Facebook 'Reactions': A New, More Expressive Like Button.

Over the past few days Facebook have started testing its answer to the "dislike button" in Spain and Ireland.  The new feature uses a set of six animated emoji called "Reactions"--love, haha, yay, wow, sad, and angry.  

Altimeter Group Analyst, Susan Etlinger (Twitter: @setlinger) wrote in her recent blog post:

'The emoji address a lot of what people have asked for on Facebook; specifically, a bit more nuance in how users can respond to posts.'

Here's what Chris Cox, Chief Product Officer at Facebook, had to say on his own Facebook page:

'Today we’re launching a pilot test of Reactions — a more expressive Like button. As you can see, it’s not a “dislike” button, though we hope it addresses the spirit of this request more broadly. We studied which comments and reactions are most commonly and universally expressed across Facebook, then worked to design an experience around them that was elegant and fun. Starting today Ireland and Spain can start loving, wow-ing, or expressing sympathy to posts on Facebook by hovering or long-pressing the Like button wherever they see it. We’ll use the feedback from this to improve the feature and hope to roll it out to everyone soon.'

The following [very brief] video from ODN and Facebook demonstrates how the new Facebook Reactions function works:

Susan Etlinger continued her commentary in her blog post :

"This is a much smarter move than the more obvious and problematic option of a "dislike" button, for several reasons. One is context; "dislike" can refer to a friend's hard day, but is vulnerable to trolling or other (context-free) negativity. Another is range of expression. Even a set of six emoji can address a range of expressive options that a simple "like" or "share" couldn't do. Of course, brands' first question will be how "Reactions" will affect ranking, a hot-button issue for some time now." 

Chris Tosswill, Facebook Product Manager, says on the Facebook blog that:

"We see this as an opportunity for businesses and publishers to better understand how people are responding to their content on Facebook. During this test, Page owners will be able to see Reactions to all of their posts on Page insights. Reactions will have the same impact on ad delivery as Likes do."

Etlinger makes five valid observations below on what these 'six little guys' will mean from a brand strategy point of view and why she thinks this was a smart move on Facebook's part:

1. Universality. Pictorial language such as emoji don't require translation and are (more) culturally universal than written language. That's a cost and time saver for global organizations.
2. Familiarity. Emoji are becoming more commonly used. In fact, a May 2015 article in the BBC cited a study that found that emoji is the United Kingdom's fastest-growing language.
3. Simplicity. Structured data is easier to process and interpret than unstructured data. At the same time, however, not everything will be black and white (or other colors); human beings are notoriously resourceful when it comes to applying sarcasm and other shades of gray.
4. Succinctness. Emoji are fairly economical in terms of screen real estate, a boon to UX everywhere. And if people use emoji for comments they might otherwise have written out, that makes room for more content.
5. Extensibility. You can always add more! 

Some questions that will no doubt be asked by brands of the new feature in the coming months:

• Will brands be able to use these reactions and emojis outside of Facebook?
• Will all six emoji be offered on Facebook brand pages?
• How might the new emoji be used in negative/unexpected ways?
• Can brand sentiment or brand favourability be better measured using the new reactions feature?
• Will Facebook provide new insights and analytics features to measure/report on reactions?
• How should brands consider/integrate the new reactions features into social governance processes/policies etc.

What's your reaction (pun intended!) to the new Facebook 'Reactions' function currently being tested in Spain and Ireland? Do you see benefits for your brand and content? What are your concerns? Does the change excite you?

As always, feel free to comment, connect with me on LinkedIn or reach out to me on Twitter at @GramercyPark.