Wingman was originally conceived to help people break the ice in social situations or to help recoup missed connections. To make this happen, people who use Wingman must upload photos of their face. This way, you can see someone across the room, find their online representation right on your phone, and get in touch if you want. However, if people upload a picture of, say, what they ate for breakfast, it’s exceedingly difficult for other people to recognize them and get in touch.

Another really good way to prevent the Wingman dream from being realized is to show a bunch of photos of bare chests or….other things. While certainly impressive, a photo of your six-pack abs isn’t going to do much for the person who saw you on the street, wanted to get in touch, but couldn’t find you on Wingman because you were unrecognizable. Unless, of course, you were walking down the street with your shirt off. Again, a respectable move, but not really what we’re designing around.

Still another way to reduce of your chances of getting noticed is posting a photo of you and a friend.  What message are you trying to convey here exactly?  Two for one?  How is someone supposed to know which person is you?

This is why we delete photos of anything other than your smiling face. We’re not trying to be mean – we’re just trying to build a community of people who want to bring online dating back to the real world. By leaving your smiling photo around town, you make it possible for someone who maybe crossed paths with you at, for example, the bus stop, to connect with you at a more convenient time.  And by ensuring that the photo is of you, and you only, you’re increasing the chances that someone you haven’t met and who hasn’t seen you in real life will want to strike up a conversation.

So go ahead. Upload a face pic. You have a beautiful smile .

The migration from Myspace to Facebook was a dramatic shift away from the Profile Penalty. Facebook created a new network defined by actual friendships, school/work relationships, and common interests, instead of Myspace’s intricate, cumbersome Profiles that took a great deal of time to polish and perfect.

The problem I have with dating websites is that they attempt to use a series of profile questions to lock down your personality, your romantic interests, and your compatibility with the other users on the site. I can’t tell you how many times I see a profile that I like, only to nitpick and find the one or two (or three…) “dealbreakers” buried in the details of someone’s profile.

I call this the “Profile Penalty”. Maybe it’s a misspelled quote. Perhaps it’s over-exuberance around a reality TV show that I hate. Maybe I read too much into the “What I’m looking for section”, and deem this prospective mate to be too slutty/too prudish/too boring.

Or, I find the profile of my perfect mate. Oh great, now what? Now I must craft the perfect witty-but-not-overbearing, perfectly-worded-yet-casual introduction message. What if they don’t respond back? Am I unattractive, or are they just on vacation?

Wingman has no Profile Penalty. Just upload a photo, and check-in at a few places. See someone you like, send a Wingman. No profiles—just rejection-free flirting.

We are instinctual creatures, and can infer a great deal about someone based on what they look like and where we see them. By removing the Profile Penalty, we shift the burden of getting to know someone out of the profile and into real life.

Sure, you can spend several hours perfecting your online dating profile, and then spend many hours at home searching through others’ profiles, looking for that perfect someone. Or you can use Wingman, and check-in as you go about your daily routine (and nightly adventures) and see who might cross your path.

Over on Urlesque, Kia Matthews outlines the types of repeat offenders one finds on dating websites, such as “A 27-year-old ‘consultant’ who lists Happy Hour as one of his talents” and “The Uncle Ted, who on a Friday night ‘You Can Find Me: Swing Dancing.’” I’m happy to say that we don’t have “types” on Wingman. We just have people hanging out, mingling, chatting. Read more at The 11 Guys You Meet on Dating Sites.