How to work with reviews in the App Store (and with negative ones too)
Apple finally gave developers a green light: with the release of iOS 10.3, you can respond to user reviews and ratings. The new version, according to the company, eliminates bugs and significantly simplifies the work with feedback.
In addition, Apple introduced a new API, which allows owners of iPhones and iPads to leave reviews and put down a rating without redirection to Appstor app. Moreover, the company has limited the annual number of requests for reviews and ratings to three per application - this should reassure users who have received endless reminders from the App Store.
The App Store is full of applications, and every page of your product in the store is important in this difficult struggle. Although Apple is constantly changing search algorithms, reviews and ratings still have a strong influence on search results, application conversion, and advertising efficiency.
In general, applications that have at least 4 stars rise to the top in the rating. Moreover, Apptentive's user survey showed that rating growth has a huge impact on the success of the application.
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It’s hard to overestimate the importance of feedback when it comes to evaluating an app in iOS. About 13% of App Store visitors read at least seven reviews before installing applications, and this percentage rises to 33% in the case of paid applications.
Source: mobileaction.co
Application developers can access ratings in the “My Apps” section via Apple iTunes Connect. You can not delete reviews, but you can respond to them.
Source: developer.apple.com
iOS publishers are definitely worth sharpening the skill of polite, but effective answers. By the way, previous answers can be deleted and modified.
In fact, even low marks, complaints and negative reviews can be useful: it is an excellent source for identifying bugs and malfunctions.
Behind effective responses to reviews in the App Store are a few basic principles (and deleting critical reviews is clearly not one of them):
Apple Terms of Use impose certain restrictions on feedback work. For example, they prohibit profanity, disclosure of personal data, as well as spam. In addition, it is strictly forbidden to offer users a reward for changing or deleting reviews or ratings.
If the user finds your answer illegal, he may well contact Apple support - in some cases it is even possible to fly out of the program for developers.
How to delete a review in the App Store.
However tempting it may seem to delete a review, it is forbidden to do so. Developers should deal with the problems indicated in the negative reviews, instead of trying to remove unwanted feedback.
When iOS publishers are confronted with illegal reviews that lower ratings and violate Apple’s terms, all they can do is report the problem instead of trying to answer or delete these reviews on their own.
Some developers do not like organic ratings and reviews, and they resort to paid sources. Of course, thousands of platforms offer fake reviews and help buy ratings on the App Store.
Nevertheless, this approach to a couple of deleting reviews not only violates the Apple agreement, but also demonstrates a very controversial attitude towards users. No one likes being held for a fool. Therefore, when users see tons of positive reviews that do not correlate with the rating of the application and its age, they immediately determine that the matter is unclean and they write such developers on the black list.
iOS developers should exclude the word “trick” from their vocabulary. Honesty and openness should be at the core of your business. Therefore, instead of buying reviews and ratings or trying to remove a negative, improve your application and choose the right time to work with reviews.
Source: techcrunch.com
A high rating is cool, but it does not guarantee unreal conversion. It always makes sense to check how important the rating is for your potential users - you need to understand whether it is worth actively investing in upgrading the rating on Appstore. In the end, the rating may not affect the decision of your target audience when it comes to the product page.
Another reason to experiment with app rating is that it affects TTR (tap-through rate) when you launch search advertising. Which is better: have an average rating or release an update and run a campaign with a zero rating? Unfortunately, there is no answer to these questions in the base App Store analytics.
You can check the impact of rankings on user behavior and conversion using A / B testing and comparing different results. For these purposes, there are many tools - for example, the same SplitMetrics .
Source: splitmetrics.com
If you are always ready to help your users, they will be more willing to give you a high rating, leave a good review and share your product with friends.
Simply creating great software is not enough now - your product must be accompanied by an excellent user experience. Frauds such as the removal of negative reviews and fabricated positive reviews are unlikely to affect the user experience for the better.
The new system of ratings and reviews allows you to build a community around the application. In addition, it is an excellent source for communication with owners of iPhones and iPads and a way to demonstrate that you are proactive and playing fair games.
Thank you for the opportunity to publish the translation of the article by our friends Splitmetrics .
In addition, Apple introduced a new API, which allows owners of iPhones and iPads to leave reviews and put down a rating without redirection to Appstor app. Moreover, the company has limited the annual number of requests for reviews and ratings to three per application - this should reassure users who have received endless reminders from the App Store.
Why reviews and ratings on the App Store is important
The App Store is full of applications, and every page of your product in the store is important in this difficult struggle. Although Apple is constantly changing search algorithms, reviews and ratings still have a strong influence on search results, application conversion, and advertising efficiency.
In general, applications that have at least 4 stars rise to the top in the rating. Moreover, Apptentive's user survey showed that rating growth has a huge impact on the success of the application.
')
It’s hard to overestimate the importance of feedback when it comes to evaluating an app in iOS. About 13% of App Store visitors read at least seven reviews before installing applications, and this percentage rises to 33% in the case of paid applications.
Source: mobileaction.co
How to monitor reviews and ratings
Application developers can access ratings in the “My Apps” section via Apple iTunes Connect. You can not delete reviews, but you can respond to them.
Source: developer.apple.com
iOS publishers are definitely worth sharpening the skill of polite, but effective answers. By the way, previous answers can be deleted and modified.
In fact, even low marks, complaints and negative reviews can be useful: it is an excellent source for identifying bugs and malfunctions.
How to work with reviews in the App Store without deleting them
Behind effective responses to reviews in the App Store are a few basic principles (and deleting critical reviews is clearly not one of them):
- Adequacy: Your answer must be fully consistent with the content of the response and start the process of positive communication.
- Consistency: your answer should be concise and clear. It would be good to develop the language of your brand, which will include language that is clear and familiar to users.
- Speed: prompt responses help to keep the audience involved and to have a direct dialogue with them. Once the problem reported by the user is resolved, you can ask users to rate the app on the App Store or update the rating in the recall.
- Setting priorities: the best place to start is with the lowest ratings and bad reviews, which indicate the technical problems of the latest version of your application. Remember that the main release time is a vital period for working with feedback. </ Updates and bug fixes: Descriptions of your release should include information about the fixed bugs that users reported in negative reviews in the App Store. In addition, do not forget to comment on such reviews and inform users that the problem has been solved. So you can re-interact with dissatisfied users.
- Gratitude: positive feedback also deserves your attention. Do not forget to thank users for their contribution to the development of the application.
App Store Guidelines
Apple Terms of Use impose certain restrictions on feedback work. For example, they prohibit profanity, disclosure of personal data, as well as spam. In addition, it is strictly forbidden to offer users a reward for changing or deleting reviews or ratings.
If the user finds your answer illegal, he may well contact Apple support - in some cases it is even possible to fly out of the program for developers.
How to delete a review in the App Store.
However tempting it may seem to delete a review, it is forbidden to do so. Developers should deal with the problems indicated in the negative reviews, instead of trying to remove unwanted feedback.
When iOS publishers are confronted with illegal reviews that lower ratings and violate Apple’s terms, all they can do is report the problem instead of trying to answer or delete these reviews on their own.
How to get feedback
Some developers do not like organic ratings and reviews, and they resort to paid sources. Of course, thousands of platforms offer fake reviews and help buy ratings on the App Store.
Nevertheless, this approach to a couple of deleting reviews not only violates the Apple agreement, but also demonstrates a very controversial attitude towards users. No one likes being held for a fool. Therefore, when users see tons of positive reviews that do not correlate with the rating of the application and its age, they immediately determine that the matter is unclean and they write such developers on the black list.
iOS developers should exclude the word “trick” from their vocabulary. Honesty and openness should be at the core of your business. Therefore, instead of buying reviews and ratings or trying to remove a negative, improve your application and choose the right time to work with reviews.
Source: techcrunch.com
How to understand which rating attracts users?
A high rating is cool, but it does not guarantee unreal conversion. It always makes sense to check how important the rating is for your potential users - you need to understand whether it is worth actively investing in upgrading the rating on Appstore. In the end, the rating may not affect the decision of your target audience when it comes to the product page.
Another reason to experiment with app rating is that it affects TTR (tap-through rate) when you launch search advertising. Which is better: have an average rating or release an update and run a campaign with a zero rating? Unfortunately, there is no answer to these questions in the base App Store analytics.
You can check the impact of rankings on user behavior and conversion using A / B testing and comparing different results. For these purposes, there are many tools - for example, the same SplitMetrics .
Source: splitmetrics.com
If you are always ready to help your users, they will be more willing to give you a high rating, leave a good review and share your product with friends.
Simply creating great software is not enough now - your product must be accompanied by an excellent user experience. Frauds such as the removal of negative reviews and fabricated positive reviews are unlikely to affect the user experience for the better.
The new system of ratings and reviews allows you to build a community around the application. In addition, it is an excellent source for communication with owners of iPhones and iPads and a way to demonstrate that you are proactive and playing fair games.
Thank you for the opportunity to publish the translation of the article by our friends Splitmetrics .
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/330108/
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