How events could be impacted by iOS14 changes to Facebook marketing and pixels

Facebook advertising is about to change for event promoters everywhere. You may have heard some doom and gloom warnings from Facebook about Apple’s changes to ad tracking, but it’s not all bad news. For a start, users (including you!) are being given more opportunity to control privacy and data settings. Yep, even if you’ve been blindly accepting mile-long terms and conditions.

At the end of the day, people want transparency over their privacy. And as users look to claw back data from tech giants, it will become more important for promoters to take control of their own databases. Tixel hears this and is transparent with the use of its data and obtains express consent from buyers before sharing information with [only] event organisers.

There are plenty of ways to run effective targeted campaigns without relying on ad tracking alone. Read on to find out what’s changing and what to do to plug any gaps in your promotion.

What is changing: Opting out of tracking in iOS14

In early 2021, Apple is rolling out new privacy measures to give users more control over how their data is tracked on apps. For example, Facebook and Instagram users will receive a notification that asks if they want to allow tracking on the app. This gives all iPhone users the option to decline, independent of Facebook and Instagram privacy controls.

No word yet if Android will follow suit. But as more people opt out of tracking, ad personalisation and performance reporting will start to change.

How this will impact event marketing

This feature isn’t live yet, but here are a few speculations on how this might change your marketing campaigns:

• Tracking actions using Pixels (such as conversions) will be under-reported due to people opting out of tracking
• Your tracking pixels may not be as effective at optimising ads due to under reporting
• There may be issues setting up retargeting audiences, but as this change only applies to iOS14 devices and not desktops, it’s unclear how much
• If you are tracking app installs, the data on iOS devices will be under reported

Facebook Advertising products are changing to adapt — such as limiting how many user actions you can track to 8 per domain.

How to maintain effective, targeted promotions to your own database

It’s hard not to put all your eggs in the Facebook/Instagram basket when it connects you to such a giant share of the event-goer market. But, this is also a timely reminder that effective marketing campaigns should span many channels. 

Fine-tuning your own customer segments now will help protect you from future changes. If social media audiences become more fractured or major players go the way of MySpace and Vine, you won’t lose all your data or campaign history.

Here are three simple suggestions you can put in place today to send more targeted promotions without ad tracking:

Manage your own email database and run segmented campaigns

Email marketing is still incredibly effective and has managed to stand the test of time. But to do it well, you need to build your own database and be smart about segmentation.

In fact, sending more targeted emails to smaller, segmented audiences can generate huge results akin to ad targeting. MailChimp reports click-through rates to be an average of 100.95% higher than non-segmented campaigns.

For example, if you send a targeted email to ticket holders promoting VIP upgrades, you could increase revenue without selling any new tickets. If you sent that email to your waitlist or all newsletter subscribers, you would likely be annoying people who are ineligible because they don’t have a ticket. This segment would be better served with final release tickets and exclusive content about upcoming events. With a simple move like targeting your own database, you can increase revenue before any ad spend.

Connect your event to Tixel to capture your complete market

Having an official resale market for people who can no longer make your event doesn’t just benefit fans — it also gives you the complete picture on your fans. Instead of tickets winding up across unregulated sites and social media channels, you get visibility on who is really coming to your events. 

With your event connected to Tixel, your event data will hold the accurate details of your attendees, not only the original ticket holders. Here are two ways this can help target your promotional efforts:

Reach fans who bought a ticket on Tixel: These are fans who weren’t on your primary ticket database, but you can now market to as official attendees. As valid tickets are transferred securely, you can send important updates and upgrade opportunities to your real ticket holders, instead of someone who isn’t going to be there.

Market to fans on your Tixel wait list: These fans don’t have a ticket yet or missed out on a sold-out show, so they’re the ideal fans to advertise to next time. Notify them of new release tickets, extra shows, or discount releases. 

Because Tixel was designed with event promoters at the front of mind, you will also access a dashboard featuring unique insights into your secondary marketplace. 

Create your own tracking links for campaigns

Analytics tools (like Google Analytics) let you create different tracking to the kind that iOS14 is letting people opt out of. A tracking link (or ‘UTM link’) lets you specify content or campaigns, rather than people to target. You can track anything from a social media post to an eDM to uncover what is driving the most traffic and conversions. This will keep anonymous data, protecting privacy but helping you see where to focus your energy.

For example, UTM tags show you a specific post or tweet that received a response, rather than listing Facebook or Twitter. This can be useful if you’re using brand ambassadors or social influencers. By providing each person a unique link, you can view the traction each individual is getting when discussing your event.

Learn how to create custom URLs with Google Analytics here. 

Reaching every fan with Tixel

Check out our partners page to get in touch and learn more about how Tixel can increase your reach with fans — including the ones you didn’t know you had.