Courtland Brooks Press – Page 5 – Online Personals Watch

Online Dating Authority Mark Brooks Interviews Hundreds Of Executives, Since 2004

Posted on October 3, 2018

DATINGNEWS.COM – Oct 3 – Mark Brooks is an internationally acclaimed consultant and supports and advises dating companies with his team through IDEA, the Internet Dating Excellence Association. Mark spent two decades establishing himself as an authority in the online dating space, has delivered keynote addresses at 45 iDate conferences, and used his experience to develop business strategies for industry leaders, including PlentyofFish. Today, Mark helps movers and shakers stay on top of the latest trends by capturing the intelligence in the news and doing CEO interviews for his niche news website, Online Personals Watch (OPW).

Launched in 2004, Online Personals Watch has positioned itself as a go-to news summary service for busy executives who want to know about everything going on in the online dating market and inspire them to innovate and improve their services.

Mark stated, "The main idea is to stay connected with the industry and foster bigger-picture thinking."

Over the years, Online Personals Watch has positioned itself as a must-read for the CEOs of dating companies around the world. The site is interested in keeping these high-level individuals informed with insights that can help them grow their products so they have a positive impact on people's lives. This fluff-free website gets straight to the point and summarizes the news so busy industry leaders can skim through the articles, learn what they need to know, and get down to business.

Mark interviewed over 300 online dating executives and asks knowledgeable CEOs to share the secrets to their success. Mark has also been quoted over 260 times in the press, including in 17 articles in The Wall Street Journal.

Mark founded the Internet Dating Excellence Association to help the Internet dating industry grow to serve more people and reach its full promise and potential. This association and consulting group provides CEOs, marketing executives, product designers, and other dating professionals with time-tested business strategies and insights. Consultants are all former industry employees and executives.

Mark and his team of 26 seasoned dating business experts have helped over 100 companies keep up with marketing, media relations, trending technology, and to exceed industry standards to become leading online brands. IDEA's clients include PlentyofFish, Cupid, Meetme, iovation, and Besedo.

Mark said his ultimate mission is not only to inform executives but to empower them to collaborate with one another and raise the industry standards. He highlights business leaders, helps host conferences, and consults with dating companies in the hopes of uniting the best in the business and helping them to move forward in a way that benefits everyone.

"When great minds meet, great ideas happen," Mark said.

Since 2005, Online Personals Watch has facilitated intelligent conversations among powerful individuals in the industry. Its news articles focus on where online dating is and where it's headed, which makes for a very interesting read.

Mark's savvy website and consulting group deliver thought-provoking insights into what makes online dating tick. By informing clients, readers, and other professionals, Mark intends to turn competitors into collaborators and show business executives how working together can be good news for everyone.

by Hayley Matthews
See full article at DatingNews.com

Summarized by the IDEA team

Nudgestock2018: The Psychology Behind Online Dating

Posted on May 25, 2018

OGILVY.CO.UK – May 24 – Internet dating can be a total minefield at times. From how to represent ourselves in a bio to getting that first date. Ogilvy caught up with online dating expert Mark Brooks, CEO at Internet Dating Excellence Association, to find out more about the psychology behind Internet dating, ahead of his talk at Nudgestock 2018.

Q: If your Nudgestock talk were a Tinder bio, what would it say?
A: Virgin Industry Seeks Virgin Science – Relatively young and boisterous industry with big promise and big attitude seeks calming, sensible but sexy, not-quite-so-young-companion in new science.

Q: How can we use behavioural science to optimize our online dating profiles?
A: Context matters in behavioral science. Change the context, and you may well see different behaviors.

Q: What is the one thing anyone who is using online dating should be doing in terms of psychology?
A: Keep in mind the 'halo effect.' If you write a short-ish profile, and include a few things that you're super passionate about, you'll probably be optimizing your profile quite well for halo effect. People viewing your profile will see the things you like, and if they like them as well, will tend to mentally favorably 'fill in the gaps' on missing parts of your profile. If you write a long and detailed profile, and people see a couple things they don't like, they'll be less forgiving, and more likely to pass you over.

Q: Are there any trends we should be watching out for this year in this field?
A: Watch out for Facebook Dating. If you're attending Nudgestock this year, come to see my talk and learn why…

Final tickets are available for Nudgestock 2018, Ogilvy's annual festival of behavioural science, taking place on June 8th.

See full article at Ogilvy.co.uk

Summarized by the IDEA team

Facebook’s Dating Service: A Match Made In Heaven, Or Hell?

Posted on May 8, 2018

THE STREET – May 8 – Facebook will be venturing into the online dating world later this year. The news was “a bit of a surprise,” given that the announcement came on the heels of the Cambridge Analytica data misuse scandal, according to Mark Brooks, CEO of the internet dating consultancy Courtland Brooks. “If they screw [Dating] up, they can really screw up Facebook,” Brooks said. Brooks said that Facebook has elements that are perfect for an online dating platform, namely its vast reach of more than two billion users, but “if they are going to make the most of Dating, users have to trust Facebook.” With the Cambridge Analytica data misuse, “it’ll certainly cause some people to be reserved,” said Needham analyst Kerry Rice. Rice also raised the question of whether pursuing an online dating service is worthwhile for Facebook. “It will never be their core business,” Rice said. IBISWorld analyst John Madigan said that it is unclear whether Facebook will choose to revoke the ability of third-party apps to use Facebook profile information in this way, but it would seem anticompetitive and against the company’s best interests. “It’s just not fair,” Brooks said.

by Francesca Fontana
See full article at The Street

See all posts on Facebook Dating

Summarized by the IDEA team

Facebook To Launch Opt-In Dating Feature

Posted on May 2, 2018

WALL STREET JOURNAL – May 2 – Facebook plans to launch a dating feature, in an unexpected push into a new business even as it battles questions about how it handles users' data and privacy. Facebook's dating feature will be targeted at ~200M users who identify as single. The feature will require users to opt in. Zuckerberg didn't say whether the service would be free but Facebook doesn't offer any paid products currently. "We're surprised at the timing given the amount of personal and sensitive data that comes with this territory," Match Group CEO Mandy Ginsberg said. Facebook's new dating feature will be for fostering "real, long-term relationships – not just hookups," Zuckerberg said. Those using the dating service could browse coming events, such as concerts, and see if others using the feature plan to attend. The messaging system for the dating profiles will be independent of FB's Messenger. Users' dating profiles will be distinct from their FB profiles and what people do within the dating feature won't be shared with friends or through the news feed. Part of the challenge for startups building online-dating apps is attracting enough users, said Mark Brooks, an analyst and consultant in the dating industry. FB's vast number of users could make it daunting for future dating startups to convince investors to fund their ideas. "I think it could be game over for the dating industry as we know it," Mr. Brooks said.

by Deepa Seetharaman & Georgia Wells
See full article at Wall Street Journal

See all posts on Match Group
See all posts on Facebook Dating

Summarized by the IDEA team

Creator of Mamba And Badoo Makes Forbes (Russia) Richest List

Posted on March 6, 2018

FORBES RUSSIA – Mar 6 – The founder of Mamba and Badoo, Andrey Andreev enters the global Forbes richest list with a fortune of $1.5B. Andrey Andreev (43) is not at all like a billionaire. "Such an eclectic, quirky, creative, that the industry needs very much. I hope he does not sell his company in the near future," says Brooks, senior consultant at Courtland Brooks. He recalls the first meeting with Andreev: the businessman appeared in his white T-shirt, asked the necessary questions and left without losing a minute. But on another occasion, after going to Brooks for a meeting of heads of dating Internet services, Andreev spent half a night in the kitchen, preparing his famous soup, which was served in a Michelin star London restaurant.

In 1999 Andreev launched the web analytics service SpyLog, and in 2002, the contextual ad service "Begun". Andreev created the Russian dating service "Mamba" a year later. The service made its first revenues through SMS. In Oct. 2005, with 4.5M members, Finam bought it for $20M, enough to launch Badoo in 2006, a service combining the dating and social networking. At the end of 2017 there were 370M members.

Andreev lived for many years in Spain, and his knowledge of the Spanish mentality helped him promote Badoo in Europe and Latin America. But to conquer more competitive markets in the US and English-speaking countries, this was not enough. In order to enter the American market, Andreev bought Hot Or Not in 2014. He then introduced swiping.

He now launches new companies only if there's a manager able to deal with operations, while he deals with the financing, product support and monetization. Andreev helped Huggle in exchange for a stake, and also in Chappy.

Bumble launched Dec. 2014 and had 100k downloads the first month. The idea of a dating service where women take the initiative turned out to be a godsend for the American market. He invested $10M for a 78.21% stake. Herd became CEO and took a 20% stake. $100M revenue is expected in 2017, and double this year.

"The service is significantly different from Badoo. Guys will go where there are a lot of girls, and are attracted to proactive girls who think in a modern way and are ready to take the first step," explains Mark Brooks about the secret of Bumble's success. Tinder has 50M active users and worth is estimated at $3B. Bumble has 23M users. This year, Herd refused to sell it for $450M to Match Group. In the autumn Match reportedly upped its offer to over $1B. In the past, Andreev was offered to sell Badoo for several hundred million dollars, says Mark Brooks, and now the company, "But it seems to me that Andreev is not ready to retire," the expert concludes.

by Alexandr Baulin & Clare O'Connor
See full article at Forbes

See all posts on Mamba       See all posts on Huggle
See all posts on Badoo       See all posts on Chappy
See all posts on HotorNot    See all posts on Bumble

Summarized by the IDEA team

Now Is The Hottest Time Of The Year For Online Dating

Posted on January 8, 2018

MARKETWATCH – Jan 6 – In the New Year, the online dating industry sees a surge in users. Zoosk typically sees a 20% jump in users in the first two weeks of the year and eHarmony sees a similar increase. Grindr and other gay apps usually experiences a 30% to 50% increase in users. Match.com sees a 60% surge in new members between Christmas Day and Valentine's Day. "Many singles sit around the family dinner table during the holidays and think, 'Maybe it would be better to have a partner'," said Mark Brooks, editor of Online Personals Watch. "That's when they start hitting dating sites in droves and go on dates before the indigestion sets in." It may also be more polite to arrange dates in the New Year rather than during the holidays, especially with family around. "They're going to be around for you long after your relationships," he says. With the constant stream of happy holiday photographs over social-networking sites, experts say the pressure to be in a romance this time of year has never been so intense. "There's an onslaught of images of family and togetherness," says Pepper Schwartz, author of "Dating After 50 for Dummies" and a love and relationship ambassador for AARP.

by Quentin Fottrell
See full article at Marketwatch

See all posts on Zoosk See all posts on Grindr
See all posts on eHarmony See all posts on Match.com

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Online Dating Safety Tips

Posted on January 1, 2018

USA TODAY – Jan 1 – Most dating apps don't verify users. Mark Brooks, editor of OnlinePersonalsWatch.com, a dating news and commentary site, said: "Full verification is not possible outside of actual real world matchmakers who often use background checks." Brooks added: "Beware of jumping to a third-party form of communication. Scammers lure people off dating sites/apps, and then scam. It's then beyond the jurisdiction of the app. Worse, it's beyond the tools that dating apps use to monitor abusive behaviors, for instance, device ID tools and communications monitoring A.I." There's no reason to give out a phone number before meeting. Use the app to pick a time and place to meet. Meet in a public place, let a friend know ahead where you'll be, and plan to check in after. But the last word goes to Mr. Brooks: "Sometimes common sense is the least common of the senses when people are in a state of attraction. People let their guard down a little too early."

by Steven Petrow
See full article at USA Today

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Q & A With Dating Industry Expert, Mark Brooks

Posted on December 14, 2017

TOP10BEST DATING SITES – Dec 12 –

Q: How did you become an expert in the dating industry?
A: I started an adventure club in Silicon Valley in 1996. It was a singles club that wouldn't admit to being a singles club. I learned a lot about how people felt about early dating sites. I worked for some dating sites from 2000 – 2005 and was coerced into speaking at the Internet Dating Conference in 2005. Ed Baig from USA Today interviewed and quoted me. I'd been working in the iDating business since 2000, in earnest, and he put me on the map as bonafied dating industry expert.

Q: So you're an expert in the industry, but have you ever used a dating site?
A: My goal is to help create dating apps that I'd actually want to use. In 2000 I used Hypermatch, a site I worked on. It worked quite well for me, and was a precursor to eharmony really.

Q: What did you learn from your personal online dating experience?
A: I dated a girl seriously from the site. We were very compatible in many ways, but one. Our senses of humor were just off.

Q: What are the greatest benefits of online dating?
A: Dating apps services are generally brilliant at one thing. Helping people get the tough questions out of the way right up front. i.e. got kids? want kids? married? want to get married one day?

Q: Where do you see room for improvement?
A: Helping people facilitate highly-compatible connections. The secret is to observe people's behavior, and match against behavior. In the future, to fulfill its potential, the dating industry will need to connect with more academics, do a lot more experiments, and learn how to correlate observed behaviors and preferences with character traits and compatibility.

Q: What can you tell us about online dating users today versus online dating users 10 years ago?
A: In the past there was a major stigma around Internet dating. Now, I think pretty much everyone knows someone who has been successful with online dating.

Q: What do you expect will be the big changes in the dating industry in 2018?
A: Tinder will continue to rule the roost. VC money will burn out. Dating apps will charge more, which will fuel a resurgence in innovation and new app development. I sense the beginnings of a hunger for change and renewal. We'll see more fracturing of the market in 2018-2020 as niche dating apps start to take root.

See full article at Top10Best Dating Sites

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Match.com’s Chatbot Lara Boosted Registration Rates 30%

Posted on November 13, 2017

BBC NEWS – Nov 11 – Match.com's chatbot Lara launched in France in 2016 and then rolled out in the UK in April 2017, to help potential clients get started in their search for love by setting up their Match profile for them. Match claims that 300k people a month complete their profiles with Lara. Lara can operate in 12 languages, asking users simple questions about what they are looking for and what they are like. Experts say it can also encourage people to be more honest. "The profile is the big hurdle for the industry," says Mark Brooks, a dating sector consultant. "People don't really want to create a profile, it's not much fun. But if you are having a conversation with somebody they will be more willing. And if you can create a profile from a conversation it will probably be closer to the truth." Match also launched Julia, a similar chatbot for its over-50s dating site Our Time. In future though, a chatbot could offer a lot more to the dating space than getting you started on your search for love. "It's a strange industry," says Mark Brooks. "If we do a good job we wave goodbye to our customers. There's a lot we are missing out on by not helping people with their relationships once they have found that person." "Maybe chatbots can be used to train people how to date. There's a lot of psychology involved, best practice. It could probably give you tips and tricks," says Srini Janarthanam from Chatomate, talking at at iDate.

by Zoe Kleinman
See full article at BBC

See all posts on OurTime
See all posts on Match.com

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

How Has Brexit Affected The Dating Scene

Posted on June 20, 2017

FINANCIAL TIMES – June 20 – The consequences of Britain's departure from the EU remain a hotly debated topic. For some couples it has highlighted a lack of shared values and this has in turn placed tension on their relationship. Immediately after the referendum, two heartbroken voters launched Remainder, "the dating and social app for the 48%" of the population who opted to stay in the bloc. Mark Brooks, a US-based consultant to the dating industry, says politics is one of the most important criteria used on dating site profiles and in the algorithms such services use. "When people look through profiles they review them in an 'eliminatory style'," he says. "They're looking to find reasons to not go on a date with people [and] politics is a biggie these days, bigger than before the [Trump] election for sure." Brooks says, the fact that politics has moved higher up the agenda for those seeking a match means it is viable to create "niche" dating sites based on political beliefs, like TrumpSingles.com. He also says services should be explicitly posing the question: "Do you support Trump?" to their clients.

by Sarah Gordon
See full article at Financial Times (under subscription)

See all posts on Remainder
See all posts on TrumpSingles

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

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