3 Simple Rules To Get Better At Online Dating, According to Science

Massively improve your swipe game with these essential tips.

tinder

(Photo: Getty)

The dating game is a bitch. It always has been, and it always will be. Sure, Tinder and other apps were invented to make it way easier to hook up with strangers, which is nice, but it doesn’t exactly help if we’re not getting good matches to choose from, right? Right.

Luckily, for a recent paper published in Evidence-Based Medicine, researchers reviewed 86 scientific studies on what people can do to get better at online dating, and came up with an exhaustive list of ways we can make our profiles better. 

Sexy computer
(Photo: Getty)

Sex expert Dr. Justin Lehmiller picked out three of the most elemental tips from the paper, and put them together in one quick, handy list:

1. Upload a great profile picture
For your profile picture, make sure you choose something that makes you look friendly and attractive, by having a genuine smile and a slight head tilt. According to past research, these are two features that are scientifically related to positive first impressions, which is something you want, obviously. 

If you’re going to upload a group picture, choose one where you’re in the middle, and everyone in the picture is having a good time. This shows that you’re a cool dude who people like to be around. And that’s always a good thing. 

2. Write an engaging bio
If you want to be successful at online dating, don’t make your bio section all about you. It sounds counterintuitive, I know. But it’s not. If your bio is only information about who you are and what you do, it can make you seem like a complete asshat with an inflated ego, which is not hot.

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Instead, make your bio a solid mix of information about who you are, and what you’re looking for. “Research suggests that the optimal ratio in your description is about 70% personal information to 30% what you want to see in a partner,” Lehmiller says.

Moreover, you should emphasize activities and hobbies you enjoy, like surfing or cooking, instead of bragging about douchey-sounding accomplishments. Seriously – no need to say that you make a six-figure salary or that you regularly drop mad cash on bottle service at the club…save that for the first date! Or better yet, maybe don’t mention it at all.

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Bonus tip: Nowhere in your bio should there be an inspirational quote. Inspirational quotes are cringeworthy and lame. That is all. 

3. Be Funny
Previous research has shown that a great sense of humor is one of the sexiest traits a person can have, which is why you should definitely let your potential matches know that you’re witty, fun and clever as hell. 

“This doesn’t mean that you should simply say in your description something like “I’m hilarious,” because that doesn’t really offer any actual evidence that you’re funny,” Lehmiller says, suggesting you should indirectly express your humor, through jokes or a witty bio, or something. C’mon, you can do it. 

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In case you need even more tips on making your Tinder profile better, read the full paper here.

It includes tons on scientific information on meticulously crafting an effective first message, spotting fake profiles, and making yourself seem even more desirable than you already are.

H/T: Lehmiller

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