Surprise, Surprise

If you’ve checked out Facebook at all in the last few days, and since there are now more than 500 million users, chances are you may have) you know that Facebook rolled out some changes to the format that have created some excitement in the cyber world. However, it seems that excitement is mostly users rejecting the latest changes as unnecessary. The mantra around most Facebook walls seems to be “If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.

Competition

The recent launch of Google+ is surely some of the motivation for these changes, and more that will be coming quickly. Facebook must view Google’s social networking site as real competition, especially now that it has surpassed the 25 million mark for users in just a few months. Unlike the thousands of other social sites that have been around for years but failed to gain any ground, the internet behemoth itself created Google+. One funny fact is that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is the top user on Google+, even above Google’s Larry Page. That has to make you wonder what the future holds.

Yesterday’s morning surprise for users when they logged in was that everything was moved around, nothing was easy to find, and it was not quick and simple to get answers on any of it. Most users have come to embrace previous Facebook changes, but this is the most radical by far. Springing sweeping changes on users without warning, and without explaining adequately how to navigate the new platform, are horrible customer service plays.  Yes, Facebook is free to use. However, Facebook makes money based on the number of users it has and its ability to engage people on the site. Hamper those two things, which these changes certainly have, and your profit shrinks.

NewsFeed

The biggest issue people seem to have is the Newsfeed. Facebook says it is like the front page of your newspaper, and that they are sorting things for you depending on your usage. They say they are offering more of what you are looking for at the top of the feed. For the 175 million or so users who log in daily, Recent News should be up top with a little blue tag in the corner of all stories that are new. There is also a scrolling ticker on the right side that shows recent activity of all your friends.

More Changes

A few other changes made by Facebook recently have slipped by without much discussion or ire:

  • Business Page owners will no longer have the ability to message their fans as of September 30th.
  • There is no minimum number of fans for a custom URL for your page anymore. (Previously, you needed 25 fans.)
  • They have added list capabilities that mimic Google+ Circles. You can sort your Facebook friends any way you want.
  • There is now a View Shares button, so you can see where content is going around Facebook.
  • At first glance, it seems the Poke button is gone…but it is just hiding. Go to the dropdown menu at the top of your profile to Poke people.
  • The one hit seems to be the new and larger pictures!

Love it or hate it, it seems this new layout is here to stay. Additional rumors abound on coming changes: a social commerce focus, a Facebook app store, and partnerships with music and media platforms to bring content from around the web into the Facebook fold. We can only wait and see what Facebook future holds. One thing is for sure—they will surprise us with it!

Author: Denise Gabbard has been writing all her life and blogging for the last five years. She writes on a wide range of topics, from travel to Twitter, farms to Facebook, and drama to drink driving insurance.