SKAN can work better than AEM for Some Apps

📢SKAN can work better than AEM for some apps

Yes, you read that right.
AEM is not a silver bullet.

It can fail when, for some reason, Meta is not able to fingerprint their users 😬(because yes, they obviously do fingerprinting😂)

Today, I’m sharing a real case where this happened.

We started a Trial Start campaign in early February using AEM to feed the algorithm with real-time signals which indeed helps the campaigns to optimize better.

The campaign started to show more signals on AEM than SKAN during the first weeks but with the time, SKAN started capturing more CTA conversions daily (as shown in the graph), making a HUGE difference on the CPT for each attribution methodology.

In my case:

👉Cost per trial (last 14d) according to AEM: $71
👉Cost per trial (last 14d) according to SKAN: $49
🤯Difference: SKAN is 30% cheaper, making my campaigns profitable—unlike AEM.

Despite this huge difference in trials, Meta is still attributing more installs compared to SKAN but when it comes to down-funnel events, AEM fails to attribute properly.

In this specific case, it’s very easy for me to figure out what’s the realistic cost because I just have Meta activated. Therefore, I have multiple data points to cross-check and compare: ASC, RevenueCat, Meta and SKAN.

And spoiler: both methodologies (SKAN & AEM) are still underestimating the true Cost Per Trial.

What should you do if you see such a trend in your AEM campaigns?👇
Run two campaigns (AEM and SKAN) and split test both attribution methodologies. You will find out which system is the best to feed the algorithm and get a better performance.

Have a nice rest of the week!