A good first message is sweet, and short. One hundred words is about right: long enough to include a compliment, to say what caught your eye about their advert, mention something you have in common, and to ask a leading question.

How do you send free messages on match?

Just click on the blue speech bubble in their mini-profile in the search results or at the top of their profile. Go on - dont be shy! To read your messages, just click Messages at the top of any Match page. You usually need a subscription to read or send messages.