Advice for online dating profiles

Over the course of the few weeks I have been on the dating website, I have seen some bad profiles.  It is very important to have a good profile (picture and description of yourself), since this is the only way you are representing yourself and is your first impression.  It is similar to a personal essay for college or a resume for a potential job.  Remember, you are competing against other bachelors so you want to give the best impression.

Suggestions for profile pictures:

How not to pose for a profile photo

1.  Have a picture!  Otherwise, we assume the worse.
2.  Have more than one picture so we get a good sense of how you look like.
3.  Make sure the picture is a recent photo and representative of how you look.  Otherwise, if you look very different from your photo, we are very disappointed when we meet you.
4.  Do not have a picture where there is another woman next to you, regardless of whether she is your sister, friend, etc.  This also applies for pictures where you cropped her out, but her hand is still around your waist or shoulder.
5.  Do not have a picture that includes a guy who is better looking than you.  Otherwise, we concentrate on your friend instead.
6.  Do not have a picture that includes many people.  Otherwise, we don't know which one you are.
7.  Smile in your photos!  You don't want to seem like a grouch.
8.  Preferentially, there should be at least one photo of a close-up and another of full-body.
9.  Do not be shirtless (especially if you don't have a good body)... Or be bottomless!
10. Do not have a photo where you are not in it!  I have seen multiple pictures of people's pets or vacation spots.  It's better if you are in the picture with your pet or the beautiful landscape.
11. Do not have too many photos where you wear something that hides part of your face (e.g., sunglasses, cap).
12. Include photos where you are doing something you enjoy.
13. Make sure the photo is good quality (e.g., not fuzzy, has good lighting, eyes are not red or closed). 
14. If you include glamour shots or black/white photos, also post regular (non-glamour) photos in color so people know how you really look like.
15. Do not take a photo of yourself by yourself using a smartphone in the mirror.  It implies you do not have friends who can take a picture of you.

Suggestions for profile descriptions:
1.  Think of this as an ad or eulogy about you.  One guy was creative and wrote his profile as if he was a house on sale.  What would you want the ad to say?  Talk about your background, personality, (unique) interests, accomplishments, and job (especially if it is interesting or you are passionate about it).  Also include what you want in your relationship and partner.
2.  Proofread what your write!  Do not have typos.  Use punctuations and capital letters appropriately.  Again, this is the first impression you are giving so you want to appear polished.
3.  Do not write something lame such as "my friend made me do online dating."  Write something catchy or unique so the other person wants to know more.
4.  Do not write something generic about yourself or your interests.  Everyone is nice, likes to spend time with family/friends, have fun, travel, try new restaurants, and the beach.  It's fine to include these things, but also include other things that are unique.  You don't want to blend in with the thousands of other profiles. 
5.  Do not have an extremely short or lengthy profile description.  Writing too little shows you did not put much effort into it or care.  But we also do not want to read your life story either.  You want others to learn enough about you to be interested but we will learn more about you on the date. 
6.  Do not include anything negative.  (You can tell her about your mommy issues later in the relationship, but you have to get a first date first.) 
7.  Write about what/who you want instead of what/who you don't want.  I've seen profiles listing things that they don't want in a person.  Even though I didn't have any of those "bad" criteria, it was a turn-off that they were so high maintenance. 
8.  Try to avoid include strong terms such as "marriage" and "children."  Most people just want to get to get a sense of who you are from your porfile.  You can talk about these more serious things in person.
9.  Instead of listing descriptors of yourself, demonstrate it in your profile if possible.  For example, instead of saying how funny you are, be funny in your profile.
10. Be truthful in what you write.  Otherwise, you come off as a liar when you are caught later.  Not a quality we want in a partner.
11. Have a friend read your profile to see whether it is accurate, appropriate, and catchy.  Perhaps they have ideas on how to improve it.

From the movie You've Got Mail

As proof of how much profile pictures or descriptions matter, I did an experiment.  I originally uploaded regular photos of myself and got a few emails from men each day.  Two weeks later, I posted "glamour pictures" which were professionally taken (where I had makeup and hair done), and I had more than 50 views and emails within the next day!  (The dating website allows you to see who has viewed your profile.)  A handful of these men had not emailed me after they saw the original photos, but contacted me after the glamour shots were posted.  Two weeks after the glamour photos were posted, I edited my profile description (added more facts about myself) and only had 12 views and a few emails the next day.  Perhaps this implies that the picture is more important than the description.  We are visual creatures.

From the movie You've Got Mail

As for the importance of having a good profile description, I helped a guy friend improve the writing in his dating profile (e.g., using capital letters appropriately, stringing thoughts more coherently, adding more interesting facts), and he started receiving more emails from women each week since then.

For more help on your profile, see my post on Advice for signing up.