It might seem like a relatively straightforward assignment. After registering with a date site like this, the next step towards finding your perfect match would be cobbling together some appropriate dating profile. But this isn't a task to undertake lightly. Your dating profile will be the first impression of you that other site users will come across. So unless this ticks all the right boxes, you'll be completely wasting your time. If you want to have the best chance of attracting a diverse range of prospective partners, here are the five essential rules for writing your online dating profile.

Put yourself in the shoes of the singleton browsing through page after page of dating profiles, scanning the attractive photos, skimming through the descriptions that eager singles have posted in the hope of attracting attention. Would you be impressed by someone whose spiel was all about extolling how wonderful they are? Their amazing achievements at work, the sports car they drive, the designer clothes cramming their wardrobe, the luxury apartment they've moved into? Someone who is all about 'me, me, me.' Or someone with a self-deprecating sense-of-humor, always ready to share a joke, but ready to focus on the meaningful things in life?