Facebook Reactions: Why Reactions Are More Valuable Than Likes & How to Get More

Remember back in 2016, when Facebook introduced reactions? Facebook reactions, such as Love, Haha, Wow, and more, are much more than just expressive emojis. They are signals of deeper engagement, and Facebook's algorithm now prioritizes posts that generate reactions over simple likes.

For businesses and content creators, this means that focusing on reactions can lead to higher visibility, better engagement rates, and ultimately more conversions. In this article, we will explain more about FB reactions and how to get more of them!

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What Are Facebook Reactions and Why Do They Matter?

Introduced in 2016, Facebook reactions expanded the basic "Like" into a range of emotions: Love, Haha, Wow, Sad, Angry, and Care.

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‍‍As you probably know, Facebook assigns values to the actions users take in the News Feed, and adds up those values to determine how many people should see a post.

When Facebook reactions were first introduced, they were each given the same value as a like - clicking the Like button was worth the same as reacting with a heart or an angry face.

Now, though, reactions are worth MORE.

Back in 2017, Facebook said that reactions are more valuable than likes - and that means getting people to use them is more important than ever!(Side note: for now, all reactions are worth the same - so a surprised face isn't worth more than a sad face, or vice versa.)

Posts that receive reactions are seen as more engaging and are rewarded with better reach. For brands, understanding the emotional spectrum of reactions and tailoring your content to elicit them can drastically improve your results on the platform.

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How can you encourage people to use Facebook reactions, though?

Let's take a look at what a few super successful brands are doing!

Share Emotion-Driven Content

hare content that makes people FEEL something! Want people to express an emotion stronger than a like?

Make them feel it!

Facebook offers six reactions on top of the standard thumbs up- Love, Haha, CareWow, Sad, and Angry. The care reaction was added in 2020 as a response to the global pandemic. During 2020, more and more people turned to social media to connect. We already had the love button on Facebook, but the care reaction was created to help people show virtual support to one another.  

Are you creating and sharing content that makes people feel any of those? Some brands have it pretty easy getting reactions on Facebook.

‍For example, you might regularly share content that makes people feel angry:

You might share content that makes people feel sad:

Or you might even share content that makes people feel a sense of awe:

If it doesn't feel like it's that simple, though, you can always give people a push in the right direction! You can encourage people to react a certain way by dropping hints in your post.

Take a look at this example from Goal.com - they placed the Facebook wow face right in the image, and ended up scoring quite a few of those reactions:

BuzzFeed does something similar in posts like this one on their food Page:

The status update itself tells you that the post will be funny - and the haha reaction was by far the most popular one.

One reason this works so well? A lot of people share, comment on, and react to Facebook links without actually clicking on them first.(Weird, but true.)

If those people are going to interact, though, you can encourage them to do so in a certain way - in this case, by using a fb reacts emoji instead of just a like!

You might even encourage people more explicitly to use reactions - a strategy that some Facebook Pages have practically perfected.

There ARE risks involved with that, though, so it's important to know what you're getting into.

Guide Reactions with Contextual Prompts

Sometimes, your audience needs a little nudge. Use captions or visuals to suggest how they should react. For example:

• "Wow-worthy news alert! React with 😮 if you’re just as amazed as we are."
• “Show your support by using the 🤗 Care reaction!”
• Graphics with embedded reaction prompts, such as "React ❤️ if you agree!"

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This technique is subtle yet effective in shaping the type of engagement your posts receive.

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Ask your audience how they REALLY feel

Reactions are a quick and easy way for Facebook users to share their opinions - and because everyone can see how they tally up, people can see exactly how many others feel the same way they do!

Asking people to weigh in on an informal poll is an effective way to solicit reactions.

‍Here's an example from Goal.com again:

This post asked readers to use reactions to share their opinions, and it worked - users chose reactions almost twice as much as they used the like button.

Useful as it is to ask for feedback like this, though, Facebook has guidelines for doing it properly, and doing this the wrong way can negatively affect your reach.(That means you probably want to pay extra attention to this next part.)

Facebook has a handful of rules regarding the use of reactions, but two of them are especially important:

1. First, the reactions you ask for should match their emotional intent. This is something the above example does well - it asks users if they love, hate, or are shocked by the logo in the picture.

An example of doing this the wrong way might look like this:

In the above example, the two reactions people are supposed to choose don't reflect how they may feel about the images.

2. The second big rule to follow is not to conduct reaction polls using looping or static videos.

‍Video may be the hot thing on social right now, but Facebook has said on multiple occasions that they're limiting the visibility of graphics-only video polls.‍

A video poll shouldn't just loop an animation over and over, nor should it just be a static image you uploaded as a video - Facebook considers those both to be low-quality content.

If you decide to conduct a reaction poll via video, it should be an actual video - otherwise, stick to sharing it as an image or a link!

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Test with High-Performing Content Formats

Visual and video content also play a crucial on getting reactions! They consistently performs better on Facebook, especially when designed to evoke reactions.

Certain content formats are more likely to elicit reactions:

• Humorous Memes: Perfect for Haha reactions.
• Heartwarming Stories: Great for Love or Care reactions.
• Thought-Provoking Questions: Effective for Wow or Angry reactions.

Don't forget to test! Experiment with various formats like videos, infographics, and memes to see what resonates most with your audience.

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Why can’t I see reactions on Facebook?

Simple question, easy answer. If you can’t see the option to react with one of the emojis on a post, you are likely using an old version of Facebook. If you use the app, update it on your phone. If you are using a desktop, try logging out of your account and back in again. If you haven’t logged out in a while, your settings may not be up to date.

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Final Thoughts

Mastering Facebook reactions requires a thoughtful balance of creativity, strategy, and authenticity. Remember to encourage conversation! Emotional engagement not only boost your post visibility but also foster deeper connections with your audience.

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