THE NEXT WEB – July 17 - For microblogging, there’s Twitter, whilst Facebook is where you keep in touch with friends. LinkedIn is best kept for business acquaintances. Google+ seems to straddle a line somewhere between Facebook and LinkedIn and it’s too early to say on which side it will eventually fall. What about SNS for people you don’t know? This is where the story of Badoo begins. Badoo was launched in London in 2006 by Russian serial entrepreneur Andrei Andreyev. His other ventures include SpyLog, Begun and Mamba. There’s a good chance you associate Badoo with dating, but this is an image the company is feverishly attempting to rid itself of. There’s two reasons. Online dating still has some negative associations. And secondly, not everyone is necessarily interested in dating – some people simply want to meet new people. You go to Badoo and connect with others in the area. It could be for drinks, dancing or a game. Today Badoo has 121M members in 180 countries, a turnover of ~$100M.
Month: July 2011
采访佳缘首席执行官。龚海燕创办佳缘的故事和她成功的秘诀。
龚总，我们对佳缘的成长历程很感兴趣。 您可否讲述一下您早期创建这个公司的经历，以及其发展的里程碑？
我 是2003 年10月，在复旦大学读研二期间创办的世纪佳缘。我去复旦后，因为是大龄单身，就注册了好几家交友网站，记得我在一家白领交友的网站上注册之后，很快支付 了300元年费成为付费会员，还挑选了几张最好的照片上传（再丑的女孩也会有几张漂亮的照片），结果我收到了不少信，但由于这家网站对注册会员没有任何要 求，已婚的和未婚的混杂在一起，我的身份又是在校学生，结果给我写信的人有不少动机不纯，或者是已婚人士。还有一家网站我也付了500元，这个网站是一家 婚介所办的，上面有不少会员的征婚资料和照片，那些资料都非常吸引人，让期待恋爱的我也怦然心动，因为要联系这些人就必须付费，于是我就付费了，我觉得如 果能够花点钱，找到自己的终身伴侣，还是非常值得的。但我发出的每一封信都是石沉大海，一共给12个人发了信，但是没有一个人理我，甚至婉拒我。我还以为 是这家网站出了什么技术故障，导致对方没有收到我的信，但因为有个我联系的人征友启事中居然留有一个手机号码，我鼓起勇气给这个人打了个电话，询问他是否 收到我的信件，结果这位男士大吃一惊，矢口否认自己在这家婚介网站上注册，我说我还看到了你的照片呢，结果对方要求我把照片发送过去，他收到之后矢口否认 这是他的照片，并且非常气愤。原来所有的资料都是这家婚介所从网上扒下来的，基本信息由婚介所员工编撰，看上去很诱人，但其实都是假的，这一个人文字中夹 杂的手机号刚巧被他们漏掉了，才让我得知真相。这两家网站上不愉快的经历让我非常沮丧，而任何一家都不愿意为我退费，我也没有精力去折腾，但这些事情给我 一种信心，那就是我认为我有能力做出一个很好的严肃婚恋网站，也许我自己也能在上面找到人生的另一半呢。
那 时中国已经有几百家交友网站，但“婚恋”这个概念还没有从“交友”中独立出来，所有的网站几乎都是已婚的和未婚的混杂在一起，会员的征友目的也各各不同， 有找对象的，找一夜情的，找婚外恋的，兴趣交友的，商务交友的。当时也没有大的资金注意到这个领域，很多人都是自己有点小钱，对互联网这一块感兴趣，所以 自己做了一个交友网站，做的人也说不上特别懂网络交友这一块，不少网站都是彼此模仿，互相抄袭，没有特点。
然 而我虽然是个有几年网龄的网民，却一点也不懂互联网技术，想做一个婚恋网站的想法是如此大胆，甚至荒唐。我本科学中文，硕士学新闻，算是一个典型的文科女 生，我连为什么输入一个网址就会出来相应的网页这样简单的问题都搞不清。但我想我可以学。找了一些学计算机的朋友了解，申请域名后，我又花了300元租赁 了100兆服务器空间，然后我就找到frontpage这个网页制作工具，学做网页，学了三个星期吧，03年10月8日，我用frontpage做了一个 非常简单的网页，世纪佳缘的第一个版本终于正式上线了。两个月后，因为买了一台服务器花了17600元，我就没有钱了，于是找了一个浙江义乌的网友借了 10万元，后来网站做好之后给了他不少股份，现在这个人的投资回报将近一千倍。
最 前面的一千多个会员，都是我从亲朋好友，网络论坛上面发展过来的，非常艰难。比较幸运的是做了几个月之后，就开始引起了中国各大媒体的关注。我自己也很快 在上面找到了我的先生，2004年4月8日我们俩就闪婚（见面后54天结婚）加裸婚（花9元钱扯了一个结婚证）。在我毕业之前世纪佳缘已经做出了一定的影 响，很快拿到了新东方钱永强的投资。07年拿到了VC的投资。
世 纪佳缘这些年的发展可以说比较顺利，因为我们没有犯什么错误，市场和产品的战略都比较正确。06年和msn中国的交友频道合作，07年和新浪交友频道合 作，08年和电视相亲节目开始合作，可以说在发展的某个阶段中，给公司插上了腾飞的翅膀。最初的3年我们只发展了100万用户，现在差不多20天就可以注 册100万用户。网站发展可以说是非常迅速。这些年已经有四千多万的注册会员，并且有数百万人在这里改变了自己的征友状态，由征友进行中改为征友成功。
祝贺佳缘在美国纳斯达克上市成功。你们完成了七千四百万美元的融资，请问这些资金会有那些用途？
公 司一直是一家盈利的公司，但我觉得将来的挑战也很大。这个钱主要投入到新业务，新市场，和人才储备上面。新业务主要是无线战略，因为无线将是互联网的未 来，如果我们不能占尽先机，可能几年后我们就会落伍。新市场主要是二三四线城市，中国有253个50万人口以上的城市，我们的覆盖还远远不够。人才上我们 会在产品市场和技术上加大投入，毕竟我们是一家典型的互联网公司，人才是我们公司非常核心的竞争力。而这些年我们之所以远远超越了同一阶段起步的竞争对 手，也是根本取决于人的不同。我自己对于婚恋用户心理和体验的把握，可以说是非常到位的。
请问你们有并购及与其他交友网站合作的计划吗？
我的态度是顺其自然，如果有很好的收购对象，也是可以考虑的，我们会了解一下上下游是否存在合适的收购对象。
您认为其他中国的交友网站在今后一两年还会寻求上市吗？现在中国交友网站行业的融资环境怎样？
我认为中国第二第三的交友网站也很想上市，能不能上取决于他们的业绩和可持续发展能力以及市场大环境。目前我们的时间份额占到76%，收入份额占到44%（根据艾瑞的调研），远远超过其他竞争对手。
您认为今后一两年交友行业的竞争局面会有什么改变？您认为这个行业在今后两年最大的变化会是什么？
我 认为世纪佳缘成功上市之后，会有更多钱投入到这个领域，竞争将更加激烈，将来许多小的交友网可能会彻底死掉。大的会强者恒强，行程良性循环。世纪佳缘现在 的竞争优势有三点:人气旺，征友效果好，价钱便宜甚至免费。这几个优势我认为是非常有竞争力的。而且这些年来我们已经建立了一定的壁垒，包括品牌、用户的 口碑、用户的网络、用户的效果，和网站的资金，以及对婚恋用户心理和体验的多年琢磨和经验积累的壁垒。这些壁垒是很难在短时间突破的。
你们的收入模式集中在用户的线上行为, 而不是收取会员费。您认为这种收入模式在今后两三年会有什么变化吗？
我 们的模式是按效果付费，公平且合理，这个模式可以说是非常成功，它自身还有相当大的成长空间。同时，因为这个模式的不足是没有效果或者效果不好的人不用付 费或不愿付费，我们也在设计新的模式对这个模式加以补充。将来我们认为在信件收入增长的前提下，增值业务的收入也会逐渐上升，而且增值业务的比例在未来也 会上升。
你们在一季度线上服务收入占总收入的83%，交友活动及VIP服务收入占总收入的15%， 请问您认为这个比例今后会有什么变化？
我认为这个比例基本上不会改变，虽然我们的vip业务也成长很快（现在的基数较低），但是因为交友活动受制于时间（仅节假日）和天气等因素（下雨天就会去的人很少），我认为我们线上的收入会增长更快。所以这个比例将来很难有大的变化。
这些年里， 请问您认为佳缘的那个市场促销活动是最成功的？
很 难说有某一个市场活动取得了无可替代的效果，这些年来我们的市场一直是组合拳。如我们和msn及新浪交友频道的合作，每年大量的线下交友活动传播，对创始 人小龙女的个人采访和报道，电视相亲交友节目的合作，婚恋观念和趋势的调查报告，成功会员的传播，线上线下硬广告的投放和软文的传播……世纪佳缘的媒介传 播策略一直比较有效。我自己以前的专业方向也是传播学。
请问您能跟新来的创业者分享一下您成功的经验吗？
我 认为做一个网站，最重要的是为用户真正创造价值，而不是一开始就考虑赚钱。当用户真正需要你的产品和服务的时候，赚钱也是一件容易的事情，但利润只是价值 副产品。前提是我们为用户所需要，否则用户就会用脚投票。另外对于创业者而言，要用你的真心去感受和寻找到用户的需求，始终站在用户的角度，去设计和满足 他们的需求，当一个网站的用户体验做到最好时，竞争对手的用户就会成为你的用户。
People Spend $1.7B To Connect
OC REGISTER – July 18 – In January, Mark Brooks, a national consultant to Internet dating sites, asked executives from many dating sites to talk about the impact they were having on society. Among the conclusions: In 20 years, people will want to go to the Internet to find a permanent partner and not rely on a chance "real meeting." Last year, Brooks estimates that Americans alone spent $1.7B trying to connect.
by Jane Glenn Haas
See full article at OC Register
Jiayuan, Chinese Internet Stocks Volatile
MARKETWATCH – July 15 - On Thursday afternoon, Jiayuan.com's stocks soared 9.8%. At the same time, several Chinese Internet stocks were in the red: Youku.com, down 5.6%, mobile app store Sky-mobi, down 5.4%, and online marketplace E-Commerce China Dangdang, down 6.4%. Buyers rush into the stocks as they debut and try to flip them quickly. That’s when short-sellers begin to move into the space.
How Match.com Calculates the Ideal Mate
MASHABLE – July 14 – Match.com started in 1995, online dating was an obscure practice. About three years ago, the company decided to delve into that data to help improve its matches. It brought on current VP of strategy analytics Amarnath Thombre to head up the charge. Since then, he and a team of 12 have been hard at work developing an equation for successful match recommendations. These are the four main components of the equation.
1. What You Say
When you sign up for Match.com, you fill out a survey about yourself, your preferences and what you’re looking for in a partner.
2. What You Do
What people say and what they do don’t always match up.
3. What People Like You Do
Match.com tunes into the behavior of people who are like you.
4. A Bit of History
In 16 years of business, Match.com has collected a mass of data. It uses that data to make some guesses about who you like before you even rate your first match.
Online Dating Nightmare
ABC NEWS – June 22 – Romano, 53, from Lynbrook joined Match.com. She soon found herself chatting online with a man named "Austin Miller." Miller identified himself as a decorated soldier based in Kabul, Afghanistan. When Miller asked for a new laptop to be shipped to Ghana, she was eager to help a soldier in need. She sent him a total of $25K within a six-month time span before realizing that she had fallen victim to a scammer. Greg Blatt, the CEO of the parent company that owns Match.com, said the site has spent millions of dollars to protect its members. Less than one half of one percent of its subscribers have ever reported a profile that is questionable, he said, but when they do, the profiles are blocked within two hours, removed from the site and investigated.
by Jim DuBreuil, Gerry Wagschal and Rena Lafaille
See full article at ABC News
Match.com Statement:
“One in five new relationships and one in six new marriages are between people who met through an online dating site, with more of these relationships starting on Match.com than any other site. Match.com has transformed millions of people’s lives for the better. While only a small number of our millions of subscribers have been scammed by the sophisticated criminals who prey on individuals in every corner of the web, we take this issue very seriously and we diligently address it on the site, tracking, monitoring and preventing fraud at every step of the way. It is also very important that people exercise common sense and prudence with individuals they have just met, whether through an online dating service or any other means, and we educate our customers and put tools in their hands to protect themselves and report any concerns.”
Mark & Irena Brooks: In addition to background checks, perhaps dating sites should also consider running IQ test on their members. What's your thoughts and comments?
European iDate to Be Held on Sep 29-30, 2011 in Moscow
PRESS RELEASE – July 13 – The 8th Annual European Dating Industry Conference will be held on September 29-30, 2011 in Moscow, Russia. The Moscow iDate2011 will focus on the business of online dating, affiliate marketing and mobile dating in Europe and Eastern Europe. Speakers include the largest dating entities in Eastern Europe: LovePlanet.ru, Teamo.ru, Anastasia Date International, Istanbul.net, Media Mir, City-Date.ru, Professional Matchmaker Rosa Syabitova from the Russian TV Show "Lets Get Married", Cupid PLC and others.
Tastebuds.fm: Finds a Music Loving Date
MASHABLE – July 13 – Tastebuds.fm is a dating site that launched last summer to help music heads connect over their mutual adoration for bands and has just added a new feature called “Events Matchmaker”. Events Matchmaker allows users to find concert-going dates.
Internet Dating Jobs Listing Update
OPW – July 12 – Another iDating jobs listing is live on the Internet Dating Jobs blog.
Below see a couple of this month's most interesting offers:
____
From our esteemed Courtland Brooks clients:
Mamboo
Business Development Manager, US
WhiteLabelDating
Partner Account Executive
DatingStartsHere
Affiliate Manager, Dating Aggregator
Global Personals USA (Webdate, Fling, WealthyMen)
Internet Affiliate Sales Managers / Online Buyers
____
Avid Life Media
Chief Operationg Officer (Ashley Madison Europe)
Badoo
HR Director
eHarmony
Director, Legal Affairs
FriendFinder Networks
Marketing Director, Casual Dating
Match.com, Chemistry.com, People Media
Director, Integrated Marketing & Business Development
RSVP.com.au
Product Manager
Zoosk
Director of Talent Acquisition Empleyment Brand Programs
To see more open positions go here.
Do you have an idating industry job offer which is not included? Please, send it to petra@courtlandbrooks.com and we will add it to the list.
iDateStartup.com Event to Take Place August 11 in SF
WEBWIRE – July 12 – The next iDate Startup, a special event for new dating industry companies and dating affiliates, will take place on August 11th, 6:30-9:30 PM. Paymentwall is the sponsor of the event and it will be held in their penthouse office in downtown San Francisco. Pre-registration is required and can be made here http://www.idatestartup.com. Paymentwall is the global payments platform integrating over 70 local payment options from around the world. In 2010, Paymentwall launched its dating-industry specific alternative payments platform supporting subscriptions with various payment types (credit & debit cards, mobile payments, ewallets, landline payments, and prepaid cards).