In theory, a 5-star rating system should work like this:
***** – Excellent
**** – Good
*** – OK
** – Bad
* – Terrible
So, in theory, a 3-star rating should still be OK. But we all know that on the app store the 5-star rating system works like this:
***** – impossible to achieve
**** and a half – Excellent
**** – may be worth checking out
*** – don’t bother
** – don’t bother
* – don’t bother
And this is why you should take your app’s rating seriously. Add to that the fact that app rating is a variable in the App Store algorithm, and you’ll see why getting as close to 5 stars as possible is a must.
While there are a lot of things you can’t control about your app’s rating, there are ways to improve it. Here are some of them.
Quality is king
You can’t expect a good rating if your app is no good or doesn’t provide the features your users want it to have. There are countless apps that look fine and work OK, and yet they get one star ratings. Why? Because the developer missed an obvious feature an app with that particular functionality should have. And don’t forget that aggressive advertising is another reason why people give apps a low rating.
Ask your friends do review your app
This is not tricking the system because if your app is no good, a small bunch of good ratings won’t save it. But if you are submitting a new app or game, these good reviews will kickstart your app. Also don’t hesitate to use review exchange networks like AppReview.me.
Redirect negative reviews
Another intelligent move is to redirect potential negative review to a feedback form, so that the user tells you what to fix without giving you that dreaded low rating. Apptentive.com offers a service like that where you create a popup that asks the user if he or she likes the app. If they answer “Yes”, redirect them to the App Store, so that they can give you a good rating. If they tap on “No”, redirect them to a feedback form and ask them to explain why.
Using these techniques should help you improve your app’s rating and increase your downloads and conversion rates.
