How to Let People Leave Reviews on Facebook

Want to let your happy customers shout your praises on Facebook? You’re in the right place. Turning on reviews - now called Recommendations - on your Facebook Page is one of the simplest and most powerful ways to build social proof and attract new business. This guide will walk you through exactly how to enable the feature, manage your recommendations, and leverage them to grow your brand.

Why Facebook Recommendations Still Matter (A Lot)

In a world of constant digital noise, trust is everything. Before "Reviews" were updated to "Recommendations," they served as a simple star-rating system. Now, Facebook prompts users to answer "Do you recommend [Your Business Name]?" with a simple "Yes" or "No." This might seem like a small change, but it’s incredibly powerful. A "Yes" recommendation carries weight because it’s a direct endorsement from a real person.

Here’s why you need to get this feature switched on:

• It Builds Instant Trust: Over 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. When a new visitor lands on your page and sees a stream of positive feedback from past customers, it immediately reduces skepticism and builds confidence in your brand.
• It Boosts Your Visibility: Positive recommendations create more engagement on your Page, which Facebook’s algorithm loves. Posts, comments, and recommendations all signal to Facebook that your page is active and valuable, potentially boosting your reach in users' news feeds.
• It Improves Local SEO: Recommendations on your Facebook Page can show up in Google search results, especially for local businesses. This gives you another piece of valuable search engine real estate and reinforces your reputation beyond Facebook itself.
• It Provides Free Market Research: Reviews, both good and bad, are a goldmine of feedback. They tell you what you’re doing right and where you can improve. You get direct insight into your customers' experiences, in their own words.

A Quick Clarification: Reviews vs. Recommendations

Before we jump into the steps, it's good to know what you’re enabling. Facebook officially switched from a 1-5 star "Review" system to a "Yes/No" Recommendation system a few years ago. While many people still call them "reviews," the functionality is slightly different.

When someone recommends your page, they are asked to share more details about their experience using tags, text, and photos. This gives potential customers richer, more detailed context than a simple star rating ever could - a huge win for businesses that offer a great customer experience.

How to Let People Leave Reviews on Your Facebook Page: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ready to activate this feature? The process is slightly different depending on whether your Page is using the "New Pages Experience" or the "Classic" layout. Most pages have been switched to the new experience, so we'll start there as it's the most common scenario.

For the New Pages Experience

If your page interface looks more like a personal profile (with your icon in the top right to switch between your profile and page), you're on the new experience. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Your Page: First things first, go to facebook.com and switch to the business Page you want to manage. You can do this by clicking your profile picture in the top-right corner and selecting your Page from the menu.
2. Go to Your Page Settings: Once you're viewing your Page, click your Page's profile picture in the top-right again. From the dropdown menu, select "Settings & Privacy," and then click "Settings."
3. Open Privacy Settings: On the left-hand menu, click on "Privacy."
4. Select "Page and Tagging": In the Privacy menu, you'll see another option called "Page and tagging" settings. Click on that.
5. Find the Reviews Setting: This is the final step. Look for the option that says, "Allow others to view and leave reviews on your Page." Toggle the switch next to it to the "On" position (it should turn blue).

That's it! The "Recommendations" tab should now appear on your Facebook page, ready for customers to share their feedback.

What If I Can't Find the Reviews Option? Check Your Page Template

Sometimes, the reviews option seems to be missing entirely. Most often, this happens because your Page's template doesn't support it. Certain templates, like those for "Non-profit" or "Political organization," might have this feature turned off by default to avoid clutter.

If you need to change your template, switching to a standard template like "Services," "Business," or "Restaurants & Cafes" will almost always enable the Reviews tab. Here's how to check and change it:

1. Go to your Page.
2. From the left menu in your "Professional Dashboard," click on "Settings."
3. Next, click "Templates and Tabs."
4. Here you can see which template you're currently using. Click the "Edit" button.
5. Select a template that better fits your business, such as Business or Services. Most of these default templates include the Reviews (or Recommendations) tab. A preview will show which tabs come with the new template.
6. After you select a template, click "Apply Template," and you're all set!

Go back to your page settings and follow the previous steps, and you should now see and be able to enable the "Reviews/Recommendations" section.

You've Turned On Reviews. What's Next?

Flipping the switch is just the beginning. To get the most out of your Facebook Recommendations, you need an active approach. Here are a few strategies for managing your newly enabled feature:

1. Share Your Direct Reviews Link

Don't make your customers hunt for the review button. Send your direct reviews link to them to make it as easy as possible to leave a recommendation. You can get the link by adding "/reviews" to the end of your page URL, for example: "https://www.facebook.com/YourPageName/reviews". Make it a priority to share this link wherever you interact with your customers:

• Add it to your email signature.
• Incorporate it into your marketing newsletters.
• Create a QR code that links to it for physical shops.
• Include it in a thank you message after a purchase or successful service experience.

2. Respond to Every Single Review (Even the Negative Ones)

When a customer takes the time to leave feedback, responding shows you're an engaged business that values their opinion. It builds community and lets potential customers know that you care.

• For positive recommendations: A simple "Thank you so much!" goes a long way. It reinforces their good experience and shows appreciation.
• For negative recommendations: Respond calmly and professionally. Acknowledge their issue, empathize with their frustration, and offer to resolve it privately. Taking the conversation offline shows other readers that you are proactive about solving problems without creating a public argument.

Final Thoughts

Turning on Facebook Recommendations is a simple but effective step toward building a more trustworthy and transparent brand online. By enabling this feature, actively seeking out feedback, and engaging with everyone who leaves a recommendation, you turn your Facebook Page into a powerful tool for social proof that can attract new customers and drive business growth.