{"id":6077,"date":"2020-07-29T09:33:43","date_gmt":"2020-07-29T08:33:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oko.uk\/?p=6077"},"modified":"2020-07-29T09:33:43","modified_gmt":"2020-07-29T08:33:43","slug":"monetize-safari-traffic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cool.co\/supply-side-platform-home\/monetize-safari-traffic\/","title":{"rendered":"How to monetize Safari traffic"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a publisher, it\u2019s important to be aware that CPM rates can vary greatly depending on browser choice. Safari browser, in particular, can yield significantly lower CPMs than Chrome because of Apple\u2019s stance on data privacy and advertising. We\u2019re going to be unpacking some of the methods that publishers can implement to better monetize Safari traffic.<\/p>\n

What is Apple\u2019s Safari Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP)?<\/h2>\n

First released in 2017, Intelligent Tracking Prevention, or ITP, is Apple\u2019s initiative to prevent advertisers from collecting data and user insights for online advertising purposes. ITP works in Apple\u2019s Safari browser by blocking third-party cookies from tracking users and placing limits on how long first-party cookies can be stored.<\/p>\n

Depending on which way you look at it, Apple\u2019s stance towards cookies and their ITP response can either be seen as pro-privacy or a deliberately unilateral and strategic snipe at other ad-funded competitors (like Google). As many publishers have long relied upon selling their ad inventory via programmatic advertising, Apple ITP has brought many challenges to the adtech industry who use cookies to personalise ads for users.<\/p>\n

How does Safari\u2019s ITP impact publishers\u2019 ad revenue?<\/h2>\n

Safari is the second most widely used browser worldwide after Google Chrome, and is used by almost 17%<\/a> of internet users globally. Because Safari limits tracking and targeting on these users, these impressions are less valuable to advertisers resulting in lower CPMs for publishers. Last year, we conducted a study on browser CPM rates which found that Safari CPM rates can be as much as 37%<\/a> lower than the average CPM.<\/p>\n

Being able to track and target users across the web is not only advantageous to advertisers but also beneficial to users. This is because a personalised ad experience actually improves the user experience, and 71%<\/a> of users actually prefer ads that are relevant to their interests.<\/p>\n

For advertisers, Apple\u2019s heavy-handed approach means that behavioural targeting and frequency capping is now very difficult for users that browse the web with Safari. This is because ITP only allows user data to be stored for up to 7 days.<\/p>\n

How web publishers can monetize Safari traffic<\/h2>\n

Leverage your first-party data<\/h3>\n

For many years, demand-side platform targeting and third-party cookies have been the norm when it comes to ad personalisation. However, since ITP was introduced and now that Google has also announced plans to deprecate third-party cookies in Chrome, publishers\u2019 first-party data is set to play a much more prominent role.<\/p>\n

First-party data is information that publishers collect directly from their website audience. This can include context, searches and general on-site behaviour. First-party data can be collected through a number of mediums, such as analytics, CRMs and email newsletters.<\/p>\n

This data will give you valuable insights and enable you to create profiles to personalize the user experience. Obtaining first-party data also gives publishers the tools to develop new products and services that users actually value and will pay for.<\/p>\n

Introduce a paywall model<\/h3>\n

In recent years, many larger publishers, such as the New York Times, have opted for a paywall model which means that users pay for a membership and gain unlimited access to content. For most digital publishers, a paid subscription model is easier said than done as it requires significant first-party data to gain a thorough understanding of audience needs, habits and level of loyalty.<\/p>\n

There are three main types of paywall:<\/p>\n