Tracking will keep breaking, this week it’s Safari, tomorrow it’s something else. 

Build a system that survives the storm: first-party tracking, call recording, value-based feedback, and crews who pick up fast. Blurry data shouldn’t sink a solid tree service op.

iOS 26 A.K.A Apple’s newest update just dropped, and it wiped out click IDs for good.

If that sounds like tech gibberish, here's what it means for your tree service: Apple's Safari browser now strips out the tracking codes (fbclid, gclid, ttclid) that connect your ad clicks to actual conversions.

Why this matters: Safari represents 15-16% of all web browsers globally and over 20% of mobile traffic. That's not some tiny slice, it's a decent chunk of your prospect base.

The damage: Those click IDs were the "glue" that tied ad clicks to actual customers. Without them, it’s very hard to prove which ads are actually working versus which ones are just burning budget.

UTM parameters still work, but with a caveat. They tell you someone came from "Google Ads" but not which specific ad, keyword, or audience segment converted them into a $5,000 removal job.

What this means for tree services:

Your conversion tracking is getting fuzzier. The clean, precise attribution you've been relying on to optimize your Google and Facebook campaigns just got a lot more complicated.

You'll need to start thinking beyond last-click attribution. Focus more on overall lift in leads and revenue during campaign periods rather than crediting every conversion to a specific click.

The silver lining: This forces you to get better at the fundamentals. Better landing pages. Stronger phone scripts. Faster follow-up. Systems that work regardless of whether you can track every digital breadcrumb. (or let us handle it).

Attribution was always imperfect anyway. A homeowner might see your Facebook ad, Google your company name later, then call the number on your truck when you're working in their neighborhood.

Apple's just making the invisible more obvious.

→ TCIA on "normalization of risk" - Recent article explores how tree care operations gradually slip toward unsafe behaviors, similar to NASA's Challenger disaster. The piece introduces a Plan-Do-Check-Act safety cycle and emphasizes that real-world tree work requires balancing "production, efficiency, safety" - much like NASA's '80s motto of "better, faster, cheaper." Worth reading for any crew struggling with safety vs. productivity pressures.

Stop Obsessing Over Perfect Attribution

Yes, iOS 26 just made attribution messier. Yes, it's harder to prove which Facebook ad drove which $3,000 removal job.

But remember the basics: don't spend more time analyzing data than actually talking to customers.

There are owners who can tell you their cost-per-click down to the penny but can't tell you why their last three estimates didn't close. They obsess over which campaign generated the lead but never ask why that lead didn't become a customer.

Attribution was always broken anyway. How do you track this customer journey: sees your Facebook ad → drives past your truck working in the neighborhood → Googles your company name → calls the number on your website → mentions they heard about you from their neighbor?

Which platform gets credit for that $5,000 job?

Perfect tracking won't save a mediocre business. But a great business will thrive even with imperfect data.

Instead of chasing attribution perfection, focus on the metrics that actually matter. We’ll handle attribution for you.

Want us to look at your marketing and show you how to get an extra 3-5 jobs per week? Book a $100 consult. Refundable if it's not worth 10x that. All you have to do is ask.

Written by Jacob Hastings
Head of Growth & Client Strategy at Growth Ring Media