Types of Dating Services Available
- Professional Matchmaking Services
- Video Services
- Online Internet Database Matching Services
- Speed Dating
- Newspaper Personals
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Professional Matchmaking Services
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?Professional matchmaking is defined by the personal intervention of a
matchmaker, an experienced woman or man employed to find someone the
best partner possible given the circumstances.?
Executive Wisconsin Dating
http://www.executivewisconsindating.com/comparisons.html
?While matchmakers may be a vanishing breed, they still have their
champions, especially those interested in privacy, discretion...and a
wedding ring. For some, spending a great deal to meet the perfect
person is a solid investment. Zelda Fischer's Gentlepeople, for
instance, charges from $15,000 to $50,000. "Marriage consultants are
to dating services what executive recruiters are to employment
agencies," she says. "Our clients don't want to see 300 resumés?they
want the one right person."
AARP Magazine
http://www.aarpmagazine.org/lifestyle/Articles/a2003-09-23-seekinglove.html/page=3
Fees:
?Even though her fees are not exorbitant for this brand of
personalized matchmaking, the charges are a bit shocking: She gets
$15,000 for twelve dates over the course of the year with people
chosen expressly for the client?
New York Metro
http://www.newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/nightlife/singles/features/3936/
?These professional matchmakers have built businesses on pairing
beautiful people from the power scene in cities all over the country,
charging clients up to $15,000 to find Mr. or Mrs. Right.?
FOX News
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,48780,00.html
?Jill Ellington, owner of The Relationship Headhunters, or (
http://jillellington.talkoftheplanet.com/ ), has been in the business
since 1991 and has more than 600 active members. During her 12-year
tenure, she has arranged more than 200 marriages.?
Basic Membership fee is: $495 for 6 months and $750 for 1 year.
http://jillellington1.talkoftheplanet.com/Articles.html
?Professional matchmakers run these services. The owners of these
boutiques, because of their abilities to grow and maintain large
social networks, are able to help people find their soulmates. The
larger ones, usually franchises, are able to afford direct mail
marketing or radio ads. These services are usually referred to as
library dating because members checkout videos and profiles of other
members. The largest traditional dating services are Great
Expectations, Together Dating Service, Matchmakers International, It's
Just Lunch, and Perfect Match. These services usually cost hundreds of
dollars to a few thousands dollars per year.?
Solve Dating
http://www.solvedating.com/matchmaking-services.html
Great Expectations
http://www.ge-dating.com/
Most of Great Expectation's members are middle-to upper-income
professionals. The fee entitles members to look through albums of
resumes and photos, then view the videos of those people they might
want to meet. "It's important that people chose their own dates. "
http://www.atlge.com/cosmo.htm
It's Just Lunch (Albuquerque/Santa Fe franchise)
?Since the Albuquerque/Santa Fe franchise opened last January, more
than 450 professional men and women ranging in age from 25 to 60 have
signed on to let someone else do the initial legwork in their search
for romance and companionship. Two target markets have emerged? the
never-marrieds in their late 20s and 30s and the recently divorced or
widowed in their 40s and 50s.?
?80 percent success rate of first dates leading to second dates."
?Clients sign on for a membership? six months at $795 guarantees at
least six dates; nine months (and a minimum of nine dates) is $995;
and a year's membership (minimum of 14 dates) is $1,195. About 95
percent of the local members have the minimum of a college bachelor's
degree and 75 percent have advanced degrees?
?Nationally there have been 12,000 marriages.?
ABQ Journal
http://www.abqjournal.com/sage/91509sage10-05-03.htm
IJL recently celebrated twelve years in the dating business
http://www.itsjustlunch.com/home.asp
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Video Services
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?Video dating services offer you the advantage of seeing your date
before they see you. The central element of these services is a
library featuring a video profile/autobiography for every member. (..)
you pay for the video dating service every month your video is in
their library, regardless of whether anyone liked it or even watched
it. Once very popular, the video dating service is slowly fading into
obscurity. And for good reason! Such dating services receive endless
amounts of complains from and women claiming that they were never
selected despite being paid members for several months.?
Executive Wisconsin Dating
http://www.executivewisconsindating.com/comparisons.html
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Newspaper Personals
===================
?Just like online internet personals but with even less information and no photo.?
Executive Wisconsin Dating
http://www.executivewisconsindating.com/comparisons.html
?These ads are usually free and publishers make money by charging
telephone fees when an interested person calls to answer the ad.
Usually, the telephone fees are a few dollars per minute.?
Weaknesses of Personal Ads
?Inadequate Membership Size - At most only a few hundred ads are available.
?Physical Appearance Can Not Be Judged - No photos are published along with ads.?
?Financial Cost - Phone bills may add up.?
Solve Dating
http://www.solvedating.com/personal-ads.html
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Speed Dating
============
?Another recently popular phenomenon, speed dating features a large
group of men and women who spend the evening taking turns meeting
everyone of the opposite sex. The idea is that each person spends only
a minute with every eligible partner. Then, if sparks fly in those
sixty seconds, the pair can exchange phone numbers or find out
relevant contact information from event organizers. Speed dating
offers individuals the chance to meet a number of new individuals
quickly in a safe and public environment.?
Executive Wisconsin Dating
http://www.executivewisconsindating.com/comparisons.html
?Supporters of speed dating claim it is more efficient and cost
effective than going to a bar.?
?Most speed dating sponsors charge between $20 to $40.?
Solve Dating
http://www.solvedating.com/speed-dating.html
Speed Dating
?Each attendee, who has registered for a small fee on the Internet,
receives a name badge and a flirt card upon arrival. The cards are
used to express the level of interest the participants feel for one
another in one of four categories: (1) Let's Flirt! (2) Activity Pals
(3) Business Contact or (4) No Vibes.?
?Speed dating is not about `hooking up' with someone. It's about the
excitement of meeting new people in a controlled, safe and friendly
environment.?
Jet, Jan 27, 2003, by Marti Yarbrough
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m1355/5_103/96954204/p1/article.jhtml
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Online Internet Database Matching Services
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?The on-line internet database dating services have become very
popular recently. These sites offer you the opportunity to view
attractive potential dates instantly from the comfort of your own
home. All you have to do is find an attractive profile and send
someone an e-mail. Or, you can wait until someone spots your profile
and contacts you. It has become the pre-eminent low-cost, high-volume
dating method of the new millennium, spawning an entire internet
dating subculture.?
Executive Wisconsin Dating
http://www.executivewisconsindating.com/comparisons.html
Online dating services
?Many charge about $20 a month to post your photo and an in-depth
profile. Forbes reports this option is a mainstream phenomenon, with
revenues totaling $214 million the first half of 2003, triple the
amount spent in 2001.?
Times Online: February 2004
http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2004/02/05/features/lifestyles_and_living/73024d740dd2966886256e2e005c291b.txt
?More than 17 million people viewed online personals last year and 2.5
million people have paid for online personals, according to Jupiter
Research.?
?American Demographics reported that only 22 percent of the 98 million
singles in the United States in 2002 had tried online dating.?
YAHOO
?Yahoo does not charge for singles to post an ad and they can browse
other ads for free. But it charges a subscription fee of about $25 a
month or $100 a year to initiate a relationship with another single
and reply to an ad.?
?Yahoo does not disclose how many people subscribe to its personals
service but the company said 70 percent of the company's subscription
revenue in the third quarter came from four services --- one of which
was personals.?
?Yahoo Chief Executive Terry Semel said last week that the company met
its goal of ending 2002 with 2 million paying subscribers.?
?Top online dating sites include USA Interactive's Match.com;
uDate.com Inc., which USA Interactive's recently agreed to buy;
Lavalife.com, and Yahoo?
SiliconValley.com: June 2003
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/4933379.htm
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At the following link you will find a description of the best American
online dating services. Members of these sites are mainly American and
Canadian. They are ranked according to their popularity.
?The Top 3 American online dating agencies are Match (#57), American
Singles (# 179) and Date (# 658). High ranking does not prove quality,
but it does mean that they are used by millions.?
Follow this link to read a summery of each one.
http://www.online-dating-services.co.za/american-online-dating-agencies.php
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From a Report by The Online Publishers Association:
?Consumers spent $302 million on paid personals and dating content in
2002, more than three times the $72 million they doled out for the
same services the previous year, the study found.?
?The leader, Match.com, reported a 154 percent growth in revenue, from
$49.3 million in 2001 to $125.2 million in 2002, according to Trish
McDermott, the company?s vice president of romance. Match.com charges
$24.95 for a monthly membership, which allows subscribers to send
e-mails to potential dating partners. Match.com (search) visitors can
post profiles or search the database for free.?
Fox News
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,87256,00.html
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Online dating is a $304 million a year industry.
?The online portion of the dating services industry makes up a third
of the total revenues with $304 million in 2002. The target
demographic for these services are the 83 million Americans that are
between 19 and 45 and single. They have received a significant
increase in the number of single women in their thirties and forties
searching for a connection through a very impersonal medium. This
trend has been on the rise since September 11th, an event which made
people realize how important life is and how personal attention can ad
to your life. That may be why almost 40% of frequent users are married
already. (. . .) 2-3% of internet users visit these sites and 60-70%
of those say they have made long-lasting friendships from their
encounters.?
Source: Knight Ridder Tribune Business News
http://www.lovecompass.com/weblog/archives/2003_09.html
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From a CBS News Poll - Feb. 2003
?Overall, 15% of all Americans who have Internet access have visited a
web site where single adults meet, but 28% of all unmarried people
with Internet access have done so.
(. . .)
While many single web surfers are perhaps just flirting with the idea
of online dating, some have taken the plunge and signed up for a
dating service. Among unmarried people who have Internet access, 10%
say they have signed up for an Internet-based dating service at some
point.?
SUBSCRIBE TO INTERNET DATING SERVICE?
(Among unmarried Internet users)
5% - Yes, I have
5% - I have & someone I know has
20% - I don't but someone I know has
70% - No, I don't & no one I know does
?7% of unmarried Internet users say they have gone on a date with
someone they met online.?
GONE ON AN INTERNET DATE?
(Among unmarried Internet users)
6% - Yes, I have
1% - Yes, I have & someone I know has
42% - Someone I know has
51% - No, not me nor anyone I know
?Overall, 67% of Americans with Internet access do not think the
online world provides a good way to meet people. 24% say it does. Men
are slightly more likely to be accepting of it: by 27% to 21%, more
men than women with Internet access think cyberspace is a good place
for single adults to meet.?
Source: CBS News Poll
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/02/17/opinion/polls/printable540870.shtml
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?Online dating sites attract about 20% of the Internet population, and
Jupiter Research predicts huge growth. Last year Jupiter estimated
that 17.2 million people viewed online personals and 2.5 million of
them paid for online ads. In 2006, Jupiter predicts, 27.4 million will
view online personals and 5.2 million will pay for ads.?
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/internetlife/2003-02-09-online-dating_x.htm
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From an Ipsos-Reid Poll:
?Majority Of Americans (52%) Think That People Have A Better (44%) Or
At Least Equal (8%) Chance Of Meeting Someone Online Than At A
Single?s Bar Four-In-Ten (40%) Think That A Relationship Initiated
Online Has A Better (32%) Or Equal (8%) Chance Of Success Than One
Initiated In A Singles Bar?
?Three-In-Ten (29%) Would (27%) Or Might (2%) Recommend Online Dating
As An Alternative Way Of Meeting Other Singles To Their Single
Friends?
Chances of meeting someone online versus a single?s bar
?60% of $50,000/more households and 56% of college graduates think
that people have a better or equal chance of meeting someone they like
online than at a single?s bar. This compares with 50% of
$25,000-$50,000 income households and less than $25,000 households,
and 54% of those with some college and 48% of those with high school
or less.
Among other subgroups, 55% of men and 50% of women think that people
have a better or equal chance of meeting someone they like online than
at a single?s bar. This is also true among 53% of those aged 18-34
years, 57% of 35-54 year olds and 46% of those aged 55 years or more,
55% of those who are currently married and 51% of those who are
currently single, and 51% of residents in the Northeast, 52% Midwest,
53% South and 53% West.?
http://www.ipsos-na.com/news/pressrelease.cfm?id=1635
Online dating study: Tables
http://www.ipsos-reid.com/pdf/media/mr020930-1tb.pdf
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Demographics and Fees
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You may view demographics for Date.com here:
http://www.date.com/dateinfo/infotopic_87.html#5
You may view demographics for Matchmaker here:
http://advertising.lycos.com/destinations/matchmaker.asp
You may view demographics for Match.com here:
http://www.thevistaonline.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2003/02/18/3e53b0d69d67d
You may view demographics for Jumpdates.com here:
http://www.jumpdates.com/adt_home_advertise.asp
Online Singles Sites
Yahoo! Personals: personals.yahoo.com
COST: $24.95 for one month
DEMOGRAPHICS: a range of 21- to 40-year-old professionals
FEATURE: Voice and video clips, and conversation starters
Match.com
COST: $24.95 for one month
DEMOGRAPHICS: about 8 million members, about half of whom are under 30
FEATURE: Match.com messenger, MatchLive mixers (additional cost) and
MatchScene, an singles webzine.
Matchmaker.com
COST: $24.95 for one month
DEMOGRAPHICS: 10 million members
FEATURE: Extensive question/essay portion, specialized sections
including College Connection and Christian Connection, and singles
events.
Date.com
COST: $24.95 per month
DEMOGRAPHICS: about a million members, 30 percent between 20 and 30
FEATURE: Uses a secret formula designed by relationship experts and
psychologists to pair people up
Dreammates.com
COST: pay per credit, $19.95 for 10 credits
DEMOGRAPHICS: more than 3.5 million members
FEATURE: ability to send and recieve basic messages for free, and
three different communities: Dating, Romance and Intimate.
Eharmony.com
COST: $49.95 for one month
DEMOGRAPHICS: hundreds of thousands of singles looking for long-term relationships
FEATURE: a patent-pending matching model based on 29 key dimensions
Lavalife.com
COST: $14.95 for 60 credits
DEMOGRAPHICS: 4.6 million members exchanging 1.1 million messages daily
FEATURE: real-time instant messaging, in-depth profiling and
interactive voice response telephone technology.
http://graphic.pepperdine.edu/archives/2003-02-13/lifestyles/2003-02-13-dating.shtm
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A new survey conducted by comScore Networks in Reston, Va., shows that
office workers are falling in love ? with online dating services and
Web sites that post personal ads.
"There were about 7.9 million users from work who visited personal Web
sites," says Stephen Kim, chief research officer for comScore. "And
that actually accounts for 35 percent of all the time spent at
personal [classified] categories."
Kim says a clear majority of the estimated 26.6 million online romance
seekers are still logging in from home. But those who are looking for
love using the office PC's are spending way more time at these sites
than the average home surfers ? 51 vs. 37 minutes.
? Karen Chase, ABCNEWS
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/scitech/Relationships/cybershake030214.html
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Events for singles include Speed Dating, Single Cruises, Travel tours
and Specialty Parties.
Links to single cruises
http://www.singlesstop.com/directory/singles_events/singles_cruises/index.shtml
Links to Specialty Parties
http://www.singlesstop.com/directory/singles_events/specialty_parties/index.shtml
Links to Travel tours for Singles
http://www.singlesstop.com/directory/singles_events/travel_tours/index.shtml
Speed Dating Websites
http://www.singlesstop.com/directory/singles_events/speed_dating/index.shtml
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Older Singles
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According to the AARP Magazine Survey:
?Close to a third of unmarried American woman in their 40s through 60s
who date are going out with younger men.?
?Sex on a first date? Only 2 percent of single women in the age group
approved, while 20 percent of the men were amenable. Frequency of sex?
Sixty percent of the women and 45 percent of the men said they hadn't
had any in the past six months.?
- 60 percent of singles aged 40-69 are women, a majority of them divorced.
- 42 percent of the men and 24 percent of the women had never been married.
- Thirty-four percent of women say they're dating younger men
- Among the men, 66 percent said they were dating younger women.
- For both men and women, the top reason for dating was to find fun
and companionship.
- Only 11 percent of the men and 2 percent of the women cited sex as
the main motive.
- 8 percent of the respondents said they were dating in order to find
a marriage partner
- 9 percent said they were looking for someone to live with.
- 30 percent of the singles reported difficulty finding dates
- many were attending mixers and using online dating services.
CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/09/29/national/main575536.shtml
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Statistics
?Of the 97 million Americans who are 45 or older, almost 40
percent?36.2 million?are on the loose, according to the U.S. Census
Bureau.?
?This is no doubt one reason that the number of older singles who
shack up without marrying has skyrocketed. Recent data from the U.S.
Census found that among households headed by a person who is 45 or
older, 1.2 million contain two adults who are not related or married
to each other. That represents a dramatic increase from 1995, when
just 736,000 of such households contained two unmarried adults.?
?There are some dating obstacles only women face: They live
longer?which is a medical blessing but a dating curse. While the
differences are relatively minor for those ages 55 through 64, when
there are 92 men for every 100 women, they get more dramatic as men
die and women thrive. In the 65 through 74 age group, there are 82 men
for every 100 women. And after 75, the ratio drops to 53 men for every
100 women.?
AARP
http://www.aarpmagazine.org/lifestyle/Articles/a2003-09-23-seekinglove.html
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Our nation is teeming with 86 million adult singles,
?According to the 2000 U.S. Census, there indeed are mobs of
divorced/widowed/never-married Americans eligible for the re-dating
game.?
?So you're 25 to 29? You have 9 million unattached peers. You're 35 to
44? You're 13 million strong. You're 55 to 64? You have 2.3 million
same-age contemporaries. Singles make up 42 percent of the workforce,
40 percent of home buyers and 35 percent of voters.?
?Our culture remains marriage-centric. Almost 75 percent of us walk
down the aisle by age 35, 95 percent by 65.?
The Times Online: February 2004
http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2004/02/05/features/lifestyles_and_living/73024d740dd2966886256e2e005c291b.txt
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Fun Facts based on a survey of 3000 IJL clients
- 1 in 8 chance that a first date will call you for a second date
after 24 hours have passed.
- $201 is the average amount that men spend on dates per month
- 17% is the chance of liking a date set up by a friend
- 79 percent of men will take 15 minutes on a first date to make up
their mind whether or not to see the person again.
- The average number of first dates for a single professional in the past year: 8.
IJL
http://www.itsjustlunch.com/fun_facts.asp
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?Over 70 million adults in the United States are single. The Census
Bureau statistics show that people are choosing to marry less
frequently, or to marry later, than in past generations.?
?A report indicates that email relationships can be far more intimate
than normal dating. Women are most likely to find a potential lover
online, with 72% admitting to having had an online romance, compared
to 52% of men. The report also found that 33% of all online
relationships led to a date."
- The Sunday Times, Innovations
?In 1727, Helen Morrison, a lonely spinster, became the first woman to
place a Lonely Hearts advertisement. It appeared in the Manchester
Weekly Journal. The mayor promptly committed her to a lunatic asylum
for four weeks.?
- The People's Almanac #2
http://www.date.com/dateinfo/infotopic_89.html
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Additional information that may interest you
============================================
Here is a previous question that I answered regarding Internet dating
in the UK which will provide you with additional information.
Internet dating in the UK
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=242476
Articles:
BACHELORS BEGIN TO LOSE UPPER HAND
The Wall Street Journal
Biological clock starts ticking for bachelors looking for mates
By Nancy Anne Jeffrey
http://listarchives.his.com/smartmarriages/smartmarriages.0112/msg00007.html
Digital matchmakers share the love
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-837330.html
The article at MSNBC News ?Online dating: Everyone?s doing it? may
interest you. It includes statistics from the top online dating
services and other data.
http://www.msnbc.com/news/806278.asp?cp1=1#BODY
Market Report:
?The U.S. Dating Service Industry is a $917 million business in the
U.S., as online dating services have skyrocketed in popularity since
9-11-2001. The Web has revolutionized this business and has brought
affordable and convenient matchmaking to the masses. One more year of
strong online dating service growth is expected, then a slowdown in
2004, as the novelty wears off.?
http://www.marketresearch.com/researchindex/855927.html
Table of Contents
http://www.marketresearch.com/product/display.asp?productid=855927&SID=95142634-258499763-180594265&curr=USD&xs=r&kw=&view=toc
============
Search criteria:
dating services
dating services speed dating
dating services matchmakers
online dating services
dating statistics
U.S. dating market
U.S. dating industry
I hope you find my research helpful. Good luck with you book!
Best wishes,
Bobbie7 |
