The Dating Website Misrepresentation Problem Solved
Geplaatst op 03-04-2025
Categorie: Lifestyle
Dating websites. I love ‘em. I hate ‘em.
I love ‘em because there are so many awesome people on them.
I hate ‘em because there are so many weirdos, skanks, and frauds that always have a way of showing up to the party, too.
And yes. I said frauds. I know I got in trouble for that (with my Dating Misrepresentation post) for not appreciating when a woman showed up to a date with me much heavier than she presented herself to be online. Oh well. I still don’t think it’s okay.
Obviously there are certain levels of weirdness, skankiness, grossness, and fraud that every person is willing to put up with.
I’m okay with somebody showing up a little heavier or lighter than their pictures, with a different hairstyle or color, or even not having completely accurately portrayed how much they enjoy, oh, I don’t know… the great outdoors.
What I’m not okay with is showing up for a date and meeting someone who is not at all the person she presented herself to be on her dating profile.
I’m okay with somebody being a real flirt, having fun, and goofing off.
What I’m not okay with is a girl showing up with one intention… a one night stand.
I’m okay with weirdness. My friend Kelsey Blue Eyes, for example, is weird. I met her on a dating website. She watches Pokemon, plays video games, and even <gulp> plays Magic cards among other things. That’s weird for sure, but not a deal breaker. After all, I have my weird things that the women I date have to put up with.
Other women are way too weird, though. Like the ones who brag about their strange “toys” on a first date. And yes, it has happened more than once.
I’m okay with a little grossness, too. Though not a whole lot. Especially at first.
If a woman hasn’t fluffed one by month three. That’s a red flag. If a woman fluffs one, or even worse, rips a big one on date number one… that’s too gross and is a bigger red flag.
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But… all that being said, those are my preferences. I have levels of everything I’m comfortable with, and the same goes for anyone else out there shopping the dating catalogs, err, I mean profiles. I’m too gross, too skanky, too weird, and not quite honest enough for some women, I’m sure. I’m also not gross enough, not skanky enough, not weird enough, and too honest for other women. I’m sure of that too.
That’s why we all have these magical things called dating profiles. Our own little webpages where we can tell every woman just how awesome, weird, skanky, and gross we really are. Dating websites give us the golden opportunity to find people that are similar to us in all those areas. So long as we all can be honest when we write them.
But alas, we can’t. Too many of us think that our real selves will have a hard time getting quality dates, so a lot of misrepresentation goes on.
Too much misrepresentation.
And so, if you ask me, there is something missing from the dating websites. Something that, if a dating website implemented it as a feature, I’d happily pay double the monthly fee to be a member…
A Profile Accuracy Meter.
After both members agree to a date, they both click a button that says they’ve done so. They set the date and time, and after that date and time (as long as neither one has cancelled beforehand) they both will have the opportunity to rate the other on the accuracy of the way they presented themselves in their dating profile.
You could even do it section by section. How accurately did they present themselves in… Photos. Age. Likes and dislikes. Children. Relationship status. All the things people fib about.
When LooksLikeBradPitt shows up and is 500 lbs, bald, thirty years older than his picture, and lacking in personal hygiene, future women will be warned.
When HotterThanHot shows up and (fill in the blank so that all the women don’t get mad at me), future men will also be warned.
But more than anything, it would push people toward more accurate and real profiles.
And more important than that, it would push everyone on the site toward more accurate and real profiles which would lead to better matched dates which would lead to more success.
One of the problems with dating websites is that everybody is starting to assume that there’s a certain level of fabrication on every person’s profile. It enables everybody to be more brazen about it. People are super skeptical before they ever even click in.
And, as I mentioned, I’d happily pay double the monthly fee for this feature. Hell, I’d pay triple. I’d save a lot more than that if I never went on dates that I wouldn’t have wanted to go on in the first place.
Sigh.
I know it would probably never work. Lovers scorn and all that jazz.
A single dad can dream.
PS. What are your thoughts? Do you think a profile accuracy meter would be an awesome edition to dating websites? Or do you think it would just add to the mess?