Online dating profiles and pics with pouts.

I believe that a well-timed pout has its place. I learned this as a child when my teenaged sister would take me out in public. One pout – that is – one small foreshadowing of the vocal discontent to come – would make my “at the height of cool” sister comply with all my demands. There is no easier way to get red Twizzlers upon request.

But, above the age of three, pouts become less effective in getting the result one wants. Let’s take Courtney Love for example. She probably injected her lips in the hope that they would look more kissable when, in fact, it now looks as though two spleens have landed where lip gloss once resided. Attractive? Not so much. Same is true of, ugh, Lisa Rinna. Honestly, I’m surprised she doesn’t float in water.

Worst still is Bold and Beautiful’s, Tylo Hunter. As bad luck would have it, I used to be at the gym right around the time that soap would be featured on the TV sets. A talking Tylo is a terrifying Tylo. However, I learned to play Salmon Dance by Chemical Brothers in my head and I’d be light and happy again.

Eminem at his warm and fuzziest.

Another kind of pout that isn’t appealing is the kind I see on numerous online dating sites. I bet you’re thinking that my rant will be about the pouts women do, but I’m done dissing my gender. Instead, this is about the man pout. I don’t mean the Brad Pitt man pout, I mean the “I hate getting my picture taken” man pout. It can be seen on mugs all across Plenty of Fish, Match, Zoosk and others.

So to all the men reading this, and the female friends that they go to for advice, keep this in mind: man pouts are not pretty. They’re not warm, welcoming, cool or manly. They’re just belligerent looking. Add crossed arms to a man pout and you look about as cuddly as Eminem (who I actually love, but hey, we all have issues). Man pouts might make you stand out among the smiling faces of other men online dating, but it won’t make you get noticed for the right reasons. In fact, there’s a good chance that you’ll get noticed and promptly get overlooked. Pouts are like that.

This is basic marketing 101, but here goes: packaging counts. Would you ever buy a cereal if the box was bleak? Not likely because bleak does not deliver the message “I taste good”. Would you buy toothpaste if the package was dark? Doubtful because a black toothpaste tube doesn’t deliver the message “I’ll make your teeth clean”. If you want a woman to approach you, then your “packaging” needs to deliver the message that you’re approachable. So uncross
your arms and say cheese like your love life depends on it.

Of course, once you get the attention of a potential suitor, you’ll need to make sure you have an online dating profile that markets you in the best possible way. So hire me, a professional ad writer and marketing expert, to write your online dating profile.

Check out the online dating samples of my work. Better still, go straight to the personality quiz. It costs nothing to do, but will help you uncover some of your unique traits, which is the first step in writing an online dating profile that can make you go from one of many to being the “one”.

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