If you're looking for a long-term partner, then getting to know someone personally first is important; if you're looking for a play-partner, not so much.

So are you being clear in what you're interested in pursuing?

When I was looking for a casual play-partner, I started with the BDSM interests; if I were looking for someone long-term, there'd be more of a mix, heavily weighted toward personality and life-goals at the start.