Online Personals... Do they work?
 

Alright... here goes...

I am considering placing a personal ad online... As most of you are aware.. I have been solo for sometime.. and I am at the point now where I would like that to change. Unfortunately I live in an area (both Murphy and Sugar can attest to this) that does not have alot to offer when it comes to quality SINGLE prospective mates. Altho I am not at all interested in a LONG distance relationship (been there done that, got fried) I would certainly like to meet someone within 75 mile radius...

So my question is (well there are several):

1: Have any of you had any luck with online personals? If you have, what made the difference? Did you meet quickly in person, or did you take time to get to know one another online first? For those of you (like myself) who have had bad results, do you think it was the online factor that played a factor or was it something else?

2: What online sites would you recommend? Okay.. Okay.. I am a weee bit strapped for cash so I am not tooo keen on spending money on those that cost. Altho I am considering it.

3: Anyone care to offer me some advice on the profile portion? What should I include? What should I NOT include? Should I post a pic?

Thanks in advance :)

Hi Jenna
 

I have done th personals thing in both the newspaper and online. Online did seem to return better results than the paper. The one for the paper seemed to have more ummmmmmm, unsavery people.

I'm not sure if I would send along a picture at first or not. Sometimes an attractive woman can intimidate some men from responding at first. I think I'd talk to them a bit and then send it along.

I didn't meet up with anyone right away. Instead we had a few conversations first. I found that the tension was less that way. We knew enough about each other to keep a flow of conversation running.

Maybe you could describe your personality, some things you like to do, some key things you may desire your 'other' to have. I must admit I was a bit flirty in mine, (blush) not too much though.
You could try the Yahoo personals. They are free and seem to be very busy!!!

Good luck with your 'hunt.' You'll have to keep me posted on how it goes!!! This is sooo much soooooo much fun!!! I'm so excited for you ;)

Nothing ventured - nothing gained.

But I agree with your sense of caution.

I like the sound of those speed dating set ups. Do you have them?

Try "makefriendsonline.com" its a fun,free site and I have recommended it to my friends-------have "met" several nice folk through it------------------good luck!xx

Go for it, Jenna!
 

The Angel and I met through a dating site; even though we only live half an hour apart, in the "normal" course of events we probably would never have met!!

The site we actually met through was free to women (like most seem to be) but not for me... have to say though, it was the BEST $4.95 I EVER spent!:D

We chatted online every night for over a week, then set up a date... she took some precautions - usual stuff, like meeting n a public place etc., and we just took it from there!!



There are a LOT of sites out there... one that worked for us was Dreammates, but the one Celticangel said is good, also Cupid Junction, udate, dating.com are some others to try. (My ex has had particularly good results with udate, but I think that's a pay-site)

Nothing really to recommend re profile... Mellisaaa's suggestions seem good though! :)

Good luck Jenna... the guy for you IS out there, somewhere!!

Thanks all.. with the snow around today.. I will look more into it :)

Hi Jenna,

Regarding the picture, if you include just a simple good picture, the man you probably would WANT to meet would not be intimidated, in my opinion.

I have been dating from these sites for some time now, I have met some mighty fine women, made friends of them all, and ALWAYS took plenty of time to chat, e-mail, or whatever, to get to know them, and them me. There ARE creeps out there, and we ALL have to be careful.

Cupid.com, Yahoo Personals, and AdultFriendFinder are ones I have had good success with. Good luck to you. Wish I lived closer! ;)

Don

Jenna...i think its a good idea and it can be a great way of meeting someone.I had a yahoo personal ad describing what i was looking for,my likes and dislikes and i included a picture with the ad.I got tons of replys ,then one saturday i got a response from someone who was exactly what i was looking for.We went back and forth that day i sent him my number and we ended up going out that same nite .That person is dzbuster and we've been together almost 2yrs now:):)It definately worked for us ,i'm happy,he makes me smile and he's a great guy.So i'd say go for it!!!GOOD LUCK :)

Thanks BiSexyBabeDD.... I needed to hear a success story. :) I posted a SMALL profile at BBWdating tho unfortunately you can't send email until you pay a membership fee and I am not sure when I will do that.

I will go to yahoo now and will check out adultfriendfinder too (I had one there sometime ago).

Don... I sure wish you lived a bit closer too. ;)

check with Steph........I think she beefs up personals for a living!

Hi Jenna ... I've listed at a couple of sites online and have met a few really nice guys that way .... none that have turned into long term romantic relationships, but certainaly it has given me a chance to meet a lot more guys then I ever would have done in the normal course of events. I am listed with specialty sites and find that best since I know up front that the guys there are looking for a specific thing that I offer (as BBW sites do). I have found that if you don't put a picture up, you get almost no response ... men are very visual beings and don't always want to take the time to read a profile if they don't always know they like the look first ... interestingly, I'm not so different, I like to see if I'd be attracted before I bother to read the profile. :)

Anyway, I know a few people (in my personal life) who have met and married or developed long-term romantic relationships with a person they met online. One thing I really like about the sites is that they give you some basic information about the person up front.... I have some criteria that I follow and no matter how attracted I may feel to the pic, if they do or they don't on these items, then it is a deal breaker. Well anyway, rambled on enough now ... best of luck to you in your search .... I look at on-line personals as just another tool I can use. :)

all right.. I have taken celticangels advice and I have posted one (YIKES) at makefriendsonline.com. I did include a picture and filled out the info and posted a bit about myself. Not sure how long it will take before I will appear on the site.

If you are interested in taking a peek and giving me some suggestions as to how to improve my ad... please feel free :) My name there.. is jennaflower.......... of course :)

Thanks again all :)

This is what I wrote :) Hope it works.. any recommended revisions would be greatly appreciated...

Personal description:
5'4" long blonde/brown hair, blue eyes. Hi, I am a divorced 33 year old woman who has the desire to find the "right guy". I don't believe that this will be a quick and painless process, instead I anticipate many challenges along the way. I believe that ultimately the "right man" will appear, not suddenly but as the result of a great friendship. I am in no rush to jump into any serious relationship, rather I would like to begin another part of my journey. My journey began 6 years ago, and every time I "think" I know all there is to know about myself I learn something new which causes me to begin again. I believe I have reached a point in this journey that a male perspective would be a wonderful asset. Currently I am only looking for friendship with a man who would be willing to participate in this wonderful journey. Not only does this journey comprise intellectual stimulation and inner reflection but all going well sexual exploration as well. In the last 6 years I have learned alot about myself, things that have amazed me and things that I hope to explore further. I would very much like to share that with a wonderful understanding man. I pride myself in the areas of honesty and understanding and look for those characteristics in the friends I have. I believe strongly that what is within a person matters far more than what is on the outside. I am overwieght.. 5'4" 42C... and am looking for someone who truly believes that it is what lies within that matters most. If interested in helping me along my journey.. please respond. IF however, you are an individual that is unable to look past the shell then please don't.


Description of your ideal partner:
My ideal partner would be a man between the age of 34 and 45 who understands the importance of communication, loyalty and trust. He must be comfortable with himself and willing to share himself completely, not only physically but mentally as well. He must be able to participate in stimulating conversation both inside and outside of the bedroom. I would like him to be emotionally available and willing to be open about his needs. Communication is a must (altho I don't expect that to be something that comes overnight).

:cool:
Now why cant you be in england jennaflower i have been trying dating sites for almost a year now and still no luck whatsoever. I am on love at lycos at the moment under Gorman_James if any ladies would like to have a look and tell me what i am doing wrong please help

:confused:

Scorpi... it would seem that I would have better luck anywhere other than where I am at (at any given moment it would seem).. still have had no responses... but oh well.. atleast the line is out there...

Didn't realize that lycos had personals, will have to go check it out :)