Here Are Online Dating Etiquette Tips For You
August 17th, 2009 | by admin |Single, married, interested, and bored individuals – all looking for an activity that keeps
them occupied and interested. All stumbles into the same avenue – online dating site, where
they can spend time chatting and making friends with same or opposite sexes.
Online dating has been the rage for people looking for dates, friends, and even potential
lifetime partners, for years now. This is not surprising as unlike in actual dating, you
don’t see the person; therefore you don’t face the usual challenge of impressing the other.
In the virtual dating world, you can act yourself because they do not see you and you only
chat away with them.
With that being said, does it make the online daters observe no rules when interacting with
someone via the online dating site? Do you have to be nice to your online date now and be
rude the next time?
No. Even though online dating sites have made it easy for everybody to look for a date
without taking the trouble of being physically present, there are guidelines that must be
followed. This is called the dating netiquette. If you want to get more dates, and genuine
ones, you want to maintain that dating netiquette.
So, here are the rules:
1.) Etiquette says that you can’t have your own rule and another one for your online date,
and then you expect everything will be fine between the two of you. Therefore, the proper
thing to do is to make sure the rules are fair to both of you.
2.) Unlock the caps. Just like in email messaging, it is unethical to use all capital
letters when sending chat messages. Though you may not intend it, the reader of ALL CAPS
LOCK message may misinterpret what you really meant. It is not only a sore to the eyes, but
it also a shouting, screaming, and offensive net language.
3.) Though virtual, you have to be always polite even though they don’t see you. Asking rude
questions or replying rudely is unethical. Remember that just like in actual dating, you are
interacting with real persons who are bound to get angry, insulted, and hurt when given the
chance to.
4.) Don’t hide the truths and your real interests. Don’t pretend you like the things that
your date likes to impress them even if you dislike these things. Don’t get rude either.
Inactive replies towards these things will be adequate enough to send the message that you
are not interested.
5.) Actual dating etiquette calls that you sit down with your date until it is finished,
even though you are bored the whole time and just want to call it quits. It calls the same
with online dating etiquette. Leaving the room or your date in the middle of your
conversation is not only impolite but is insulting. If you find that you don’t want to
continue, don’t talk to them the following day. Simply send thank you note for the time
spent with you. Naturally, it is different if you feel you are being harassed or your date
is being abusive. In this case, you can leave right away without asking.
6.) Though there are short abbreviations used for certain words, you have to be careful with
your spelling. Occasional errors can go fine but habitual one is not good. It makes you
appear short on the grey cell area.
7.) Internet dating is talking with dates on light yet interesting topics, not on obscene or
racist ones. If you don’t want to quickly drive away your date, keep conversation one that
your online date finds interesting too.