So, you’ve decided to join a dating website. You’re hoping someone out there will find something interesting about you and try to get to know you better.

Many members worry about appearing ‘desperate’ or over keen. This can mean putting in less effort into a profile in a bid to ‘play it cool’. Of course, nobody wishes to be seen as desperate. However, keep this in mind: how will others know what you want, if you don’t ask for it? How will they ever appreciate your finer qualities if you remain tightlipped?

Therefore, to be successful in the online dating world, your profile is highly important. Members search through a large number of profiles on these sites. If there is little information about a prospective date, then they are more than likely to skim over an empty profile as quickly as possible. Look at this as a great chance to sell yourself!

The first aspect of your profile to consider should be your photo. No matter how much emphasis people put on the importance of personality, the old expression, ‘it’s nice to put a face to a name’ couldn’t be more apt.

Physical appearance plays a big part in the real world, when first becoming attracted to someone. Also, it helps to ensure that people will remember you. The golden rule when posting photos on dating sites is obvious - BE HONEST. We’ve all heard stories of people who’ve posted a photo that is ten or twenty years old. Or worse still, a photo of someone else entirely! Now, if you never intend to meet someone, then this is not a problem. But let’s be realistic - you wouldn’t be on a dating site if you weren’t hoping to meet someone!

A misleading photo causes all sorts of unnecessary problems on a first date. You will have your date questioning your honesty. You want to turn up for dates relaxed, with your best attitude put forward. Still not convinced? Just think how you would feel, if you were deceived by a photo, and that should be incentive enough for you to be accurate.

So what if you’ve gained a few pounds? Aged a bit? Give yourself some credit, you’re still a beautiful person, and sure to be someone’s ideal ‘type’. So, try to get a recent photo of yourself, looking the best you can. Avoid shots that are so dark or distant that no one can see your face. People will only see either an insecure person, or someone who has something to hide and move on. Just think how frustrated and disinterested you’d be if you came across such a picture.

Let’s talk about location. How much information is right? Obviously, for safety reasons you aren’t going to put your address into your profile. Apart from this, put as much detail as you feel comfortable with. At least, put the state you live in. at most, your suburb. Anything in between (such as the city your suburb is located in) is also fine. We all know this, but it bears repeating, do not put your phone number on any public site.

It will save everyone a great deal of time if you are open and honest about your sexual preference.

Talk about your interests and hobbies. Don’t just leave it blank! And don’t worry if they don’t seem interesting enough. This is who you are. If you are honest and forthcoming with this information, you will be more likely to attract the type of person you are after. For example, if you were the district running champion in high school, but never intend to run again, don’t put it in as a hobby! To put in hobbies you have no interest in, in the hope of appearing more impressive, will only attract people you have nothing in common with in the here and now.

So, if you like quiet nights in, say so! Try to paint a rich and detailed picture of what the real you likes to do.

You also really need to share a part of your personality with your audience. What are your beliefs? What are you looking for in a person? Also, if you feel you have special qualities such as a sense of humour or kind nature, try to write your profile in a way that sincerely reflects that.

You are now ready to make your first attempt at creating a winning profile! Remember, you just need to keep it honest and current. You need to show you’ve made some level of effort to let members know who the real you is. And when in doubt, remind yourself: give the sort of information you yourself would be wanting to know about when looking at other members. Good luck!

Sharon is the owner of the free dating site, http://www.unlocklove.com

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Dating Online is currently the Internets biggest craze, and its here to stay! But does it actually work?

I mean, there are tons of Dating websites, but their success with matchmaking is kept rather low key, and I found out why.

When I was searching for Online dating websites, I felt that I couldn’t trust many of the companies and that they were just trying to get money out of me. After many hours of research I was exhausted by the idea of Online Dating, it just seemed more hassle than what it was worth, but I was determined to see it through.

A lot of websites that I researched were either free or had rock bottom membership fees, and I found that these were the worst to go to, bar a few exceptions. Eventually I found a handful of websites that I could trust and were worth the money that they were charging, but it just took so long to find these trust-worthy sites.

So I signed up and begrudgingly paid the membership fee. One of the most important aspects I learnt early on is that your personal profile that you place on the dating website should be immaculate! By this I mean spend time modifying and perfecting your profile, as this is what counts the most! The last thing you want is to be receiving messages from other adults who are just not right for you, its better to make contact with another adult who is very similar to yourself, than to make contact with 10 adults who only share a few similarities.

Eventually I started meeting other people who were very compatible to myself, and as a result have made 2 great friends who are now a major part in my life and have been going out with my long-term girlfriend for over a year (I’m planning a trip to New York at Christmas, so that I can propose to her!)

Online Dating has worked wonders for me, even though it’s taken time to get their, and I Strongly believe that if you spent time looking for the right Dating website, that’s suits you and your needs then you will also have similar success. This thought gave me a brainwave.

I thought how great it would be if their was a website that had a list of all the best Dating websites, that listed these trustworthy companies, so that the biggest hassle is taken away and you can start meeting and communicating with other adults, without having to waste time looking for the best companies. So that’s what I did. I designed a website that was split into sections for American Singles, Gay personals, Jewish Singles and Christian Dating, with the best dating websites for each category.

It is full of information about Online Dating, with reviews of every Dating website and loads of interesting, related articles. There is also help on the best way of writing your personal profile.

Best of luck!!

Adrian Knight is author of many articles related to Online Dating. He writes truthfully from his own experience of dating Online and has built his website http://www.a1-romance.com to help others avoid the same sticky situations he got himself in.

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Online dating is a great way to contact and meet new people. Either for free or for a small fee you can have access to thousands of singles looking for love.

However it is an unfortunate fact that whilst the vast majority of people using these services are decent law abiding citizens looking for love there are those that seek to exploit the vulnerabiltiy of singles online.

A common trick comes from African or Eastern European nationals who e-mail users with tales of family deaths, large inheritences and if only they could get across to the UK if you pay them some money they would share this money with you. They often ask for your private e-mail address for “privacy” purposes.

Of course this is a scam pure and simple, yet some users may be caught out and it is important to learn to identify these scams.

Tips

Firstly do not be fooled by their profile details - their sign up information may say they are from the UK, United States etc.. but this does not mean they are. More often than not they are sitting in an internet cafe in Africa.

Secondly check for language and spelling - broken English is often a good sign of a scam.

Thirdly do they seem overly interested in you - remember if it is too good to be true it usually is

Fourthly are they requesting personal details. Often these scammers will request your e-mail address for “security” reasons.

How do I protect myself

NEVER give out personal details, even an e-mail address unless you know the person. Nearly all online dating sites offer a secure internal e-mail system whereby you can chat to users without revealing any of your personal details.

If you do suspect a member is attempting to commit a crime then report them to the dating site administrator who will take the neccessary action against the offender. If you are sure it is a scam then also report the user to their ISP who may then disable their e-mail.

Remember despite this the majority of users of online dating services are genuwine decent people. A bit of caution however could stop you getting caught out.

This article was written by Marc Newman owner and webmaster of the UK Dating service Love2flirt. If you are single and are from the UK then please visit us below

http://www.love2flirt.co.uk

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