OPW – Apr 30 – We ran a survey of Internet Dating Executive Alliance members asking them how they considered that their personals services had changed society. I edited the results into a white paper. Just in case you missed it on Valentines day…. you can find the full white paper on the Courtland Brooks blog here.
Month: April 2011
Dating Site Power Users Wanted
OPW – Apr 30 – We're building a panel of internet dating power users. Have you been an avid user of more than 10 sites, over the last 3 years? Are you on idating sites daily? Do you think some of them suck, and have a good idea how they can do better? Email me at mark@courtlandbrooks.com if you'd like your opinion and voice to count, and be heard by idating site designers and executives.
Kevin Carmony, CEO Of DatingDNA, Endorsing OculusAi Automated Image Rejection Service
OPW – Apr 29 – OculusAI’s Automated Image Rejection service has been gaining popularity amongst dating sites. OculusAI applies machine vision technology to profile image inspection to speed up the approval process. We have interviewed Kevin Carmony, CEO of DatingDNA. After a successful trial run and later, full integration, Kevin highlighted the benefits of AIR in this interview. (Full Disclosure: OculusAI is a client of Courtland Brooks)
Have you seen an increase in the rate of conversions after AIR was integrated into your system?
Yes, no doubt about it. Having every user in the system with a clear headshot has a big impact on the overall quality of the service. We have always tried to be a "serious" dating service, not just a place to kill time, but to actually meet someone compatible. AIR has helped us in that goal significantly, because he service just feels much more "real."
Do you have any user testimonial that might relate to the use of AIR?
Not specifically, but perhaps more importantly, we haven't received ANY complaints from ANY users, which we're happy about, considering the little bit of extra work we push to the user in making sure they comply with uploading an appropriate photo. So, users don't seem to mind at all how uploading their headshot has changed.
Is there a significant change in the time it takes for a user to start using the site after uploading their image?
Because AIR auto crops around the user's head, about 90% of users don't experience ANY difference in joining the site. Of the 10% who get a rejection message back, 90% of those are able to make adjustments on their end easily, by simply choosing a different photo, or using our cropping and rotating tools to try again. This adds very little time to their joining process. As for that last 1%…we have looked carefully and they are those who are trying to game the system by not uploading an appropriate photo. So, we're fine with that group being turned away.
Has the number of visitors to your site increased?
We're always on the upswing, so it's hard to know how much of that is from AIR. We do believe, however, that there's no question AIR has significantly added to the overall quality of our service.
Has there been any feedback about the usability of the site (including ease of access, efficiency etc)?
No, which is a good thing. As I said, I was expecting our support team to hear from some users who didn't like the process, but we haven't heard from any, and thousands of users have been using AIR now.
Has AIR improved your moderation process? If so, how?
Definitely! What we do, is any user who never successfully uploads an image, we have a ticket sent to our support team to review. What we've found is that most of these users shouldn't be on the site anyway; they are underage, spammers, scammers, etc. So, in a way, AIR has proven to be a wonderful filter to round up most of our trouble-making users, and we can remove them from the site very early on. This was a very pleasant benefit to AIR that we hadn't really even considered when we set out to implement it. The bottom line is we see a very big upside to using AIR, with essentially no downside. The cost is very reasonable, and the folks at AIR have been great to work with. We are very happy that we have added AIR to our dating service.
MoveThatBlock.com To Offer Group Dating
OPW – Apr 29 – Move That Block, a classified listing site, is going to offer group dating on May 15th. Users can sign up for free to attend group dates with others that share similar interests. From riding jet skis, to hiking, to eating at a restaurant, to touring a museum, people will be able to avoid the awkwardness of a blind date.
Internet Dating Site Twitter Shootout
OPW – Apr 29 – Who has the top Twitter ranking in the idating industry? Why, OKCupid of course. Followed by Manhunt and Speeddate, according to Klout.com rankings. Klout rated the brands by the number and kinds of people following them on Twitter. We ran a comparison of the top US internet dating site Twitters. Here they are. (The numbers were updated on June 28th, 2011.)
| Dating Site Twitter | Klout Score | True Reach |
| "zoosk" | 63 | 6k |
| "okcupid" | 63 | 4k |
| "manhunt" | 57 | 7k |
| "speeddate" | 53 | 3k |
| "eharmony" | 49 | 688 |
| "shagbook" | 47 | 223 |
| "badoo" | 46 | 2k |
| "adam4adam" | 36 | 780 |
| "chemistrydotcom" | 38 | 978 |
| "internet_dating" | 35 | 1k |
| "christianmingle" | 30 | 409 |
| "blackpeoplemeet" | 28 | 178 |
| "plentyoffish" | 23 | 251 |
| "datehookup" | 21 | 590 |
| "matchdotcom" | 16 | 35 |
| "mate1" | 14 | 139 |
| "benaugty_news" | 1 | 0 |
– The Klout score is the measurement of your overall online influence
– True Reach is the size of your engaged audience
– True Reach is the size of your engaged audience
Note: "internet_dating" is OPW's Twitter account.
Match.com Is Crunching The Data Of Love
BUSINESSWEEK – Apr 29 – Match.com's secret: Watch what users do, not just what they say. Amarnath Thombre is Match.com's VP of strategy and the keeper of the site's matching algorithm. He works with 12 mathematicians and analysts, including a chief statistician. Netflix, Amazon, and lots of other Internet companies use mathematics to recommend products based on user behavior. The big difference with Match.com: its subscribers are in a rush to find a paramour. "I could make pretty accurate predictions about a woman who has been on the site for five years," Thombre says. "It's a lot harder when she's on the site for five days." When people first sign up on Match.com they fill out a questionnaire. That's where Thombre's biggest challenge arises: Bad data. Users exaggerate their IQs and lowball their waistlines. Match.com has found that 49% of men who insist on a woman who wants children actually chase prospective mates who don't particularly care. "They will say, 'I'm only interested in guys between the ages of 18 and 30,'" Thombre sighs. "The next thing you know they are e-mailing a 38-year-old." Thombre's algorithmic remedy: pay more attention to the choices users make on their site than what they say they want.
India’s BharatMatrimony Ushers In New Era Of Arranged Marriages
BBC.CO.UK – Apr 29 – Murugavel Janakiraman, the founder and CEO of one of India's largest matrimonial companies, BharatMatrimony, says he has married more than 2M people. "Love comes after the marriage," he says. He met his own wife through the service he had created, after he responded to a profile of her posted by his future father-in-law. "We got married in three weeks," he says. Mr Janakiraman says the way people marry in India has changed significantly. Parents are "more comfortable nowadays" with their children choosing their own partner "as long as they marry within the community". Murugavel launched BharatMatrimony in 2000. One big challenge was how to receive payments from customers. In India, credit card usage is still in its infancy. Mr Janakiraman's solution was simple: "We had to go to the doorstep and collect the money." "More than 60% of the revenue is coming from this doorstep collection mechanism in India," he adds. He is also examining the possibility of entering the wedding industry, which he says is a sizeable market. "Marriage in India is something – it's a once in a lifetime event… the most expensive event," he says.
GreenCrest Capital Reveals Report On eHarmony’s Hidden Value
PR WEB – Apr 28 – GreenCrest Capital released a first-of-its kind in-depth equity research report on eHarmony. They estimate eHarmony will see 7% annualized growth in revenue over the next 5 years, and will see solid margin expansion. GreenCrest proojects eHarmony's revenue will grow from $274M in 2010 to $423M in 2016. "We are comfortable with a valuation of eHarmony in the $700-$900M range", stated the report.
The full article was originally published at SF Chronicle, but is no longer available.
Internet Dating Virtual Event To Be Held On May 4, 2011
NEWSWIRE TODAY – Apr 28 – iDateVirtual.com, the networking virtual expo for the online dating and matchmaking industry, will be on May 4, 2011 from 8AM to 8PM EST. Powered by virtual event platform software HVC, the free-virtual tool allows you to meet delegates and communicate prior to the conference. The one day virtual pre-conference is free for both attendees and non-attendees to the June 22-24 Internet Dating Conference in Los Angeles.
RussianCupid.com Crosses 1 Million Member Mark
PR NEWSWIRE – Apr 28 – The newly rebranded RussianCupid.com attracts~1K new members every day and with ~1M active members internationally achieved a major milestone. The new look and name of RussianCupid.com are aimed at strengthening its association with its parent company Cupid Media. Established in 2000, Cupid Media is the Australia based parent company of 33 dating sites covering a variety of demographics such as ethnicities, religion, physical appearance, sexual preferences etc; attracting over 20M people internationally.