One of the best things about internet dating is your ability to spread a wide net. You come across profiles and people that you might never meet otherwise. They're different, they're outside your circle of experience... and that makes them interesting. But branching out and meeting new people doesn't necessarily mean that you don't have preferences. And meeting those preferences (while giving you plenty of profiles to choose from) is the point and purpose of an internet dating profile search tool.
When most people sign up for an internet dating site like Datepad, they go about the process of finding a partner rather casually. They might search by one or two traits one day, and one or two different ones the next. But efficient, effective searching is more complicated than it might seem. And having a good dating search strategy can make the difference between getting dates with plenty of people that fit your preferences, and dating only duds... or no one at all.
Decide What Are Must-Haves
When first initiating a search, decide what traits are must-haves, and which are not. It may seem a little obsessive, but get a pen and paper and write it down. Struggling with all the options? Open up the advanced search page and assign points to the different traits you find there using a 100-point-total system. It may seem strange, but it should help you to prioritize what's most important to you.
Also, I always suggest that you not be too quick to sift out results according to physical attributes. Just because you always go for blondes doesn't mean a brunette might not be just perfect for you. It's what's inside that will make or break a relationship, after all.
Opening Up Your Options
If you run a first search of internet dating profiles and only find a very few options, you'll need to open up your preferences. This might be a good thing! If you've been looking for the same kind of man or woman for years, it might have sent you into something of a dating rut. Choose an option that you might not normally choose, and check out the profiles that come up there. Or shave off some of your stiff requirements to widen your options. It might bring you to strange new territory, but it might be a lot of fun, too.
Playing with Your Preferences
If you've done an initial search and gotten hundreds or thousands of internet dating profiles to look at, you may need to narrow your search a bit. While being open to all kinds of people is a great thing, there may be something you want in a partner that you haven't thought of. The narrower your results, the more quickly you can work through the most promising of them, sending emails to the best catches first instead of spending time on less promising prospects. Drawing a blank on what to search for? Then have fun with it! Start adding in physical or social attributes that you like, and be as specific as you want to. When your pool of options grows too small, simply broaden out again.
Now, if you're incredibly picky (say, you're looking for a Jewish man of Italian descent who is 6'4" with green eyes, eats a vegan diet, and has a career in finance), there's a chance that no amount of searching will dig up this elusive "dream man." But that's the whole point of internet dating in the first place. You lay down a rough outline of what you're looking for, and allow the rest to be filled in for you. That other Datepadders are real people is part of the fun, after all. Let yourself be surprised!
