‘Physically fit’, ‘perceptive’ and ‘passionate’ – the words to a woman’s heart revealed
They may only be words, but the language men use in their online dating profiles can have a serious impact on getting them noticed by the opposite sex.
In a study of 12,000 dating profiles on eHarmony.co.uk, the relationship site identified the top ten words with the ‘D Factor’ – or ‘date factor’ – that were most likely to grab the attention of single women looking for great dates.
The data showed that men who mention some form of physical fitness, or described themselves as perceptive, passionate or optimisticall saw more approaches.
Conversely, women describing themselves as sweet, ambitious or thoughtful were more likely to see men start up conversations with them.
Interestingly the word ‘funny’ saw both male and female dater’s ears prick up, with both sexes ranking it sixth out of the top ten list; showing there are some things men and women do agree on.
And these extra approaches are far from insignificant. Physically fit or perceptive men attracted between 60-70% more interest from women who wanted to get to know them better; whereby sweet, ambitious or funny women saw between 20-45% more approaches.
The study also revealed that women are more interested in what men have to say for themselves, not just their looks – being more likely to consider a man based on his description rather than his picture. Words used on a profile were shown to have a wider impact (-64% to +69%) on women’s decision to approach, whereby this scale was narrower for men (-43% to +46%).
Jemima Wade, spokesperson for eHarmony.co.uk, said: “Whilst the research shows certain words serve to grab fellow daters’ attention, at eHarmony we know that daters are looking for quality dates every time. And that takes more than just a few words; it’s about finding someone with the same values, who instantly gets you.”
Jemima added: “That’s why we worked with the University of Oxford to develop our Compatibility Matching System and employ scientists to keep refining and improving our algorithm to ensure it’s the best tool to help people find that extra special someone.”
The top 10 words with the ‘D Factor’ (female / male)
1. Sweet (+46%) / Physically fit (+69%)
2. Ambitious (+39%) / Ambitious (+64%)
3. Thoughtful (+30%) / Perceptive (+63%)
4. Spontaneous (+30%) / Passionate (+54%)
5. Physically fit (+22%) / Optimistic (+44%)
6. Funny (+21%) / Funny (+38%)
7. Outgoing (+19%) / Spontaneous (+33%)
8. Optimistic (+17%) / Thoughtful (+21%)
9. Hard working (+17%) / Affectionate (+17%)
10. Passionate (+16%) / Outgoing (+17%)