"Don't Take Chances With Your Image: Call a Professional"
Enterprising entrepreneurs are helping singles in search of love craft catchy profiles.
By Lisa Ann Williamson

If everybody's online personal profile started out with "I am a caring, intelligent, hard-working, adventurous, financially secure, independent" person, sifting through the estimated 45 million profiles that are hanging in cyberspace would bear very little fruit of individuality.

In fact, Evan Marc Katz has seen hundreds of the streaming adjective profiles and yawned--a lot.

Standing out in a sea of potential partners requires work, a stellar profile and a photo that provides a glimpse into your personality.

"This is all about being more specific," Katz, 32, a self-professed prolific online dater, consultant, and founder of E-Cyrano, a service to help make personal ads more personal. "Tell a story. Paint a picture. It takes introspection, talking with friends, not a list of adjectives."

Katz, along with photographer Mindy Stricke of SingleShots, was part of an online dating workshop offered through the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan as part of its summer singles programs.

Ms. Stricke and Katz are just two examples of people who have found booming business opportunities in the world of online dating.

New sites with specific niches are popping up to take advantage of singles' demand for services. There are how-to guides and histories that chronicle this new social phenomenon. The Rules women, Ellen Fein and Sherrie Schneider, for instance, have weighed in with new e-dating guidelines, like waiting 24 hours before sending mail and only responding to e-mail for the first three months.

Other enterprising individuals are hiring themselves out as personal profile consultants or coaches willing to advise others playing the game of love.

There are very few rules in the cyber-dating world, but common sense should tell you there's a need to stand out from the crowd.

Katz, for instance, suggests never starting a profile with the pronoun "I", while Ms. Stricke says a well-lit, professional profile photo is a must.

Katz has made it his business to help people express their true personality online. For a $49 fee, he consults through his web site at www.e-cyrano.com. He writes profiles and introductory e-mails, and offers tips on photos and strategy. While he doesn't make guarantees, he has helped online daters get more mail and attract more interesting people.

"Every business has its consultants," said Katz, former customer care consultant with Jdate and author of "I Can't Believe I'm Buying this Book: A Commonsense Guide to Internet Dating."

Ms. Stricke started SingleShots a year ago after having taken photos for friends and colleagues who were dating online.

Online dating sites are filled with photos of folks with a second person, partially cut out, subjects that are too far away to discern features or people with hats and sunglasses in unflattering light.

"People want to see your personality, a glint in your eye, something that makes them want to know more," said Ms. Stricke, whose packages start at $145.

Having a bad photo online is like going "to a bar in your pajamas," Ms. Stricke said.

The better photos are those that are up close, with people wearing solid colors instead of prints, with even, flattering light.

And while the temptation is to grab the nearest picture from the photo album, Ms. Stricke says it's best to resist that urge. Instead, set aside time to take several new photos tailored to your purpose.