In Part 1 of our “asks of iTunes Connect and the iTunes App Store” series, we presented the argument for more data for app developers, and pushing for the move towards more sophisticated information to design, build, and market our iPhone and iPad apps.

With Part 2, we’re looking to address some opportunities that lie within the social space for iTunes.

CONNECT DEVELOPERS WITH CUSTOMERS

In it’s current state, the iTunes App store is a bit of a black box for developers. We design and build apps that we think people will like, we submit them into the App Store, and we wait to see what happens. When people buy our apps, we don’t know who they are, where they came from, or if they’ve bought our apps before. Sometimes we know if they like our apps, but usually we don’t.

In the past few years, we’ve had two negative reviews on apps that had issues with functionality or install. We had no way of contacting these people – the only clue we had was their iTunes username left within each review. Through some intense Google searching, we were able to trace those usernames to other usernames/email accounts, and finally contact both of them. We addressed both of their issues, and both changed their reviews from 1 star to 4-5 stars, with revised review write-ups. We are happy to jump through hoops to offer service to our paying customers, but we shouldn’t have to. And if someone gives us a 1-star rating without a written review, we have zero visibility into who they are or why they didn’t like our product. That’s not helping anyone out.

What we’d really like is a direct feedback channel with our customers. Set up rules of engagement so that we don’t abuse the privilege, but allow us to talk to customers that opt-in, get a roster of active users, see which users are brand-loyal or just trying our apps out for a spin. Let us reward loyal customers with trackable promo codes they can send to friends, create our own brand ambassadors.

We could also use some help with visibility in the store. Want to help small-shop developers get out of the long tail? Let us tell our story by giving us control over our homepage in the iTunes App Store. Sure, we have our website, but hardly anyone clicks through (we’re guessing most people never even see the link.) Instead of just having a developer’s page be a list of apps, let us choose the presentation. We want to tell people why we build our apps, the problems we’re trying to solve. Customers see so many “krapps” in the store, so much spam day after day. Expose them to the unique stories of hard working App developers that love Apple and are trying to solve problems. Let us build our brand in the framework that means the most to our customers – right in the App Store itself. We know that “chosen” app developers have some of this capability today (see the pretty basic customization for Disney, EA, Gameloft, etc.), but it should be extended to all app developers.

ENCOURAGE COMMUNITY

Today to find our own measure of satisfaction, we review our in-app analytics (by Flurry) to see how much people are using our apps – sessions per day, time spent using the app, and more. Actual usage is the best measure we have towards satisfaction, other than reviews (which are sparse.)

What we’d love to see is the opportunity to create a community around an app, or an app developer. Let our customers talk to each other - offer tips and tricks, send questions, talk about what they love and what they don’t. We’re not being naive and assuming our customers want to connect with each other – but they do want to solve problems and exchange information. Get past just having “reviews”, and open up the discussion to everything about the app. Let customers recommend new features. Let us embed blogs for app-specific updates, news, and issue resolution. Syndicate the conversation on social networks.

The more you get customers talking about apps, the more apps you’re going to sell. And for Apple – that means more revenue. They already know this – the Apple.com forums are some of the best places to find feature requests, feedback, Apple love, and even venting. Apple has done a great job in keeping the forums open and helpful.

To extend the community aspect, let’s make the app store more than just one way communication. You ever ask your friends what apps they have, and they just hand you their iPhone so you can take a look? Happens all the time. So why make that experience limited to just an in-person scenario? Let customers create pages on their favorite apps, app lists, recommended apps. Let them link to you, tell their stories about how they found their favorite apps, and which ones make their devices truly indispensable.

Just a few ideas on how to extend the App Store, make it more robust, and a better overall experience. What are your ideas?

Our next entry will tackle the store itself, and other iTunes App Store asks to complete the series.