Did you know that two out of five single people in the UK now use some kind of on line dating service? That’s 40% of all singles! Unfortunately, the percentage of these people who actually find a real romance as a direct result of their site memberships is very low – probably less than 10%.

Why is this? Well, it’s true that some sites are better than others; they have more
traffic, they are better to navigate; they just ‘work’ whilst others just don’t. But what
really matters is how you use a site when you actually sign-up to one. Take my word
for it, unless you take the five simple steps that I’m about to outline, you may as
well do something more productive with your time than join a singles site. What I’m
about to say may sound obvious and rather simplistic, but you’d be surprised at how
many people don’t bother doing the ‘obvious’. So here goes…

1. Create A Great Profile. This is the most important aspect of your dating site
experience. Don’t just say ‘Nice guy seeks nice girl for trips to the cinema’ – how
boring does that sound? Take the time to say something about yourself, your
lifestyle, your interests and the type of person you’re hoping to meet. And
remember to sound happy, upbeat, fun and confident; if you’re miserable about
your recent breakup, then keep it to yourself! This isn’t the time for modesty; if you
think you’re pretty darn attractive, then be sure to say so. And humour is a real ice-
breaker – if you can make someone laugh, they’ll be more likely to want to contact
you.

2. Always Upload A Photo. Even if you don’t have a very flattering one to hand, you
should always post a pic with your profile. Remember, 95% of people on dating sites
only search for other members who have bothered to provide a picture of
themselves. You want to see what other potential partners look like so it stands to
reason that other people will want to know what you look like too. If your photo isn’t
recent or isn’t a great likeness of you, you can always say so in your profile.

3. Be Proactive. Don’t just join a site and expect other people to contact you. Make
sure you regularly search the database for people with whom you might be
compatible and when you find someone you like the look or sound of, write to them
immediately and tell them why you think you might be a good fit.

4. Write Great Emails. OK, you’ve joined a dating site, you’ve searched for other
members who fall within your specified categories, and you’ve been presented with
a page of matching profiles. You’re eager to fire off a few emails…but what on earth
do you say in them? Re-read the paragraph above about creating a great profile and
apply the same rules to the first email that you send to another member. If it looks
like you can’t be bothered to say much or that you’re sending the same one line
message to several people, then they probably wont bother to reply. Tell that person
a little about who you are and why you think you might both be compatible -
respond directly to what you’ve read in that person’s profile – sound interested and
interesting and you’ll get an email by return – sound boring and downbeat and
you’ll just be ignored.

5. Check Back With The Site. There are two reasons why you should do this as often
as possible. The most obvious one is to keep up to speed with who has joined since
you last logged-on; that special someone might have signed-up since you last
visited the site so don’t miss out. However, what most people don’t realise is that
when you log-in to a dating site, your profile moves up the listings on the internal
search engine which means that you are more likely to be spotted and subsequently
contacted by other people. Don’t be a stranger to the site you’ve joined and I
recommend that you visit the site at least once a day during the lifetime of your
membership.

So there you have it – 5 easy ways to make your chosen dating site work for YOU.
Have fun and happy hunting!

Jonathan White is the founder of http://www.cupidnights.com a London-only dating site and the most successful geo-targeted site in Europe. He writes on the singles scene for various newspapers and magazines.

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