I Can’t Believe I’m Doing This!

I can’t believe I’m doing this! / My friend told me about this site, so I thought I’d try it out, etc.

The fact that you're posting a personal ad is the one thing that can't possibly distinguish yourself from anyone else on there. You don't need to make excuses for why you're on a dating site. You probably have the same reason everyone else has: because it makes dating more convenient.

Skip the apologies and move on to what makes you different from other people!

No Weird Over 40s Pls

Another terrible example of a dating profile I came across today:

I'm not too into online dating, because it's weird, and a normal person comes around once in a blue moon. I know nothing probably won't ever happen, but It's addicting and fun! haha!
btw it really really bugs me when i see that you have repeatedly stalked my profile and your like, 40.

I am cute, lovely, and kind

Well honey if it is so weird to online date then why don't you piss off! lol

Cute, lovely and kind, but only if you are not an inappropriate old bastard.

Tendency to be Negative

The other day I came across someone who wrote this in part of their dating profile:

I have a tendency of sometimes being quite negative, this is something I am working on slowly, I try to accept people in spite of the things that I dislike about them as I'm sure they do for me for which I am deeply grateful.

Now, considering how many people are available to pick from in the dating world, I would probably really stay clear of someone who not only recognises themselves as negative (even if they are improving they still identify as that) and who tends to look at what they dislike in others first.

DO NOT do the following EVER

Ok here is a list of things you should NEVER do on your online dating profile!

1. Act depressed/whiny. Too many profiles start off with “no guy wants me” or “I know no-one will read this, but…”. Avoid it.
2. Talk about money, politics, or religion. It’s crude. You can mention your political/religious affiliation, but don’t preach.
3. Post lists or otherwise flood your profile. Information is wonderful, excessive information is poison to the mind. If asked to list your favourite movies/music, keep it to five or less. Any more is ridiculous.
4. Include poetry, stories, song lyrics, etc. This goes along with flooding your profile, but it tends to be even worse. Poetry is best left to the masters, probably not you.

Not So Off Beat After All

Three seemingly off-beat things that everyone claims to be interested in: road trips, dive bars, and sarcasm.
These could be perfectly fine details to mention, aside from the fact that everyone mentions them!

As a result, it becomes hard to believe that everyone is so enamored of these things; they just sound good in a dating profile.
It’s like the cook who garnishes every meal with a sprig of parsley out of habit. You don't especially want people to eat the parsley, you’re just putting it there because it's a foolproof way to make the dish look nice.

If you have to mention these things it is a good idea to be more specific: which bar or destination have you particularly enjoyed recently, and why? As far as sarcasm goes it’s probably better just to use it rather than mention it.

Best online dating site is: www online dating hunter.

Avoid Generic Lists

“I love music, travel, sports, the outdoors, movies, shopping, drinking, going out." Again, there’s nothing wrong with any one of these on its own. Any one of those could be great with some more detail. But a list like this is so generic as to be almost meaningless.