Facebook Event Invitations - Unsubscribe Option?
Are you tired of the incessant irrelevant Event invitations on Facebook? I certainly get my fair share on a daily basis. However, when the tables are turned and I’m hosting my own Event… it sure can get tricky. Facebook’s current features don’t make it all that easy to manage larger networks of friends in terms of who to invite.
I run a Facebook Event about once every 3-4 weeks. I do my utmost to keep the Invitee emails to a bare minimum. I appreciate these messages can be intrusive as all of a sudden you start receiving emails from someone you may not have a relationship with… yet.
As far as who to invite, well, you can only invite in batches of 100. When you click the “Invite People To Come” link, Facebook displays a somewhat abridged version of your Facebook friends and you need to keep going back in to invite groups of 100.
With a major event that I believe brings extraordinary value to my entire network, I have no qualms about inviting 90% of my Facebook friends. (The 10% are immediate family members like my mom! She reads my tweets and follows my Facebook activities, but doesn’t need to attend my events).
So, I just completed a successful event with my mentor, Kevin Nations and his Ultimate Step-by-Step Profit System. The feedback leading up to, during and after the call was astoundingly positive. It warmed my heart.
Yet, my heart sank a bit when I received this email from one of my Facebook friends, social media expert, Dan York:
With all due respect to Dan, I’m sure he doesn’t know if he had just RSVP’d NO or clicked the Remove from My Events link, he would not receive any further emails.
Dan York writes many blogs such as Disruptive Conversations - “PR/communication and the ’social media’ of blogs, podcasts, wikis and virtual worlds - and the way our conversations are changing…”
I’m sure Dan is a super guy with good intentions. For me, it’s just easier to hit the delete button on incoming emails than ask to be removed… especially given I consider myself an influencer.
I wrote a pleasant note back to Dan:
… and toyed with whether I should just unfriend Dan as maybe we’re not a good match for professional networking buds. I know this is a dilemma shared by many. So here are two solutions I’ve come up with:
Solution for Incoming Event Invitations
Until Facebook comes up with a better way to manage incoming Event invitations, from your Requests page, just click the “No” button or the “Remove from my Events” link. (Actually, if you click Remove from my Events, it’s possible you could receive another invite from the same friend for the same Event, so better to just say NO!).
Event organizers can only message invitees who have RSVPd Yes, Maybe, or have not yet responded:
Or, if someone keeps sending you inappropriate and irrelevant Event invites and you’re finding this person is not a match for your network, go ahead and Remove as a Friend (click the link at the bottom of their Profile).
Solution for Sending Invitations as an Event Organizer
Use the Friend Lists feature to create a “DO NOT INVITE” list, then add those Facebook friends who have expressed a desire to not receive your invites. 
Just be sure to refer to the list when sending your invites!
As I wrote about on My Facebook Features Wish List, I’d really like to see an “Ignore all Event Invites From This Friend” feature added just as there is with Application Invites. Or perhaps an “Opt Out” link like the one for Page Updates. Because, for the most part, I’m happy to keep most all of my Facebook friends in my network… I just don’t necessarily wish to receive all their Event Invites!
What do you think? Are you tired of the non-stop barrage of weird and wacky event invites? Are you running your own Facebook Events with success? Do you have a “Remove” policy?
Make A Comment: ( 23 so far )
23 Responses to “Facebook Event Invitations - Unsubscribe Option?”
Pat Williams
July 16th, 2008
Hi Mari,
You brought up some great points. There are so many events happening everyday in FB… it can get overwhelming.
The “remove from events option” reminds me of the spam button in emails. I often wonder how many hit spam instead of delete.
I developed a list of FB peeps that whenever they hold an event I attend. (of course u r on that list). I’m learning something and I want to show support. When I see someone from this small group hosting an event, it’s a no brainer on attending.
When developing a new relationship, attending their event can assist further growing the relationship or determining if it’s worth pursuing.
Unless the title really catches my attention or curiosity, the rest I decline.
I like your policy of one event every 3 or 4 weeks… it brings up one of the points in your call with Kevin yesterday… scarcity of access to you.
Ann Rusnak
“The Time Diva”
Ann Rusnak ~ The Time Diva
July 16th, 2008
Why Facebook needs an “unsubscribe” or “block event invitations”… …
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way you could easily ignore/block event invitations from a specific person? Today, Mari Smith directly involves me in a piece on her blog called ” Facebook Event Invitations - Unsubscribe Option?” that…
Disruptive Conversations
July 16th, 2008
You have made a very good point the feature needed for all facebook users I have not done any events but slowly I am learning how to use facebook by reading your blogs.
Govindji Patel
Govindji Patel
July 16th, 2008
Mari - thanks for sharing - actually I know of you both and both of you deliver great content.
I actually use the ‘remove from my event’ function, but I have to say that I have never used the events function in Facebook as I don’t want to be seen an annoyance to people as i know some of my connections in Facebook are ‘weak’ vesus those in LinkedIn. My blog and my newsletter is where I focus my sharing of events as I know people are there as they have opted in to access the information I share.
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Krishna De
July 16th, 2008
I find mostly that I feel bad when I receive an event that I can’t attend. I get gallery invites from all over the world and feel guilty saying no! but even then it’s no problem. I’d rather get the invites and know what was going on and have the option - even if I can’t make it. it takes nothing to hit no and to type a quick message, and having run events of my own I know how nice it is to get those little messages and solid numbers - even if the answer is no!
with my most recent event I decided to invite everyone, even those who aren’t local because you never know! -they might recommend it to someone else who has a family member who is local or may be attending a conference, or perhaps they just want to know what’s happening, Like I do. If someone wants to be removed I will probably take your advice. but so far I’ve had no complaints.
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Jennie Rosenbaum
July 17th, 2008
Hi Mari,
You’re exactly right about this being a delicate situation. I haven’t had it too bad with the event invites but the group and application invites have swamped me from time to time - and I personally found it easier to unfriend the two people that sent me 99% of my useless application requests than bother sending a note or trying to figure out how to block the notices. I wonder if others do this if they get too many event invites.
Facebook is a great and interesting tool, but I agree that it’s hard to manage a large list of friends (and my friend list is pretty small compared to most people).
Very few tools have this ability - mybloglog is a classic example.
Keep up the great work,
James
James
July 20th, 2008
@James
There are two very good options related to blocking applications.
1. Simply block the applications, inorder to avoid multiple invites; and
2. Click the option, Ignore invites from “particular person”
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Yash
July 29th, 2008
Unfortunately not all event invites come from friends. I often get invited to events from people I have never heard of, and I’m tired of it. The latest one actually says “add as a friend” under the email. It takes too much time out of my day to clean up these events and emails. I don’t always have the time to go and remove the event from my calendar. If Facebook won’t give me a way to ignore all invites and app requests, they should, at the very least, not assume that ignoring it means that I want more emails about it!
Joe Clay
March 23rd, 2009
Effin YES! “Ignore all Event Invites From This Friend” feature should have been added to EVENT invites BEFORE it was added to application invites!! As the stupid social networking gurus are using it now days to campaign for clubs and bars in downtown areas. A person, who happens to be a relatively distant friend of mine(say an old high school buddy) gets hired into a promotional group, makes 10+ profiles and starts sending event invites from them all including his main one for friends. He/she will keep trying to add the same friends to his/her promotional accounts. This is annoying and gay. Some homo named Xavier Alexander in the charlotte area set the precedent with 18 different accounts including names like Theoneandonly Alexandre, Xavier fanclub, & Hisroyalfreshness Xavier. I didn’t accept these additional friends and I removed his original account from my friends, but now other friends are following suit for promotional activities.
Jd
March 27th, 2009
I agree with all that except I’m now receiving invites fri events I don’t want to attend from people I’m not even friends with and therefore I don’t have any options. Can’t delete them or ignore them or anything. I’ve heard FB is changing options on their page and I hope this is one they find a solution for
Graeme
March 28th, 2009
My god, would I ever love this option. Facebook HAD it for a month or two, then GOT RID OF IT… Grrr!
Ryan
May 27th, 2009
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My Facebook feature wish list includes the ability to opt out of all events that don’t take place within your geographic network.
Over 90% of my Facebook friends live at least 3000km from me, and as a consequence I’m invited to dozens of events each week I can’t realistically attend. So I typically end up ignoring the event invites for days or weeks at a time, and occasionally miss one that actually takes place in my city.
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Rob Maguire
May 28th, 2009
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It is pretty easy to hit the delete button or so say no, but not if it’s a lot of events. I’d rather spend my time on facebook actually networking, than just declining invitations. But on the other hand, ignoring it all is pretty easy and so it turning off email notifications for invites.
If something is going to be truly useful, I’m sure I’ll hear about it.
I also check out events my friends are attending, and that’s an easier filter than dealing with spamtastic event invites.
Another point though, is that many invites are just blanket general ones. Yes, some are useful, but others are irrelevant. For instance, I have left/right wing friends. Prop 8 and the elections are what drove me to turn off email notifications.
Sharlene
July 11th, 2009
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I think Mari Smith is wrong and Dan York is absolutely right. The only two ways to stop receiving invites from a specific person is either to send a courteous, professional note asking to be removed, or to unfriend that person.
Someone who maintains a blog about social networking should have better ethics or professional courtesy than to vindictively name a person (with photo!) on a blog post for an imagined effrontery.
Henry Linklater
July 13th, 2009
Henry, you clearly aren’t using Facebook for networking. I have somewhere around 1000 “friends” on Facebook at the moment, most of them models or other fashion industry professionals. Unfortunately, many many models also do club/promotional work as well as their modeling, so I generally get invited to 100+ club events every week. These girls aren’t inviting me specifically, they’re inviting *every single person on their friends list*. And while I *do* wish to keep them on my friends list for networking purposes, it’s frustrating to be invited to all these events. My solution was to install the “One-click quiz blocker” bookmarklet. That way I just go to my events page once a day, and click that bookmarklet, and voila all of my invites are marked as “not attending” - which also prevents the event organizers from sending me stupid messages about their events too.
Ryan
July 17th, 2009
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This feature is greatly needed. I like being notified of event invites right away, so I have it set to send me an email when I get an invite, which in turn forwards to my cell phone. Unfortunetly I have a friend on facebook whos a club promotor, and I get invites all the time, at wierd hours like 1:00AM on a weeknight and it wakes me up. I could remove this friend, but we went to grade school together. I want him on my list for that reason, not to be one of his other 2000 friends which are just people met for a second at a club or something.
A block all invites from a person” option would be the greatest.
Mike
July 23rd, 2009
This is a rather longwinded article and all I want to do is unsubscribe from Facebook. I do not want to get any items. Do I have to contact the entire world to get each person to “KNOCK IT OFF”???
Ted
July 27th, 2009
I keep getting event invitations from someone who is not my friend and the events are usually in NYC, where I don’t plan to go to soon. I blocked her, but that doesn’t do anything and deleting the event is what I’ve been doing, but I don’t want to have to do that in the first place! I suppose sending a message is my only option since I have no clue why I am on the invite list..
Jenny
November 12th, 2009
I’m sick of facebook and want to unsubscribe entirely. So far is impossible to do this. Can someone please help me do this?
Barnaby Conrad
December 12th, 2009
I would like an “Ignore all invites altogether - yes ALL” option.
If it doesn’t materialise in the next 6 months, I’m going to stop using Facebook. It has networking benefits for sure, but the sheer amount of crap people try to send you is awful.
Chris Blizzard
December 13th, 2009
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Hell yeah! I got about 20 different invitations a day. Everybody’s throwing parties. Some times I get flyers multiple times a day.
Q
January 18th, 2010
I’m with you Mari, I find it easy to just delete them. I’ve always felt that if you accept a friendship on Facebook, then you are interested in their life & events. If you are facebooking for business, it should be reciprocal. You came up with some great solutions… now if you could come up with a way to get my friends to stop sending me stupid zombie apps. I’d happily accept your event invitations over those any day!
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