Most important - be honest. Nothing will hurt you more in the long run than being dishonest or lying in your profile.
Write at least a paragraph of illuminating information, reflecting your personality and personal style. Profiles which are only a few sentences long are virtually guaranteed to be unrevealing about you and quickly forgotten.
At the same time - don't write too much. Your profile should be a concise, focused abstract about yourself, that emphasizes the most important and illustrative things about you. Too much text, and they'll get lost in the verbal "background noise." Readers get overwhelmed.
Vary your sentences and writing style throughout, to maintain reader attention and interest. Don't be afraid to use phrases, or to alternate short and long sentences, or to vary the start of your sentences. For example, starting with adjectives or adverbs, instead of over-using statements like "I am..."
Check the spelling and grammar in your profile. A good proof-reading can go along way towards reflecting well on you.
Avoid the temptation to be too analytical or cerebral. You want make sure that a reader gets a taste of your personality through your profile, not just a "checklist".
Use specific, well-considered adjectives and phrases, rather than generic, vague and/or clichéd terms, such as "with-it" or "put-together".
When describing yourself, write about how you perceive yourself, rather than falling into the trap of describing how others describe you. For example, say "I'm attractive" or "I consider myself attractive" versus "People tell me that I'm attractive".
Be focused and directed about what you want to emphasize, and what you're seeking. After reviewing your profile, a person should have a good idea of what most stands out about you, and be able to clearly explain over to you what specific qualities are most important to you in a spouse.
Before writing, take some time to think and distinguish, between your needs and wants, and clarify where you can be flexible and where you can't. This will help you to communicate effectively and consistently.
In describing what sort of spouse you are seeking, be certain to include preferences that go beyond the standard religious expectations or ideals for a frum man or woman. Try this exercise: When writing your description of your ideal spouse, remove all references to davening, learning, Shabbos, chesed activities and yichus. See what's left over. If it seems a bit slim, you may have been focussing on religious characteristics to the exclusion of personal characteristics of your spouse. What makes this person stand out from any other person who meets the halachic and hashkafic expectations of frum person?
Avoid emphasizing the negative and focus on the positive. Instead of describing what is "not acceptable", such as writing "He must not be X or Y, or have issues with Z", rather write things like "He should like M or N, and value Q".
If this profile will be listed under a "screen name", versus your real name, be sure to choose an eye-catching screen name. It's important to stand out and catch a browser's attention.
Likewise, try to start off with some catchy teaser text. Many on-line shidduch systems will reveal just the first few words of your shidduch profile, along with your name. So, you've only got a few words to attract a browser's interest. Use them well. Something like "Frum, fun, funky female" raises more eyebrows than "I am seeking someone religious..." or "My yiddishkeit is very important to me..."
Absolutely, positively, without exception - provide a photo with your profile, especially if you are a woman. Women who include photos with their profile gain a substantially greater number of responses from others. Make no mistake about it! Also - it's ideal if you make it public, as the more restrictive you make it to for a reader to have an idea of your appearance, the less likely he or she is to make the effort to initiate contact or agree to the shidduch.
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