Category: Outlets – Chicago Tribune

Struck – a Dating App for Astrology Lovers

Posted on February 15, 2021

Struck logoCHICAGO TRIBUNE – Feb 13 – Struck, a dating app that matches users based on their birth charts (the placements of the sun, moon and planets at the time of a person's birth), launched this past summer, initially in LA, San Francisco and New York. The new app recently became available to Chicago residents. To get started on Struck, users create their profiles, and must enter their birth information, so Struck can generate a birth chart to help find suitable matches. While signing up, users choose a list of personality traits, uniquely populated off their birth chart, and life priorities, such as family, arts and culture, socializing and partying.

by Hannah Herrera Greenspan
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More Older Singles Are Using Dating Apps

Posted on January 4, 2019

Ourtime logo May 13CHICAGO TRIBUNE – Jan 4 – People who work with older adults say they are turning more to apps and dating sites. Match has its own dating site and app for people over 50, called OurTime. Chicago is the second-fastest growing city, after Houston, said Match spokesperson Lauren DeFord, and the third most active city, a ranking of time users spend on the app or site. For many older adults, family dynamics are a big part of navigating dating. Watching a parent date can be hard for children still grieving another parent. To make conversations about dating go smoothly, experts advise not telling family members immediately and wait until they’ve gone on a few dates before bringing it up.

by Alison Bowen
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New Dating App Crown Uses NCAA-style Bracket To Crown A Winner

Posted on July 30, 2018

Crown winnerCHICAGO TRIBUNE – July 27 – Crown is a new project from Match Group. Every day at noon, users receive 16 different profiles, chosen by an algorithm. Users crown a winner by choosing between two people at a time, narrowing the 16 choices to four. But the possibility of romance can only begin if one of the quartet of matches also "crowns" the user. The app, still in beta, is available for iOS only and in selected cities (Crown launched in LA in June). More specifically, the format of Crown may convince users they have choices, but actually force them to choose between two profiles they are not interested in, Chicago dating and relationship expert Anita A. Chlipala says. With limited space for a bio, Crown is based mostly on profile photos. Also, the app only allows users to match with either male- or female-identifying profiles, unlike Tinder and Bumble which has a "male and female" option.

by Savannah Eadens
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Summarized by the IDEA team

Polyamory Is More Common Than We Thought

Posted on April 17, 2017

Polyamory picCHICAGO TRIBUNE – Apr 14 – An overwhelming majority of Americans believe in the idea of soul mates. Psychologists and relationship experts are saying that multiple people can match each other romantically. "There are likely several people with whom any one individual could be compatible," says relationship expert Gary Lewandowski. A 2016 Match.com survey found that men fall in love over three times in their lives, while women fall in love a little more than twice in her life – a stat that appears to dispute the idea that "you're the only one for me." Part of the reason why love interests change over a lifetime is because people change – and partners might grow apart.

by Danielle Braff
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Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Credit Score May Have Impact On Romantic Relationship

Posted on January 24, 2017

Money's impact on relationshipCHICAGO TRIBUNE – Jan 21 – Most people wouldn't put their credit score on their online dating profiles, but it may be playing a bigger role in romantic relationships. Research from 2015 by the Federal Reserve Board suggested people with the highest credit scores were most likely to form long-lasting committed relationships, and the bigger the discrepancy between a couple's credit scores, the more likely the relationship will end within the first five years.

by Debbie Carlson
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Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

The League Brings Invite-only Dating App To Chicago

Posted on October 27, 2016

Theleague screenshots1CHICAGO TRIBUNE – Oct 27 – The League, an invite-only dating app, has just launched in Chicago. Of the 2k accepted Chicago members, 9% have an MBA, 5% have a law degree, and 3% have an M.D., the company said. 13k daters are on the waiting list, according to the company. But when they pride themselves on accepting only the cream of the crop, niche apps might have to sacrifice growth for reputation. Mark Brooks, an online dating industry analyst who runs Online Personals Watch, cited services like BeautifulPeople.com and other dating sites that proclaim themselves to be "elite." To grow, "Do you start being not so elite?" Brooks said. "These apps are limited in how much they can grow."

by Meg Graham
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Sam Yagan Takes The Helm At ShopRunner

Posted on July 13, 2016

Sam yagan1CHICAGO TRIBUNE – Jul 12 – Yagan stepped down from running Match Group in December 2015 and joined the company's board as vice chairman. He replaces Scott Thompson, who for four years was CEO of ShopRunner. The company is headquartered near Philadelphia in Conshohocken, Penn., and has offices in San Mateo, Calif. They plan open a Chicago office, Yagan said. ShopRunner gives members free two-day shipping, free returns and special deals at partner shopping sites including Lord and Taylor and Drugstore.com. Annual memberships cost $79, while some American Express customers receive complimentary memberships.

by Amina Elahi
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Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

“Settle For Love” Encourages Users To Flaunt Their Flaws

Posted on March 15, 2016

Settleforlove logoCHICAGO TRIBUNE – Mar 15 – David Wheeler launched a dating site in 2014 that encourages users to post both flattering and unflattering photos of themselves and to list their flaws alongside their assets. But business is a bit slow. The site has 5K members.

by Heidi Stevens
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Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Some Try To Turn LinkedIn Into A Dating Site

Posted on November 2, 2015

BeLinked iconCHICAGO TRIBUNE – Oct 31 – LinkedIn can serve as a toolbox for searching online ahead of dates. For example, finding out whether those who proclaim themselves successful business owners actually own one, or simply confirming whether people are employed. One app sprang up using the site. BeLinked, previously known as LinkedUp, targets career-minded singles and operates by importing users' LinkedIn data, then making matches. Founder Max Fischer launched the site when he noticed that his friends would subtly begin conversations with interesting people through LinkedIn.

by Alison Bowen
See full article at The News & Observer

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Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Match Group’s Sam Yagan On Investment

Posted on February 23, 2015

Match sam yagan feb 15CHICAGO TRIBUNE – Feb 19 – Sam Yagan co-founded OkCupid in 2003 and sold it to IAC in 2011 for $90M. He is now CEO of IAC’s online dating division, Match Group. Yagan also co-founded startup accelerator Excelerate Labs, which became Techstars Chicago. He explains what he looks for as an executive, mentor and investor.

Q: With the influx of dating apps, would you acquire any of them?
A: Until you have a massive amount of usage, it’s just not that interesting to us.

Q: You co-launched a venture fund in 2014 called Corazon Capital. What are your investment criteria?
A: The product, business and market have to make sense. But our No. 1 criteria, by far, is great entrepreneurs.

Q: What have you learned as an investor that you wish you’d known as a founder?
A: I think overestimating the market size is near the top of the list of the things entrepreneurs most get wrong.

Q: What are you doing to help women in tech?
A: A quarter of the founders that have gone through Excelerate and Techstars are women, including Sue Khim at Brilliant, Diane Melville (formerly) at ScholarPro, and Melissa Moline at InRentive. Those are all companies that I’m on the boards of.

by Kate MacArthur
See full article at Chicago Tribune

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Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting