Facebook is manipulating you

At first you were probably not happy with the most recent, major changes at Facebook.
You noticed the new changes at Facebook adding a news scroll, which is either irritating or super helpful to you. You probably also noticed other changes where Facebook is saying "recent updates," which brings you to the most up to date comments made by your friends. Although, super helpful, I'm finding it annoying to see my own post still there hours later.
But I've discovered something about Facebook that you may have already figured out. Facebook is manipulating you.

 I've been saying all along that being on Facebook is like being at a party. You wander around engaging in conversations, perhaps staying at one that is interesting, looking at other comments making a few comments, and then you see others that are uninteresting.

What you may have noticed is that Facebook has mixed things up. Your party has been mixed up. It's similar to a person in charge of the party suddenly making an announcement of, "Okay everyone, you have to walk over to the next group and start a conversation." Even though, you may be comfortable with your old group, finding interesting things to say, the party designer, this being Facebook, has suddenly changed the game plan.

You must have noticed by now, unless you don't go on Facebook very often, that your comfortable group of friends are suddenly gone. You have to search for them. People you don't talk to as often as others have been pushed to the forefront, and you are now seeing their comments more often. You are not seeing your comfortable group of friend's comments anymore.

You are being manipulated by Facebook.You are being forced to talk to people you didn't talk to much before. You are therefore searching for your older friends. Did you notice this one----you have been unintentionally making new friends?

You are being manipulated by Facebook.

Facebook is pushing people to make new friends, to mix it up. You are being led to change your lists of friends, relatives, and to making new friends. This leads this social network into eventually obtaining one of it's ultimate goals-----gaining one billion users. Then they can brag to potential clients that they are the biggest online social networking site.

Facebook is banking on you staying right where you are. Facebook is manipulating you into making many more new friends, reading the side news scroll thingee, and buying the products advertised on the side. Facebook has also added more ads. They look like regular posts , but are paid for ads, asking you to LIKE them. Facebook also wants you to pay to promote your posts. You will be asked to pay from a dollar to ten dollars to promote your posts. Don't hit that promote prompt that's all. Oh yeah, and you will be asked to buy your friends gifts when you try to say happy birthday.

With the irritating news scroll taking place on the side, you will find your eyes wandering over to the right side, reading what your friends are doing. Facebook wants you to stay on for as long as possible, using up your valuable daily time looking at what your friends say, and using Facebook more often, They are counting on you staying at the party. Copyright(c) 2013, written by Kate Johns, a freelance author since 2004.