Apple: Most iOS 15 users opt out of personalized ads; no impact on App Store Search Ads conversions

Apple is growing its Search Ads business. In a presentation to advertising clients today, obtained by 9to5Mac, the company emphasizes that even as Search Ads continue to grow, the vast majority of users are opting for an experience that doesn’t rely on personalized advertising.

App Store Search Ads and personalized ads

Apple will present this briefing today to advertising partners. It explains that Apple Search Ads helps “advertisers expand their businesses while giving users control over their data how it is used.”

Apple’s emphasis in today’s presentation, according to a slide deck obtained by 9to5Mac, is that Search Ads rely very little on personalized targeting, and conversion rates are virtually unaffected.

With iOS 15, Apple added a new prompt when a user opens the App Store for the first time. The prompt explains personalized ads “help you discover apps, products, and services that are relevant to you.” The prompt gives users the ability to turn on personalized ads or to turn them off.

According to data aggregated by Apple, 78% of iOS search volume on the App Store came from devices with personalized ads turned off. This effectively means that 78% of users are opting to “Turn Off Personalized Ads” when they see the prompt for the first time in the App Store.

Additional data from Apple shows that personalized ads enable users convert nearly the same amount of people as those without personalized ads. For customers who opted in to personalized ads, advertisers see a 62. 1% conversion rate. Among users with personalized ads disabled, that conversion rate is 62.5%.

In the presentation to advertisers, Apple explains that many developers would be better off by targeting users who have personalized ads disabled. This is because the pool of users with personalized ads disabled is larger than the pool of users who opted in is much smaller.

App Store Search Ads are priced with auction-based, bidding system. Because there are more users who have disabled personalized ads, prices will be lower. And again, the ads are just as effective, if not more effective.

Finally, it’s important to remember that this data applies solely to Apple’s first-part advertising efforts in the App Store. It is not referring to App Tracking Transparency, which applies to third-party advertising.