Five Tips For Choosing an Online Dating Service!

1. Does the site let you have a good look around and test drive for free? Any site that's worth its salt and has nothing to hide should let you be able to set up a profile, search for other members using a variety of criteria that suit you (age, location, sex, hair colour, occupation, income, pet lover, non smoker, likes ludo, cluedo and judo etc) and generally use the site to your heart's content so that you can see if you get on with the basics. If a site has very few members or poor navigation or inadequate search facilities then they might not allow any form of free membership. Happens less than it used to, but if you came across a site like this my advice is to stay well clear!

2. Does the site operate in your area or your country? Some sites are country specific. And that's great, as long as it's your country! There's nothing wrong with the global sites although they are a bit of a jack of all trades. But as long as they are big enough (ie. have a large enough database of members) then they too are fine. A global site with few members probably is of little use to anyone. As is a country specific site with few members. few members equals less chance of meeting someone! Unless it's a very specialist site (international cat lovers under five foot two who like art and play golf on Wednesdays dot com might only have eight members on its entire database, but if you're a short cat lover who likes art and spends Wednesday nights at the golf club then you could be in with a chance!).

3. The important thing is you want to meet someone. Or in some cases many people, depending on the type or types of relationship or relationships you are after. Dating has become, and is becoming even more specialist (see 2. above). Clearly it makes sense to consider joining a generalist site as well as a specialist one that caters to more niche interests that you may have. During your "free" membership when browsing the profiles of other members read what they have said. You'll get a feel for the types of members on any particular site. this should help you make your mind up whether the "community" of that particular site is your type of people.

4. But it's not just about other members. You should not lose sight of the fact that online dating sites are run by companies as businesses. The question here is are they doing a good job? What is the customer service like? Do they respond to your email enquiries promptly? If so, do they address your enquiry properly or fob you off with a lazy, standard copy and paste response? Do they offer any money back guarantee? If so, are the terms and conditions reasonable? Some sites now offer some guarantees, but with some it's virtually impossible to meet the stringent criteria of the guarantee. Read the terms very carefully before deciding to sign up.

5. Finally, the whole process should be fun! the point is does the site look like fun, or is it stifled and boring? Some sites are well designed, have a community feel, are engaging with lots of fun stuff as well as helpful info. And in many cases are packed with additional features. look carefully at what's on offer. Draw up a list of what you'd like to see in your ideal dating site and pick one (or more than one) that tick your boxes! If your site is not an ideal match then the likelihood is that neither will be the membership base!

Hopefully the above tips will help you choose a great site so you can meet some great people and have a great time! All the best and have fun!