Many people owe their happy relationships and marriages to online dating.
In fact, 1 in 3 people is dating online.
But wait, there’s more.
While online dating is one of the swiftest ways to land love, it’s also one of the most complicated.
Your Tinder inbox may be full of roses, conversation hearts, and dozens of winky-kissy faces yet your grandmother still asks whether you have a ‘special friend’.
Like it or hate it, online dating is here to stay.
And if you still aren’t sure, here are 10 things to help you make sense of the online dating scene (and probably sign up once you know how it all works).
1. Talking to a Stranger Isn’t That Scary
Online dating is a big hit because it makes it easy to know someone before you meet them.
So, if you are the shy type or more of an introvert, you may want to date online.
Interacting with someone without seeing them face-to-face is a confidence booster for most users on these apps.
So, no more worrying about your dressing and going out; chat with anyone from any location to get to know them.
If you need to practice your technique (no shame in that), you might want to look into an ai girlfriend, for instance. Here you can go back and forth with a ‘girlfriend’ helping you to build on your confidence to make you ready for the real thing. The online space can be beneficial in so many ways.
2. Expect Some Untruths
Everyone is out to find love on these sites. And since people know they’ll be judged by their profiles, a lot of lies fly around.
While guys will add a few more inches to their height, girls will shave a couple of pounds from their actual weight.
Most users aren’t who their profiles say they are. Fake photos are common.
The bottom line?
Join a dating site with an open mindset, knowing that not everyone is truthful and you’ll need to do some work to find authentic dates.
3. The Profile Gives Some Cues about Someone but Not Everything
When signing up on any online dating platform, you’ll be asked to complete your profile to increase the chances of finding a match.
So everyone starts here and it’s basically what to look at if you want to know more about someone.
So, beyond a person’s looks, try to read through their hobbies, interests, likes, dislikes, and everything else.
A profile can help you tell whether someone’s interests align with yours before you choose to swipe right or left.
But again, this is just a starting point. Meeting someone will help you know them better.
4. Not Everyone on These Apps Wants a Relationship
Of course, most people join these apps to find long-term relationships.
Others join them to chat with strangers and nothing more.
Additionally, we’ve got trolls and scammers on these apps. So don’t be quick to trust everyone with your information.
The easiest way to overcome this challenge is to join dating apps that niche down to help you find like-minded partners fast.
For example, if you’re a sugar daddy, go for these apps you can use to find a sugar baby. If you’re gay, join gay apps and so on.
5. Catfishing is Real
As already mentioned, people join these apps with different intentions.
Even scammers, thieves, and sexual offenders can hide behind love to try and achieve their ill desires.
That’s where catfishing comes in; people pretending to be who they aren’t
So, as you join a popular dating site, beware that people will fake their names and profile photos in a bid to achieve a certain objective.
6. Sharing Too Much Personal Information isn’t Safe
As soon as you find a date, you’ll feel so free that you want to divulge every personal detail to them.
Before you know it, you’ll be telling them about your family, birthday, home address, where you work or study, and more.
You may also start exchanging photos with each other, including nudes.
Well, doing this might put you and your loved ones at risk, as you don’t know whether the other person is real.
Besides, you don’t know how safe your info is on these apps. Some websites and apps have been known to leak user software for malicious purposes, and the site Escort Babylon for instance has been suspected of this. Make sure you read this escort babylon review if you’re considering using the site, and the same goes for any online dating application you use. Your safety and privacy always comes first.
7. Total Strangers Will Reach Out with Demands (and Strange Pickup Lines)
Once you complete a profile, upload a photo and pay the membership fee (for premium dating apps), your profile will be displayed before many people, both in your locality and beyond.
As a result, scammers will start taking advantage.
As an example, you’re likely to receive messages from users asking for your email address so they can share something ‘special’ with you.
And that’s a trap. If you share your email, more demands are likely to follow, such as your photos, location, and even payment for something completely unsolicited.
Raunchy pick-up lines are also common, such as this one from the Tinder Nightmares Instagram page.
8. You May or May Not End Up Meeting Your Date
While serious users on these apps intend to go on real dates that may lead to something meaningful, that doesn’t always happen.
As you continue chatting with someone, they may delete their profile or get banned for violating the rules and you won’t hear from them again.
Other interactions may be terminated because as you keep knowing an individual, you may realize they aren’t your type at all.
Still, a catfish won’t easily accept a physical meeting because they weren’t real in the first place.
But some online dates graduate to physical dates and beyond.
9. Online Dating is Demanding
Just like normal dating, online dating requires commitment.
You’ll need to set aside time to chat with your date whether through Instant Messaging, audio, or video.
And you’ll need to respond to their chats as well.
Furthermore, you’re expected to pay the membership fee to continue using the app. And did we mention taking the latest photos to impress your date as well?
10. Tons of Choices Make Choosing Difficult
You can imagine looking for one person amidst thousands or even millions out there and all that the app shows to help you choose is the person’s photo and profile.
What do you do when you have several profiles that match with what you’re looking for?
Confusing, right?
And most of these apps have a timestamp on the members’ profiles so you can tell when someone was last logged in.
For example, you can easily tell if the guy you’d dinner with last night quickly logged in to the app to look for other women when you took a break to go to the bathroom during the dinner (he was).
Final Words
Online dating is fun, but it’s also more complicated than regular dating. And the reason is you don’t know the other person so well. So, it’s best to take the time to know your date well, watch out for red flags and endeavor to meet physically so you can know each other well.
