If you’re anything like me, you know that there’s little more motivating than having a deadline looming on the horizon. Suddenly you can think more creatively. Suddenly the project becomes a priority. Suddenly you are finally taking action. Continue reading ‘Dating Deadlines Get Dates’ »
Talk to anyone who has dated online, and they will tell you that they encounter lying in dating profiles. Men will lie about their height, and women will do what it takes to appear more slim. It turns out, these people are onto something. Continue reading ‘Why You Should Lie in Your Online Dating Profile’ »
I got a good question via e-mail today:
I was reading your blog post about eliciting winks from gals on match.com, and also the post pointing out that the majority of people with profiles aren’t actually members. So my question is, when you receive a wink 1) how can you tell whether or not they are a member and 2) what is the best method to contact a “winker” if they aren’t a member? Sending an email is pointless because they can’t read it or even know it was sent, so how to proceed? I just signed up for Match recently and am still trying to get the hang of everything.
Continue reading ‘Ask Russ: Someone Winked at Me – Are They a Match Member?’ »
Because smart folks know that you have a better chance of getting a response if you message members who are active in the past 24 hours. So, they sort by “Activity Date” (just like you hopefully do when you do the who’s viewed me shuffle). So, if you show up as “active within 24 hours,” you’re more likely to show up in other member’s search results, and more likely to get messages and get winks.
If you want to have any success in online dating, you’d better have good profile photos. No matter how well you’ve written your online dating profile, having good photos will make sure more matches click through to your profile, give you winks, respond to your messages, and ultimately date you. So, here’s why your photos won’t do those things for you. Continue reading ‘7 Reasons Your Online Dating Profile Photo Sucks’ »
I set out to find some patterns in the words people choose in their online dating profiles. The main interesting pattern I found was that women use the word “love” over “like” by a ratio of about 3 to 2. Guys use the word “like” over “love” by a ratio of about 4 to 3. Here’s some nice word art of the raw data (from match.com profiles in Chicago) Continue reading ‘Guys like, girls love’ »
I’ve told you plenty about what you should do with your online dating profile; but here’s some don’ts. These mostly apply to the guys, but ladies, watch out for some of this stuff, too. Continue reading ‘Top 10 Mistakes in Online Dating Profiles’ »
UPDATE: February 16, 2010: I’ve put up a few more match.com promo codes in case a match.com free trial of 7 days isn’t what you’re looking for. For example, you can save 20% on your subscription instead.
As I’ve mentioned many times, match.com is my favorite dating website. They have a great combination of solid features, and a huge membership base. There are lots of other dating sites that fulfill particular nichés, but it’s hard to beat match.com.
I often get asked “Is Match.com free?” Match.com is free to sign up, fill out a profile, and wink (though, guys, you don’t want to wink); but to send messages to other members, and to read messages you receive, you have to be a paid member.
All over the Match.com site, you will see advertised a 3-day match.com free trial, with which you can communicate with other members. This is great, but 3 days is a little tight. Not much time to really make connections and secure dates.
But I found a much better promo, a Match.com free trial that lasts for 7 days!. If you use this coupon and get 7 days to send a bunch of one-line hooks, you can definitely secure a few dates for free.
After your trial is over, I do recommend going with the 6-month membership that comes with the guarantee. Basically, if you follow the requirements of this promo (have a profile photo active the whole time, keep your profile active the whole time, and contact at least 5 members a month), and don’t find someone special during that time, you get another 6-months free. I’ve had this guarantee granted before; and – I know – what good is a service that didn’t work for you in the first place?
I actually enjoyed having that 6-months free; but the main benefit is that fulfilling the requirements of the guarantee acts as sort of a dating coach. You have to contact at least 5 members a month – so maybe you send out one-line hooks to a few matches whom you were on the fence about and might not have contacted otherwise. I dated a girl for about 3 months who fell into this category – it was a good experience I probably wouldn’t have had otherwise.
The toughest part of fulfilling the requirements of your guarantee is keeping your profile active. If you’re contacting at least five members a month, you’re probably going on some dates; and chances are you will meet someone to the point where you feel like you should deactivate your profile. So, keep the guarantee requirements in mind before you do this. Maybe you keep your profile active and send a few obligatory e-mails because you have to? It depends on what you’re comfortable with.
So, sign up for your 7-day match.com free trial by clicking here for the coupon.
Full disclosure: I do get a small referral fee if you start paying for match.com. I provide all of this advice for free despite lots of time invested and hosting fees etc., so I feel that’s fair. But, I absolutely wouldn’t recommend any service I didn’t think was great.
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If, for some reason, you decide that match.com isn’t working for you, you might want to try some Chemistry.com coupons. They have a personality-based matching system that you really might like. I also have some eHarmony discount promo codes – they match you with others on 29 different personality dimensions. Finally, if you’re looking for a Jewish match, I also have at least one JDate coupon code availalble.
Writing an online dating profile is the most daunting part of online dating; but there’s little else so critical to your success. Since it is such a challenge, it’s no surpise that many profiles are clearly given very little thought – either by being incredibly short, non-descript, or downright cliché.
It’s no wonder why so many profiles begin to the tune of “it’s so hard to write about yourself,” but understanding yourself well enough to create a profile that represents you well is a healthy process. With a little guidance, your online dating profile can stand out from the millions of others to present the interesting you. A well-written profile will not only ensure that you receive responses when you make first contact; but will attract and motivate potential matches into contacting you – making your online dating experience easier, more enjoyable, and more successful. Continue reading ‘How to write an online dating profile’ »
So, you’ve mined the conversation nuggets from your target’s profile, you’ve sent short, funny, and brilliant one-line hook, and boom, you’ve gotten a response. Now what? This is a very critical point in the online dating process, but this is the final step before meeting in person. This is “the kill,” if you will: the second message with an online dating prospect.
A high-value woman has an incredible volume of messages to manage. The fact you’ve gotten a response speaks to your online dating acumen. But because this woman has such volume to manage, you can’t waste time. You need to meet her as soon as possible. Additionally, you want to ensure that she is who you think she is without investing more time. So, you should have two goals for this online dating message: maintain interest, and secure a date. Continue reading ‘Follow-up Online Dating Message Advice’ »
OkCupid has conducted an interesting study regarding response rates based upon specific key words used in opening online dating messages.
Continue reading ‘What to say in a first online dating message’ »
