#OnlineDating: Separating The Keepers From The Creepers

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's Becca Rodriguez

In the past decade, online dating has transformed from the ultimate relationship taboo to a viable and even admirable means of meeting a compatible partner. According to a recent survey from Pew Research, a full 11 percent of Internet users have signed up for online dating sites, up from just 3 percent in 2008. Of those, an astounding 23 percent have found spouses or long-term partners. An online dating profile can't guarantee you find your soul mate, but the process can be greatly simplified by using some basic criteria in order to weed out the creepers from the keepers.

Making And Sticking To Plans

If there's one way a guy can make it obvious that you are little more than a booty call, it's treating your date in cavalier fashion. Whether it's the first date or the hundredth, you deserve to know when and where you'll be meeting, and that you can actually count on the guy showing up. In this age of social media and text messages, it's incredibly easy for guys to weasel out of dates. That's not to say that all men are willing to leave their dates out in the cold. As a study from Match.com reveals, 82 percent of online dating users say they've never stood up anyone. However, it's still easy to ditch out at the last minute. If your guy sends a cursory text and doesn't attempt to make amends, you might want to consider throwing him by the wayside.

Sweet Gestures

You've made it past the perilous first and second dates and are now rounding the corner for date three. Has your would-be significant other made any romantic gestures? Super fancy dinners are by no means necessary, but moves such as picking out flowers online and having them delivered to your office quickly distinguish creepers from keepers. A dating prospect will only go through such an effort if he is truly interested in pursuing a long-term relationship. In fact, as a study from Hort Technology reveals, the regular presentation of floral gifts actually greatly enhances the chance of a relationship standing the test of time. However, other sweet gestures can also strengthen bonds, with cards, chocolates and even thoughtful phone calls serving as excellent signals as to whether a love interest is truly worth your time.

Sharing Potentially Embarrassing Interests

Often, men go into online dating thinking only of impressing their dates, as opposed to showing their true selves. But at some point, the macho talk about career and athletic achievements grows stale. By the time you've been dating for a few weeks, your new beau should have shared at least one potentially embarrassing tidbit. This could include everything from his penchant for the "Real Housewives of New Jersey" to the story about that time he tripped up the stairs. Research from the University of California Berkley shows that sharing potentially embarrassing information about oneself actually increases trust levels. As such, you should encourage your guy to tell those goofy stories — and don't hesitate to share a few past bloopers of your own!

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