But sometimes when all you’ve got is three to five photos and a twenty word bio, it can be hard to get the attention of all your fellow suitors and stand out.
Especially because this cooked pandemic means we’re all on apps swiping our little hearts out in this never-ending lockdown, hoping we might match with our soulmate . or at least the next person to bang for our upcoming hot vax summer lives. So, we’re dealing with a lot of competition.
Here’s a few hot tips from your fellow swipers, aka Hook Up listeners, about what makes someone stand out on hinge, bumble, grinder, tinder, et al.
A clear good quality photo of just you
You know what they say: You never get a second chance to make a first impression. So, we asked you on the Instagram, and a lot of you said straight up – you want a good clear photo of the person.
Don’t use a group photo, don’t have a weird blurry pic, don’t lead with a photo of a horse (true story), just give us your best, cutest pic of yourself where you can see your face clearly.
- “For me, their first picture should be a clear picture of their face with no filters”
- “A great profile picture”
- “Nice happy photo that shows what you actually look like and aren’t all selfies or drinking shots”
- “People who have http://www.datingranking.net/es/sitios-de-citas-judios clear photos of themselves, not all group photos or only far away”
- “No filters (grow up)”
Say cheese and smile
Ok – as someone who doesn’t smile that much, this one surprised me. Y’all love a good, genuine, happy, fun person. If you don’t have a photo of you smiling and having a good time – grab a mate, get them to make you laugh and then take a pic and upload it to your profile ASAP.
- “Something unattractive is no smiles, I’m not swiping for a moody looking person”
- “Smiling, shots in nature, fun”
- “They look like they’re having fun in their photos”
- “A sweet smile, no arrogant topless model pics”
Turns out bios are important
Despite how shallow some dating apps can feel when you’re swiping away looking at photos, the majority of Hook Up listeners say they care more about someone’s bio. So if you love drinking pina coladas and getting caught in the rain – tell people! If you’re wanting a cuddle buddy to binge Netflix with – tell people, and if you’re just swiping for validation and probably not going to reply – also tell people.
Show us who you are!
Ok if you’re not good at bios and telling people who you are, you can at least show us who you are. Whether it’s photos of you in nature (a lot of people seem to want nature pics), you with your dog, photos of you playing sports. people want to see what your hobbies, interests, vibe is. So show them who you are!
What’s NOT hot?
Obviously someone’s yuck is another person’s yum, but there were a lot of very similar ‘instant swipe left’ responses. 89% of Hook Up listeners said they hated dudes who had photos of themselves holding a fish. Fish photos and people who pose with dead animals was probably the most common turn-off in our Insta responses.
Seeing someone smoking was a turn off for 69% of you (not so nice). And a lot of you cringe at selfies with your car.
We know this might be a contrast to ‘showing who you are’ but if you want a profile that stands out over others, it’s probably worth keeping these turn-offs in mind.
If you’re guilty of doing any of the following, maybe think about ways you could do things differently, or ask your friends to look over your profile and get their hot take. Or say to heck with it all and proudly rep your fish pics and meet a fellow fish lover.
Now go shine bright like a diamond
At the end of the day, don’t try to be anything other than yourself, people are pretty smart and can tell what’s genuine and what’s not.
To recap: a clear, preferably smiling profile pic. An honest, original bio that you’ve put some thought into. Show us who you are and what you’re into. In the words of Ms Hilton – that’s hot!
For all things sex and relationships subscribe to The Hook Up podcast. Listen on the triple j app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Bec Geyer