I recently wrote about how Facebook was losing users, and one factor was its "take a selfie" program, supposedly to get rid of bots and fake users. And now there's another problem – advertisers who place ads, have their ads declined, and then they don't get back their money. 

       In the case of the self-program, the problem is that the program is getting rid of thousands of legitimate users. In the program, you take a selfie by positioning your head in a circle on the screen and moving your head up, down, right, and left in response to randomized arrows to prove you are a real person. Even though I tried do so over a dozen times, each time I was required to retake the video and finally gave up. Later, I learned that the program doesn't work very well, resulting in many users like myself being unable to prove themselves to the program or appeal to a real human to explain who they are.

       Plus I just learned that many advertisers pay money for ads, but then the ad isn't approved and they don't get back their money.  As one Facebook user, Phil Green, in the health care field told me: "Facebook allowed me to deposit $1,000 into my advertising account, but then disapproved my business website—effectively blocking me from using the funds I had already committed. Despite multiple attempts to resolve the issue, there's no accessible customer service channel to speak with a real person or get meaningful support. The platform's automated systems offer no explanation or path forward, leaving my account funded but unusable, and my business stalled without recourse."

       In my on case, after I lost my personal account by not being able to provide an acceptable selfie, I reactivated a business account I hadn't used in 5 years, began posting on it, and invited people I knew or suggested to me by Facebook. But one day, after I invited someone Facebook recommended who had two friends I knew, I got a message that I couldn't use this feature now. A few minutes later, I got a notice that my account was suspended for improper activities against community standards.

Say what? I was only inviting people that Facebook suggested. Then, that experience led me to do some research about Facebook, its selfie program, and its practice of deleting accounts of individuals who found it practically impossible to appeal the process.

       So all those problems, I realized, contributed to Facebook's declining audience, along with many former users, especially younger users, leaving it for other social media platforms.

       Ironically, after deleting my accounts, Facebook sent me a notice about how it was personalizing accounts and ads. As Facebook explained, personalizing your experiences includes suggesting content like posts you may find interesting and reels to watch, along with showing ads more relevant to you.  

            In short, the more I learned about Facebook, the more I recognized different reasons why it was declining in popularity. It was becoming less and less relevant for many people, so they were dropping out at the same time that Facebook was deleting its legitimate users with its selfie program that didn't work very well and decision to suddenly disable accounts. And even legitimate advertisers were declined but then didn't get back their money.

           But on the bright side, leaving Facebook has led me to become even more active in the social media spaces where I already have accounts or plan to set up new accounts on especially popular sites like Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and X.

          Read the full article on Substack at https://gini.substack.com/p/facebooks-declining-audience-losing 

           For more information and to set up interviews, contact ALB Games at the information below.

Karen Andrews

Executive Assistant

Changemakers Publishing and Writing

San Ramon, CA 94583

925) 804–6333

changemakerspub@att.net

www.changemakerspublishingandwriting.com

Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D. is the author of over 50 books with major publishers and has published 200 books through her company Changemakers Publishing and Writing (http://www.changemakerspublishingandwriting.com). She writes books, proposals, and film scripts for clients, and has written and produced 18 feature films and documentaries, including Conned: A True Story and Con Artists Unveiled¸ distributed by Gravitas Ventures. (http://www.changemakersproductionsfilms.com). Her latest books include Ghost Story and How to Find and Work with a Good Ghostwriter published by Waterside Productions; and The Big Con and I Was Scammed, published by American Leadership Press.