Your ratings and reviews have a significant impact on the number of downloads you receive, in addition to their impact on your rank in both stores. Online studies show that only 15% of people would consider downloading an app with a 2-star average rating, and 70% of people read at least one review before downloading an app [HubSpot Study]. So what is the best way to optimize your app’s rating and reviews?
Level: Doable
Read time: 72 seconds
Number of steps: 5
1. Friend & Family
If your app is new and you’ve just released it, take the friend and family approach. Send a public shared doc and share it with all of the people that can support your new app. Since you don’t want to ask them all to add a rating at the same time, make a list of dates and times and ask your friends to add themselves to the table to sign up for a day and time to post their review. After they added themselves to the table, send a calendar invitation for the date and time they committed to and invite them to add their review.
2. Rating Button
Add to your app menu a “Rate my App” button. Differentiate this button from the other sections of your menu with a unique color or design and link it to your app store listing. Changing the color of the design of this link will make it stand out and gently remind your users to navigate to the app store and rank your app.
3. Push Notification
Send a fun push notification with a request to rate the app when users complete a positive interaction with your app (e.g. passed a level, shared it with friends, etc.). Constantly A/B test when the ideal time to show this request is. The ideal way to funnel users to write positive reviews is to ask them if they love your app. If they say yes, send them to your app store listing; if they say no, ask them for feedback.
4. Don’t Buy It
Avoid buying reviews or incentivized reviews as it is not allowed by either store. The purchased reviews will be discovered and removed, and your app will likely be penalized or even removed from the app store.
5. Fight Negativity
Take the time to fight negative reviews. On Google Play, you can find negative reviewers by their Google name and try to approach them and try to change their mind. On Apple, you can dispute irrelevant negative reviews and ask for their removal See the app stores’ guidelines.
It’s important to create an app users love, that’s why you are doing this. The ratings and reviews you’ll get are one of the best way to understand how people use your app, what they love about it, and what you need to improve. Listen carefully to your reviewers and improve your app accordingly. Creating an awesome app will boost both your rank and downloads.
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