Engaging with Community comments in Buffer
If you're in our Beta program, you now have access to the most fluid way to respond to Threads, Instagram professional accounts, and Facebook page comments in Buffer!
Community makes it quick and easy to engage with your audience in a more direct and conversational way. By actively participating in the social conversation, you build stronger connections with your community, foster trust with your followers, and create more opportunities for meaningful dialogue.
đź“ť Looking for Engaging with Community comments on the Buffer mobile app?
Have you seen our Instagram announcement? Feel free to join the conversation! 👇
In this article:
Replying to comments
📝 Only users with Full Posting access for the channel selected can see that channel’s comments. Here’s how a Buffer organization Owner or Admin can change user permissions in their organization.
- Go to the Community tab at the top of your Buffer dashboard.
- On the left sidebar, select the social channel you’d like to engage with. At this time, Community supports Facebook pages, Instagram professional accounts, and Threads.
- Find the comment you’d like to reply to.
- Click into the “Reply…” field beneath the comment.
- Type your response or get off to a quick start by using the reply suggestions, followed by adding your own thoughts. Paid plans include unlimited suggestions, while Free plans include 5 suggestions per week.
- Press Enter or click the Reply button to post your comment.
That’s it! You’ve responded directly to your audience, and a connection is formed!
Saved replies
Saved Replies help you respond faster to common questions or comments, like your refund policy or shipping details. Instead of typing the same message over and over, you can save it once and reuse it anytime, making your workflow more efficient and your responses more consistent.
Why use saved replies?
- Save time when replying to FAQs or recurring comments.
- Keep your messaging consistent across your team.
- Easily customize saved replies before sending if needed.
How to save a reply
- Click this link (https://publish.buffer.com/settings/saved-replies) or follow the steps 2-4 below to navigate there. Then, move on to Step 5.
- Click the profile icon in the upper right corner of the web dashboard.
- Choose Settings from the dropdown or click this link.
- Scroll down to Features and click Saved Replies.
- In the Title field, add a name for your reply (e.g., “Refund Policy”).
- In the Write your saved reply field, type the message you want to store.
- Click Save to store it for future use.
đź“ť Good to Knows:
- Each plan is allotted a different number of Saved Replies:
- The Free plan includes 1 saved reply.
- The Essentials plan includes 5 saved replies.
- The Team plan includes unlimited saved replies.
- Saved Replies are shared across your organization. Anyone with Full Posting access on any channel available in the Community tab will have access to your Saved Replies.
How to insert a saved reply
To add a saved reply to your comment:
- Click the speech bubble icon in the lower right corner of the composer.
- Select the saved reply you want to use.
- Click Reply and you’re all set!
How to edit or delete a saved reply
To edit or delete a saved reply:
- Click on the speech bubble icon in the lower right corner of the Community composer or click here: https://publish.buffer.com/settings/saved-replies.
- Look for the Saved Reply you'd like to edit or delete.
- Click the pencil ✏️ icon to edit the Saved Reply or the trash can 🗑️ icon to delete it.
- Follow the last prompt on the screen to either save your edits or confirm the deletion.
Here's what it looks like in action:
Understanding your Comment Score
Your Comment Score rates how engaged you are with your audience. It’s a helpful way to track how consistently and quickly you're responding to comments, which are key actions for building strong relationships with your community.
What are the Comment Score levels?
- Getting Started: 0-20 points
- Finding Your Voice: 21-40 points
- Replying Regularly: 41-60 points
- Conversing Consistently: 61-80 points
- Community Champion: 81-100 points
What factors are included in your Comment Score?
Your Comment Score is calculated based on three core engagement metrics:
- Response rate: The percentage of comments you’ve replied to.
- Response speed: How quickly you respond after a comment is posted.
- Consistency: How regularly you engage with your audience.
Together, these metrics give you a clear picture of your engagement habits and highlight areas for improvement.
Why it matters
Replying to comments helps you build trust, spark ongoing conversations, and strengthen your community. A higher Comment Score means you're staying present and responsive—something your followers will notice and appreciate.
Even small improvements can make a big difference in how your brand is perceived. Whether you're aiming for faster replies or more consistent check-ins, your score is here to help guide you.
Look! We're working to improve our Comment Score, too! 👇
FAQ
Can’t See Comments? Here’s What to Check
- If new comments aren’t coming in, there may be an issue with the connection between Buffer and your social channel. In that case, we recommend refreshing your channel using these steps.
- Only users with Full Posting access for the channel selected can see that channel’s comments. If you have Approval Required access, you won’t see comments for that channel. To change that, the Owner or an Admin of your Buffer organization can adjust your permissions. Here’s how to change user permissions in your organization.
- If you're still not seeing comments come through after trying these things, feel free to email us at hello@buffer.com, and we’ll be happy to help!
Which social networks are supported?
At the moment, you can reply to comments on Threads, Instagram professional accounts, and Facebook pages through your Community tab. We plan to add more channels to Community in the future!