Sunday, August 22, 2010

Another FaceBook foible

As some of you know, I enjoy an occasional rant about FaceBookers who go on and on about their pregnancies or kids.

I have a new one tonight that makes me think Big Brother is definitely watching me. A few weeks ago, one of the ads on the side of my page was for an infertility clinic. I do not have anything about my lack of fertility anywhere on my FaceBook page, so I'm wondering how this popped up. I'm pretty sure that it wasn't a coincidence.

Maybe it's because I don't post pics of my kids or rattle on about how much formula my kid has ingested over a 24-hour period (yes, this is a real post from one of my "friends" today).

In any case, it's quite curious to me how the ad found its way to my page.

Have any of you had this happen before?

14 comments:

  1. OMG I have that happen ALL.THE.TIME. I have baby ads and infertility ads on that damn thing on the side bar every frickin' time I get on there. How does Facebook DO that?? There's got to be something fishy going on. I don't know how cookies work (computer cookies, that is) but I wonder if that's got something to do with it.

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  2. It hasn't happened to me, but then again, I've still managed to avoid having a page on facebook! It could have been a coincidence, or not -- I'm not sure which!

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  3. YES! and i hate it. our 2nd RE had a facebook page and encouraged us to become his friends. i said no thank you. also cannot stand all those ridiculous baby updates, but i wonder if i'll do the same once our little one comes home from korea (we are adopting)...i hope not!
    happy iclw!

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  4. Yes, I have had that happen to me. I usually click the X and it gives me options as to why I don't like the ad. I always click 'offensive'. I have outted myself about my infertility on my wall, but that was in April and I still get IVF, Get Pregnant naturally, and Baby Picture ads on my profile page.

    I'm sorry your newsfeed is getting hyjacked by mombies.

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  5. I will admit, I actually have had IF stuff on my FB page, so I don't think I am any help... BUT... I always get pregnancy/baby/kid crap on my ads. It kind of pisses me off.

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  6. The same thing happened to me and I have never mentioned my infertility on FB. I'm not an internet wizard, but I wonder if it tracks what I search on Google and decides from there what to advertise. It's a bit alarming.

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  7. I can totally agree with this post - I too have friends on FB that talk about nothing but their children . . . ever. I also get infertility ads on my FB page - have you joined any FB pages to do with infertility? That would tip them off . . .

    ICLW#10

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  8. Oh and forgot to say thank you for visiting my blog! :-)

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  9. I have had infertility adds on my facebook, but I have "come out" on facebook a few times so I think that is why. Did anyone comment on my posts............NOPE!

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  10. Here from ICLW. I started getting lots of Infertility ads on FB right after I became a fan of Resolve. There's nothing else in my profile about infertility (except maybe my age being over 35). I look at it this way: at least it's better than the breastfeeding ads I was getting before.

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  11. Yes, almost every time I sign in! I am wondering if they can tell from my gmail address somehow...

    Happy ICLW!
    -Jess (#74)

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  12. Yes, happened to me, but I put that it was offensive and haven't seen them much anymore...I do talk about my IF on there though...guess that doesn't have anything to do with it...
    Happy ICLW

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  13. I get a lot of "overcome infertility" ads, but I have posted article links about infertility, so they really aren't a surprise.

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  14. No, but do you log into facebook and then search the Internet? I was listening to an episode of Fresh Air the other day, and they were talking to a woman who wrote a book about third-party agencies who buy up demographic information on people searching for certain things and then follow them around the Internet with ads for that exact thing for months. Maybe you did a search in Google while logged into Facebook and it tracked you. I was trying to find the broadcast from Fresh Air but couldn't find it. I always log out of my Facebook before browsing because that exact reason. It's just creepy.

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