6 Tiny Changes You Should Make To Your Dating App Profiles In 2018 To Get Better Matches
For a long time, I left my bio blank on dating apps. I hated reading cheesy bios with lame jokes in them that make it seem like someone's trying way too hard and I didn't really get how this would help improve my dating app profile for better matches. I didn't use any of my allotted 500 characters in the bio section — until recently. It's not that I had fewer matches without a bio but that my matches didn't exactly know how to strike up a conversation or hold my interest, which was partly my fault. I didn't give them any clues about the kind of person I am or the things I'm interested in. I didn't even link my Spotify or Instagram accounts.
In 2018, I plan on making a few more changes to my dating app profile that will hopefully lead to better matches and more first dates. It's all part of my ultimate 2018 resolution, which is to give fewer f*cks but get a lot more.
I spend a lot of time swiping through other people's profiles on dating apps, which uniquely qualifies me to determine which profile hacks actually work and which you should probably leave in 2017. It's simple, really. Photo of you and a dead fish (or any dead animal, really)? Delete ASAP. Five mirror selfies in a row? Remove at least three of those and get your friends to take some plandids. Listing your anthem as "All Star" by Smash Mouth? Well, I suppose not all that glitters is gold. Here are a couple other things you could do to improve your dating app profile in 2018.
1. Update That One Photo You've Had On Your Profile Forever
I don't care how much you love that photo of you on vacation in Cabo San Lucas with your family from three years ago. Surely, you've done fun and exciting things since then and managed to capture photo evidence of it. All of the photos on your dating app profile should be recent, especially if you've drastically changed up your look within the last few months. You wouldn't want to be blindsided by an old photo of one your matches who looks completely different now, so don't do the same to them.
2. Mix Up The Order Of Your Photos
Luckily, Tinder will do this for you if you turn on the Smart Photos feature in your settings. Smart Photos will continually test which of your photos give you the best results and periodically select a new one to show first. This is perfect if you live in a college town and you've gotten used to swiping through the same people over and over. By keeping your updated photos in steady rotation, you increase your chances of matching with people like you who might be excited to see a new face (or, at least, the same face with a different Snapchat filter).
3. Swap The Emoji Bio For Actual Words
You're a grownup. You can do this. If you really want to improve the quality of your matches and the conversations you have with them, you're going to need to say a little more than *pink double heart,* *rainbow,* *prayer hands,* *wine glass.* If the idea of honestly completing your bio makes you feel too vulnerable, try including a quote from a favorite song or movie that best captures your personality.
4. List Your Job Or School
Trust me on this one. A quick way to let people know a little more about you is to include your job title or school's name in your profile. You'll be surprised how much you might have in common with someone simply because you both intern at an attorney's office or took the same classes your freshman year. Plus, if you're too shy to message your matches first, this is the perfect clue to give them for a thoughtful conversation starter.
5. Play Around With Your Settings Every Now And Then
Every time I adjust my settings on Tinder, I enjoy an entirely new swiping experience. There are tons of ways you can mix things up, like widening your location radius or changing your age preferences. The app will recalculate your pool of potential matches, giving you more chances to swipe right on anyone you might have missed before.
6. Splurge On The Paid Version Of Your Preferred Dating App
Premium versions of any dating app are bound to increase your chances of finding the perfect match. For example, on Tinder you can opt for one of two in-app subscriptions. Tinder Plus gives you unlimited swipes, lets you undo any accidental swipes (this is revolutionary), adds five Super Likes to your account every day, and boosts your profile once a month so you can swipe as one of the top profiles in your area for 30 minutes. Tinder Gold offers all of these features, plus the coveted knowledge of who has swiped right on you without you having to reciprocate. Best of all, both of these packages also offer Tinder's Passport feature that allows you to swipe in any location across the world. Parisian men, here I come.
Technology is only going to keep getting better — you definitely don't want to be left behind simply because you haven't looked at your dating app profile since you set it up a few years ago. In 2018, commit to a better dating app profile, better matches, and a better life!
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