How To Track Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection In Klaviyo | Email Marketing Guide

Written by

Bogdan Mihalache

|

June 1, 2022

How To Track Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection In Klaviyo | Email Marketing Guide

A massive announcement from Apple back in June 2021 has sent shockwaves through the email marketing industry. 

Apple has announced that starting in October 2021, all of its users will be subject to Mail Privacy Protection.

And just like that, the way we do email marketing was forever changed. 

Many people have expressed their dissatisfaction and concern. But, in the end, the only way forward was to adapt.

And that’s exactly what Klaviyo did with the release of their new feature helping us detect MPP users.

What Is Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection Feature

In simple terms, iOS 15 gives users the ability to disable tracking pixels that ESPs such as Klaviyo use to monitor open rates.

Apple now preloads elements such as photos, making it impossible for senders to accurately track when someone opens their email.

Pretty annoying, I know. But we've known this for a long time, so naturally, we found a workaround.

For those questioning why we need a workaround, let me explain.

Inbox providers like Gmail and Outlook use engagement data to determine if you're a good or bad sender.

Now imagine this. If you can’t track open rates for up to half of your customers, you increase the chance of ending up in the spam folder over time. If you’re dealing with a list of hundreds of thousands of subscribers, the implications of following such a reckless strategy is massive.

Thus, why we need a workaround. 

So what can we do? My approach is simple is as simple as 1-2-3.

  1. Find new metrics to track for Apple users to determine engagement i.e. clicks and active on site
  2. Identify Apple users and take them out of your regular sending segments in order to protect your sender reputation
  3. Create a strategy on how to best engage Apple users without affecting your sender reputation

Let’s talk about all of this in more detail.

How To Track Apple Users Inside Klaviyo

1. Find New Metrics To Track Apple Users

Normally, we use metrics such as "opened" and "clicked" to determine engagement inside our email providers.

When tracking Apple Users, my recommendation is to start using the following metrics into your general engaged segments:

  • Clicked email within set time range
  • Active on site within set time range
  • Purchased product within set time range

However, using clicks is the main factor here. Just because someone was active on site or purchased a product from you does not mean they opened any of your emails.

2. Find All Of Your MPP Openers

Klaviyo are the best in the industry for a reason. And very recently, they launched their brand new feature helping you identify MPP openers within your segments.

The first thing you want to do is to identify all of your MPP openers.

For reference, we'll call this segment Mail Privacy Protection = True.

Here's an image below to see how that looks like inside Klaviyo's segment builder.

Klaviyo Mail Privacy Protection Segment

3. Find Unengaged MPP Openers & Remove Them From Your Engaged Segments

Just because a user has the MPP feature turned on does not mean they are unengaged.

They might open all of your emails. You just can't see it.

On that premise, moving forward you'll look for unengaged MPP users using the "clicks" metric.

The image below will show you how to create your Unengaged Mail Privacy Protection Segment.

For reference, we'll call this Mail Privacy Protection = True (and unengaged).

Klaviyo Unengaged Mail Privacy Protection Segment

You’ll notice that on the image avove, I’m using 30 days the time range for engagement.

Feel free to expand this to 60, or even 90 days, depending on your strategy.

Final Thoughts

If you didn't go through the entire article or you're looking for some final thoughts, here you go.

Apple's IOS15 Mail Privacy Protection is here and adapting to it is no longer optional. It's an absolute must.

If you're using Klaviyo, you're in luck, as you can now determine MPP users inside your segment builder.

To avoid deliverability issues long term, follow these steps:

  1. Find New Metrics To Track Apple Users (Clicks and Active On Site instead of Opens)
  2. Find All Of Your MPP Openers
  3. Find Unengaged MPP Openers & Remove Them From Your Engaged Segments

When you send campaigns moving forward, make sure you exclude your unengaged MPP openers. We're referencing this segment above as Mail Privacy Protection = True (and unengaged).

To continue sending emails to MPP users, only send emails to those who show clicks activity within a set time range. (30 days or 60 days.)

That's it. That's how I'm approaching iOS15 and MPP with my current clients.

Some cool resources for you👇

Learn the best practices behind an effective email flows strategy for eCommerce stores!

Download my free swipe file here.