How to Increase your App Store Rating from 2 to 4.5 Stars

From buying a product online to making a restaurant or accommodation reservation, the use of opinions and recommendations from both friends and strangers have immersed themselves more and more into our daily lives, as many of us take them into account before making a final decision about something.

Notably, a consumer’s decision can often be swayed based on another customer’s feedback or an overall star rating of a product or service. For example, a positive opinion or high star rating could sway a consumer to make a purchase. In the same way, poor customer feedback could make consumers question a purchase, and potentially move them to a different provider. Consumers often consider opinions and recommendations as these can define how trustworthy a vendor is, give insight into the credibility and quality of a product, and give an overall estimation of whether the purchase was good or bad for others.

The same reasoning can be applied to customers downloading an app through an app store. 90% of customers consider star ratings to be an essential part of their evaluation of a new app*. It is important to note the impact that your current opinions, feedback, and ratings can have on your app. Thus, app ratings can play an important role in helping to market your product online, especially as Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store advertise an average of 2.8 million apps, many of which fall into the gaming and betting category.

Case Study: Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC)

When mkodo took over the design and development of WCLC’s “Lottery Manager” iOS and Android apps in June 2017, clearly the app was not cutting it with players in the region and had a Play Store rating of 2.8 and an even lower App Store rating of 2.3 stars out of 5. mkodo was set the challenge to improve usability within the app and add new features along with presenting a complete visual refresh.

After a series of collaborative brainstorming workshops with WCLC, mkodo worked their magic to update the existing features of the app, in addition to adding new features which included prize breakdown, an Instant Win Tracker, plus a ticket builder option. After its facelift, the iOS app was made available on App Store in July 2020 launched under the new brand name “Lotto Spot!”.

Since then, feedback from both the client and end-users for the new app has been extremely positive, and the proof is in the pudding. Month on month, the Lotto Spot! iOS app has maintained a 4.5-star rating, with customers commenting on how well the app works and their enjoyment of these new features.

The same can be said for the Android version of “Lotto Spot!”. Although on Google Play Store, app developers cannot “restart” their app ratings when releasing a new app, the “Lotto Spot!” app rating continues to overcome its poor rating history and has quickly risen from a 2.3 to a 4.1-star rating, in less than a year.

“We are delighted to see such positive reviews of our Lotto Spot! app since its launch last year. mkodo’s expertise and knowledge in creating best-in-breed apps has proven results, and our collaboration with them has seen a fantastic increase in positive player feedback. Our players are engaged and enjoy using the app, and we have seen a 20% increase in app downloads since its launch. We look forward to leveraging mkodo’s experience further so we can continue to entertain our players.” – Manager, Digital Assets, WCLC

How to Increase your App Store Rating

So how did we improve our clients App Store Rating from 2.3 to 4.5? At mkodo, we have a track record of elevating and maintaining high app store ratings for our clients in the lottery, betting and gaming sectors and share our Top 4 Tips:

1. Updates

App development and enhancing digital performance continues well after the initial build. There is a high level of maintenance and updates that need to be continually administered to keep the app performing at a high level to further elevate the customer experience, resulting in a higher chance of good feedback and high star ratings.

Take advantage of the regular iOS and Android updates to implement new features and functionalities that can further engage your customers. Many of these updates can help create smoother user journeys, enhance player UX or further engage with players, ultimately helping an app stand out from its competitors.

2. Marketing

Informing players of new app updates and features is a great way of keeping them in the know and up to date with what to expect on an updated app. Users need to know what new updates they will install in order to take full advantage of them. One way of doing this is within the onboarding section of an app, to visually highlight in an informative manner what new features are part of an update. Another quicker but just as effective method is to create a visually informative “splashscreen”.

Moreover, when 53% of customers check ratings and reviews before updating an app*, it is important to ask for feedback from existing players about new features to ensure they are engaging players but most importantly, working properly. Operators can ask for feedback within the app through a “pop-up” or send out a push notification. This prompt to players to review the app allows them to praise new and old features alike that they enjoy using, whilst also highlighting whether the app is functioning to a high standard or whether further development around a new feature is needed.

3. Accessibility

"Quick" and "Easy to Use" are some of the most frequently used quotes from our clients' customer feedback. However, this is not always seen as the case for everyone, especially when those with a disability and feel restricted when using an app. In the UK alone, 22% of the population has some kind of disability, who operators could potentially isolate by not ensuring their apps are accessible. This is a big portion of players with a legitimate reason to give a negative review, based on a lack of accessibility tools.

The gaming industry is expected and required by Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to provide equal access to people with disabilities and to ensure that their digital offering is as inclusive as possible. Consider elevating your UX/UI designs to include colour contrast ratios, navigation tools and font sizes. Simple changes and alterations can make a big difference to a high proportion of players.

4. Invest in Best of Breed

On average, people spend 3 hours and 40 minutes using their mobile devices each day. 90% of that time is spent interacting with a mobile app.  With this in mind, consumers are becoming increasingly educated in what makes a good app and more importantly, what makes a poor app. It is also increasingly easy to provide feedback, in the form of reviews, if they receive a poor experience. One way to mitigate this is by investing in a best in breed digital product to produce the best possible app experience, that encompasses outstanding performance combined with world-class entertainment and usability.

mkodo knows how to develop and maintain a highly-rated app. If you invest in the product, the reviews will take care of themselves.

To find out more or to discuss how mkodo can increase your App Store Rating, please get in touch via hello@mkodo.com

*https://www.apptentive.com/blog/2020/02/04/mobile-app-ratings-and-reviews/