We all should know how it works by now - Facebook takes info from your profile & IP address and then targets ads at you in the sidebars. To make it even easier for them to tailor to your consumer needs, if you do or don't like something, you can rate it with a "thumbs up" or a "thumbs down" and even tell them why you did or didn't like the ad. Seem fair enough. I cooperate with them and rate ads sometimes, because hey, I've actually found some pretty interesting stuff through them, and isn't that their ultimate purpose?
One would think.
However, the past few weeks I've noticed that my ads were increasingly about weight loss.
I'm going to be frank here - although I am a woman and generally we with the XX chromosome sequence do tend to be more self-conscious about our weight - I'm not fat.
I'm not as thin as I used to be, but honestly, I can't complain and I don't, especially on my Facebook profile. I don't even talk about my weight in my status updates, which are constantly changing. Why? Because I'm not an insecure teenager starving for attention (otherwise I'd be on MySpace), and I'm comfortable in my own skin. Sure, I'd like to lose 5-10 lbs., but who wouldn't?
So I repeatedly tell these weight-loss ads "thumbs down" and tell them "irrelevent," "uninteresting," and even "offensive." They keep coming.
I got to the point where I just ignored them. I rated other ads that are more relevant to me, things about writing, public speaking, social media, local bands, etc.
Then I turned 30.
Now, apparently not only does Facebook think I'm fat but it also thinks I'm old. Case in point:
It should be stated that I am not a mom, nor do I look as old as 30 (I'm sure there's a strong correlation there). As a redhead, I am extra careful of exposing my skin to the sun for very long, else I turn into one big freckle and seriously increase my chances of getting skin cancer. "Pale and proud!" is a motto of mine. I'm OK with this, and I count my blessings for having a combination of good genes and brains enough to not tan, therefore, I do not have wrinkles.
Yet Facebook is relentless. No matter how many "thumbs down" I give these ads, according to their keyword spiders or little men on the other side of the monitor, or however these things are decided, I am now not only fat but old. And not just "aging," but old. For the past few days, this is what I've gotten:
This, my friends, is Barbara Walters. Granted, Barbara Walters is one of the women at the top of my personal "Most Admired" list, but nowhere on my profile do I mention her name. And God bless Bawba Wawa, she does look great for her age (though I'm sure she's had work done), she is 78 years old.
Now, not only does Facebook think I'm fat, but it thinks I'm old, too.
Facebook thinks I'm Sally Struthers. Or someone like her, I mean. Hovering somewhere around 60, bigger-boned than I'd like, dying to look younger and thinner.
Amazing.
What kind of off-targeted ads do you get on sites like Facebook and other networking platforms? What/who do you think Facebook thinks you're like? I'd rather not be like Sally Struthers, but I'm sure there's got to be worse ... right?
... right?!