Dating At Her Age: Three tips for dating in 2025

SALT LAKE CITY — The peak time of dating app usage is the first Sunday of the year at 8 p.m. In fact, dating apps like Tinder have dubbed it ‘Dating Sunday’.

With the big day coming up, relationship coach Kristin Sokol gave Dating at Her Age her top three tips for dating going into 2025. 

 #1: Use social media

Sokol’s first tip for dating today is to use social media more proactively. This means don’t let in-person connections die at the first encounter.

If you end up following each other on social media, you can easily keep up that connection by simply pausing and commenting on a post. 

“Social media is such a great tool and I feel like we’re letting we’re not harnessing the full power or potential of it, but we could and it wouldn’t we’re only like, you know, two small efforts away from harnessing its full power and potential in our lives.” 

Sokol also said not to be scared of sending a direct message. It doesn’t have to be that serious, you can just ask a specific question you would in person.

“And so you send them a message and say, ‘Oh, hey, I’ve been thinking about going to that, like how cold is it? How long did it take you to walk through?” Sokol said. “Just to directly connect you. I’m not saying that you have to ask them to marry you or anything like that but just let them know that you’re there.” 

#2: Be discoverable

Sokol said she finds that many of the people she works with are in and out of the places they frequent, the gym, church, or even a work conference. Not allowing for opportunities to organically meet people.

“They’re trying to find an empty corner where they can sit, and [then] they’re looking at their phone the whole time. And then, wherever they are that thing ends and they’re in their car. You’re just not being very discoverable out in the universe of where people are.” 

Sokol recommended, as scary as it is, to put yourself out there. Go ask to sit with someone sitting alone or linger a little after to ask someone a question. It doesn’t have to be a long conversation, Sokol said she’s made new friends that have affected her life for months afterward in just a few minutes. 

“You just never know what good connections can come out of those really casual connections.”

#3: Be specific and intentional on dating apps

Sokol recommended approaching building your profile with intention, starting with the photos.

“I’m not just going to go through my camera roll and pick photos. I’m actually going to go get a new profile photo where my hair and makeup is done just right or where I’m feeling the most confident. I’m getting myself in good light with an interesting backdrop.” 

She also said that the writing in your profile should be specific. Instead of just ‘I like hiking’ you can mention a specific popular hiking trail, something someone can comment on. 

Sokol also said to be intentional with your swiping to train the algorithm with your preferences. 

Lastly, Sokol recommends setting a task or a goal when you go on the app. 

“I don’t want you to spend six hours every weekend on a dating app. That’s probably too much time, but I want you to get on there and say, ‘I’m going to say yes to six people and I’m going to return any messages that I have and then I’m going to turn this thing off.”

She said this way you avoid burnout and you leave the app feeling great about what you’ve done.

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• Who pays for the date?
• Johnston: Real human connection feels unnatural. I want to change that
• Why you should at least Google search someone before going on a date