A Polite Way to Request Someone's Friendship on Facebook

Add Facebook friends wisely.

The Facebook statistics page boasts more than 800 million active worldwide members of the social networking website. With so many members, it's your choice whether you add friends based on those you know in real life or if you prefer to add strangers with common interests. Whatever your choice, politeness is appreciated by any potential friend you contact on Facebook. By following specific etiquette rules, you extend an invitation to potential friends in a way that increases the chance of adding another member to your Facebook friends list.

Instructions

1. Check your Facebook page and remove anything that could be construed as offensive. Then, adjust your privacy to select how a potential friend views your page. When a person receives a friend request, she might check your page first to see who you are and whether she wants to approve your request. Allow some of your information and profile picture to be seen, so the individual can make a decision.

2. Send friend requests sparingly and think about how adding a specific friend could affect your news feed and other applications and features on Facebook. For instance, requesting the friendship of a large number of people you don't know in real life could increase your invitations and exposure to applications that don't apply to you. If someone knows you personally, you have a better chance at getting your friend request accepted.

3. Introduce yourself politely in the message section of your friend request. Even if you remember an acquaintance well, she might not return the favor. Unless it's a personal friend or family member, don't assume someone knows and remembers you. If you're requesting the friendship of someone you don't know personally or in real life, explain why you wanted to become friends.

4. Send a friend request only once, no matter how long it takes for the person to respond. Once you've sent the request, your friend has an indefinite amount of time to approve, deny or ignore the request. Sending multiple friend requests is annoying to potential friends. While Facebook doesn't notify you when a friend request is denied, expect a negative response if the person takes more than a week or two to respond.

Tips & Warnings

• Decline a friend request politely, should you receive a friend request from someone you don't know or would rather not become friends with on Facebook. Do this by giving a logical reason for denying the request, such as using Facebook for personal use only or being stranger-safe on social networking sites.

• Ignore someone who sends multiple friend requests.

References

• Facebook: Statistics
• Facebook: Adding Friends and Friend Requests