utilizing data effectively, ensuring that our clients not only understand the landscape but also use it to their distinct advantage, to gain and retain app users.

In summary, while ASA can be incredibly effective, it demands expertise, caution, and a strategic approach to truly harness its benefits while avoiding its traps.