Facebook Reactions on a Business Page

Six buttons instead of one

Since last Wednesday, holding a finger on Facebook's Like button on a phone, or resting the pointer on it on a computer, brings up five more choices: Love, Haha, Wow, Sad and Angry.

They work on posts from business pages as well as from friends, so a page post now collects a spread of reactions rather than a single count of Likes.

Under each post, the three most used reactions appear as small faces beside the total. Tapping the total shows who chose which.

For a page that has only ever had Likes to look at, that is more information than before, and more chances to misread it.

What each tends to mean on a page post

• Like is still the default, and still the vaguest.
• Love usually goes to people: staff, regulars, a favourite product.
• Haha is amusement, sometimes at the post rather than with it.
• Wow is surprise at a result, a price or some news.
• Sad is sympathy, for a closure, a farewell or a loss.
• Angry is displeasure, with the news or with you.

The last is the one worth a closer look, because on a business page it can mean two quite different things.

Angry at the news, or at you

A post about road works blocking the entrance for a month will collect Angry reactions. They are aimed at the road works, and they are a kind of sympathy.

A post announcing that a popular product is discontinued, or that prices are going up, collects Angry reactions aimed at you.

The comments usually say which. So does the post itself: if the news is something you decided, the anger is probably about the decision.

The first kind needs nothing. The second deserves a reply, and sometimes a second look at the decision.

Haha cuts both ways

Laughter on a post meant to be funny is a good result. Laughter on a post meant to be serious is a sign it landed badly.

A stiff announcement, an awkward photo or a spelling mistake in a headline can all draw Haha from people laughing at the page rather than with it.

Read the comments before deciding which it is, and fix the post if the laughter is at something you can correct.

Not a score

Totals depend on how many people saw the post, and that depends on Facebook's choices as much as yours. Comparing totals between posts mostly measures reach.

Facebook says that, at first, it will treat any reaction much as it treats a Like when deciding what people see more of. An Angry face is not a penalty, and a Love is not a bonus.

Facebook has also said page owners will see the reactions to all their posts in Page Insights, which is the better place to look across weeks rather than one post at a time.

What reactions offer is texture: which posts move people, and in which direction. That is worth more read alongside the comments than added up into a number.

A worked example

An indoor cycling studio with two rooms runs classes before work and in the evening, and posts on its Facebook page several times a week: instructor news, playlist themes, schedule changes.

Last week two of its posts drew very different reactions. A photo marking one instructor's hundredth class collected a long row of Loves and a few Wows.

A post saying the Tuesday 6 a.m. class would move to 6:30 drew a cluster of Angry faces and only a couple of comments.

The Angry reactions came from that class's regulars, who ride before work and cannot start later. Most did not comment, because a reaction takes one tap and a comment takes thought.

Until last week, those riders would have scrolled past, and the studio would have taken the silence as agreement.

The owner replied under the post, asked the early riders what time they need to leave, and kept 6 a.m. on Tuesdays while trying 6:30 on another day. The schedule page on the website changed the same afternoon.

Reading reactions over time

Once a month, look back over the last few weeks of posts and note the reaction each drew most. Patterns show up within a season.

Posts about people tend to draw Love. Results and new equipment draw Wow. Posts that only announce something tend to draw plain Likes, or nothing.

Use that to plan, not to chase. The aim is more posts that people respond to because they mean it.

Answering in public

Reply under the post, where everyone who reacted can see it. Acknowledge the frustration, give the reason for the decision in a sentence, and say what you can do.

Do not delete a post because it drew Angry reactions. Deleting looks like hiding, and the people who reacted notice that it has gone.

Do not turn reactions into a vote

It is tempting to ask people to choose Love for one option and Wow for another.

That turns reactions into a poll, wipes out what they would otherwise tell you, and reads as a gimmick to the people you most want to impress.

If you want a vote, ask a question and read the comments.

The counter-case

Small pages will see few reactions, and one Angry face may be somebody's thumb slipping. Patterns need a few months of posts before they mean much.

Many people will keep pressing plain Like out of habit, so the new reactions will be a minority of responses for a while.

And reactions on a post you paid to promote come partly from strangers, who read it with less context than your regulars do.

The advice is the same at any size: read reactions with the comments, and look twice at Angry.

Before posting again

1. Open your last ten posts and their reactions.
2. Note which posts drew Love or Wow.
3. Read every post with Angry reactions closely.
4. Reply where the anger is about you.
5. Ignore a lone reaction that could be a slip.
6. Never ask for reactions as votes.
7. Update the website whenever a post announces a change.

Step four is the one that turns a reaction into a conversation. People who tapped Angry rarely expect an answer, and a calm one changes how they read the next post.

Why posts people respond to matter more than posting at the perfect minute is covered in Twitter will show the best tweets first.

Frequently asked questions

West Coast Media Solutions Inc. provides web design, web development, hosting, digital marketing, and business consulting to organisations across Canada, drawing on more than twenty-five years in the field.