Facebook has now introduced the new "Memories" section, which takes users to a quick nostalgia trip by showing them old photos, posts, videos, and other content shared previously.
The new section is essentially an expansion of the "On This Day" feature, which allows users to look back on posts and interactions made years and years ago. That means the content that appears in Memories isn't particularly new, it just now has its own section on the site for much easier access.
Facebook Has A New 'Memories' Section
Included in Memories is the "Friends Made on this Day" feature, which lets users see the friends they added on Facebook on this same day in the past. There are also special "friendversaries" videos that commemorate the day two people officially became Facebook friends. Some might have already seen these videos — they appear constantly in the news feed, often made up of photo collages and set to upbeat music.
There's also "Memories You May Have Missed," a collection of posts the user might have overlooked; and "Recaps of Memories," seasonal or monthly recaps in short video form ready to be shared. Facebook first introduced these recaps just over a year ago in an attempt to encourage more personal sharing on the site, which has seen a decline in terms of organic sharing, as TechCrunch notes.
"[R]esearch suggests this kind of reflection can have a positive impact on people's mood and overall well-being. This is why we're updating the experience to ensure all of your memories are easy to find," Facebook product manager Oren Hod writes in a blog post.
"We know that memories are deeply personal — and they're not all positive. We try to listen to feedback and design these features so that they're thoughtful and offer people the right controls that are easy to access."
Facebook Wants People To Share Personal Stuff More Often
Facebook has been trying various things to make people share more personal stuff on the site. It introduced colored backgrounds, for instance, which adds flair to otherwise bland-looking text posts, and it also rolled out GIF support in comments, which makes public threads richer and more dynamic.
But the problem is a huge amount of people aren't as willing to share these days, given that there are a number of social media channels they can go to instead, such as Snapchat or Instagram, the latter of which Facebook owns. It also doesn't help that the company's image has been tarnished, largely because of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which made many people cautious of sharing intimate data on Facebook.
Do you find yourself less willing to post personal stuff on Facebook these days? What made you more apprehensive? As always, if you have anything to share, feel free to sound them off in the comments section below!
