In 2021, Apple rolled out its new software operating system for computer and mobile devices. As a part of this update, they are continuing to take another step forward with greater privacy for their users. As users of Apple devices ourselves, we love the ability to pick if we want a higher level of privacy. However, as professional marketers, the changes are making it more and more difficult to get back data that allows us to make informed decisions quickly.
The first round of privacy from Apple back this summer was them limiting third-party apps on their devices by default. This was commonly known as the Facebook versus Apple conversation from this summer. As you have guessed, since then, marketers have found new ways to get data to help their clients.
But now this new update is going to affect email marketing. Here is the first announcement from the Apple website.
The first round of privacy from Apple back this summer was them limiting third-party apps on their devices by default. This was commonly known as the Facebook versus Apple conversation from this summer. As you have guessed, since then, marketers have found new ways to get data to help their clients.
But now this new update is going to affect email marketing. Here is the first announcement from the Apple website.
[Below] This happens after you update to the newest software: iOS15 or OS Monterey. You will see this pop-up once you open your Mail app.
So what changes can we expect?
The biggest update is that marketers and companies will lose the ability to see interaction on an email. Apple is going to remove all of these functions:
- Open rates
- Click-to-Open rates
- Send-time optimization
- Live email content (like gifs)
- Device data
- Geographical data
- Active or inactive users
- No more subject line testing
Normally, this information is used to figure out if a campaign was successful. If your campaign gets enough open rates, you know the subject was a good one. However, now we will not know this information from all Apple Mail app users. Again – this changes the landscape of available data!
What is the Impact?
Apple Mail App, according to most researchers, holds 49% of emails. This means Apple Mail is the largest email app on the market. Nearly 50% of all emails delivered will be “protected” and will not allow marketing data to be sent back to the senders. At this point, it is expected that 90% of people will update to this new software within 6 months from this date. And at this point, everyone is expected to opt out. Who is going to say “don’t protect me” – no one! So you should expect all of your open rates to drop in 2022 compared to 2021.
How do we move forward?
First off, we should expect there to be another way to work with email marketing in the near future to give companies the ability to know how their campaigns are working. We already know click-through rates will remain available. This means there will be more reliance on that metric for performance. If you are using a good software like Rocketfuel that has built-in triggers, you will be able to track that information on your software. This will allow you to know which call to action on your email actually worked. We also recommend pushing people to reply back to email more than we ever have before, which means there will be more human-to-human interactions going forward. So make sure your team is ready for more conversations with real clients who want your product.
Overall, the biggest change here is that open rates will soon be a thing of the past, so, companies and marketers will need to rely more on clicks and replies. If you have a marketing partner you trust to be making these changes – you will be in good hands.
Bonus:
Do you text your customer? You should! Text messaging is now the #1 way customers want to interact with clients in 2021. We mention this because email open rates were averaging about 18% and text message open rates average at over 90%! And, to remove the need to give your personal phone number out to all clients, we recommend using a tool like Rocketfuel to get a company texting number that is local to your area. If you want to know more reach out to us at hello@goodagency.com.
