Using Facebook emoticons in marketing campaigns is a true art that only a few marketers have mastered perfectly.
Although the strategy has been talked about frequently and people use emojis every day, only a few brands have managed to include emojis in their Facebook campaigns effectively.
If you think about the quantity of Facebook emoticons used by consumers every day, brands are unable to catch up with this trend.
In this article we will see the different uses of Facebook emoticons and some tips for setting them up easily.
Facebook Emoticon as a Marketing Strategy
THE Facebook emoticons appeared in marketing campaigns in 2015 when Chevrolet issued its famous press release all in Facebook emoji.
The campaign experienced a huge successwhich resulted in free media coverage and positive feedback from the audience.
At the same time, Domino’s made it possible to order pizza by tweeting an emoji.
But these are just a few old examples of big companies with huge marketing budgets cashing in on the glory.
Facebook emoticons: what about small brands?
The real question is: “And you?” “, can you increase your engagement and conversion on Facebook using emojis?
A study conducted by Quintlyshowed that posts with emojis got on average 17% more engagement than those without emojis.
We also tested on Facebook and on average, our posts on Facebook, including emojis, had a 30-40% higher click-through rate.
Although the results can also be affected by other aspects such as changing Facebook’s algorithm or a good choice of images, emojis also help to keep our brand messages more fun and engaging.
If you don’t use Facebook emojis yourself, it might seem like a world away coming from Gen Z.
However, you would be surprised to learn the results of all the psychological studies examining the effect that emojis have on our state of mind.
A study of the University of Missouri-St. Louis explored the effects of using emoticons on message perception.
They discovered that looking at an emoji is much more rewarding than reading a traditional word.
THE Florida Institute of Technology also researched the use of emoticons in professional emails
Here are the two email variations they tested:
The study found that when paired with negative emoji messages, they had a less negative effect on readers.
People perceive emojis as a positive way to communicate.
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Facebook emojis: reaction emojis
If you are a loyal Facebook user, you know the reactions.
Before launching six reactions in 2016, Facebook tested dozens of different variations.
They ended up selecting the six most popular.
Since its launch two years ago, Facebook Reactions have been used more than 600 billion times.
If you’re curious, the “heart” reaction was by far the most popular, accounting for over half of the total reactions.
Here’s an example of what Facebook reactions look like on a typical post.
In March 2017, Facebook also released Reactions in their Messenger chat app, allowing people to react to individual messages with specific emotions: love, smile, wow, sad, angry, etc.
According to Vyvyan Evans, a language professor at Bangor University who studies the use of emoji in communication:
The stratospheric rise of the emoji, on Facebook, serves the function of non-verbal signals in oral communication.
But reactions aren’t the only place on Facebook where you can find emojis.
You can also place an emoji in your messages and announcements on Facebook:
- In the body of the text
- In the title
- In the post description
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Facebook Emoticon Example: Buffer
In this example, the emojis were placed in the body of the main ad.
However, emojis were used to replace bulletpoints, helping to better deliver the message and value.
Buffer also uses emojis to write replies to comments from their fans.
It’s an easy way to give more depth and personality to the message (and create an even bigger community)
Before you start using emojis on Facebook, you should write down your strategy.
It is important that you know the answer to these three questions:
- Do emojis align with our branding and tone of voice? If you work in a very corporate environment, emojis may seem a little too fun and unprofessional for your audience.
- How often and where will we use emojis? Will this be included in your marketing plan and done regularly?
- What Types of Emojis Should We Use? All emojis in your social media posts should support your message and help you tell your story better.
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Step 1: Find the right Facebook emoticon
There are several websites that list all possible emojis.
For example, Emojipedia lists all emojis in an orderly and categorized manner.
Once you find the emoji you’re looking for, copy and paste them into your Facebook ad or post.
Tip: Another way to get emoticons on Facebook if you are on MAC OS, you can press the “ctrl + cmd + space” keys simultaneously and a window will appear with all the emojis.
Step 2: Add emoticons to your Facebook messages
Adding emojis to your Facebook messages is a simple and straightforward process:
- Access your brand’s Facebook page
- Insert the link/message you want to share
- Copy and paste emojis into your message
Step 3: Use emojis in your Facebook advertising campaigns
You can also use emojis when creating Facebook ads in the Ads Manager.
Once you have set up your campaign specifications, you will be taken to the step where you can enter all the ad details. All fields support emojis, just copy and paste them into your ads.
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Best practices for using Facebook emojis in ads
In case you’re new to the world of Facebook emoji marketing, we’ve listed some of our best tips and hacks to help you succeed.
1. Facebook emoticon: Know the hidden meaning
While most emojis are quite simple, they may have popular hidden meanings that you are not aware of.
For example, the Peach emoji has several different meanings.
If you want to make sure you don’t make a huge social media blunder, check the meaning of your emoji on Emojipedia.
2. Facebook Emojis: Tell a Story
Every emoji you place in your Facebook post should help deliver your message, not just decorate.
You can also use a custom combination of emojis to deliver a more complex message or simply add a fun touch to your Facebook ad.
For example, you could say “Surge your revenue” in emoji language: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
3. Facebook emoticon to guide the user’s attention
Emojis meaning movement, such as ? ? ?☝️? ➡ can be used to guide your ad viewer’s attention to the main headline or call to action.
For example, this tweet we made uses a directional emoji to guide the viewer’s attention to the link (and get them to click).
Quick Tip: When using emojis to guide your audience’s attention, make sure they point to the ad or message element you want to be clicked on.
For Facebook ads, this could be your ad title or CTA.
4. Avoid cryptic messages
Thanks to this article you will be able to become a pioneer in terms of emoticons on Facebook and on social networks in general.
The next time you create a new Facebook post or set up an ad campaign, use a ? Or ? and let us know your results in the comments.
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