About agency accounts

For:

Marketers Agencies

Last update: November 23, 2023 10:09

At a glance: Make the most of your AppsFlyer Agency account with advanced configuration.

About agency accounts

Agency accounts are used by agency teams to measure app marketing campaigns run by the agency on behalf of marketer clients (app owners).

Key pre-install and post-install metrics are available to ensure that agencies are delivering optimal performance across their client portfolio.
Agency account dashboards provide similar capabilities and content to that of marketer dashboards. This includes the following dashboards:
- Lifetime value overview
- In-app events
- Retargeting
KPIs available include impressions, clicks, installs, user loyalty, cost, and ROI. About the dashboard.

Agency access to marketer data

Agencies always have access to data of traffic attributed to the agency. Marketers can grant agencies access to additional data, for example, organic aggregate data. See access to data by different types of users.

Agency transparency

Agency traffic is set by default to be transparent. Learn more about agency transparency.

Comparing different types of accounts

Agency versus marketer accounts

Marketer accounts are geared towards serving the app and data-owner. Marketers add apps to their accounts and determine the data-access permissions.
Agency accounts are purpose-built for agency teams. They include tools for efficient measurement and analysis of marketing campaigns across their client portfolio.

Account structures permit knowledge-sharing between global agency teams and enable group-level ROI measurement, calculations, reporting, and optimization.

Differences between Marketer and Agency accounts

	Marketer	Agency
Code-level implementation	Yes	No; only promotion of the app
Account-level settings	Team members, team member permissions, settings, payment preferences	Agency team members and their permissions.
App-level settings	Reattribution window, OneLink configuration, time zone, currency	Agency transparency towards the marketer All other settings are according to those set by the marketer
Integrated-partner-level configuration	Agency permissions All non-SRN (attribution-link-based ad networks) configurations SRN configurations Link management	All non-SRN configurations Some SRN configurations that require minimum intervention from the marketer's side: Google Doubleclick Snapchat Tencent Other SRNs must be configured by the marketer in order for the agency to use them. Link management (using templates defined by Marketers)
Additional features	Yes (some, if part of the subscription plan)	As per marketer subscription and permissions given to the agency (see the table below)

Features available to agencies

Available by default

Not available

Requires marketer permission

Lifetime value overview dashboard
In-app events dashboard
Retargeting dashboard
Active integrations
OneLink*
Pull API
SSOT dashboard**

*OneLink templates can be created only by the marketer

** Available only after the marketer has enabled this option.

Activity dashboard
Custom dashboard
People-based analytics
Audiences
Pivot report
Push API
Data locker

*Only cohort reports are available upon marketer permission

Retention report
Cohort dashboard report
Cohort report from Data Locker
Protect360
Raw-data export
Aggregate organic data

Agency vs. ad network account

Differences between Ad network and Agency accounts

Ad network	Agency
Attribution link parameter for identification: `pid`	Attribution link parameter for identification: `af_prt`
Places app ads on its own platform	Promotes the app via multiple media sources
Sees only traffic from ads placed on its platform	Sees only traffic from media sources it advertises on
Can receive real-time information about installs and in-app events via postbacks	Cannot receive real-time information about installs and in-app events via postbacks
Can configure in-app event postbacks for any traffic from itself*	Can configure in-app event postbacks to some of the partners it brings traffic from*
* Requires marketer permission

Agency accounts—campaigns and reporting

Agency: setting up campaigns

Agencies can measure the following main traffic types:

Self-reporting ad networks

Self-reporting networks, such as Meta ads, Google Ads, or Twitter do not use external attribution links. Instead, each network has its own methods and APIs that AppsFlyer uses to communicate new installs, in-app events, etc.

SRN configurations

SRN	Marketer to perform initial SRN setup	Details
Meta ads and Twitter	Yes	Note, this section refers to Meta ads. For attribution of Facebook Social (posts), read about Owned Media. Important: All Meta ads and Twitter campaigns must start with the Agency account name followed by "_". The name is defined in the AppsFlyer platform. Campaigns, which are not named correctly, are visible to the marketer but remain invisible to the agency account. The agency name is CASE SENSITIVE. Example agencyx runs a Meta ads campaign called agencyx_brilliantcampaign, which is visible to it. agencyz runs an Twitter campaign called AgencyZ_whathaveidonewrong, but doesn't see any results. This happens because the agency name part of the campaign is different to the defined agency name (capital A and Z). Contact agency@appsflyer.com if you have any questions about this. More details on Meta ads and Twitter setup for agencies.
Google Ads	Yes	For details of agency configuration for Google Ads campaigns, click here.
Apple Search Ads	Yes	For details of agency configuration for Apple Search Ads campaigns, click here.
Google Marketing Platform (GMP)	No	GMP has two different APIs. Learn more about the differences between the two, and choose the one relevant to you.
Snapchat	No	For details of agency configuration for Snapchat campaigns, click here.
Yahoo (Oath: Ad Platforms / Yahoo Gemini)	Yes	For details of agency configuration for Yahoo campaigns, click here.

Non-SRNs

Unlike SRNs, the vast majority of ad networks use attribution links for attribution purposes. These attribution links are already provided in each network's settings on AppsFlyer and can be simply copied from there directly.

For agencies, the process is almost identical to that of the marketers. Upon going to the setup window of any regular ad networks the attribution link is already there. The only difference is the automatic addition of the af_prt parameter to the attribution link.

Ad network configuration visibility

Ad network setup is visible to ad networks themselves only when the marketer (app owner) configures it. When an agency activates and configures ad network integration, the network sees this section as inactive.

af_prt parameter

The value of af_prt is the agency name. The Agency name that is passed in the af_prt parameter is always converted to lowercase.

Having af_prt with your agency name on an attribution link that results in new installs enables attributing new installs to your agency account.

Without af_prt a new install can't be attributed to any agency account, and therefore it gets attributed directly to the ad network.

Do not use links received from the marketer: make sure to use the links from your own account to prevent wrong attribution.

Special case: All-installs and all-launches networks

Some non-SRNs require (or allow) marketers to send them postbacks for devices that aren't attributed to them.

All-installs network: The network accepts a postback for every new app install, from any source
All-launches network: The network accepts a postback for every new app launch, from any source

Some examples for all-installs networks are Vungle, Wechat, Startapp, Unity Ads, and more.

The following table shows the full list of the all-launches networks:

Network Name	Network PID (on AF attribution links)
Supersonicads (a legacy network of ironSource)	supersonicads_int
Adelphic Remarketing	adelphicremarketing_int
Grow Mobile	growmobile_int
ONE by AOL	advertising.com_int
Lemmonet Mobile	lemmonetmobile_int
Clickky	clickky_int
Remerge	remerge_int
MyThings	mythings_int
TikTok for Business	bytedanceglobal_int

How to setup agency attribution with all installs/launches networks?

Working with these networks entails sending information from installs that are not brought by the agency. Therefore, these networks require the marketer to configure them BEFORE the agency.

Example

Let's use agency attribution setup with Tapjoy as an example:

Marketer goes to Tapjoy setup window on the marketer's dashboard.
Marketer enters the Tapjoy App ID, given to the marketer by Tapjoy, in the app_id text field.
Under the Integration tab > Default postbacks, the marketer selects All media sources, including organic.
Agency goes to Tapjoy setup window on the agency's dashboard.
Agency enters the Tapjoy App ID, given to the agency by Tapjoy, in the app_id text field.

Owned media—OneLink and custom links

Your agency can attribute all installs that originate from media sources that are not ad networks, such as:

- Email addresses
- Phone users database
- Web site banners
- Social media content (NOT social media ads)

To attribute installs from owned media you must create a custom attribution link, which automatically contains af_prt with your agency's name for correctly attributing to your agency.

Custom links for multiple platforms (Android and iOS) can be created using OneLink, which allows using one link only for all kinds of end users, no matter the device type. OneLink can also be used for deep linking (see the next section).

Setting up OneLink requires creating a OneLink template first. The template includes a subdomain, which can also be a Branded Link. OneLink templates and Branded Links cannot be created by agencies; only by app owners. If you'd like to start using OneLink, either:

- Use an existing template: When creating a new custom link, the available subdomains and Branded Links display in a dropdown.
- Contact the app owner so they can create a template for you. The app owner can create a special Branded Link for you.

Make sure you are a partner for all the apps selected in the OneLink template.

Note: For agencies to use a OneLink template, they must be partners for all the apps in the template.

Deep linking

Deep linking is the launch of a mobile app when opening personalized content and/or sending the users to specific activities within the app. This can provide your users with superior user experience and enhance their engagement.

For deep linking to work, the mobile app MUST be developed with deep linking capabilities and infrastructure. Contact the app owner to find out whether the app is suitable for deep linking, before setting up the campaigns.

Retargeting

- Retargeting attribution allows you to target existing or past users in your campaigns. Retargeting campaigns often require deep linking capabilities to work correctly.

In-app events

App owners can have various events in their apps (e.g. purchase, watching a tutorial, passing a level, etc), that they can record and analyze in AppsFlyer. Agencies can see data of events attributed to them on the Events page in their account.

In-app event postbacks

Agencies can be given permission to configure in-app event postbacks (including the af_app_opened event) to ad networks, upon receipt of permission from the Marketer.

Agencies can give the ad networks permission to configure in-app postbacks to themselves. Permission is granted by marketers in the agency permission tab.

Reporting for agencies

Traffic statistics are viewed and downloaded directly from the AppsFlyer dashboard.
Reports are accessed via the Export Data page in the AppsFlyer dashboard. You can also access Cohort reports via Data Locker.
The following reports types are available:
- Aggregate
- Raw data
Marketers and agencies mostly cannot access the same data in the dashboard, reports, and so on.
Agencies are usually responsible for only a part of the marketer's traffic, so the agencies' access to the data is limited in comparison to that of marketers.
This article breaks down these differences. The following sections highlight them

Note

Due to Meta ads and Twitter terms of service, agencies, who are considered 3rd parties, do not have access to raw data reports traffic, originating from either Meta ads or Twitter.

Access to performance reports

Performance reports also referred to as aggregate reports, are available by default to agency accounts. Related reading: Aggregate performance reports
Access to aggregate organic data reports requires marketer permission.

Access to raw data

Raw data reports (user-level data reports) contain attribution information and are divided into topics.

Agencies can receive access to Retention and Cohort reports, and Protect360 dashboard. This requires that the marketer enable Allow access to your retention and cohort reports or Allow access to your Protect360 dashboard, respectively, in the Permissions tab of Active integrations.

Time zone and currency

Agencies see apps in the app-defined time zone and currency, but these settings can be changed only by marketers.

Cost reporting

Agencies can enable Get cost data when configuring an integrated partner that supports cost data.

To enable Get cost data:

In AppsFlyer, under Configuration go to Active integrations.
Filter the partners by the Cost: From the top of the Active integrations page, select Supported features > Cost.
Select the partner. You're directed to the Integration tab. Select Go to the Cost tab.
Turn on Get cost data.
Enter the API key for this partner.
Click Save.

Accessing and viewing cost data

Cost data is available to the agency in the following data sources:

Overview page: cost data is visible in the Aggregated performance report in the Overview page.
Reports: cost data is available in exported reports such as Installations under Raw data reports and Partners (Media sources) under Performance reports

Hybrid account data access

Hybrid accounts are agency accounts that manage some of the apps as an Agency (app partner), and some as a Marketer (app owner).

The following account-level features have limited availability:

Custom dashboard: not available for agencies and hybrid accounts.
Cohort report: available upon marketer's permission.
Protect360: available upon marketer's permission.

If you have a hybrid account, they may appear on your dashboard, but you will get a 404 error when trying to open them.

If you would like to use these features, it's recommended to open a new Marketer account and separate your Marketer and Agency apps. The features mentioned above will be available in your Marketer account if you have them enabled.