The first thing you should know about dating websites is that they are very useful and a great tool to meet single people in your own local area. They can be a lot of fun and offer a good way to not only meet other people for dating but also offer a great way to meet people as friends. They are safe if you are being smart. If you are being reckless and offer your personal information to anyone that asks, than you are in for trouble.

So, apart from all that, the main thing you need to know is that the smartest way to "get into" the online personals (matchmaking websites) is to do two of them at the same time. It is relatively easy. You get a notebook and keep a record of who is interested in you, who you have already started emailing back and forth, who seems to be "a bit weird", and who has rejected you. Each website will offer you a way to keep track of everything. But when I used the online dating sites, I always had a notebook and wrote down the ones I really liked. It is good to look on a piece of paper and see a list of people you really are interested in. It helps move things along.

The whole thing comes down to a numbers game. Yes, you can get very personal and want to get into every minute detail of each person. But if you only reply to five people on only one website, you really can't expect to find the love of your life. Yes, it could actually happen if you replied to one person on one website. But look at it this way; if you went to a club that had two single people, what would your chances be at finding someone to love? Now on the other hand if you went to a place that had two hundred single people, what would your chances be at finding love? So, you really want to go to at least two dating websites and try to connect to as many single people as possible. Try to connect to at least thirty or fifty. Like I said, it is a numbers game. If you are turned off by this analysis in any way, remember this.... I met my mate online and we have been together for five years. What did I do? I went to about seven dating sites and clicked on about two hundred people. That is what I did and that is what many people have done over the years.

Another main point to remember is that a picture is a great way for people to WANT to connect to you. I am sure (if you think you are not photogenic) you can get a friend to take a picture of you that will make you look good to the viewing public. And on that note, you must put a picture up on your profile if you want to meet people. Profiles without pictures are like the kiss of death. Especially if you are a man. Profiles with pictures always get more messages. In general, women get tons of messages from single men. And men get a bit less. So, if you are a single man and you have no picture, expect to get no messages. YOU MUST PUT A PICTURE ON YOUR PROFILE. If you don't want to do this, consider not doing the online dating sites at all and skip all of this.

I give advice. It may not be the words you wanted to hear (read) but it is honest and straight to the point. So you can follow some of the tips I give here or ignore them. It is up to you.

One of the main things you have to remember is that a short essay is better than long essay. When I say short, I don't mean two sentences, I mean two paragraphs. A long essay that is twenty paragraphs is a bit much and a short essay that is one sentence may have people ignoring you. Be yourself and keep personal information out of everything. Read our safety tips here for some guidelines on being safe. Try to make your profile as colorful and varied as possible. You want to come off as interesting and not as a one trick pony.

Do not send messages to someone who has not replied. You will look desperate and crazy. As a matter of fact, some people will actually wait a day or so before replying to someone. I don't follow this rule. But I will not reply back to someone if they have replied to me minutes after I just sent them a message. I don't want to come off as waiting online for each word they send. Basically, you do not want to come off as desperate.

Be careful of people who are posting pictures that look like models. If someone posts a picture that looks like a model, it is most likely that they are a fake profile only there to scam other people. You can tell sometimes what profiles are fake when you see a picture of a skinny girl and her weight is 170 lbs. Yes, people from eastern Europe trying to scam us here don't understand our weight system. So that is an easy way to figure out.

The other tip to try to remember is that you want to actually meet people. Do not push anyone to meet you as this will look desperate but be gentle about it. Maybe after you have replied back and forth for a month you may want to tell the other person that you want to meet them. And when you DO meet this person, do it over coffee or lunch in the day time in a public place. See our "dating tip" and "safety tips to continue with your advice. Good luck. If you think you are ready, click here to start looking for single people in your area on a great dating site now!