to keep trying to contact old friends even when they don’t respond?

[WindyCoats]

Not sure if this is harassment or what but,

I’ve been trying to contact old friends on social media like Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, but no one has replied yet. It’s been a couple of days under a week now.

While I wonder if they don’t want me to contact them, I also worry that they haven’t seen my messages. Their Facebook profiles haven’t been updated in years (like 2015), their LinkedIn haven’t been updated for months, and Instagram seems to be dying as well (though their profiles are private, people I know who use Instagram have stopped using it). Furthermore, since I’m not actually friends with them on social media, my messages might be going to spam or something similar like that. I don’t use social media myself so my new profiles might be hitting a spam filter too.

Do you think that I should find other methods to get in touch with them? Or should I assume that they don’t want to talk to me?

I am worried about overdoing it, but at the same time there’s no real reason why they wouldn’t want to talk to me.

Bump

If you're contacting the same people on 3 social media accounts and they ignore you on all of them, I suspect they don't want to talk to you.

Why are you trying to get in touch?

I don't really 'do' social media - but I assume if they haven't posted on FB since 2015 then they aren't bothering go on it any longer and won't have seen any messages.

I have a FB account that I never look at. I don't think I've posted anything for years. I don't have the other SM accounts.

I would leave it if you messaged. Maybe they old profiles so they not online maybe

Is there a reason you are trying to get in touch? If yes, try to find other ways of getting in touch.

A few days is very short. Many people don’t check Iinkedin unless they’re job hunting. Even if people are regularly on Facebook /instagram they might not realise there is a message waiting for them. I am a regular fb checker but once discovered a message that had been written 3 years previous.

So, if it’s just a wild urge to reach out to see how random people from the past are doing, give it time. If there is an important reason that you’re trying to get in touch, find other ways of contacting them.

If you're not actually friends with them on Facebook & Instagram then it's likely they won't be alerted to your messages. Try adding them :)

A couple of days isn't long and they don't sound active on SM so it's not harassment but I would leave these channels now.

Is it just to get back in touch or about something important?

If not urgent then I think leave it, they may check their messages eventually. If important, try another way of contacting them (do you have postal addresses, early Christmas card?)

Oh yes, add them if you've only messaged

I only really do Facebook and Instagram (but more of a lurker) I have a setting on Facebook where if someone I'm not friends with messages me, it comes through as a message request rather than a message that I can open and read. Maybe they're the same?