Taps
A tap is the moment a user chooses your ad. On Apple Ads search results campaigns it is also the moment you pay, which makes taps the unit your budget is spent in.
Updated
Adapty Ads Manager reports taps as the number of times your ad was tapped by users within the reporting period. On a search results ad, a tap opens your App Store product page, or a Custom Product Page if the ad uses one. From there the user can download the app, or leave.
What a tap is, and what it costs
Search results campaigns are sold on a cost-per-tap basis. Each tap is priced by the auction, and spend is the sum of those prices. That makes taps the link between the ad and your bill.
Taps vs downloads
Taps and downloads are counted separately and will never match. Some users tap, look at the product page and leave. Some tap twice before deciding. Others download later, and some download without ever tapping.
| Taps | Downloads | |
|---|---|---|
| What is counted | Each tap on the ad | Each download or redownload attributed to the ad |
| Cost | You pay for each tap on cost-per-tap campaigns | No separate charge |
| Timing | Counted when the tap happens | Tap-through downloads within 30 days of the tap; view-through within 24 hours of a view |
| Metric built on it | CPT, TTR | CPA, download rate, DPM |
The ratio between them is download rate: tap-through downloads divided by taps shows how often a tap turned into a download. A low ratio points at the product page, or at a keyword whose searchers wanted something your app does not offer.
The 30-day tap-through window
A tap-through download is a new download or redownload from a user who tapped your ad within a 30-day window. In practice, a user can tap your ad on Monday, think about it, and download the app later that month, and the download is still credited to the tap.
- Recent days are incomplete. Downloads from taps made in the last few days can still arrive, so recent download rate and CPA can look worse than they will end up.
- Taps and their downloads can fall in different reporting periods. A monthly report can include downloads from taps made in the previous month.
- Downloads without a tap are counted separately as view-through downloads, with a 24-hour window after the ad was viewed.
Getting more of the right taps
- Raise TTR with relevance. Ads shown for queries that clearly match your app get tapped more often.
- Use Custom Product Pages for distinct intents, so the ad and the page it opens reflect what the user searched for.
- Cut taps that do not convert. Negative keywords stop you paying for taps from searches that never produce trials or subscribers.