There are a few potential reasons why Facebook may be showing more suggested posts rather than posts from your friends and pages you follow:
Facebook’s Algorithm
The main reason Facebook shows suggested posts is because of how their algorithm works. The Facebook algorithm determines what content shows up in your News Feed. The goal of the algorithm is to show you content that is most relevant and interesting to you, in hopes of keeping you engaged on the platform.
Over the past few years, Facebook has tweaked their algorithm to show more suggested posts from pages and sources you don’t follow, rather than only showing posts from your friends and connections. The logic is that suggested posts help introduce you to new ideas, topics, and accounts you may find worthwhile to follow. So in their view, expanding suggested posts enhances the experience.
However, many users dislike this change and would prefer to see more updates from friends. Facebook has countered that pages and suggested posts encourage more meaningful interactions, while some friends may only share mundane life updates.
Facebook’s Business Incentives
In addition to improving the user experience, Facebook also has business incentives to promote suggested posts over friends. Specifically:
– Suggested posts help keep users engaged on Facebook. The more time you spend scrolling Facebook, the more ads you see, which makes Facebook more money.
– Promoting suggested posts allows Facebook to collect more data about your interests to improve ad targeting. The better targeted the ads, the more revenue Facebook earns.
– Facebook can charge pages to promote their posts as suggestions in News Feeds through its advertising products. Directly making money off suggested posts gives Facebook incentive to push them.
– Pages typically share high-quality, engaging content that elicits more reactions and comments from users, compared to mundane life updates from friends. This creates the appearance of a more active, vibrant community on Facebook.
So while you may prefer to see more updates from friends, Facebook has several business reasons to emphasize suggested posts that boost engagement, ad revenue, and the vitality of the overall community.
How Facebook’s Algorithm Determines Suggested Posts
Facebook does not simply randomize suggested posts. Their algorithm selectively determines suggestions based on factors like:
– Pages and topics you already follow and engage with. The algorithm identifies related pages you may like based on your interests.
– Posts and pages that are popular overall on Facebook. Trending content often gets suggested to many users.
– Paid promotions from pages wanting their posts shown to more people who may be interested. Facebook ad products do enable this.
– Posts from friends of friends and connections further out in your network. Helps expose you to more perspectives.
– Posts and pages your other friends engage with. If it’s resonating with people you know, you may be interested too.
– General interests listed on your profile. For example, if you list “News” or “Sports”, you may see more suggested posts on those topics.
– How you engage with suggested posts. Liking, commenting on, and sharing suggested posts means you’re likely to see more of them.
So in summary, while you may not always agree with or like every suggested post, Facebook’s algorithm is tailored to surface posts they think you’re most likely to find informative, useful, and engaging based on available data points.
Ways to See More Posts From Friends
If you prefer to see more updates from friends rather than suggested posts, there are steps you can take to optimize your News Feed:
– Actively like, comment on, and share more posts from friends. This signals to Facebook you want to see more of their updates.
– Follow or add close friends to your “Close Friends” list if you have one. Facebook may prioritize posts from users in this group.
– “Snooze” or unfollow pages and accounts whose suggestions you don’t like. This removes some sources of suggestions.
– Adjust News Feed preferences to favor friends higher than pages or suggestions.
– Sort News Feed to show “Most Recent” posts rather than algorithmically ranked ones.
– Use Lists feature to maintain feeds of specific groups of friends.
– Install a browser extension like “News Feed Eradicator” to hide suggestions.
– Access Facebook less or use it less actively. Paradoxically, this may cause Facebook to show more friend posts to reengage you.
– Let Facebook know through surveys or feedback you want to see more friend posts. If enough users do this, Facebook may adjust the algorithm.
In conclusion, while Facebook will likely keep showing suggested posts to some degree, you’re not powerless. Using the right settings and strategies can help balance your News Feed back toward more personal updates from friends.
Should You Be Concerned About Data Privacy with Suggested Posts?
Some users worry suggested posts come at the cost of data privacy. It’s true Facebook gathers data on user interests and behavior to improve ad targeting and the relevance of suggestions. However, there are a few factors that determine whether this should be concerning:
– Suggested posts use the same types of data Facebook collects overall – interests, pages followed, behaviors, etc. You’re already sharing this when using Facebook normally. Suggestions don’t introduce new private data collection.
– Facebook’s data collection and ad targeting would occur regardless of suggested posts. Removing them wouldn’t significantly change privacy risks.
– Facebook does enable some transparency and control over how they use your data for ads/suggestions through Ad Preferences and other settings. You can review interests they infer and remove some.
– Facebook only shows suggested posts from public pages posting publicly available content – not private content about you or friends you know. The suggestions are based on your interests, not sensitive info.
– You can use privacy settings like restricting profile visibility and facial recognition if you want to share less data that informs suggestions.
– Your engagement with Facebook is voluntary overall. Exercising caution in what you share and post is advisable regardless of how Facebook uses it.
So in summary, while Facebook’s data gathering practices merit thoughtful consumer consideration, suggested posts themselves are likely not introducing major new privacy risks beyond Facebook’s practices broadly. As usual, being mindful of what you share and your privacy settings remain prudent steps.
Should Facebook Bring Back Chronological News Feeds?
With many users expressing a desire to see more posts from friends rather than suggestions, some argue Facebook should bring back strictly chronological News Feeds that don’t algorithmically rank content. Here are some key considerations around returning to chronological feeds:
Pros
– It’s what users expect from a feed and offers more transparency. Clear logic: newest posts show first.
– Eliminates accusations of manipulation or political bias in what posts are surfaced and prioritized.
– Makes it easier for small creators and new pages to get reach rather than established players being favored.
– Allows people to see all friends’ posts rather than some being deprioritized unfairly by the algorithm.
Cons
– People may miss a lot of worthwhile suggested content tailored to their interests. Chronological feeds have less relevance.
– It encourages engagement bait posts optimized just to show up at the top rather than adding value.
– Businesses and creators would likely buy more Facebook ads to reach people rather than relying on organic reach.
– People would complain about missing important posts that get buried further down their feeds unchronologically.
– Reduced dwell time and engagement could significantly lower Facebook’s ad revenue.
Alternatives
– Let users choose between ranked and chronological rather than one-size-fits-all.
– Show a mix of chronological and suggested posts like Instagram does.
– Improve transparency around why posts are ranked and surfaced the way they are.
– Add more feed filtering and customization options to see desired posts.
Overall there are good-faith arguments on both sides of this issue. While chronological feeds address some concerns, they introduce their own potential pitfalls. Offering more personalization and transparency around algorithmic feeds may be the right compromise.
Conclusion
Facebook’s increased emphasis on suggested posts aims to provide a more engaging, personalized experience but has proved controversial among users favoring seeing more friend updates. While Facebook has business incentives to highlight suggestions, users have options like prioritizing friends, snoozing sources, and using lists to take some control. Concerns around data privacy and feed manipulation are understandable but not necessarily inherent issues with suggestions specifically versus Facebook’s practices overall. Ultimately, Facebook will need to find the right balance between suggested and friend posts to satisfy diverse user preferences. But improvements in transparency, choice, and control seem critical to address common complaints moving forward.