Today, while scheduling a reel for a client, Meta’s Business manager decided to share a tip with me:
“Too many emojis can be distracting or might make people think your reel is watch bait”
Of course, the message had one emoji: 🧐
What made the suggestion funny to me is the fact that the “tip” popped up when there were only FOUR words and ONE emoji in the Reel Caption. Regardless, that suggestion got me thinking: how many emojis are too many?
What Are Emojis?
This section is probably unnecessary considering that 9 out of 10 online users use emojis daily, but let’s start by defining an emoji. The definition of “emoji” from Oxford Languages reads: “a small digital image or icon used to express an idea, emotion, etc.”
Merriam-Webster, on the other hand, provides us with a more on-point definition: “any of various small images, symbols, or icons used in text fields in electronic communication (as in text messages, email, and social media) to express the emotional attitude of the writer, convey information succinctly, communicate a message playfully without using words, etc.”
That said, we all know what emoji is 😬
Emojis In Daily Life
While ten years ago it was probably “not cool” to use emojis in a work environment or formal communications, nowadays they are an important way for us to add feelings to our messages: it is not the same to say “You know what I meant 
” than saying “You know what I meant 
“.
According to a survey conducted by Adobe as part of their 2022 Emoji Trend Report, 73% of the respondents believe that adding emojis to your messages makes you cooler, friendlier, and funnier. Besides that, 91% of the respondents believe that the use of emojis makes it easier to communicate. They became even more important with COVID and the BOOM of remote working as they serve as a tool to transmit positive feelings at work too: long gone is the time when emojis were unprofessional.
How Do I Use Them?
Facebook was right about one thing: 
toomanyemojiscanmakecommunicationharder—While there is no particular guide that tells you how many are too many or when to use what emoji, there are certain guidelines that might help you in the journey of adding little yellow faces and icons to your communications:
Use Common Sense
Ok, this one is easy: make sure the emoji matches what you are communicating and that the situation is appropriate. Are you celebrating something or giving good news? Then avoid using sad faces – make sure the situation is appropriate – while emojis are cool, they might not be the best way to communicate about serious topics.
Use Them As An Aid
The message you are trying to transmit has to be clear and make sense – emojis have to be an aid to what you are trying to say, not the whole message: avoid substituting too many words (or any at all) with emojis. Hubspot has a great article with great examples of how NOT to use emojis.
It is important as well to not force it – the fact that emojis ARE an aid does not make it a MUST to use them.
Make Triple Sure You Know What The Emoji Means
There is a reason why this emoji –> 🍆 <– is rarely used in any advertising UNLESS it is for a very particular niche of adult products. We all know why (and if you do not, please do not Google it). In the same way, you would not use a word without knowing the meaning just because “it sounds cool” Make sure to understand what each emoji means and be on the lookout for feedback.
Aling Your Emojis With Your Brand Message
If you have an accounting firm, it will make ZERO sense to add a lipstick 💄 and a high-heel high 👠 emoji to your posts. Make sure the emojis you use align with what you do, what your business is, and what the message is.
And? How Many Emojis Are Too Many?
While there is no standard, it is good practice to be conservative. Depending on the size of your post and how much copy you have, 4 or 5 emojis might be enough. Of course, you have to consider as well that emojis count toward your character limit (very important when posting to Twitter, for example) and that depending on the type of content they might be distracting.
Don’t believe me? Ask Facebook and their funny warning when posting reels.
Still unsure? 🤔 We can go over your strategy together 😉
