The second paragraph should be more about the kind of person you'd like to contact. Again you want some of the important value characteristics in here, along with features. Now you can specify height, age range etc. if it's important to you.

 

Lets be very clear here. You are not writing War and Peace.  These paragraphs are only a few sentences long. Be brief, but substantive. Most normal people don't tell their whole life story to a complete stranger.  If you did, you'd have nothing left to talk about (or you’d bore them to death :)

Use words that are evocative of your character, and write for your audience. Most men are visual, so use words which conjure up an image or picture (I'm saying nothing more here :). Many women are also visual, but are 'touchy-feely' too. Use a few words to conjure up good feelings.

Get them to contact you
Finally the last sentence should be an inviting sign off, which encourages them to contact you providing they fit your description in the second paragraph. This is important. Although this is a numbers game, implying the more contacts the better your chances, you don't want to waste time with people who obviously don't fit the characteristics you looking for. Remember, it's not about quantity; it's about finding people who are genuinely attracted to you as an individual.

Put a Photo in your Profile
Did you know that Profiles showing photos are over four times more likely to get responses than those without? The reason is simple. We are still driven by our evolutionary conditioning, and the first thing that happens in the real world is that we see someone interesting. This is no different online. Most people would much prefer to look at someone's picture before making contact, rather than playing the dating equivalent of Russian roulette. Here are some hints for a good picture.

• It's worth having someone take a recent photo of you when you're at your happiest and most relaxed. You could do a pose, but if it's obvious, some people will just think you're a poser (and they'd be right :). The picture will be better if someone can catch you off guard, but laughing or smiling.

• Don't hide your face behind sunglasses, or in shadow where it's hard to see what you look like. People want to see who they're e-mailing, so lighting is important.

• Your photo should be about you, and only you. A picture of you with your arm around a member of the opposite sex doesn't exactly send out the right message, even if they are a relative (one with your ex is definitely a big mistake! :). Photos including children, pets, or friends may also be distracting.

• Don't use a photo in which you're dressed too revealingly. You want to look attractive, but a picture of you in a bikini is probably going to attract the wrong kind of response (especially if you’re a man :).

Further advice for writing Profiles

Looking for Friends not Lovers. If you're looking for different categories of friends such as expanding your social circle, sporting & recreation partners and so on, you would be much better off writing  separate profiles for each category and listing each section with appropriate headings on your profile. Your audience is different in each case so you should write different profiles.

Get in the mood. When writing your profile, wait until you're in a good mood and choose somewhere where you can relax. If you've had a bad day at work, or you're not feeling good about yourself, it will show in the way you portray yourself. Wait until you feeling better.
 
Be Positive. A positive profile is much more attractive and will encourage others to respond. Writing about your insane ex, or how you hate people who can't commit is a turnoff. People want to be uplifted not dragged down.

Be Smart. Poor grammer and spelin wivin yor profile can be a majer ternoff : ). Use a spell checker before you post your profile. If necessary compose your profile using a word processor and spell checker on your computer. Print and read it back to yourself. Once it's ready you can then just ‘cut ‘n paste’ it into your online profile form. Some people use abbreviations but I would avoid these unless they are extremely common (took me ages to work out what SOHO meant : ).

Get a balance a between filtering, and being too picky. When describing what you're looking for, be aware that if you're too specific you may unduly limit your responses. Although this sounds contradictory to my previous comments about quality versus quantity, you do want some contacts. Also does it really matter if the partner of your dreams is half an inch shorter than you wanted, if they fit all the important criteria perfectly? Concentrate on the important stuff and the rest follows.

Try not to over think it. You want your profile to reflect the real you, not some person you think people will be more attracted to. Show a little passion or emotion rather as well as facts, but spare a thought for those readers with a delicate sensibility, and don't let your profile get too slushy :).

Try not to get fixated on just one aspect of your life. Not everyone is as keen on your dog (or your car, skiing, children…) as you are. If the object in question is the only thing you talk about in your profile, you'll look obsessed and one-dimensional.

If you can't think of anything to write about yourself, try this. If you met someone at a party and you had to tell them three unique things about you which might illustrate hidden depths, what would they be? Put them in your profiles.

Don't stop improving your profile, until you're getting the type of responses you want. If you're getting responses from the wrong types of people, or not getting as many responses as you'd like, then review your profile and think about how you can improve it a little more.