Writing an online profile that captures the essence of who you are and what you have to offer is the most important thing you will do in online dating. This is your opportunity to sell yourself and distinguish your profile from the other singles on a dating site.

The goal of an online dating site profile is to entice other singles to click onto your profile, read through it, and make the effort to contact you to find out more about you.

Previously I have stated that one of the best tips to piecing together your online dating profile is to visit other profiles that you find interesting. Study your competition and see what it is about those profiles that drew you in.

Once you’ve figured that out, use the parts of those profiles as a template to work off of but insert your personal info. The most important part of this plan is that you need to make sure to write the things and beliefs that make you unique and will set you apart.

When you post a profile on an online dating site, there are three parts that viewers will see: your picture, your headline, and your profile. Each one serves a distinct purpose, but in my opinion, the picture and the headline are the most important.

Research shows that you only have 5 seconds to grab someone’s attention.

People are superficial and we are drawn to things that catch our attention. I have previously written about the importance of your written profile and how you should focus on it when starting out. I firmly stand by that, but if you can’t get someone to click onto it to read it, it won’t matter what you write.

When you join an online dating site, you need to be aware that your writing skills will play the most important part of how you communicate. Almost all of the early interaction online takes place in the form of written word. You will “write” things out when you send an email or chat online.

Writing about ourselves is often the hardest thing for each of us to do. It’s difficult for most people to sell themselves. People are generally too modest and it’s difficult for them to highlight their personality traits. It’s much easier to talk about others than about ourselves.