What is Targeting by App Activity?
You can create ads targeting people based on the actions they are taking within your app. For example, you can target people who previously used your app, but have not come back to your app within the last 90 days. Or you can target people who have added an item to their cart but didn't make a purchase. Such targeting configurations are called Custom Audiences in the Facebook Ads Manager that key off of the App Events in your app.
Why is this Important?
Instead of lumping all people using or not using your app together, you can reach the relevant audience for your needs.
Requirements
You need to add App Events to your app to track actions people are taking within your app.
You can also create custom audiences using a customer list. The list may be based on emails, phone numbers, Facebook user IDs or mobile advertiser IDs to target people using Facebook.
Scenarios: Reach people who ...
- Recently Opened your App
- Recently Completed a Purchase
- Completed Large Purchases
- Achieved a Certain Level in your Game
Before You Start: Read our Essential Guides
1. Creating Ads for Apps
Learn how ads for apps work.
2. Using the Facebook SDK with Ads for Apps
In most cases you need to add the Facebook SDK before creating your custom audiences.
3. Example Case: Bring people back to your App
This guide will teach you how to create custom audiences for your ads.
4. Learn about App Events
Important: Only events that actually occurred in your app will be available for creating custom audiences.
Recently Opened your App
1. Add App Launch Tracking to your App
To create a custom audience based on recent activity you need to track app launches using App Events. Track app launches by calling the activateApp
method:
- (void)applicationDidBecomeActive:(UIApplication *)application {
[FBSDKAppEvents activateApp];
}
2. Create Custom Audience by Recent Activity
Start creating a new ad. At the point of defining your ad audience create new custom audience and pick the following options when filling out the custom audience form:
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
Action Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Recently Completed a Purchase
1. Add Purchase Logging to your App
To create a custom audience based on purchase behavior you need to log purchases using App Events. Track purchases using the logPurchase
method:
[FBSDKAppEvents logPurchase:4.32 currency:@"USD"];
2. Create Custom Audience by Purchases
Start creating a new ad. At the point of defining your ad audience create new custom audience and pick the following options when filling out the custom audience form:
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
Action Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Advanced 1: Narrow your Audience using "Combined Actions"
You may also want to exclude a smaller part of your audience from your ads. For example, you may want to reach users who have purchased within your app in the past 30 days, but not the past 7.
Choose the option Combined Action
and two events:
- Actions people have taken.
- Actions people have not taken.
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
List of people based on ... |
|
Action Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Action Not Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Advanced 2: Create Custom Audience by Abandoned Carts
Target people who expressed interest in completing a purchase but haven't done so by using the following options:
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
List of people based on ... |
|
Action Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Action Not Taken |
|
In The Last |
|
Completed Large Purchases
1. Add Purchase Logging to your App
Take same steps as in Recently Completed a Purchase: 1. Add Purchase Logging to your App.
2. Create Custom Audience by Large Purchases
Start creating a new ad. At the point of defining your ad audience create new custom audience and pick the following options when filling out the custom audience form:
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
Action Taken |
|
Event's USD Value | is geater than |
In The Last |
|
Achieved a level
1. Add Event Tracking to your App
To create a custom audience based on level achievements you need to track such events using App Events. Track level achievements - or other events - by calling the logEvent
method and providing a level
parameter:
[FBSDKAppEvents logEvent:FBSDKAppEventNameAchievedLevel
valueToSum:nil
parameters:@{
FBSDKAppEventParameterNameLevel: 123
}
];
2. Create Custom Audience by Level Achievement
Start creating a new ad, choose App Engagement as your objective. At the point of defining your ad audience create new custom audience and pick the following options when filling out the custom audience form:
"Create Custom Audience" From Option | Your Value |
---|---|
Type of Audience |
|
Action Taken |
|
Level | is any of |
In The Last |
|
Important Bookmarks
Bookmark these links to our most important ads tools:
Manage Your Custom AudiencesTest Your App (App Ads Helper)Create Ad