Why Today’s Singles Are Looking For Love Online

Published by
Valerie Soleil, B.A., LL.B.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that more and more of today’s savvy singles are looking for love online.

After all, in the modern world of the 21st century, it has become totally commonplace to shop for groceries, handle your banking, and manage your appointments on the World Wide Web, all with the convenient aid of your trusty smartphone, tablet or good old fashioned PC.

You can even take part in adult education classes or get professional psychological counseling via the Internet, at whatever time of day or night you may choose. So why not reach out and conduct a search for the man or woman of your dreams in the very same way?

Reasons to Look for a Partner Online

There is a wide variety of good reasons why someone might prefer to seek out a life partner by means of online dating. First of all, the process will save them a great deal of time and hassle.

When you consider that today’s singles are juggling a schedule crammed full with a demanding job, possibly looking after children from a previous relationship or aging parents, regular attendance at the gym, and many other pressing responsibilities, naturally they will be happy to save time by prescreening potential dates from non-contenders.

What’s more, the fact that they are able to do so from the comfort of a cozy chair, without having to get dressed up and go out to dreary “singles events,” makes Internet dating all the more inviting.

Someone who is in a public position or possibly recovering from a difficult divorce may also appreciate the increased privacy and discretion that online dating will allow him or her. They can browse the profiles of other singles at their own pace until they are truly ready to make contact with someone.

In many cases, browsing and reading what’s on other people’s emotional agenda will also help new members to clarify what they themselves are searching for.

Online Dating Can Be Very Motivating

Hopefully, romance-minded single folks will see a sizable pool of people who are in the right age bracket and have many other characteristics in common with them, especially if they are willing to look outside of their immediate geographical area.

They are likely to find it very motivating, since the large number of available singles contradicts the often-heard myth that “there are no good women (or men, as the case may be) out there.

They will see that there are plenty of interesting, attractive singles who are ready and willing to share their life with someone special. This factor can also be used to motivate potential daters to come out of their shell a little bit.

Even if someone is normally somewhat on the shy side, the fact that all the online daters are there for the same reason, to meet others and eventually, with a bit of luck, to find love, will surely be the encouragement they need.

Dating Sites

When a single guy or gal is ready to start thinking about online dating, he or she may be very surprised to come across a great assortment of dating sites out there on the web.

Each one might have some feature that makes it stand out from the crowd, perhaps its size in terms of numbers of members, its longstanding reputation or its special appeal to people of a particular age bracket, education or ethnic background. Certainly, a great proportion of the sites make many claims and even promises.

However, there are indeed some sites that are better than others. These generally tend to include things like a sizable membership roughly balanced between equal numbers of male and female, easy to use enjoyable features and readily accessible, friendly customer support staff to help out with any questions that inevitably come up.

How Does Virtual Dating Work out in the Real World?

Online, or virtual, dating used to come along with a seriously bad reputation. In the past, those who joined up with web dating sites were thought of as “nerds” or “losers” and teased as not being able to find a suitable partner in real life.

Well, it seems that now the time has come for the revenge of the nerds because online dating is turning out to be surprisingly successful for a good number of people.

In fact, a study by the University of Chicago revealed that more than a third of all marriages which took place between the years 2005 and 2012 began online. This study also showed that couples who originally meet on the Net end up having marriages which are measured as both happier and longer than is the norm these days.

What Is the Best Approach to Online Dating?

There are rumors galore that online dating is full of phonies. However, interestingly enough, honesty does, in fact, seem to be the best policy when it comes to dating via Internet.

Such was the finding by a group of researchers at the University of Iowa, whose 2013 study showed that participants were more motivated to contact a hypothetical dating partner who presented a true to life, believable profile that combined an optimistic spirit with a definite flavor of humility. These results may seem at first to be surprising.

However, consider for a moment who the majority of online dating site members are. For the most part, they are so called “older singles,” frequently men and women who are aged 40 or older.  Most people in this age group have already been through several relationships, and often a marriage or two.

This does tend to lead to a more balanced, realistic perspective on life. Middle-agers and golden agers know that while no one is perfect, honest self-appraisal, a sense of humor and a positive outlook on life could very well be just what they are looking for in a romantic partner or future spouse.

Published by
Valerie Soleil, B.A., LL.B.