This morning Facebook launched alternatives to the well-known “like” button, adding the options to react with Love, Haha, Wow, Sad or Angry. These reactions will appear in every post, giving users the ability to express their various reactions and emotions. But don’t worry, the go-to like button will still appear the same as it always had.
Facebook had been testing these alternatives for a while in about six other countries. These ideas began when people stressed the desire for a “dislike” button, when friends post something sad or frustrating. However Julie Zhuo, Facebook’s product design director said, Facebook chose to offer more nuanced reactions– alongside “like”—to give users “greater control over their expressivity”.
It took a year to develop this, after research involving going through comments and emoji use, Facebook tested the most common ones. Eventually choosing six universal reactions that will appear the same around the world.
How it works: Hover over the Like button on desktop or hold down the Like button on mobile to see the reaction image options pop up, then tap on the reaction you want to use. You can now see how many people have reacted in some way, with the top three reactions. You can still get breakdowns for each reaction along with the total and a list of specific people.
This means the formulas used to determine what you see on the top of your News Feed will change depending on which posts get the most drastic emotions. The goal is to show you the most prominent posts, but Facebook also wants to show you what you’re most interested in. Facebook will continue to adapt, tweak, and evolve the complex formulas involved based on responses and feedback.
Enjoy the new freedom Facebook’s Reactions gives you to express how you feel with your friends!
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