Online dating through chat sites isn’t exactly rocket science but taking note of a few pointers will help you on the way to meeting the man or woman of your dreams.
1. Stand out from the crowd. Chose something sharp and catchy as a title for you online ad or your username for a chat site. Try to go with something that encapsulates you in a few swift characters.
2. Keep your deep, dark secrets under wraps. Everyone over the age of eighteen has some emotional baggage but there’s really no need to announce it to every Tom, Dick and Harry. Don’t air your dirty laundry in public.
3. Use a photograph that is current and shows you as you currently are. You’ll never get away with using a photograph of you looking you 21-year-old self if you’re a rather peeling version of your glorious former self.
4. Be proactive in your dating search. In fairy tales the princess always gets swept away buy the dashing prince. In real life, it’s okay for a woman to go after the man she has her eye on.
5. Be realistic about your expectations. Remember that no one out there is perfect. If you’re looking for someone with model good looks, an IQ in the 1000’s, and who is the heir to a small country, it could be a very long search.
6. It’s okay to get into a little bit of sexy chat when you’ve been speaking to someone for a while but if you’re actually trying to get a date it’s probably not the best way to go in the first instance.
7. Always be honest about yourself. Don’t pretend to be into something that you’re not just to score yourself a date. Keeping up the facade of being into something in order to please someone else will become tiring eventually.
8. Keep your replies short. If you want the chat to carry on, bouncing between the two of you, it’s best to give just a little away at a time. Ask a question, get a response, and ask another. Try not to write a whole essay as every reply.
9. Stay safe and keep your personal details private. Chat sites are designed so that you can chat to lots of men and women without revealing your whereabouts, phone number, or e-mail address.
10. Remember that the online dating world is still the real world. Just because your chatting to someone through virtual means doesn’t mean that you should treat the encounter any differently than if you had met them in a bar or at work.