That is because it is the first thing you see. The irony here is that you can "cheat" the same women have been doing. All that part about clothes, aircut and style.

Apparently people who have a pet in their profile picture has more matches. That is because they have included a "visual" cue that says "I like animals" and people who like animals usually are caring. You can design your own personal cues.

Mine were "nerdy". My profile picture was wearing a batman T-shirt. Then I had pictures from my travels, next to a giant Pacman in japan, at concerts or cinema premiers. Unsurprisingly, I got a lot of matches with men that liked the same things and that, not surprisingly, had the book and the movie part filled. XD

Now, what do you like? what do you enjoy? What kind of people do you want to attract? Show it.

You might find that women lower the physical requirement for men who share their interest and likes. Because what they are looking for is affinity. But if you don't know, you go for looks and other clues on the person.