Have you just signed up to a dating site or App for the first time? Or are you getting ready to meet someone you've met online?
Relationships on Female First
Lisa, TrueView’s community manager and in house agony aunt, shares a few tips that will take the pressure away a little and make sure you stay safe.
After doing some research and asking your friends you’ve picked the site or app that sounds best for you, make sure that you:
- Definitely don’t give away your full contact details, although dating sites work hard to make sure the person you are connected to is who they say they are its important to not to reveal information which could be misused.
- Choose pictures that show you best and are up to date! We’ve all got those pictures which are 5 years old and just back from holiday with a perfect tan. You can show those off another time. Lisa explains: “At TrueView we encourage users to take a picture with their phone or upload one they’ve taken recently from their gallery – that way there’s no surprises!”
- Try not to move outside the site or apps own messaging system straight away - If you do feel comfortable enough to do this, maybe try and get a sneak peak at them on Facebook or a professional network like LinkedIn.
- Lastly, don’t give away money! We’ve all heard the horror stories and if you feel like something is a bit odd make sure that you flag those users or report anything you aren’t happy with to the sites administrators – It’s taken really seriously.
So, you’ve been chatting to someone and their picture caught your eye. You’ve decided to take the next step and organized a date, make sure you:
- Pick somewhere comfortable and familiar - maybe not your local pub or favorite hangout but try and choose to meet in a place which isn't tucked away and is easy for you to get home.
- One lesson which our friend Susan Quilliam suggests (School of Life, C4 dating guru) is extremely useful, and sometimes essential, is having someone to handhold you in on your online dating journey. Whether that’s vetting potential dates, taking those important profile pictures or letting your buddy know that everything is going well whilst on a date, or maybe asking them to make the emergency call to tell you are needed at home ASAP!
- Don’t get drunk – now we aren’t suggesting that having a couple of drinks in the sunshine with your date isn’t a perfect way to spend a summer evening, we do think its important to keep that air of mystery and your wits about you if you’re keen meet them again.
- No late night meet ups! Choose to meet at suitable time, which means you can get back to work if necessary, make the last bus or you have that latest taxi app installed to take you home!
TrueView is currently a free to use iPhone app which helps its members meet people who closer match their interests. You can find out more at trueview.me
You can also follow TrueView through Facebook, Twitter and their blog which all give helpful dating hints and tips.
tagged in Love relationships Dating Tips dating Internet Safety