Here is an excerpt from an article we published on getting started with the whole online dating thing, especially after a long lay off. (is that a good euphamism to use here??)

Enjoy..and I’d love to hear other people in the community comment, too!

(Article below)

My BEST Advice for People Just Starting To Date Online

Are you just starting to get interested in online dating? Maybe you’ve been single for a while….and thought what can it hurt? Or maybe you’ve just gotten out of a divorce or a breakup, and thought that the online route might make an easy transition BACK into the dating world. And if you happen to be Jewish like me…..you probably think it’s at least somewhat important to TRY to meet your match from within our faith, right? (it took me a while to come around to this, but I think I finally have..:-)

Okay….so now that I’ve been at online dating for a while, here are some of my BEST success tips for anyone who is serious about meeting their match online.

Things TO do:

Be as honest as possible. Don’t take creative license with your profile beyond recognition. (that means don’t make yourself 20 pounds lighter, or 3 inches taller…..which women and men BOTH have a bad habit of distorting when filling these things out!)

Be assertive! Standing back and waiting for the perfect person to come around may sound good in theory, but often you’ve got to take the initiative to express interest online…..for a whole bunch of reasons that you don’t have to deal with OFFLINE. (for example, occasionally someone you are interested in has only signed up as a FREE member…and can’t contact you until YOU contact them.)

Be OPEN. (to meeting as many fun, interesting people as possible…even if you think they may NOT be the right romantic match for you)

Things NOT to do.

Dont’ take it so SERIOUSLY. You can have fun with your profile..and still be honest, sincere and straightforward. Being funny…or lighthearted is a great way of standing out, and attracting attention as well.

Don’t LIVE on the “inter-webs”: Chatting, emailing and flirting online may be fun for a few days….but you quickly find out, some people have NO real interest in moving past the cyber friends stage. If you think that someone is stalling to take the relationship into the real world, the FASTER you address is…..the better off you are going to be!

I don’t think you can really use Twitter to meet people THAT effectively for dating to be honest (I use it a ton for networking and business, though) and Facebook can be pretty fun….but in my experience, you are “re-meeting” OLD friends more often than new ones.

Call me a broken record – but Jdate is still the way to go if you want to make it happen in a hurry…and do it online. I would join for free if need be…and just take a look around and see who looks good to you. (and then decide whether to dive in full steam….or not)

Good luck – let us know how it goes – and please continue to ask away!

In my opinion? Size matters. The bigger the site, the more likely it is that you are going to have a good experience. Joining a smaller, “niche” Jewish dating site may seem like a good idea…..but if you truly are looking to connect, you want to be able to swim in the biggest sea, simply because the law of large numbers plays to your advantage. (trust me….I’ve signed up for those little itty bitty sites at 3am too THINKING I’d meet someone that had the same idea, and it almost always ends as a complete waste of time.

So we DO recommend Jdate as #1. Not only are we active affiliates for the site, but I’ve had personal success with them, as have MANY of my friends, and many in my family as well. (including both of my sisters….aunts, uncles, cousins and more..:-)

Have a different opinion? Share it with us in the comments section below!

Benny Friedman is in the hall of fame…..and of course, there are many others. (small but select group of some surprising names….many of whom you would recognize!)

Anyone want to guess some others?