rating-prompt-strategy

# Rating Prompt Strategy You optimize when, how, and to whom an app shows review prompts — maximizing high ratings while minimizing negative ones. Ratings are an App Store ranking signal and a conversion factor on the product page. ## Why Ratings Matter for ASO - **Search ranking** — Apps with higher ratings rank better for competitive keywords - **Conversion** — Rating stars are visible in search results; a 4.8 beats 4.2 at a glance - **iOS:** Rating resets per version (you can request a reset in App Store Connect) - **Android:** Ratings are permanent and cumulative — one bad period is hard to recover ## The Core Rule **Only prompt users who have experienced value.** Prompting too early produces low ratings. Prompting at a success moment produces 4–5 star ratings. ## iOS — SKStoreReviewRequest Apple's native prompt. Rules: - Shows at most **3 times per year** regardless of how many times you call it - Apple controls the display logic — calling it doesn't guarantee it shows - Never prompt after an error, crash, or frustrating moment - Cannot customize the prompt UI ```swift import StoreKit // Call at the right moment if let scene = UIApplication.shared.connectedScenes.first as? UIWindowScene { SKStoreReviewController.requestReview(in: scene) } ``` ## Android — Play In-App Review API Google's native prompt. Rules: - No hard limits, but Google throttles it if called too often - Show after a clear positive moment - Cannot determine if the user actually rated (privacy) ```kotlin val manager = ReviewManagerFactory.create(context) val request = manager.requestReviewFlow() request.addOnCompleteListener { task -> if (task.isSuccessful) { val reviewInfo = task.result val flow = manager.launchReviewFlow(activity, reviewInfo) flow.addOnCompleteListener { /* proceed */ } } } ``` ## Timing Framework ### The Success Moment Trigger Define 1–3 "success moments" in your app where users are most satisfied: | App Type | Good Prompt Moments | Bad Prompt Moments | |----------|--------------------|--------------------| | Fitness | After completing a workout | After skipping a session | | Productivity | After completing a project/task | After a failed save or sync error | | Games | After winning a level or beating a boss | After losing or failing | | Finance | After first successful transaction | After a confusing error | | Meditation | After completing a session | On cold open | | Shopping | After a successful purchase/delivery | After a failed checkout | ### Session-Based Rules Only prompt users who meet all criteria: ``` Criteria to prompt: ✓ Sessions >= 3 (not a first-time user) ✓ Time since install >= 3 days ✓ Has completed [activation event] at least once ✓ No crash in last session ✓ No negative signal (error, cancellation) in current session ✓ Not already rated this version ``` ## Pre-Prompt Survey (Recommended) Before triggering the native prompt, show a single in-app question: ``` "Are you enjoying [App Name]?" [Yes, love it!] [Not really] ``` - **"Yes"** → trigger `SKStoreReviewRequest` / Play In-App Review - **"Not really"** → show a feedback form (email or in-app), **do not** trigger the native prompt This filters out dissatisfied users before they can rate you 1–2 stars. **Expected improvement:** 0.3–0.8 stars on average with a pre-prompt filter. ## Version-Gating (iOS) iOS allows you to reset ratings per version in App Store Connect. Use this strategically: - **Reset after a major improvement** — If you fixed the top-complained issues - **Do not reset** after a controversial change that users disliked - After a reset, run an aggressive (but filtered) prompt campaign in the first 7 days - Target your most engaged users first (longest session history) ## Recovering from a Rating Drop ### Diagnosis 1. Check which version caused the drop — correlate with release dates 2. Read the 1-star reviews for that period — find the common complaint 3. Fix the issue in the next release 4. Reply to every 1–3 star review (see `review-management` skill) ### Recovery Campaign After the fix is shipped: 1. Reply to negative reviews: "Fixed in version X.X — please update and let us know" 2. Some users will update their rating after a reply 3. Run a prompt campaign targeted at your most loyal users (highest session count) 4. Do not prompt users who left a negative review ### Timeline ``` Day 0: Issue identified — hotfix or patch in progress Day 1–3: Reply to every negative review acknowledging the issue Day 7: Fix shipped — reply to previous negative reviews "Fixed in X.X" Day 8+: Enable prompt for sessions >= 5, no crash last 7 days Week 3: Monitor rating trend — should recover 0.2–0.5 stars in 2–4 weeks ``` ## Prompt Frequency | Platform | Maximum | Recommended | |----------|---------|-------------| | iOS | 3× per 365 days (Apple-enforced) | 1–2× per version | | Android | No hard limit (Google throttles) | 1× per 30 days per user | Never show the prompt twice in the same session. ## Output Format ### Rating Strategy Plan ``` Current rating: [X.X] ★ ([N] ratings) Platform: iOS / Android / Both Success moments identified: 1. [Event name] — fires when [condition] 2. [Event name] — fires when [condition] Pre-prompt survey: Yes / No If yes: "Are you enjoying [App Name]?" → Yes / Not really Prompt trigger logic: Sessions >= [N] Days since install >= [N] No crash in last [N] sessions [Activation event] completed: yes Already rated this version: no Expected outcome: +[X] stars over [N] weeks Recovery plan (if rating < 4.0): 1. [Fix] — ship by [date] 2. [Reply strategy] — [N] reviews to address 3. [Prompt campaign] — start [date], target [segment] ``` ## Related Skills - `review-management` — Respond to reviews to recover rating - `onboarding-optimization` — Fix activation issues that drive 1-star reviews - `android-aso` — Play In-App Review API context - `retention-optimization` — Engaged users give better ratings