From Tinder to EHarmony and everything in between, your profile picture is what instantly determines which men notice you and why.

It’s no secret that men are visual creatures, and getting the attention of the right one begins the moment your face pops up on his screen. Without an effective profile picture, a guy will not give you a second more of his time. He won’t look at your other pictures, he won’t read your profile – you won’t get another chance.

It won’t matter that you have the quirkiest profile write-up or that your third photo has you involved in a hobby he absolutely adores – if you haven’t gotten his attention with your profile picture, you’re dead in the water. So, here are 9 secrets to choosing the right profile picture that always gets his attention – for the right reasons.

1. It should be a high-quality, face shot

It’s imperative that your online profile picture is a good close-up of your face. Don’t do long shots or sporty shots for this one – a guy should get an immediate idea of who you are and what you look like, right off the bat. A clear, high-definition face shot is the way to achieve this.

Your face shot should be one of your best. This doesn’t mean you have to go extreme with hair and makeup, but it has to be enough to jolt him out of his scrolling and get his attention. Enough to make him want to click over to the most important part – your profile.

2. Don’t cover up

This should be obvious, but I’m amazed at how many women wear sunglasses or have poor lighting in their facial shots. Hats should be avoided as well. Your full face – every aspect of it – should be clearly visible in your profile picture.

3. Don’t do the mirror selfie

It’s never clear, it’s backwards, and there are better photos of you. Either do a direct/nice selfie or have a friend take a head shot for you. Don’t resort to using mirrors!

4. No one else in the photo!

I can’t tell you how many women, I and other men, have immediately dismissed online, because there is a second person in her profile picture. Girl or guy – does not matter.

If a man is even slightly confused as to who you are, he’ll rule you out (unless he only wants sex and doesn’t care) without a second thought. Don’t use a photo with someone else cropped out and don’t even use a photo with your child (he’s dating you, not your kids). Your profile picture should be clearly and unequivocally – you.

5. Avoid too much sex

A guy shouldn’t be thinking ‘sex’, any more than a guy usually would when he sees a woman’s face. Cleavage and excess skin will lead you to an increased proportion of guys after casual stands and get you attention for the wrong reasons. If you’re looking for more than casual, don’t be too sexual. Your profile pic should make him think, “Wow, she’s gorgeous”, more than, “Wow, I want to hit that.”

6. Wear Colour! 

Studies have shown women who wear colour in their profile pictures get more, and better, responses. Red is always the proven leader, but blues, oranges, pinks, and greens all have been proven to do better than your bland tones – Black, white, brown and tan, when it comes to getting a guy’s attention.

7. Avoid too much business

In the same way you don’t want a guy thinking ‘sex’ the moment he views it, you don’t want him thinking ‘business woman’ either. This is online dating, not a job interview. Wear something that represents the feminine you.

8. Flirty face, look at the camera

Unlike men, a study by OKcupid.com showed that women get more hits when their profile picture has them looking directly at the camera. The same study found a flirty face, with some smile, got them the best results.

 9. Make sure it’s recent

Finally, your profile picture should reflect who you are. Now. Today. If it’s any more than 6 months old, 12-months at an absolute stretch, bin it. If you’ve changed your look recently, bin it. There is enough deception online, and everybody hates it. Don’t add to it by posting a photo that doesn’t represent the current you.

Your profile picture, alone, won’t win things for you – but if you do it wrong, it will definitely lose them. Even missing a couple of the strategies here could cost you your chances of finding the one.

Choose your profile picture well, use as many of the guidelines set out here as possible, and you’ll never know when that one picture grabs the attention of ‘Mr. Right’.