[Artchic528]

I've been using online dating sites off and on for the last several years. I'd give it a mixed review as sometimes I can go for long stretches of time without any action whatsoever. No messages, no flirts, nada.

On the flipside I do get the occasional bit of success, as I happened to have gotten recently. These seem to hold promise and in two situations, wound up being 6-7 month long relationships. So, yeah...it's pretty much a grab bag of outcomes. You just have to keep at it til you get the outcome you want.

Does anyone have any ideas, tips and tricks to make online dating more successful? If you have been using dating sites, how do you like it? Does it work better than other methods for finding dates?

I'm curious to know.

[divine1966]

As I get older I have to rely on dating sites. I work with children and my hobbies are all around women plus men that I know are married. It is the same kind of dating as anything else it just gives me more options. I've met lots of nice men over the years. Doesn't mean it became life long commitment but they are nice people mostly

. I've been with a man for almost 9 years and we lived together and we met on match. It was a meaningful relationship and we wanted to get married unfortunately he has an addiction so I left last year. We remained friends and I am friend with his kids. Outside of excessive drinking he is a very kind and decent man

I am dating someone now. We met on eharmony. Don't know yet where it is going too early to tell but he sure is a nice man. We laugh how there is no wAy we would ever meet in real life.

He is RN in hospice and other elderly care and I am special Ed teacher in high school. Where would we meet???? We have very different hobbies. Compatible but different and we live a big a distance. Not too far ( an hour drive) but we don't shop in the same stores or go to the same restaurants. Bottom line online dating was the only place for us to meet.

I have nothing but good things to say of online dating. You just have to be very careful because there is a lot of scamming there nowadays and one needs to be smart

I have no tips or tricks. I am just being myself. And I have to be selective.

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[Cat_Lover_58]

I've used them in the past for a few years off/on. I dated 4 people from the sites. I found a good friend who was looking for friendship exclusively. The others I dated were either looking for a hook up or not worth but a few dates.

Tips? Be yourself, pay attention to red flags, check to see if they're still on the site when they've said they took their profile down...

Good Luck to you!

[jaymoq]

I too have turned to online dating, especially since I am not the type of gal to go hang out in very social places, like a bar or a big party. When I am single, I typically immerse myself in my horses, hiking, nature walks, etc. where you DO pass the occassional stranger, but I have never struck up a conversation.

I have had mixed results. Ironically, I met my ex-husband on an online dating site and I met my current beau on an online dating site. So, my most recent serious relationships have been fostered through online screening. I am not an outgoing personality at all, so the online 'meet' allows me to get more comfortable with the people.

I had to weed through a lot of strange people and there are definitely those with ill intentions, but I feel like you'd get that anywhere. I have paid for the bigger name sites and I have also done the free versions. I had the most luck with the free sites, so I ended up just cancelling all my paid subscriptions.

There are the cruel people online, which can be challenging. I had trouble with weight after my divorce and was still losing when I first put my toe in the dating pool again. I was not some monster or in serious health failure, but I had many men that made it a point to comment on how hideous I was. That hurt, but it also motivated me to do better and I lost a substantial amount of weight. I just feel like its easier to be judged and to judge others while online dating because its a snapshot. People might be braver to say sweet things, but also feel entitled to say cruel things behind a screen.

I don't know that I would utilize online dating again. When I met my current beau, I was actually closing all my accounts and was happy with who I was and felt if it was meant to happen, it would. But, he messaged me as I was deleting my account and I decided to reply and we've been together since.

The biggest thing is to be honest. And, it all works out.