Facebook Response Rate and Time

Facebook has become an essential part of many marketing strategies. Actually, it's really a part of being in business today. We connect with current clients on this platform to inform and engage them. We meet potential customers here as well as interact with industry peers and everyone in between. However, sometimes Facebook's landscape and algorithm changes and you have to scramble to figure out what is going on so your presence in this platform remains strong.

Have you ever paid attention to the Response Rate and Time Bar on the right side of another business' Facebook page? It's meant to be a statement– whether good or bad– about that business. Are you aware of this same rating on your own business page?

Although it may not make or break a business, it is important to maintain a good response time as best as you can. As a social platform, Facebook continues to prioritize community engagement (shares, comments, responses- aka dialogue) over content frequency or impressions.

What is the Response Time and Rate?

According to Facebook Help:

"Response rate is the percentage of new messages that your Page sends an initial response to on the day they're received. Response time is the average time it takes your Page to send initial responses to new messages in one day."

This means that when someone sends you a private message, the clock starts ticking until you respond back. Nevertheless, the response time only tracks the initial response, Facebook does not count until you respond to follow-up messages in the same day.

What if I'm Away?

If you receive messages while you have your profile message status set to "Away," then Facebook does not start accruing time until after you set the messaging profile to "Available" again. The maximum time for away is 12 hours.

Instant Replies (messages automatically sent as your Page's first response to new messages) are not considered an initial response from your Page.

Messages marked as Spam are, thankfully, not taken into account for the response rate or time.

Good Response Time and Rate

Rather than seeing this as another chore, see it as an opportunity.

Facebook has some conditions for a good response time and response rate.

• If you visit your Page at least once a week and have a response rate of 75% or higher, your Page's time (typically replies within an hour) will automatically appear.
  • You can change your response time to what you think best represents your message response speed. For more information on how to change your response time, click here.

• "Very Responsive to Messages" Badge is what you should strive for. This shows up on your profile under your page's cover photo as a badge of honor. This is a bragging point that customers can see and means you respond quickly and consistently to private messages. To get this badge, there are a couple requirements. Over the last 7 days, you must have:
  • A response time of 90%
  • An average response time of 5 minutes

When you have the badge or high response rate, anyone can see it; however, if you don't have the badge or a high response rate, only the people who can manage the account can see the Responsiveness info on the page. For those in e-commerce or thought-leaders and influencers, we believe commitment to very quick response times is important to your type of business. There is probably a little bit of lax for other industries.

Just remember, Facebook wants businesses to actually help and respond to followers. This is what most customers want too. This shows that you care.

Facebook Help is a great resource if you have quick, easy Facebook questions. Nonetheless, if you have more complex questions or feel like you would rather have professionals do your social media with you and for you, our team The Marketing Squad is here to help!