Check the setting before you build a campaign
A surprising number of Pages with no recommendations have them switched off. It costs nothing to check, it is the only lever on this page that works instantly, and it is upstream of every other idea in this guide.
No credit card required. 30-day free trial.
The four constraints that apply here
Two from Facebook's help centre, one about what a Recommendation actually is, and the federal rule underneath all of it.
Recommendations have to be switched on in the Page settings, under Page and tagging, before anybody can leave one.
This is the whole problem for some Pages, and it takes about twenty seconds to rule out.
Turning them off removes the rating and the reviews from the Page.
So the setting is not something to toggle experimentally during a bad month. Switching it back on does not undo what has gone.
A Recommendation is a written post with a yes or no answer, and you should not leave one for a business whose Page you help manage.
There is no rating to nudge, so the goal is recent written posts. And your own team is excluded from writing them.
The FTC's rule reaches reviews from company insiders and reviews that misrepresent the reviewer's experience.
On a platform where your staff are already connected to your Page, this is the rule most likely to be broken without anybody meaning to.
Getting written recommendations, in order
The first step is a settings check. The rest is about giving people something to write under.
Confirm Recommendations are on
Page settings, Page and tagging, the option about others viewing and leaving reviews. If it is off, nothing else on this page can work.
Post the things people want to recommend under
A Recommendation is a post in a feed, and a Page that posts nothing gives a visitor nothing to react to. This is the difference between Facebook and every star rating platform here.
Ask everybody, in one message, with no filter
The same request to the whole list. Any version that sorts customers before it sends is selective solicitation, whatever platform it lands on.
Keep your own team out of it
Facebook says you should not recommend a business whose Page you help manage, and the FTC rule reaches insider reviews. Both cover the enthusiastic new hire.
Reply as the Page, every time
A thread with a visible Page reply invites the next one. On a feed platform the answered post is itself the advertisement.
What GetSetReply does with your Page
We read the Recommendations and draft the comment. We do not post to your Page, we do not run your Page, and we do not write recommendations.
- Recommendations arrive in the same queue as your other platforms, with a Page comment drafted for you to post.
- Your review funnel link and printable QR code are on every plan. Review requests by email and SMS are included on Professional and Enterprise.
- Nothing is published on your behalf, and no recommendation is created by us.
Review requests by email and SMS are included on Professional and Enterprise. Your review funnel links, QR codes and contacts are on every plan.
The two pages beside this one
One is how the Facebook connection works. The other is what to write under a recommendation that is already positive.
Facebook is one of the places we watch
Every platform below lands in the same queue, so a Facebook review and a review from anywhere else are read, drafted and answered in one place.
- Yelp
- TripAdvisor
- DoorDash
- Trustpilot
- Etsy
- Square
Facebook Recommendation questions
Answered from Facebook's help centre and the FTC's rule guidance, cited below.
Why does my Page have no recommendations at all?
Check the setting first. Recommendations have to be switched on under Page and tagging before anybody can leave one, and a Page with the option off shows nothing.
Is a Facebook recommendation a star rating?
No. The reviewer answers yes or no and then writes a post, so what a visitor sees is recent written recommendations rather than an average.
Can my employees recommend the business?
Facebook says you should not leave a recommendation for a business if you help manage its Page, and the FTC rule reaches reviews from company insiders.
Should I turn Recommendations off after a bad week?
Understand the cost first. Turning them off removes the rating and the reviews from the Page, so it takes the good ones with the bad.
Does GetSetReply post recommendations or comments for me?
No. It drafts the comment and you post it as the Page.
Where the Facebook facts on this page came from
Two Facebook help centre pages and the FTC's guidance, all read on the date shown.
Give people something to write under
Connect the Page and every Recommendation that follows arrives with a comment already drafted.