GAID (Google Advertising ID)
What is GAID (Google Advertising ID)?
Google Advertising ID, commonly known as GAID, Android ID, or Android Advertising ID (AAID), serves as a unique identifier for devices. This identifier plays a pivotal role in allowing app developers and marketers to gauge campaign performance and user actions across various media sources, all while safeguarding user privacy.
Understanding GAID
Debuting in 2014, GAID is akin to Apple’s Unique Device Identifier (UDID). It offers advertisers the means to monitor ad views, app engagement, and conversions. A noteworthy feature is that users can reset their GAID, simultaneously allowing their device identifier to remain visible to media vendors and mobile measurement partners (MMPs).
Significance of GAID
GAID has historically held a crucial position within the realm of mobile advertising. It empowers advertisers to scrutinize app traffic and attribute sources of media, encompassing app installations and in-app purchases. This empowers marketers to evaluate campaign efficacy, refine strategies in real-time, and categorize their audience for personalized outreach, thereby optimizing their impact.
Furthermore, GAID aids marketers in fine-tuning campaigns for enhanced advertising efficiency. For instance, it enables the engagement of user clusters exhibiting specific in-app activities or expressing interest in particular products or services.
Locating Your GAID
Though the steps may vary slightly based on your device and operating system, the following is a general guide to finding your GAID:
- Open the Settings app on your Android device.
- Access the Google section.
- Choose “Ads” under the Services tab.
- Your GAID will be displayed at the bottom of the screen.
It is important to note that selecting the “Reset advertising ID” option generates a new GAID number but does not erase user-level data linked to the previous GAID.
Privacy Considerations and the Future of GAID
As of now, when an Android user opts out of personalized ads, their GAID remains accessible to app developers for limited purposes such as analytics and fraud prevention. However, Google’s announcement on June 3, 2021, revealed a significant change. By the close of 2021, Android 12 OS users who choose to opt out of personalized ads will render their GAID inaccessible to app developers and marketers. Instead, the GAID will appear as a sequence of zeros.
This move mirrors Apple’s ATT framework, which was implemented in April 2021. Unlike the ATT framework, Google’s approach doesn’t mandate users to opt-in to GAID usage nor does it prohibit app developers from utilizing alternative device identifiers if a user opts out. This is contingent on users accepting the app’s privacy policy and the app adhering to Google’s Developer Distribution Agreement regarding data handling.
The Privacy Sandbox: Google’s Alternative to GAID
In place of GAID, Google introduced the Privacy Sandbox initiative. Unveiled with a 2-year timeline, this endeavor aims to develop privacy-protective technologies for online users. Operating as a collaborative effort across multiple platforms (including web and Android apps), the proposed solutions aim to curtail user tracking while offering safer alternatives to existing technologies.
Key Takeaways
In summary, GAID, or Google Advertising ID, is a distinctive device identifier empowering app developers and marketers to evaluate campaign success and user interactions across media outlets, all while upholding user data privacy. GAID’s role in the mobile advertising domain has been substantial, allowing advertisers to dissect app traffic, gauge media attribution, optimize campaign effectiveness, and target audiences more effectively. The evolution of GAID, particularly its unavailability for opted-out users by the end of 2021, aligns with Google’s response to user privacy concerns. Nonetheless, Google remains committed to furnishing substitutes for GAID that support analytical insights and fraud prevention.
GDPR
General Data Protection Regulation
GRP
Gross Rating Point (GRP) is a standard measure for the impact or exposure of an ad campaign. GRPs calculate reach multiplied by exposure frequency. For example, if an ad is exposed to 32% of a targeted audience and that exposure occurs a total of three times at the same 32% rate, then you have a GRP of 96. Because the GRP measures gross, it is therefore possible to have a number over 100.
What is a gross rating point (GRP)?
Gross rating point (GRP) is a key performance indicator that has long been used in traditional advertising to gauge the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. GRP is a measure of impressions as a percentage of a target audience, multiplied by the frequency with which that audience sees the ad. GRP is a valuable tool for measuring the impact of traditional ad campaigns where precise measurement is difficult.
Rating points are widely used in media planning and buying. Since the 1950s, GRPs have been the primary metric for TV advertising buys, with advertisers typically paying publishers based on the ratings points they receive for a particular ad. Although GRP is primarily used in traditional media campaigns, it is also important for digital and mobile marketers to compare and coordinate linear TV and digital advertising campaigns.
How to calculate GRP
To calculate GRP, we must multiply the percentage of a target demographic that is reached by an ad (known as reach) by the number of times that ad is shown in a given campaign (known as frequency). For example, if a campaign has an average of 4 impressions by 1,000,000 viewers, out of a total addressable population of 50,000,000 people, the GRP will be calculated as follows: (1,000,000/50,000,000) x 4 = 8.
The base population used in calculating GRP is typically the largest measured population with reasonable access to the media source. To estimate the total population of a given audience, advertisers may look at estimates of past performance of a chosen channel from market research and measurement groups (such as Nielsen for linear TV).
TRP and GRP measure the same thing but with different levels of specificity. While GRPs show how much of the total population your campaign can reach, TRPs look at the campaign’s performance for a specified target audience within the total population. While GRPs equal one percent of the total audience exposed to an ad, TRPs equal one percent of a given target demographic’s exposure.
What is a good gross rating point?
When setting GRP goals, advertisers must consider how much of the market they want to reach and how many times they need to reach their audience to achieve their objectives. GRPs are calculated slightly differently based on the medium, and GRP goals vary across verticals. In general, advertisers should aim to reach between 50-90% of their target market and assume it will take at least three exposures for a viewer to act on an offer. New products require more frequency than established products, and complex products or products with a lot of competition will require more frequency.
Why is GRP important?
GRP is an important metric for measuring the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. Although GRP has primarily been used as a metric for linear TV, it also serves as a bridge between traditional and digital media for ad buyers. Advertisers adopt GRP as a way to compare campaign performance across media formats. Large advertisers have been using apps such as Facebook and YouTube, which have partnered with Nielsen’s Digital Ad Ratings, to compare their ad performance versus traditional TV ads using GRPs, giving them more comprehensive campaign performance measurement capabilities.