When you’re dating, there’s only one thing that can be more nerve-wracking than introducing your new special someone to your parents — introducing them to your friends.

I consider my friends to be my family, and I’m pretty sure I’m not alone here. In many ways, your friends know more about you than your family does, because they’re the ones who know all of your secrets, have been there for all your crazy times and are privy to the things that few others (including mom, dad, grandma and grandpa) are.

So when it’s time to introduce the new boyfriend/girlfriend to your friends, you want to make sure things go well. And there are a few ways you can ensure that it does.

Make sure you pick the right occasion. I always prefer to introduce new guys to my friends in a casual, social atmosphere, like a party or a night out. It’s the weekend, everyone’s feeling relaxed and is in the mood to socialize, which makes it easier for the new person to get involved in conversations.

This also gives my new guys the opportunity to buy my friends some drinks. I always encourage this because it makes him look generous, and everybody likes a free drink.

It’s also important to pick a night where both of you are in a good mood and/or not fighting. Your friends know how to deal with you in a bad mood, but they won’t know what to do or say with a new person. And even the most laid-back, welcoming group of people won’t like someone who comes off as a jerk on their first meeting. So if it’s a bad-mood night, just reschedule.

As for the issue of when to introduce your new person to your friends, the case can be made for both waiting awhile and doing it right away. Lara Hastings says she prefers her new boyfriends meet her friends in the beginning of the relationship.

“I’d rather have him meet the friends very early on to get feedback from them,” she says.

She’s got a good point there. If you introduce your new boyfriend or girlfriend to your group and they are less than impressed, it’s a red flag you want to pay attention to. Pay attention to that, because you don’t want to get into a situation where your friends don’t like the person you’re dating and vice versa.

Of course, there is some merit to waiting. In can be kind of embarrassing to introduce your friends to someone, only to have the relationship end a few weeks later. Then it’s like “Hey, remember that awesome guy I introduced you all to? Hope you didn’t get too attached, because we broke up.”

The bottom line: Put a little thought in to when, where and how your new significant other meets your friends. A bad first impression could haunt them through the rest of your relationship.