Customer reviews are powerful. Although they may not seem like a big deal on the surface, they can actually do a lot to increase the success of your app.
Customer reviews can:
- Promote the positive aspects of your app
- Provide insight from real users about what the app can do
- Improve your ranking on Google
- Build trust among existing and potential users
Reviews can also be great because you have to do very little work. Unlike marketing that requires extensive planning and quite a bit of writing, existing users do all the work by writing the reviews for you!
However, that doesn’t mean getting those reviews is easy, especially if you’re looking for positive reviews. The majority of people who are passionate enough to leave a review don’t usually have good things to say.
So, how do you get people to leave positive reviews so you can reap all those benefits?
Use In-App Referrals
The first step to getting existing users to leave a review is to make it as easy as possible. In order to do that, BuildFire suggests using an in-app referral program.
This tactic is extremely important because it’s the only way you’re going to get a substantial number of positive reviews. It enables users to leave a review right in the app without having to get on a computer or search the app store in order to leave a review.
It is also beneficial if you allow them to leave a flexible review. Don’t require reviewers to leave a comment. Instead, require them to give their star rating and make the comment optional. Not everyone has the time or the interest to leave a long, informative review!
Prompt Users to Leave a Review
Users are more interested in using the app. They aren’t wondering how they can get other people to download the app. That’s your job!
If you want people to leave a review, you have to let them know that’s exactly what you want them to do. Many review programs allow you to prompt users at various times, asking them to provide their feedback. They are much more likely to leave you a review if you ask than if they have to seek out the ability to leave you a review on their own.
Just be careful about when you prompt users to leave a review. Skip the prompt that pops up every time the app opens. Instead, wait until the app has been launched and the user is finished with a task. That provides them with a better user experience, which in turn will increase their chances of leaving you a positive review.
Give Them a Reason to Want to Recommend Your App
The previous two tips are extremely important if you want people to leave reviews, but you have to remember that the quality of those reviews matters. It’s a waste of time if you badger people into leaving bad reviews!
That means you have to focus on giving users reasons to recommend your app, which in turn means you have to build an app that’s amazing enough that people want to recommend it.
That means:
- Providing a simple user experience
- Creating intuitive controls
- Designing an appealing app appearance
- Providing regular updates
You should also plan to provide customer service as well. Whether it’s answering emails or responding to questions and concerns on social media, you want users to feel like you’re taking care of them so they will share their experience with others.
Don’t Incentivize Your Reviews
One tip you may have heard about before is the strategy of incentivizing your apps. That means encouraging them to leave a review by giving them a gift card or more of something that can be found in the app, like coins.
This is a bad idea. First, you are more likely to get inaccurate reviews this way. People will just click through the review screen to get to the end so they can get their reward.
Second, search engines and app stores are beginning to punish app developers that provide incentives to leave a review. If Google, for instance, discovers your app is incentivizing its reviews, you could fall drastically in the rankings.
It’s definitely worth your time to get reviews for your app! Make it easy for users to leave a review and give them a good reason for wanting to do it and you can reap all the benefits that come along with an app that’s well-loved and well-reviewed.