Free internet dating

  Although free Internet dating has been around since web sites first started popping up, some people are opting to skip them and to find their online soul mates through a different venue: social networking. However, taking this approach can have some serious drawbacks that you should be aware of. Below you’ll find several key reasons why social networking is not as smart a choice as using free Internet dating services.   Reason #1: Increased Risk   We’ve all heard the horror stories of online predators using social networking sites to find victims. They rarely use dating services. One of the reasons is that most of the dating services have protections in place that guard your identity and that guarantee the other person’s. When you rely on social networking sites and programs for your dating options, you won’t have these benefits. And that means you could be putting yourself at greater risk.   Reason #2: Relationship Status Unknown   With social networking sites, people can include their relationship status on their profiles but these are not always honest or up-to-date. The number of married people claiming to be available at these sites is probably astronomical. And what if they don’t provide that information? You could end up making a connection that can’t go anywhere because the other person is already attached and was just looking for friendly conversation.   When you use free Internet dating sites, you know most of the people are legitimately single. Although some married folks will pop on from time to time, these people are rare cases. Most of the people who go through the trouble of creating a profile and using the site will be sincere in their desire to start up a relationship.   Reason #3: Interest Not a Question   Social networking sites are a little too much like real life for many people. That means they work by you introducing yourself and waiting to see if they respond. You make the first move. Even if they respond, you don’t know if they are interested for a friendship or more. With free Internet dating sites, the question never needs to be asked. In most cases, the other people come to you after seeing your profile so you don’t have to wonder if someone is interested or not. Plus, since the entire site is about dating, you can be pretty sure of their intent when you receive contact.   Reason #4: A Good Number of Options   With free Internet dating sites, you do have some choices and that’s a good thing. But you also don’t have an almost unlimited number of options either. Most of the social networking sites seem to fall at one end of these extremes. Some limit the people you can contact; others allow you to contact almost anyone in the world.   Besides simply limiting your options, however, these sites can help you because most people at the dating sites have completed their entire profiles. That means you’ll have more information to work with.