To start I changed my profile picture to the games picture. I got over 100 friends in a day, they give gifts duh and the more the merrier.
That said I have over 300 friends and my game got slow/ boggy. Trying to see if SQ can figure it out soon, or Facebook whoever.
Otherwise another tip that apparently from reading other forums people don't understand is that to get cool gifts like buildings etc... From Alice mike and the other built in friend in the game you have to have a building in progress, with only one item to go to complete, like one last bag of cement or something, anything, don't place the object and finish the building, just leave the item in the received gifts. The game will then gift cool stuff, expensive buildings and whatnot! Because you don't need a gift to complete anything, if no items are in your wish list then they gift common junk like iron beams cement glass tiles etc..
I received several million dollar buildings for free this way and it helps complete quests!!!
Good luck and let me know how you are progressing! Friend me if you would like. Facebook name claytankers