Online daters ‘should skip to the fourth photo’

When it comes to looking for prospective matches on an online dating site, skipping to the fourth photograph of the person you are looking at is a recommended move.

GQ's guide to online dating advises all men to pay more attention to the later photos in a woman's album, as these are more likely to better reflect what she really looks like on a day-to-day basis.

It explained the first photo probably involves plenty of cleavage in an attempt to get you interested, while the second could be a selfie "with a 50 per cent chance of duck face". Finally, the third is probably from a holiday from several years ago.

However, the typical female online dater will finally reveal the truth in the form of an up-to-date full-body shot as her fourth image. This is the one you need to pay plenty of attention to, as it will show who you are potentially going to meet for your first date in just a few days or weeks.

Once you are happy with what you have seen and ready to make your move, it is all about the first move, which is effectively the do-or-die moment in an online dater's activities.

Here, you need to be relatively brief and to the point, as no girl wants to read an essay or an in-depth account of your life to date. Instead, try and be self-depreciating and mildly humorous, but do not overdo it by trying to pen a comedy routine.

GQ added it is important that your first move does not seem at all seedy, so mentioning a woman's looks in this opening message is always a bad idea.

You can instead focus on your mutual interests and anything else you may have spotted in her profile.