Bigger isn’t always better.

A new study from dating site Badoo.com has found that shortening your first name makes you more appealing to prospective mates when dating online.

The site analyzed information from the 190 million people around the world who use the site to verify the findings, concluding that women with names like Jennifer, Alexandra and Susan had better luck in the dating pool when they went by Jen, Alex and Sue. The same can be said for men with names like Thomas, Mike and Christopher when they elected to use Tom, Mike and Chris.

Badoo reached its conclusion by looking at the number of messages users received over a five-month stretch, comparing 162 pairs of names, one short and the other longer. In 72% of cases, the shorter name had more messages.

Women with more compact names were 79% more enticing, while men with a diminutive name were 69% more enthralling. And, perhaps trying to get an edge wherever they can, men are twice as likely to employ a shorter name.

So, make sure you keep this information in your back pocket if you'd like to have a nice son- or daughter-in-law one day, but are debating naming your youngster something convoluted like Bartholomew or Gertrude.

[AFP]

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