Facebook, Do You Even Know Me?
We all joke about having a discussion at lunch about a certain product and suddenly seeing ads for it all over social media. It’s funny because it’s true. But have you ever thought about what happens when social media advertising algorithms fail? I have, because it’s happened to me quite a bit lately.
For years, when I’ve gotten a weird ad or an ad for something that’s the opposite of what I like I’ve asked the question, “Facebook, do you even know me?” It’s something I can laugh at because it’s few and far between. Until lately.
Over the past few weeks, Facebook has started suggesting that I join groups related to cycling. Here’s the thing: I don’t ride bikes, and I’ve never expressed any interest in it on social media. On top of that, I get the typical embarrassing ads that men my age get for certain medical conditions that supposedly plague my generation. And occasionally, I’ll see ads asking for my support for candidates whose policies I would never endorse. I always report ads like the ones above as irrelevant when I see them.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Yesterday, I received multiple ads throughout the day asking me to support Muslim charities and mosque building campaigns. As a Christian, I’m definitely not going to support those initiatives, and I don’t have any desire to see ads for them.
This morning was the real kicker. I saw this ad:
As an alumnus of the University of Georgia, I have no Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets fandom, nor will I ever. And these supposedly sophisticated algorithms should know that.
The way things have gone lately, I can’t help but continue to ask the question, “Facebook, do you even know me?”