You spend hour after hour online getting to know a dating prospect. You openly pour your heart out, only to feel a nagging doubt. Your inner voice is constantly asking you, "But is he or she who they really say they are?"

People have long been attracted to the anonymity involved in online dating. A prospect can say, "I am a Doctor," and turn out to be a telemarketer. Married men and women gravitate to this form of dating for obvious reasons. They can reveal only what they choose to and leave out the rest.

What kind of assurance can the sincere single have when communicating online with a potential date? Online text messaging is a great way to get to know a dating prospect. You can each share about your interests, about who you are and what is important to you. This, however, will reveal only half of the story.

To be entirely confident that you are having the best chance to assess someone, consider meeting through the new audio/video chat capabilities. Many dating sites are offering these now. With this new technology you have the advantages of being able to hear the prospects voice as well as see accompanying non-verbal, physical cues.

Prospects who agree to meet using the audio/video chat are not as likely to try and pass him or herself off as being different than they actually are; at least not in obvious ways.

Video pictures offer more depth and dimension to your communication. Communication is more expressive and more sincere. Prospects talk more freely and don’t need time to think and type an “appropriate” response, so language is more natural and more realistic. This provides security.

Another critical pitfall to avoid in online dating is use of dishonesty. How can you be sure that what your prospect is saying or writing is the actual truth? With audio/video dating chat, you have the advantage of being anonymous in name and contact details, while at the same time you have the opportunity to observe your prospect in real-time. You can detect dishonesty much more readily when you can see the expression on the face.

No online dating vehicle is fool-proof or perfect. You will always need to be on your guard and be able to weed out the imposters from the sincere. Having the best in communication technology while online dating brings you one step closer to a positive experience.