Mobile apps have become the ultimate tool of business interactions and communication. It carries and defines your identity as a brand owner or service provider.
Therefore, no app owner can risk being weak in the department of ratings, reviews and feedback. It is one of the most crucial factors that shape your app’s success.
WooCommerce app builders have made it easier to create and list your app on the app stores. But modifying other aspects of the app is also necessary for a wholesome approach towards success.
Ratings and reviews are two of the most crucial elements in this list. Explore the article and find out how you can use these tools to reinvent and redefine your mCommerce brand.
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App ratings and reviews – The underrated game changers
In the age of consumerization of technology, most of us have been an online consumer at some point or the other.
We might have also scrolled through the product reviews and ratings and made our decisions based on that. Clearly, customer ratings, reviews, comments and feedback also play a crucial role when it comes to your mobile app.
Often, business owners and app providers remain unaware or deliberately ignore the importance of customer ratings, reviews and feedback. However, this can prove to be menacing in the long run.
On the contrary, the brands that understand the importance of this game changing aspect, enjoy higher rate of attention, conversions, brand authority and much more.
Mainly, app ratings and reviews are dropped at the app stores. Let us discover the approach of the two main app stores, towards user feedback and rating:
Apple App Store Rating
Apple App Store is the home for more than 2 million apps. It gives importance to every individual feedback that an app receives. App owners can also reset the rating after every update. This allows app owners to avoid being judged by their past flaws that garnered negative comments.
However, the guidelines encourage app owners to address negative reviews as well, and also to ask for feedback without interrupting their users’ experience.
Google Play Store Rating
Google Play Store has around three million apps that are ready for download. It has an elaborate guideline on app ratings and reviews. According to the updated policies, it now takes the average performance of the app based on the overall ratings.
In fact, users can also update their ratings on Google Play Store. Therefore, your app is judged on the basis of what it is today.
Ratings and reviews influence many factors
Rating and reviews have the following effect on your app’s success mission:
#1: Shapes your ASO efforts
Rating and reviews tell the app store how your app is performing. It ensures that people are interacting with your app and defines their experience during the engagements.
App stores take this aspect into account as your ranking and visibility are determined. Better ratings ensure good ranks and higher visibility whereas bad ones push you downwards on the chart.
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#2: Good ratings reflect good service
Today, every brand focuses on getting good reviews on multiple platforms. In fact, there are several channels and platforms solely dedicated to the process of rating and reviewing products and services.
It is so, because ratings tell other potential consumers how a business, service or product is performing. Apps with good ratings are more likely to earn consumers’ trust easily and effortlessly.
#3: Inspires new buyers and conversions
According to a study by Spiegel Research Center, 95 per cent online shoppers read online reviews before making a purchase. Similarly, Gummicube states that 80 per cent users do not download an app with ratings below four stars.
This clearly establishes the fact, that in order to acquire new leads, you must attract good ratings and reviews from existing buyers first. In fact, it can help you win the trust of new buyers and increase conversions.
#4: Leverages your brand authority
In the section above, we discussed how honest reviews help you in earning the trust of new buyers. It is also obvious that ‘consumer trust’ defines the social proof, and the likeability buyers will have towards your brand.
Hence, we can say that good ratings and reviews can also fuel your branding initiatives and efforts. If users start speaking good about your brand, you get the benefit of “word of mouth” publicity and branding by default.
#5: Feedback helps you to enhance and grow
Honest feedback helps you in assessing the non-quantifiable metrics of success for your app. It tells you about the mood and perception of your buyers.
Genuine reviews also help you in finding the loopholes and flaws. Use your listening skills to find these issues and fix them. This will help you in evolving and chiseling your products to perfection.
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Inspire your users to rate and review
The biggest question after all this knowledge is “how to attract good app reviews and ratings”! Do not worry! Just follow the tips listed below and practice patience:
#1: Ask for it politely
Yes, it is as simple as it sounds. The truth is that most people do not take an action unless asked to. Therefore, all you need is to install a review plugin and place prompts for the same.
Just ask people to rate and review their experience with your app in subtle and pleasing words. Also give valid reasons for asking the same. You can add a line or two telling how it will benefit both the brand, and them as a consumer.
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#2: Make the process effortless
People are often eager to drop bad reviews when an experience is not satisfactory. However, fetching good reviews is tough. No matter how pleasant the experience is, very few consumers take the initiative of giving ratings and reviews.
Therefore, it becomes important that you make the process easier. For instance, do not just ask people to go to the app store to rate the app. Insert a relevant URL to the same. This may increase your chances of earning a review.
#3: Encourage responses and feedback
Give enough reasons to consumers to share their experience with you and with other potential buyers. The best strategy is to give new users some time and to target your regular customers.
Use personalized appeal and various medium to seek feedback. For instance, you can include a line with a suitable URL in your push notifications, marketing mails, social media posts, etc., regarding the same.
#4: Offer rewards and discounts
It is best to ask your beta testers, regular app users, and existing customers to drop organic and genuine reviews. However, you can also go for paid or incentivized ratings and reviews.
Hire agencies that help you gather reviews or reward your customers for dropping ratings and reviews directly. You can offer discounts, merchandize, loyalty coupons, or more.
However, no matter what, NEVER do the following things:
- Ask for a review immediately after a user opens the app
- Sound desperate or ask for five star ratings in lieu of rewards
- Interrupt important app sessions and user activities
- Send continuous prompts to seek feedback
- Tell users how and in what words they should review the app
#5: Overdoing can be a buzzkill
It is evident that a too much of anything can be hazardous. The same goes with sending or triggering multiple ratings and review prompts. It is important that you optimize and time your prompts well.
If your customers are not interested in dropping a review, let them be. In fact, no matter how good their experience is, they can abandon the app if you push too hard. You can seek reviews once or twice and then reiterate it only after a regular interval.
#6: Respond to the reviews
It is not just enough to gather a ton of reviews. You will also need to address them and act upon them proactively. Do not shy away from any kind of feedback.
Appreciate the good ones warmly and tackle the bad ones tactically. Take even the negative reviews in good spirit and try to resolve the consumers issue or at least assure them of cognizance for the time being.
#7: Think beyond the basics
It is not just the app and marketing channels that you can use to draw attention. You can harness your social media accounts and third party tools to fetch reviews and ratings.
Also aim for good reviews and ratings on the app review websites and channels. It will help you broaden the spectrum and strengthen your social proof.
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Build an app that garners good reviews
Evidently, good ratings and reviews are crucial and play a decisive role in the success of your mCommerce business. It has the power to make or mar your business and determine its fate.
So, why not play safe and build an app that is smart, intuitive, high-performing and frictionless! Bid adieu to the age old methods of custom app development that goes through multiple corrections.
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