A welcome change that is definitely long overdue. Edge extension developers now finally have the ability to respond to user reviews thanks to a new dashboard that Microsoft has put up.
Sure, Redmond has offered the capability for users to rate and review Edge extensions for quite some time now.
But up until now, developers working on extensions for the fledgling Microsoft Edge web browser were not able to respond to feedback from users. Not only did the lack of this ability stifle two-way communication, it also impacted one-way communication.
Few people left their thoughts on these addons because they knew there was no way for the developer to respond to their queries and comments.
All this changes now, as Microsoft has finally introduced this feature in the Microsoft Partner Center, enabling Edge extension developers to directly engage with the customers. They will be able to engage with their customers to get further information, provide workarounds for problems, or just stay thanks.
Likewise, consumers can now leave their input knowing that the developer might engage with them directly. And since the feedback and response will be visible to the general public, these interactions among developers and users will also increase transparency.
The Reviews dashboard on the Microsoft Partner Center will allow developers to view all the reviews of their products and respond to them.
These responses will then be visible on the product detail page of the extensions.
Nothing groundbreaking here, simply Microsoft catching up with times.
The company is definitely late to the game here. Google, for example, empowered developers with the ability to directly respond to consumer feedback in the Chrome Web Store all the way back in 2015. Similarly, Apple Safari extension developers have had this capability since 2017.
Nevertheless, these direct interactions for Edge should definitely help both developers and users, net positive for all.
Better late than never, as they say.
