POF BLOG – Dec 31 – POF is announcing a $100K Wedding contest. Engaged couples who met on POF can submit their love stories to win $100K for their wedding, honeymoon or starting life together. All couples will be asked to submit 4 photos, the story of how they met and fell in love, and an explanation of why they deserve to win. Submissions are being accepted till January 14, 2013. The most unique, creative and original submissions will be entered into the contest where POF users will vote for their favorite couples.
Category: POF
The Profile Of Romances Born Online
YOUR TANGO – Dec 20 - The top two ways that people meet are through friends or via cyberspace. More and more couples are getting help from POF.com, just like Alex and Aggie of CaughtMyFish.com. Markus Frind, founder of POF.com, describes what makes online chemistry connections distinct.
Q: Do you agree that online dating makes people unrealistic and picky?
A: Having so many options to choose from can cause a disconnect between you and people you might be interested in dating in real life.
Q: Has fate and society propelled people to rely on technology to find their other half?
A: The fate factor is always up for debate, and I wouldn't say that people have to reply on technology to meet someone special, but POF definitely expands people's dating horizons.
Q: Is online dating best suited for certain types of people?
A: Online dating can work for anyone who is ready to meet someone and is willing to open themselves up to new experiences.
Google’s Most Searched Singles Sites Of 2012
HUFFINGTON POST – Dec 14 - Google Zeitgeist — the search engine's annual online presentation of the year's top "trending" and "most searched" terms — includes a list of the top 10 most searched dating sites.
- PlentyofFish
- Match.com
- OkCupid
- eHarmony
- DateHookup
- Zoosk
- ChristianMingle
- AdultFriendFinder
- JDate
- Singlesnet
by Christina Huffington
See full article at Huffington Post
1.2 Million Canadians Used Online Dating Sites
THE VANCOUVER COURIER – Dec 3 – Of the 1.2M, 80% were single while 18% were married. eHarmony, Plenty of Fish and Match.com boast of their high success rate and their ability to predict matches based on compatibility. The idea that online dating is reserved for the desperate, weird and older individuals is being challenged. The highest demographic signing up for online dating is between the ages of 23 to 29.
by Amy Yew
The full article was originally published at Vancouver Courier, but is no longer available.
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Dating Sites For All Ages. AARP Launches Dating Service
Older sites such as Match.com and newer ones such as DinnerDate, CupidRadar and Grouper, all are focusing on the importance of a personal connection offline. "I cringe a little when people describe it as online dating," said Michael Waxman, co-founder and CEO of Grouper. The typical experience for a Grouper member is to spend ~5 minutes on our website and ~2 hours at a bar with your friends." By the end of this year, Match.com say the site will have hosted ~ 2K events with 150K singles. PlentyofFish, a free online site, also hosts facetoface events.
by Sharon Jayson
See full article at USA Today
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Markus Frind Puts Focus On POF’s Growth
SPROUTER – Nov 22 – Plenty of Fish, abbreviated as POF, was started by Frind at his home in Vancouver in 2003. “When I reached 15M users and peaked at two billion page views, I knew I needed customer service to effectively support POF’s exploding user base. In 2008 we moved into our first office, and we recently added a third to support our growth.” “The site recently reached ~3M active daily users, and POF members have now hosted ~20K singles events. Frind believes they key to success is simple. “Keep costs as low as possible, and follow a lean startup model.” Not raising outside funding hasn’t hampered POF’s success, as the company was featured on BusinessInsider’s Digital 100, which lists the world’s most valuable technology companies. Frind believes you should always “focus on something that plays to your strengths, and understand growth – growth drives everything in this world.“
Interview With Markus Frind, Founder Of POF.com
EXAMINER – Oct 11 - Markus Frind, Founder of POF.com, shared his insight on how people who log on to POF can take an effective approach to find their soulmate.
Q: How does POF.com select the match and who will respond profiles for a user?
A: POF matches users based on what they say they want in a partner – but also factors in certain user activity on the site.
Q: Is the digital cupid aspect of POF.com similar to what the odds are in a bar or other social event?
A: While it’s not difficult to meet new people at a bar, it is difficult to meet the right person. We allow for an experience that promotes interaction on a deeper level. Sometimes you don’t even know if the guy you’re eyeing is single.
Q: How does POF.com reflect your vision for what you wanted the site to be?
A: POF was created to fill a vacancy in the online dating industry as a free site. POF continues adapting as a business to facilitate the evolving world of dating. Our mobile apps for Android and iPhone are growing at a rate of several percent each week, and 70% of POF users last accessed the site via mobile device.
Q: How is it that a perfect match can be found online sometimes instead of offline?
A: Online dating exposes you to people that you otherwise would never meet offline.
by Rheba Estante
The full article was originally published at Examiner, but is no longer available.
POF Members Hosted 20,000 Singles Events Since 2003
POF BLOG – Nov 9 – In 2003 POF allowed its users to start hosting their own offline events. Many of these members are still around and continue to host religiously, even after finding long-term love themselves. POF events span the globe, and range from dog walks to concert series. One of the events had ~4K people in attendance. POF members hosted ~20K events over the years.
by Shannon Smith
See full article at POF Blog
POF Creates Conversion Exclusions
PERFORM INSIDER – Nov 11 – POF is now offering the ability to exclude people who have already converted on your campaign. You will not spend $ on people who have already signed up to whatever you’re advertising. Someone who has converted on campaign A will no longer see ads from campaign A but will still continue to see ads from campaign B.
by Ben Louie
The full article was originally published at Perform Insider, but is no longer available.
This post also appears on InternetDatingAffiliates.
25 Things I Learned At iDate Australia
– There are 1.1 million monthly idaters in Australia.
- Oasis and RSVP and POF are the idating leaders.
– 5% of the 2100 scam victims reported to ACCC lost $100k+ last year.
– Operators say scammer safety warnings don't deter users.
– The iPad is the 'happy' device, used for entertainment and non-work apps.
– Consider using YouTube TrueView, Homepage and First Watch ads.
– Use Google Adwords Social Extensions and you'll see 5-10% CTR uplift.
– Use 'Ripples' on Google+ to Identify influencers.
– Use piktochart.com for quickly developing infographics.
– When planning content, use Google Trends and Linkedin Today to see what's making news.
– Use Spezify.com to identify content partners and search multiple media platforms and Hittail.com for getting content.
– For Influencer marketing: Traackr, Klout, Marketing Cloud, Twitalyzer, Followerwonk.
– Mobile ad returns are disappointing for Oasis.
– They get a lot better return on their msite than their app.
– 10-15% of Oasis ad revenues come from advertising other idating sites.
– Oasis is launching freemium products next month.
- White Label Dating has $7.5 million revenues (run-rate) in the Australia.
– Japan has 4.5 million idaters.
– The leading dating sites in Japan has billboards on trucks.
– There are 180 million bachelors in China.
– The Chinese idating market should be worth $315m in 2015.
– 18% of Asia internet traffic is on mobile, compared with 8% in North America.
– Mobile developers are increasingly using HTML5 web over native apps.
– The iDating industry is weak on engagement marketing (Push/SMS/Email) compared to the gaming industry.
– OtherLevels.com helps analyze and optimize cross channel engagement efforts.