Measure third-party installs and preinstalled apps with an APK and default link

With Adjust’s APK and default link solution, you can measure third-party app store installs and pre-installed app opens with minimal setup work.

This solution is valuable for its simplicity, as it only requires you to add one line of code to your app and provide an extra .APK file. This is also useful if you are working with a preinstall network partner that does not want to involve their development team to implement the predefined engagement solution.

How it works

Set a default link in the Adjust SDK and send the APK to be pre-installed in the app. Upon app open, the SDK sends the install session information with the parameter: default_tracker=abc123.

The Adjust backend automatically attributes any install that would otherwise be classified as Organic to the default link. This means that the default link has the lowest priority in the attribution waterfall, below impressions. As a result, when you use this solution you will not see any Organic data in your reporting. However, other media sources that send engagement to your app will still be measured.

Setup

There are two methods you can use to implement this solution: one is automated using a Ruby command line tool, and the other involves manual setup.

We recommend the automated method to customers who need to add the default link to an app, but who do not have access to the app source code. It is also the most time efficient option for customers who need to create multiple APKs with default links.

If you own or have access to the app source code, we recommend you use the manual method.

Automated method

Adjust has developed a ruby command line that allows you to quickly generate APKs for your specific store/platform with custom, pre-assigned link tokens. This lets Adjust measure app installs for each APK individually, with minimal setup required.

Process overview

1. Verify system requirements.
2. Identify the organic store link tokens, as generated in Campaign Lab.
3. Generate adjust-config.yaml configuration file with settings for each third-party Android store.
4. Run the store and pre-install link tool.

Manual method

To set up a default link:

1. Create a new link in Campaign Lab.

2. Open your app delegate and set a default link in your config object. Replace {LinkToken} with the token you created in step one.

   Example: https://app.adjust.com/abc123. Your link token is the six to eight digit code at the end.

adjustConfig.setDefaultTracker("{LinkToken}");

1. Build and run your app. If you have logging enabled, you should see a message in your log like this: Default link: 'abc123'.

Test the integration

To test that Adjust is correctly measuring the partner version of your APK, follow these steps.

1. Use an Android device that:
   • Does not have your app installed.
   • Has not been measured by Adjust. In order for Adjust to measure your test app launch as an install, all previously measured app activity must be cleared from the Adjust system. To erase a device’s app history from the backend, use our Forget Device API. Instructions can be found under Testing Console.
2. Download the Partner APK with the hardcoded link token.
3. Open the app.
4. Check Datascape for an install tied to the hardcoded link token.

Although all Adjust recording happens in real time, it can take up to twenty minutes for your install to appear in Datascape. If you want to conduct multiple tests on the same device you need to clear your device between tests using the Testing Console.