Archive for the ‘Monday Makeover’ Category

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Barbara D.”

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Dear Tamar,

I’m disappointed with the responses I’m getting — most of them are from across the country or from guys I find spooky. I would love a profile makeover.

-Barbara D

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Dear Barbara D,

I love your profile name! It’s cute, unique, and I expect it reflects your sparkling personality. I’m sure lots of people see your profile name and think “darn, why didn’t I think of that first!”

Alas, your photos — or rather, lack thereof — leave much to be desired. One photo simply doesn’t cut it. And by now I’m sure you know I hate photos posed against blank walls. You’re tall, blonde and relatively young for a widow, plus as one reads in your profile, you have a great personality, so show all that off in your photos! Find photos with your kids or with friends where your natural smile and happiness are shining through. You can crop out the other people in the photos or simply describe who they are in your photo blurb.

In general, I’m a fan of your “In My Own Words” paragraphs. There a few typos here and there that could be fixed, but nothing major stands out to me that should be edited. Your personality comes through nicely. It’s obvious that you are an active person and that your life is pretty full already, but would be more meaningful if you had someone to share it with you.

I suggest going through your “My Details” section and answering more questions so that there aren’t as many empty sections that say “not answered yet.” Overall though, I think you will be a hot commodity once you add more photos and hopefully that will help attract more men in South Florida. Good luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Justin D.”

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Hi Miss Tamar,

My profile seems to be anti-attractive to women. I don’t know what’s wrong with it.  I’ve updated the essays numerous times and the current pictures are fresh and new.

A majority of the women I email check out my profile, but then don’t respond.  That makes me think my profile is the weak link.  I’m entering my third month on 100hookup and still no dates.  I receive a minimal amount of responses.  My response rate is close to zero.

I’d be grateful for any advice you could provide.  Please pile it on.  Don’t go easy.  =)  Tell me the truth, do I need to see my plastic surgeon?  Maybe you’ve heard of him?  His name is…Dr.Frankenstein. LOL!

-Justin D

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Hi Justin D,

Thanks for writing in! Between your email and your profile I want to thank you for making me laugh! I think your profile is very well written with a nice balance of jokes and seriousness. So let’s get down to the nitty-gritty of what can be made better.

I don’t like your pictures, not because you look like you visited Dr. Frankenstein, but because your photos don’t reflect your personality at all. I appreciate you following my advice and having a close-up and a full length photo but your pictures are boring. Have friends snap candid photos of you when you’re out and about or have family take photos of you when you’re celebrating a holiday or birthday. Your natural smile with a random background is always better than a staged photo in front of a white wall. Another option is to find a friend who is an aspiring photographer who would be willing to do a photo shoot with you outdoors. Finally, photos showing you participating in some of your hobbies (any pics of you from last season’s Super Bowl winning Ravens season with you at a game or watching a game wearing a jersey with some friends?) is always a great supplemental photo. You need to have a minimum of 4 photos with 6 being the optimal number to show personality and consistency.

That brings me to your details. I don’t think you need to be SOOO specific with your weight. You’re tall and skinny and women much prefer that than the opposite, but they don’t want to know that you weigh less than them. In Your Ideal Match, I would add “Marriage and Children” because you say so in your Life and Ambitions paragraph. Dating in your mid-20s is difficult because you don’t want to put too young of an age and end up with someone in college and not ready for marriage but you also don’t want to select too high of an age range and end with someone who’s jaded from their biological clock ticking. I think your selection of 22 is good and it should stay there until you turn 30 (if in fact you’re still single at 30 which I’m sure you don’t plan on being). But as you age your maximum age range should continue to stay 3 years your junior. That currently gives you a very narrow age range right now, but that’s okay. Your next birthday is fast approaching so you will soon enough expand your age range.

I really think it’s your photos that are hindering your success. Find or take photos that match your fun and funny personality and you’ll be on your way! That said, if you want me to review the emails you’re sending to the women then send me a sample because maybe you’re doing something wrong there. Good luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “David.”

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Hi David,

I appreciate the amount of photos you uploaded which really show consistency in your appearance. But (and there’s always a but), you need to reorder them. Consider deleting a few and add a lengthier description to the others. I would make photo #6 (the mud pic) your profile photo as it shows your face close-up — plus it’s unique, interesting and fun. In your current profile photo, you’re wearing sunglasses and not showing your natural smile, so it’s not the best representation of your face. I would delete photos #7 (too far away) and #11 (chef) as they don’t add much value. Even photos #1 and #5 are expendable as you’re wearing sunglasses. Additionally, 11 photos is a bit of an overkill. I would also describe who the cute little girl is in photo #9 since you say you don’t have any kids, but don’t identify her as a niece or god-daughter.

Your profile is overwhelming, I’m not sure how else to put it. Sometimes there’s too much information, sometimes your sarcasm is questionable, and sometimes there’s a bit of a cheesiness factor. The first paragraph in your “About Me” section is great. I would delete the second paragraph completely and leave the third paragraph as is. The music and books you mention are again mentioned in “My Favorite…” and in the “Likes and Interests” tab so there is no need to repeat yourself — especially when the information fits better in another area.

Your “My Life and Ambitions” answer is confusing as it doesn’t align with Areas of Study/Occupation/What I do questions you answered. This is a huge red flag with anyone’s profile. If what you put under Occupation is no longer what you currently do, then address it in this section. Similarly, “A Brief History of My Life” is incredibly confusing. I appreciate good sarcasm, but this was completely over my head. The first line is cute — if vague. The rest of the quotations should be deleted. I mean, I get it, I just don’t think it belongs there. “My Perfect First Date” is perfect. The last line is questionable, but it’s up to you about whether you want to keep it or not. “Things I Could Never Live Without” is very well written, as is “My Favorites.” Under “The Coolest Places I’ve Visited,” you should delete the last line as it is kinda corny. The question is written in past tense, so to say: “somewhere with YOU!” is cheesy. The rest of your answers are good… there’s some humor mixed with seriousness, which is great.

Your “Details” and “My Ideal Match” are fine, broad enough to attract the most potential matches. Again, the list of “Area of Study” is a bit lengthy and confusing. Try to pare that down as a I doubt you majored in six areas. Finally, I like your new profile name, but since you mention a comic book character. I would describe somewhere how you are the female version of that character — rather than just assume a reader will make the connection on their own (adventurous, sarcastic, etc).

Good Luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Simone.”

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Hi Simone,

I’ll be honest — I don’t love your profile name as it doesn’t say anything about you or your personality. I’m assuming it’s your initials and your birth date, but that frankly could be just like the 100hookup-assigned member number. Try to figure out another way to brand yourself. Use your first name, your location, your occupation, your passions, your hobbies, any combination of the above to make your profile name both stand out and represent your personality better than a couple letters and numbers.

I like your photos and I appreciate how you used a clear, close-up image of your face for your main profile photo. I also like that you showed 2 full-body pics next, and then ended with another close-up, showing your consistency in how you look. Your 4th photo is not high-resolution though, so I would either replace it or add another photo. Low-resolution photos don’t get enlarged when a prospect clicks on it and therefore they can’t really see who or what is in the picture. If you don’t know whether your photos are hi or low-res, then click on the photo’s properties and see what size it is. Anything less than 300dpi (dots per inch, as in pixels) means your photo will appear pixelated if enlarged.

Your “In My Own Words” answers were all written well, but there are some typos which are easily overlooked. This can be fixed if read again with fresh eyes. You sound very content and independent, so I would talk more about why you are looking for someone to share your hobbies with and how much more life you have to live — which you want to do with someone else.

You’ve picked a great age range and are general enough with your “Ideal Match” without being too vague. If you wanted to broaden your search, you could add “single” to the marital status for starters and “conservative” to the religion since you state that you don’t care how religious someone is as long as they respect your level of Judaism.

I think you’re on the right track and I wish you the best of luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers each Monday. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Hillary.”

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Hi Hillary,

Good call having your profile name be a combination of your name and an abbreviation of the city you live in. The only suggestion I would make is to maybe spell out the entire city because I didn’t know what the acronym was until I clicked on your name and saw where you lived.

More importantly, you need more pictures… way more pictures! The two you have look very different from each other. The first one is cute, but since you’re obviously dressed up for a simcha you need extra supporting photos to show that you always look that good! You’re second and only other photo makes you look much older than you are and much different than your profile photo. I would delete that one to be honest. You also do not show anything more than your face. Add some full body photos whether you like your body or not — because every man has a type, but more than that, every man wants to know what you look like from head to toe!

You should have about six photos with different angles, different lighting and different poses. Have a trusted friend or relative help you because we oftentimes see ourselves as much different than others — for good and bad. For instance, others often see us as more attractive than we view ourselves and we may think a certain hairdo is sexy, while others think a different ‘do is better on us.

All of your answers under the “In My Own Words” heading are great. Nothing stood out to me that was written poorly, or too much information, or not descriptive enough. Well done.

I appreciate that the minimum age range is 5 years younger than you, but I would increase the maximum. Don’t be afraid of entering the decade above yours because a man in his early 50’s may be younger at heart than a man in his mid-40’s.

Good luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. Today she’s tweaking the profile for “Jewell.”

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Hi Jewell,

You said you don’t love your profile name, so let’s start there. You have the word “Jew” in your name, so by combining your name and, well, the fact that you’re a Jew, is an easy and awesome play on words. Sometimes the obvious is the best. No need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to your profile name, just go for something cute and unique. Use Jewellicious, Jew4Jewell, or take my lead and craft something new!

Your pictures are great! I prefer the 3rd for your profile pic because your smile seems more genuine there. Obviously you did a photo shoot, which is fine because you used three very different facial expressions and angles to show your look is consistent. To answer your other question, yes, it’s okay to use supplementary pics with your family. You are a mother, so showing pictures of yourself surrounded by people you love is to your advantage. Make sure you include a description stating they are your kids/grandkids. The only time I caution against using pictures with kids is when you’re the aunt or uncle because that can get confusing.

Your “About Me” paragraph is written well. Your concern for non-Jews contacting you on the site can be avoided by mentioning how important your family and your hookup values are in that paragraph. You can also select the option to only be seen by Jews. I would try to answer at least a few more questions to prove that you’re putting forth the effort, just as you would like the men whom contact you to do. Same goes for the multiple choice questions like “Likes & Interests” — if you have a few special hobbies, then select those from the list.

I appreciate that you maxed out your age range at 10 years your junior, but I don’t think you should be afraid to lower your minimum age range. Five years younger than you is still someone in the same stage of life.

By completing your profile and adding some more authentic photos, I think you’ll have more luck. You’re well on your way! Good luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. Today she’s tweaking the profile for “Amanda.”

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Hi Amanda,

I strongly, strongly suggest you pick an actual username rather than using your member number. Your name offers you many ways to use a play on words to craft something really cute: LookingForAmanda (you’re looking for a man and the men should be looking for Amanda, get it?) or AmandaNeedsAManDuh or BeMandysMan and so on. When you have a name that can be capitalized on, then there’s absolutely no reason why you should have a number as your profile.

Your photos are simply not strong enough. The one in the hat is cute, but as a thumbnail I thought you were an orthodox Jew. You have to look at your own profile subjectively to see how others will view it — log out and then use the free search to see how your thumbnail photo appears.  Plus, it’s your side profile which means it should be a supplementary photo and not your main photo (other 100hookuprs should remember this as well)!

The black and white photo is cute, and shows your great smile, but it’s also not a head-on photo (pardon the pun) which means it also should be delegated a supportive photo. And your only other photo shows you doing something active, which is great, except by wearing sunglasses and a hat, we literally can’t see any defining facial features. I strongly recommend you do the following:

1. Find or take a photo of yourself looking straight on into the camera
2. Add a full length photo. It doesn’t matter what “body style” you are, just that you are confident enough to include a photo of yourself in your profile.

The “In My Own Words” section is a bit sparse except for the “About Me” essay. I like what you wrote, but I would elaborate on the expression you quote in the beginning. If someone has to stop and think about a line and reread it a few times to grasp it, and then there’s no explanation to how you fit said quote, it becomes more of a distraction then anything else. The rest of your “About Me” is great! I like how you ask a question at the end — although I would limit it to one question (the second one) and leave it at that. You don’t necessarily have to expand upon the answers you have in the rest of this section, except for the section “My Perfect First Date.” That needs more than two words. None of the questions that 100hookup asks should be ignored or given the “easy” answer.

Finally, I would expand upon your age range a bit. Compromise between your current maximum age and ten years older than you. For you, that would mean 38 should be your max age.

In all, I think adding more photos which consistently and truly show your face, your body and your personality, will attract many more men who will do more than just click on your profile and move on because they probably are not even bothering to read what is overall a solidly-written profile.

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers. Today she’s tweaking the profile for “Marina.”

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Hi Marina,

I’m going to get right down to it — you need a profile NAME rather than using your member number. By not taking the time to use your creative juices to think of a moniker, you will not stand out among the masses! That was the first thing I noticed.

Then I noticed your very attractive pictures! Great job picking your profile photo, in particular! Add 1-2 more pictures to show even more consistency. People want to know you’re not just posting the only 3 photos you have where you look decent, so the more the merrier. Although attractive, you do look very different from photo 1 with your hair down to photo 2 with your hair pulled back. By adding a few more photos, you will only increase the chances of prospects contacting you!

The “In My Own Words” categories are filled out well enough. Although you should take some time to add a little bit more to each question, particularly “About Me” — and don’t forget make sure the grammar and punctuation are correct. Having someone else proofread your profile is the best way to get fresh eyes on these answers, and to ensure you’re not missing mistakes.

As for your preferences, I suggest upping your maximum age just a few years. However, I do think your age range is already much more realistic than most people. Complete the rest of the “Ideal Match” questions so that prospects know that they are, or aren’t, your type. Also, if you can answer the “What I Do” question under “Background,” it would be best. When people don’t list their career, potential prospects are suspicious of what you’re hiding. You don’t have to be super specific, but you should put the general field in which you work.

I know you’ve been on and off 100hookup for many years and have trouble getting to a second date. I think being more specific in what you want in a man in the “Ideal Match” section will allow potentials to weed themselves out so you are only approached by men who fit your preferences, and therefore you will have more of a chance of meeting someone you sync up with. You don’t have to be too specific if you want to attract a broad range of men (but that’s a good tactic), just be prepared to ask the right questions on those first dates so you can weed people out.

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers each Monday. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Dateless.”

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Dear Dateless,

Upon first glance at your profile I would have a friend whose first language is English help you make fixes to the grammar and punctuation. What you have to say is good, but a reader could be distracted by the typos. Note to all 100hookuprs: have a friend proofread your profile because even native English speakers will let a typo or two slip by!

Your path to converting to Judaism is very interesting and will be a great conversation piece for first dates — just be prepared to discuss it further. Also, you may want to give just a bit more detail about your divorce — namely, how long you’ve been divorced — so that prospects have a better idea as to your relationship history and current status.

Your main profile picture is great, but I would delete the one of you taking your photo in the mirror with your phone and instead add two more pictures of you smiling. I would also add another full length photo of you to show your body. An average of six photos is the right amount to show consistency: a mix of close-ups, full body and different angles, smiles and serious expressions, real and professional.

From looking at your profile, I can’t tell where you live. Make sure to fill out the questions properly because both places answer “where you’re from,” but neither says where you actually reside.

Also, answer a few of the multiple choice questions about  your “favorites” on the Likes and Interests page. The less a profile is completed, the less time someone will take to look at your profile.

Good luck!

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Tamar Caspi Shnall is giving online profile makeovers each Monday. This week she’s tweaking the profile for “Nice hookup Boy.”

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Luckily I know what NJB stands for (Nice hookup Boy), I hope girls do too because otherwise your 100hookup username is a bit confusing. Although tacking your city on to your username was a good call. Acronyms are not always smart to use in your screenname (or your “About Me” spiel) because some initials can be taken the wrong way, while others will leave people dumbfounded. Adding your city to your username is smart because a person’s location search parameters can be cast wide — and this will remind them where you live.

I really like your photos — lots of different angles and different lighting, plenty of close-ups with a few full body shots — good job with that. Since you have friends, especially girls, in your photos I would add the captions underneath to describe who it is in the photos with you. Beautiful women in men’s photos can be intimidating (and same goes for the reverse — handsome men in women’s photos) so let 100hookuprs know if it’s your sister, or a friend’s wife.

Your “About Me” paragraph is simple and to the point. Since you mention traveling as a new love, I would update and add new places you’ve visited after each trip. Adding the ages of your niece and nephew is tricky because you will have to update as they age. Updating is good, however, because it adds an “updated” badge to your profile. Still, being slightly more generic (ie “preschool-age niece and a nephew who’s a toddler”) is better for these purposes. You can be more specific on your dates! I especially like how you ended your essay with a bit of humor. Women like a man who can make them laugh. Good job.

I recommend expanding upon the “I’m Looking for…” and “My Past Relationships” sections (even if it means just adding another sentence). Answers for these questions can be cliche, but you’re not giving the question enough credit by only writing a few words.

I appreciate that you’ve filled out nearly all your “Details” as you’d be surprised by how many people don’t! The only two that are blank ought to be completed. As for what you’ve selected for age range, I would impress upon you to add two years above your own age for your maximum age limit. Even if you would never (and never say never) date or marry a woman older than you, you can’t make assumptions based on just a year or two. Additionally, women who are viewing your profile will be encouraged that just as you are open to a woman 10 years younger than you, you are also open to a woman a few years older.

I hope these slight tweaks help! Good luck!