What Are The Best POF Tips For Guys
The best POF tips for guys include sending messages instead of "likes," using your profile features to your advantage, and avoiding becoming a pen pal with women. The good news is that if you're struggling on the app, a few changes can transform your results.
This post shares 10 POF tips for guys that give an edge if they're followed. Use the tips below, and you'll see a massive improvement in your results on the app.
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Unlock the Secrets to Successful Online Dating with The Digital Dating Blueprint
- Create the best profile possible.
- Use all of your profile features to your advantage.
- Always send a message - never a "like."
- Use great icebreakers to start conversations.
- Put effort into your conversations with women.
- Don't get frustrated with women.
- Update your profile at least once a month.
- Watch your grammar.
- Use the premium version of POF.
- Ask women out!
1. Create the best profile possible.
To succeed on POF, you must have a great profile. Your profile is essentially an advertisement for you, so it's in your interest to put some effort into it.
Yes, women want to see effort across the board. You'll get more matches, likes, and responses to your messages when you put up a great profile.
A great profile prompts women to message you.
Believe me, most guys put up terrible profiles and almost always fail. Every section of your profile is vital on POF.
Below is a breakdown of each section. Each section includes tips and insight into putting up the best possible profile on POF.
Username - Your username is the first thing women see on POF. It's displayed on their search results and in your message. Also, when you match with a woman, the app notifies them and shares your username.
You want a username that stands out. Put some effort into it - men typically use random numbers and letters.
Anything goes for your username. Sandwich two words together, "DapperHiker." You can rhyme your name with something, "DanTheMan.
Anything is better than jumbled letters and numbers that are meaningless. "CharmingFella" will get more attention than "R70XXYZabd".
Headline - One of the first things women see when looking at your profile is your headline. You want something catchy that grabs their attention.
A great headline helps women start a conversation with you. You can quote a show or use humor, "Not stingy with wings."
One of my favorite headlines is "Cheetos are my kryptonite." You see its effectiveness below.
Share a guilty pressure in your POF headline.
Photos - You want to use a diverse portfolio showcasing your interests. The more images you have, the greater your chance of meeting women - POF claims, "Profiles with images get 10 times as many views as profiles without."
Photo tips include smiling, and looking at the camera, including a full-body shot, clear pictures, and an action shot (hiking, kayaking, zip-lining, etc.).
Make sure you're presentable in your pictures. Don't dress sloppy because women will picture themselves alongside you, so clean yourself up.
Avoid using photos you're not physically in, meaning no pictures of your dog, kids, sunset, food, car, etc. Don't use photos alongside women as they take the focus away from you.
Basics/Bio/Lifestyle/More About Me - These sections indicate your relationship goals, if you drink, smoke, have kids, education, pets, etc. Don't overlook this section - it's important. Women check it to see if you're a match.
Don't ignore the basics section on POF.
About me - This is where you write about yourself. Don't make excuses by writing "I'm not good at writing about myself" or take the easy way out with "Just ask." You'll get very few matches.
You definitely want to avoid a generic profile. Your effort in this section shows women how serious you are about meeting someone.
Including 3-5 of your passions, interests, hobbies, goals, and achievements is best for this profile section. Don't just list them - describe why you enjoy them.
For example, if you live an active lifestyle, don't just write, "I like working out." That is boring and not engaging
I write in my bio, "I live an active lifestyle. I work out daily because it keeps me balanced and maintains my youthful loo. I love boxing workouts, hikes followed by fish tacos, HIIT routines, and random YouTube workouts. Even a walk in the park or around Miramar Lake is good because it gets the juices flowing."
It's easy to write a description like the one above. Let's say you enjoy traveling. Simply answer one, two, or all three of these questions:
- Answer "How" - Give an example of "how" you like to travel.
- Answer "What" - Share "what" you like about traveling.
- Answer "Why" - Explain "why" you enjoy traveling.
Answering the questions above should make writing about a topic easier. Choose a few topics and expand into them as I do above.
2. Use all of your profile features to your advantage.
POF offers several features for your profile beyond the photos, bio, and headline. These features can help capture women's attention as they browse your profile.
My rule for dating apps is simple; use everything you can to your advantage. Below is a list of the features POF offers and why you should use them.
Add captions to photos - Did you know POF allows you to add captions to your pictures? This is a great way to make your photos pop.
Don't state the obvious. For example, when using a group photo, don't write "my friends and me" or "we had a great time." Instead, insert some humor and write, "Clearly, I'm the best looking of the group."
Use a caption to write something interesting or share something funny about it. Adding captions will give you a boost.
Conversation starters - This section is an extension of your profile that you should not ignore. It's a free text section where you write things that prompt women to send you messages.
Mention topics important to you, but keep them light. Maybe ask for sushi recommendations. Or write, "I know the best spot in town for margaritas."
You can be serious, but I recommend avoiding politics and heavy topics. Serious topics won't get as many matches as something fun and light.
Choose things that give more insight into you beyond your written bio. Don't write things in the Conversation Starters section that are in your bio already.
Interests - POF allows you to add interests to your profile. This is a cool feature because you can type things you enjoy, as I do below.
Interests are a great way to balance out your profile on POF.
This is a great way to capture women's attention as they scroll through your profile. The "Interests" section definitely stands out and draws eyeballs.
It's all about using a variety of things you enjoy in the Interests section. I recommend sharing fun stuff in this section - the more cool interests you have, the more likely you'll connect with a potential match.
3. Always send a message - never a "like."
What's the best way to make a memorable first impression with a woman on POF? Send an opening message instead of relying on "liking" her profile.
Most men resort to liking a woman's profile, hoping she likes him back. This is a huge blunder.
"Likes" are low-effort and don't make a favorable first impression. A great icebreaker is the best way to pique a woman's interest.
An icebreaker shows a woman you took the time to get her attention. Sure, your message may not get a response, but you'll fare better sending a message over a "like."
One of the top POF tips for guys is to always send an icebreaker when interested in a woman. "What's a good icebreaker on POF," you ask? The answer is below in my next tip.
4. Use great icebreakers to start conversations.
Starting conversations with women on POF is a skill. Sorry to tell you, there's no magical icebreaker that 100% of women will respond to.
Women get so many messages that yours must stand out. Keeping them light and friendly is the key to getting responses to your messages.
Don't just say "Hey there" or "Hi." These types of openers rarely work. Typically, men send these low-effort messages and don't get many responses.
Women want to see an effort in men's icebreakers.
Starting conversations on POF is easy. Here are some tips for your opening messages:
- Show supreme confidence in your icebreaker. Never appear wish-washy, needy, or seek approval. Confidence is sexy to women.
- Use humor if possible. You're off to a good start if you can make a woman smile.
- Show curiosity. Ask a woman about something in her profile, interests, photos, etc. Asking about something on the woman's profile shows you looked at her profile and takes the pressure off coming up with an opener.
- Put in some effort. Take some time when crafting your icebreaker. Ask a question that can open up a conversation. You'll stand out from the countless men who only write, "How are you?"
- Always be positive. Avoid any negativity. Keep your message 100% positive.
- Avoid physical compliments. NEVER compliment a woman's looks because the majority of men do this. Nothing turns a woman off faster than complimenting her appearance.
Your primary approach should be commenting on something in a woman's written section. Below is an example where the woman shares she likes road trips in her bio.
What's a good opener on POF?
Note how I ask a question and share something about myself. An under-the-radar tip is sharing something about yourself regarding whichever topic you use in an icebreaker.
You can ask about an interesting photo if a woman doesn't write much in her bio. Simply saying, "The picture in front of a mountain is fabulous; where is it?" can get a response to your message.
One thing I like doing is asking a woman for a guilty pleasure. It's something everyone has and is an easy way to start a conversation.
When a woman has an empty bio, ask for a guilty pleasure.
5. Put effort into your conversations with women.
If you're lucky and a woman starts a conversation with you, put some effort into your response. For example, if a woman sends an icebreaker saying, "How are you?" don't respond, "Good and you?"
You want to lead the conversation. It's better to respond, "I'm doing great. I just did a hike and debating how to reward myself. Sushi or tacos. Thoughts?" This type of response will get a woman engaged in the conversation.
Many guys are lazy in their conversations, putting forth minimal effort. It's no wonder why women ghost them or lose interest.
Women read your vibe and energy. The amount of effort you put into a response speaks volumes.
6. Don't get frustrated with women.
Everyone fails on dating apps - you will never match with 100% of the women on POF. So, don't get discouraged if a woman doesn't respond to your message.
You may have the best profile and icebreakers, but every woman doesn't want to date you. Some people don't like hearing that, but it's the reality of dating.
Men often get frustrated by their results and take it out on women on dating apps. Don't be the guy who insults or harasses women because they don't respond to your message.
Women are under no obligation to "like" your profile or respond to your messages. Never get upset because a woman doesn't like you on POF - let it go and move on.
However, I guarantee that if you put up a great profile and craft good icebreakers, you'll do better than most men using POF.
7. Update your profile at least once a month.
Once you finish your profile, it's important to update it monthly. One of the top POF tips for guys is never let your profile sit and collect dust.
Updating your profile is a great way to stay current. Women who bypassed you may be intrigued by what they see next time they come across it.
Here are a few recommendations for updating your dating profile on POF:
Headline - If women don't react to your current headline, create a new one. You can do this in seconds.
Photos - Keep your photos current. For example, if it's May, don't use pictures with a Christmas tree in the background (yes, guys do this).
Update your photos with anything recent. Maybe you went on a hike. Great - add a picture of yourself on the trail. Suppose you went traveling somewhere. Perfect - swap out an older picture with one from your travel adventure.
About me - Update your bio with recent adventures. You don't need to rewrite it, just replace things that aren't working.
Make sure you don't reference outdated things. For example, if you share how much you love Game of Thrones, women may think it's an old bio since the show's been off for years. Mentioning popular shows right now is a better way to connect with women.
8. Watch your grammar.
A red flag for women on POF is bad grammar. A profile or message full of misspelled words shows you're lazy, uneducated, or worse, that you don't care.
One bad sentence or misspelled word can cause a woman to swipe left or ignore your message. Here are a few facts about grammar on dating apps:
- A survey on Match.com found that 96% of women think grammar is essential and bad grammar is a turn-off.
- Zoosk found that 65% of women would let grammar get in the way of pursuing a date.
- One study found that 45% of women wouldn't be interested in someone they met on a dating app who was "very physically attractive but used improper grammar or spelling."
Do yourself a favor and check your profile for grammar mistakes. There are several tools you can use to look for grammar errors. I recommend Grammarly - it's free and great at pinpointing misspelled words and poor sentence structure.
Also, check your messages before hitting the send button. If you send a message full of grammar mistakes, you won't get as many responses because it shows a complete lack of effort.
9. Use the premium version of POF.
The upgraded membership is worth exploring if you want the best results on POF. You will always get better results using the premium membership on POF.
You can do well using the free version of POF, but a paid membership will maximize your chances of success on the app. Here are the main benefits I think an upgraded membership gives you:
- Unlock extended profiles of other members. This allows you to dive deeper and find new facts about a woman you can use to start a conversation.
- You can see if your messages have been read or deleted by women. This feature is useful, so you know if the woman read your message.
- You can see who views and likes your profile. This is a great feature because you can quickly connect with women who like your profile.
- You can connect with upgraded members. Some women only allow upgraded members to message them. I find attractive women use this feature, so you're out in the cold if you use the free version of POF.
- Unlimited messages and "likes." The free version of POF gives you a daily limit for likes and messages. This premium feature gives you complete freedom to message anyone.
- Your experience will be Ad-free which eliminates those annoying ads.
- See who wants to "Meet" you from the Meet Me feature. Another quick way to connect with women who want to meet you.
POF also gives you additional features that I don't think are as important as the ones above. I explain why below.
- You can upload not just 8, but 16 images to your dating profile. Honestly, you don't need more than 8 photos. 16 pictures are overkill.
- Send three gifts per day. My advice - never send a gift. A great icebreaker is all you need.
- Stand out in all searches. POF doesn't explain how you stand out, so I don't see the benefit of this feature.
- Access to Username Search. This is a nice addition, but you can already see who likes and views your profile.
The free version of POF hides who likes you.
10. Ask women out!
One of the biggest complaints for women on POF is men who just want to chat. These types of guys are known as "online pen pals," which is something you do not want to be labeled.
One of the top POF tips for guys is to take action! Don't find yourself in an endless conversation with a woman.
If you drag out a conversion, you'll bore women, or they'll think you aren't interested in actually meeting. They will move on, or some other guy may swoop in and ask her out before you do.
Once there's a connection, don't hesitate to ask a woman out. I typically ask a woman for her number and take it from there. Easy!
Strike while the iron's hot - Get a woman's number and plan the date.
Final Thoughts
If you're doing poorly on POF or need help, the tips on this page can help change things positively. Follow the tips above, and you'll see an immediate improvement.
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