/ad-attribution

name: ad-attribution
description: Privacy-preserving ad measurement with AdAttributionKit (SKAdNetwork's successor) — install and re-engagement attribution, conversion-value strategy under crowd anonymity, and end-to-end postback testing. Use when running paid acquisition beyond Apple Ads, measuring re-engagement campaigns, designing conversion values, or migrating from SKAdNetwork.
allowed-tools: [Read, Write, Edit, Glob, Grep]
last_verified: 2026-07-16
review_by: 2027-06-22
os_version: iOS 27 / macOS 27

Ad Attribution (AdAttributionKit)

You can't optimize paid traffic you can't measure. AdAttributionKit is Apple's privacy-preserving attribution framework — interoperable with SKAdNetwork, and the go-forward path (it also works in alternative marketplaces). This skill covers the *advertised-app* side: what an indie running paid campaigns must implement and how to design conversion signals that survive privacy thresholds.

Note the seam: **Apple Ads attribution uses the AdServices framework, not AdAttributionKit** — campaigns there are measured in the Apple Ads console (see `app-store/apple-search-ads`). This skill is for every *other* paid channel (ad networks, social, publishers).

When This Skill Activates

• Running or planning paid user acquisition outside Apple Ads
• "How do I know which campaign drove installs?" / measuring re-engagement ads
• Designing or debugging conversion values / postbacks
• Migrating from SKAdNetwork (fully interoperable — registered networks need no re-enrollment)

How it works (the 60-second model)

Ad network signs an ad (compact JWS impression) → publisher app shows it → user installs (or re-engages) → after a privacy-delayed measurement window, a **postback** with your conversion info goes to the ad network (and optionally to you). Attribution requires no user tracking; the price is coarser data, governed by **crowd anonymity**.

Conversion-value strategy (the part that's actually yours)

• Two granularities: **fine value 0–63** and **coarse low/medium/high**. Low crowd sizes

downgrade fine → coarse and can trim the 4-digit campaign `source-identifier` to as few as its **first 2 digits** — so encode what matters most (campaign family, geo tier) in the first two digits, detail in the rest.

• Map values to *revenue-predictive* early behavior (completed onboarding, trial start, first

purchase), not vanity events. 64 slots go fast; reserve ranges (e.g. 0–15 activation, 16–47 monetization ladder, 48–63 reserved).

• Update with `updateConversionValue(_:)` / `PostbackUpdate`; set `lockPostback` when the value

is final to schedule transmission (still privacy-delayed, never instant).

• Re-engagement postbacks are separate from install postbacks: update them independently via

`conversionTypes` (.install / .reengagement); the **first re-engagement update must land within 48 hours**.

• Multiple simultaneous re-engagement campaigns need **conversion tags** (iOS 18.4+): read the

tag from the re-engagement URL's query items, store it, and pass it in `PostbackUpdate` — without a tag, updates hit only the most recent conversion.

Publisher-side mechanics (if your app also *shows* ads)

• Click-through: `UIEventAttributionView` over the tappable ad + `appImpression.handleTap()`

within **15 minutes** of creating the impression.

• View-through: `beginView()`/`endView()` on the same instance; **≥2 seconds** on screen to

count; one open view-through per network per advertised app.

• `SKOverlay` / `SKStoreProductViewController`: attach the impression — they count view on

present, click on tap.

Attribution windows & cooldowns (iOS 18.4+ configurability)

• Defaults: **30 days click-through, 1 day view-through** (install ads).
• Override per ad network and interaction type in Info.plist

(`AdAttributionKitConfigurations` → `AttributionWindows`); you can ignore "view" or "click" (not both) per network.

• Set **cooldowns** (`install-cooldown-hours`, `reengagement-cooldown-hours`) so a

re-engagement tap minutes after an install isn't double-attributed.

• Country-level postback data (iOS 18.4): storefront country at install, gated behind an extra

crowd-anonymity tier — a bonus signal when volume allows, never guaranteed.

• Overlapping re-engagement conversions require opting in:

`EligibleForAdAttributionKitOverlappingConversions` = YES in Info.plist.

Testing — never ship blind

• **Developer Mode → Settings → Developer → Ad Attribution Testing**: removes time

randomization, shortens all conversion windows, sends postbacks on demand — full end-to-end rehearsal in minutes instead of days.

• Point development postbacks at a **separate dev endpoint**, never production: they're signed

with a different key (`kid`), the network ID is always `development.adattributionkit`, and the advertised item ID may be 0 from Xcode.

• ✅ Verify the postback pipeline before spending a dollar. ❌ Debugging attribution *after*

a live campaign burns budget on unmeasurable installs.

Checklist

• [ ] Conversion-value map documented (0–63 + coarse fallback + first-2-digit priority)
• [ ] `lockPostback` fired once value is final; re-engagement first update < 48h
• [ ] Conversion tags wired if >1 re-engagement campaign runs at once
• [ ] Cooldowns configured; windows tuned per network where defaults don't fit
• [ ] Dev-endpoint postback rehearsal done in Developer Mode
• [ ] Campaign readout joined with `growth/analytics-interpretation` (source-type funnel) —

attribution tells you *which ad*, App Analytics tells you *what they did after*

References

• https://developer.apple.com/documentation/adattributionkit
• https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2024/10060/ (Meet AdAttributionKit)
• https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2025/221/ (What's new in AdAttributionKit)
• Related skills: `app-store/apple-search-ads` (Apple Ads uses AdServices, not this), `growth/analytics-interpretation`, `growth/store-growth-audit`