Online dating services are far from new.
Many people now use social media services in their place, but these do not suit everybody.
If you tend to shy away from social media services but you are still seeking social contact, online dating services may meet your requirement.
As with any goal, you should plan how you are going to achieve it.
How do people succeed in the world of online dating? Do they spend about five minutes writing a profile, then sit back and wait for all the potential suitors to contact them? Sadly, life is not like that.
You will need to spend time on your profile to get the best results, or possibly, any result at all.
It is worth investing time to get this stage right.
After all, you could end up meeting somebody with whom you may share a good proportion of the rest of your life.
Don't sell yourself short at this stage! Online dating services tend to ask for a description of yourself and the type of person you are looking for.
It can be very difficult to write a compelling description.
You are essentially selling yourself in this description.
At a minimum, the spelling should be correct.
Good grammar should be used, although it is not essential to avoid finer points such as split infinitives.
Ideally, your description should flow like a conversation with a good friend.
Get your friends to critique your description.
Ask them to do it honestly.
Assure them that they will not hurt your feelings.
Stress to them the importance of this; if they do not honestly tell you what they think of your description, you run the risk of wasting lots of time and money on a profile that just doesn't cut it.
Make whatever changes are suggested that seem reasonable to you, and then get them to look over it again.
If you struggle with writing, there are people who provide professional profile-writing services.
Although costly, they are likely to be worth the investment, as they have usually developed knowledge of what works well.
Ask to see some examples of their work before engaging anybody to do this work for you, and ask how they work.
Somebody who will telephone you and have a chat with you to get the information they need is likely to provide you with a better description than a service provider who simply takes what you have entered into an online form and spins that into a description.
You will need a good photograph.
That photograph should preferably be a good quality photograph that looks as if it was taken by a professional photographer.
(Of course, it need not be taken by a professional; if you explore that avenue then check that you have the necessary copyright permission to use the pictures taken on dating services.
) You then have the basics covered.
Additional photographs are worth using if you have them, especially if they show you while you do your hobbies.
For example, the author of this article is a private pilot, a martial artist and a musician, so one picture showing him engaging in each of those activities would serve him well.
Some dating services are paid, and others free.
Take heed of reviews on the net to decide which ones to use.
Be aware that many services allow you to post a profile for free, but not send any messages.
They do this to increase the number of profiles that they can advertise they have on their site, but if you use a service like that, you need to be aware that many messages you send out will probably not get a reply.
Finally, consider whether online dating is the only avenue you should explore.
If you have the time, it might be worth exploring other avenues at the same time.
Have you considered trying something new, such as dancing, speed dating, ice skating, and similar pursuits in which you are likely to meet people? Even if you don't, the activity may be enjoyable in itself.
Many people now use social media services in their place, but these do not suit everybody.
If you tend to shy away from social media services but you are still seeking social contact, online dating services may meet your requirement.
As with any goal, you should plan how you are going to achieve it.
How do people succeed in the world of online dating? Do they spend about five minutes writing a profile, then sit back and wait for all the potential suitors to contact them? Sadly, life is not like that.
You will need to spend time on your profile to get the best results, or possibly, any result at all.
It is worth investing time to get this stage right.
After all, you could end up meeting somebody with whom you may share a good proportion of the rest of your life.
Don't sell yourself short at this stage! Online dating services tend to ask for a description of yourself and the type of person you are looking for.
It can be very difficult to write a compelling description.
You are essentially selling yourself in this description.
At a minimum, the spelling should be correct.
Good grammar should be used, although it is not essential to avoid finer points such as split infinitives.
Ideally, your description should flow like a conversation with a good friend.
Get your friends to critique your description.
Ask them to do it honestly.
Assure them that they will not hurt your feelings.
Stress to them the importance of this; if they do not honestly tell you what they think of your description, you run the risk of wasting lots of time and money on a profile that just doesn't cut it.
Make whatever changes are suggested that seem reasonable to you, and then get them to look over it again.
If you struggle with writing, there are people who provide professional profile-writing services.
Although costly, they are likely to be worth the investment, as they have usually developed knowledge of what works well.
Ask to see some examples of their work before engaging anybody to do this work for you, and ask how they work.
Somebody who will telephone you and have a chat with you to get the information they need is likely to provide you with a better description than a service provider who simply takes what you have entered into an online form and spins that into a description.
You will need a good photograph.
That photograph should preferably be a good quality photograph that looks as if it was taken by a professional photographer.
(Of course, it need not be taken by a professional; if you explore that avenue then check that you have the necessary copyright permission to use the pictures taken on dating services.
) You then have the basics covered.
Additional photographs are worth using if you have them, especially if they show you while you do your hobbies.
For example, the author of this article is a private pilot, a martial artist and a musician, so one picture showing him engaging in each of those activities would serve him well.
Some dating services are paid, and others free.
Take heed of reviews on the net to decide which ones to use.
Be aware that many services allow you to post a profile for free, but not send any messages.
They do this to increase the number of profiles that they can advertise they have on their site, but if you use a service like that, you need to be aware that many messages you send out will probably not get a reply.
Finally, consider whether online dating is the only avenue you should explore.
If you have the time, it might be worth exploring other avenues at the same time.
Have you considered trying something new, such as dancing, speed dating, ice skating, and similar pursuits in which you are likely to meet people? Even if you don't, the activity may be enjoyable in itself.
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