Stupid users

I got a bad rating from a fun watch face I created for a running event. I'd be amazed if the problems he reported (crashing Garmin Express, syncing problems, needing to do a factory reset etc) could possibly have been caused by such a simple watch face which does nothing other than display the time on top of a bitmap, yet here it was sitting with a bad review which I have no way to comment on. After over 250 downloads no one else seemed to have a problem but there is no way for me to either contact the submitter or respond to the feedback.

Thankfully, someone else has now given it 5 stars so it does not look so bad now but I have to say I think the feedback mechanism could do with an overhaul. It would be good if authors had a way to contact submitters and could at least respond to feedback in case of rogue feedback like this. People cannot even update or remove their own feedback if they make a mistake or the feedback they give is due to a misunderstanding.

I hope that Garmin might improve the whole system to allow for a better experience.

Ah, the perpetual problem of customers. :) I kid, I kid... :)

I understand the frustration you feel about this, and I agree that the tools available for correspondence with users on the app store aren't ideal. I have asked for some enhancements to allow users to submit bugs directly to app developers, etc., and they're planned. The store team has been working on more urgent requests, like the recent additions of developer stats and "new" app listings.

If you believe at rating is unfair or is unrelated to your app (e.g. the customer has an installation problem or hasn't updated their firmware), you may flag the review and we'll evaluate it. In several instances, app developers have made a case that a review is no fair, and I have agreed and removed the review.

I got a bad rating from a fun watch face I created for a running event. I'd be amazed if the problems he reported (crashing Garmin Express, syncing problems, needing to do a factory reset etc) could possibly have been caused by such a simple watch face which does nothing other than display the time on top of a bitmap, yet here it was sitting with a bad review which I have no way to comment on. After over 250 downloads no one else seemed to have a problem but there is no way for me to either contact the submitter or respond to the feedback.

Thankfully, someone else has now given it 5 stars so it does not look so bad now but I have to say I think the feedback mechanism could do with an overhaul. It would be good if authors had a way to contact submitters and could at least respond to feedback in case of rogue feedback like this. People cannot even update or remove their own feedback if they make a mistake or the feedback they give is due to a misunderstanding.

I hope that Garmin might improve the whole system to allow for a better experience.

Report the rating/review. You can click on the link and provide a reason for why you believe it is an unfair rating / review.
Garmin does remove it if it is reasonable.

What might be nice is the ability to add a FAQ section which allows the developer to answer questions related to the application. Data field seem to have lots of questions about how to configure them to be used. Amazon and other places have this kind of feature and most times forums aren't a common way end users interact with the developer. I have had similar issues where users don't read the description of what the app is and then blast the other reviewers and the app for not being what they wanted or thought it to be. For example, I have an app which is essentially a pace chart, the equivalent of a paper chart outlining a finish time for a given pace and distance. It is not designed to display a pace while you row and isn't meant to be used with an activity directly. It is a reference tool and some people find it useful and some don't. So I end up with this type of comment:

"Completely useless Can't believe these other reviews did you actually use the app?"

In a round about way I'm trying to say it might be best to not worry much about the reviews since in most cases your not charging anything for it and if your enjoying it (and others most likely are as well) then carry on and have a good time. Make your watch do what you want/need it to do and if someone else finds it useful that is fantastic. If others don't like it they are welcome to download the SDK and do better! :cool:

** I understand that some serious development and time has gone into some submissions and in those cases managing perception of the product is important if it is being used as a monetization gateway. To help those users a better system of management should be put in place to help encourage move advanced development efforts.

If you believe at rating is unfair or is unrelated to your app (e.g. the customer has an installation problem or hasn't updated their firmware), you may flag the review and we'll evaluate it. In several instances, app developers have made a case that a review is no fair, and I have agreed and removed the review.

Thanks for the suggestion, I have now done this. I guess I thought the flag as inappropriate was more along the lines of the language and tone rather than the fairness of it. Although I would consider the review inappropriate as it is likely incorrect.

Ah, the perpetual problem of customers. :) I kid, I kid... :)

I understand the frustration you feel about this, and I agree that the tools available for correspondence with users on the app store aren't ideal. I have asked for some enhancements to allow users to submit bugs directly to app developers, etc., and they're planned. The store team has been working on more urgent requests, like the recent additions of developer stats and "new" app listings.

If you believe at rating is unfair or is unrelated to your app (e.g. the customer has an installation problem or hasn't updated their firmware), you may flag the review and we'll evaluate it. In several instances, app developers have made a case that a review is no fair, and I have agreed and removed the review.

Thanks Brandon!

It used to drive me mad too, but now I just try and ignore idiotic comments.

Respond to reviews

It would be great if we could at least respond to the reviewer or contact them in some way.

I've had a negative review because my app apparently doesn't work on VA real hardware. It works fine in the simulator. I made it clear in the description that I had only tested everything other than Fenix 3 in the simulator, so couldn't guarantee it would work on other devices.

The thing is, I want to contact the guy to get some useful feedback on what actually breaks, so that I can fix it, but I have no way to get in touch with him and he has ignored my support thread on here and on Github. :(

Since they have to be Connect users to post a review, surely we could have some way to send them a message without you having to expose their email address?

It would be great if we could at least respond to the reviewer or contact them in some way.

I've had a negative review because my app apparently doesn't work on VA real hardware. It works fine in the simulator. I made it clear in the description that I had only tested everything other than Fenix 3 in the simulator, so couldn't guarantee it would work on other devices.

The thing is, I want to contact the guy to get some useful feedback on what actually breaks, so that I can fix it, but I have no way to get in touch with him and he has ignored my support thread on here and on Github. :(

Since they have to be Connect users to post a review, surely we could have some way to send them a message without you having to expose their email address?

The VA doesn't support "tones" and with you app doing "beeps", that crashes the VA.

But yes, it would be nice to be able to contact reviews.

Thanks Jim, that's really helpful. I'll fix it forthwith!