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Quick Setup

Quick Setup

Section titled “Quick Setup”

After activating the plugin, reactions can be live on your community in three steps.

Step 1 — Turn on BuddyPress reactions

Section titled “Step 1 — Turn on BuddyPress reactions”
  1. Go to Wbcom Designs > BP Reactions in your dashboard.
  2. Click the BP Integration tab.
  3. Toggle on Enable reactions on activities.
  4. Toggle on Enable reactions on activity comments if you want comment reactions too.
  5. Click Save Settings.

Reactions are now active. Members who are logged in will see the React button beneath activity posts.

Step 2 — Choose which emojis appear

Section titled “Step 2 — Choose which emojis appear”

The plugin ships with a default set of 8 emojis for each content type. If you want to change the selection:

  1. Click the My Reactions tab.
  2. Find the BuddyPress Activity Stream section.
  3. Click the change icon on any reaction slot to swap that emoji for a different one from the library.
  4. Click Save Settings.

You can configure up to 8 reactions per content type. The buddypress_reactions_max_emojis filter lets developers raise or lower that limit.

Step 3 — (Optional) Hide the default Like button

Section titled “Step 3 — (Optional) Hide the default Like button”

If your theme shows BuddyPress’s built-in Like or Favorite button, you may want to replace it with reactions instead of having both.

  1. In the BP Integration tab, toggle on Hide default Like/Favorite button.
  2. Click Save Settings.

When this is enabled, the standard Like/Favorite button is hidden and the plugin’s React button takes its place. Toggling it off restores the original button.

Checking your work

Section titled “Checking your work”

Visit your BuddyPress activity stream while logged in as a regular member. You should see a React button below each activity post. Hovering or tapping it opens the emoji panel. Click any emoji to add a reaction.

Common first-time issues

Section titled “Common first-time issues”

React button not showing

  • Confirm you saved settings in the BP Integration tab.
  • Check that the member is logged in — reactions require authentication.
  • Verify BuddyPress is active and the activity stream is working.

Emojis appear broken or missing

  • Go to BP Integration tab and look for the Fix Broken Emojis button under Data Management. Clicking it re-populates the emoji library without affecting existing reactions.

Notifications not sent

  • Toggle on Send notifications for reactions in the BP Integration tab and save.

Next steps

Section titled “Next steps”