by Sara Ashley O'Brien
The full article was originally published at WPTV, but is no longer available.
Category: VirtualDatingAssistants
Writers Sought To Professionally Woo Women On OKCupid, Tinder
CHICAGOIST – Aug 10 – A Chicago Craigslist ad was posted by Virtual Dating Assistants to find writers to professionally woo women on OKCupid and Tinder. The company is offering to pay their writers $13 to $15 an hour to act as virtual dating assistants who will do all the legwork to find and court a client's ideal woman.
Online Dating Outsourcing Kills The Romance
COURIER MAIL – July 22 – We've become so busy that romance is being outsourced. First, it was dating, now it's wedding proposals. A few years ago, Scott Valdez set up Virtual Dating Assistants (ViDA), a service that outsource online dating. Another growing niche market is marriage proposals. More men particularly are turning to businesses to help them make their proposal very public and memorable.
by Karen Brooks
See full article at Courier Mail
Virtual Online Dating Assistants
DAILYMAIL.CO.UK – Dec 3 – One New York 'Wall Street Professional' has posted an advertisement for a 'good writer' who has a 'passion for social media' to manage his online dating schedule. The business executive states he is seeking a woman only for the Online Dating/Manager role. He isn't the first to use this dating outsource tactic however. Professional services to outsource online dating do exist. Virtual Dating Assistants employs people to help manage online love lives, and Scott Valdez, its 27-year-old CEO said he started the company after advertising on Craigslist himself. The number of matches, and the nature of the services, depends on the fee paid – which can range from $147 a match to $1,200 a month for the full dating service.
The Love Letter Ghostwriter
FT – Nov 11 – Kelly Hitchcock works as a virtual dating assistant. She is penning profiles and making contact with potential matches on behalf of men and women who are too inept, too strapped for time or simply unwilling to do so themselves. Ms Hitchcock is employed by Scott Valdez, who launched Virtual Dating Assistants in 2009. The US census calculates that of the nation’s 87m singles, 40m have tried online dating. Annual revenues from dating sites are $1.2bn in the US and $3.5bn worldwide, according to Courtland Brooks, an internet dating consultancy. Mark Brooks, a consultant to dating sites, believes virtual dating assistants have a future. “A significant proportion of people don’t have time to filter through online matches. They are cheaper than matchmakers, who typically charge between $5,000 and $50,000”. Virtual Dating Assistants charges $147 for a basic profile, while $600-$700 a month will buy you date selection and correspondence.
Online Daters Growing Weary
VANCOUVER SUN – Apr 15 – Online dating is a booming business in Canada, where PlentyofFish gets ~105M hits a month. But according to U.S.-based Socialone.com, growth in the industry is trending downward, dropping 58% this year alone. It could be that it’s too much work. The solution may be to hire some help. Scott Valdez offers that through his international online service, Virtual Dating Assistants. Valdez’s dating assistants, a group of professional writers and coaches, will take care of all that onerous administrative stuff: Creating an online brand, writing the profile, and sending the engaging emails. VDA offers several different packages starting at ~$400 and going up to $1440. Dates guaranteed.
by Denise Ryan
The full article was originally published at Vancouver Sun, but is no longer available.
Mark Brooks: Sure, uniques are down, but revenue isn't. The nature of the industry is changing, and social networking is drawing users away. But idating is a more focused and refined premium experience.
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Online Dating Tips From VirtualDatingAssistants.com
BUSINESS INSIDER – Apr 12 - According to market research, 1 out of 6 marriages that are happening in the US right now originated online, and these days ~30% of couples meet on the internet. However the authors of “Freakonomics” discovered that 56% of men that create an online dating profile do not even get one single message while Jupiter Research found that 97% quit within 3 months. Scott Valdez, Founder of Virtual Dating Assistants (ViDA VirtualDatingAssistants.com) advises that informed decisions yield better results.- It Usually Pays to Pay: ViDA found that each message they sent on a pay site was two times as likely to result in a date as a free site.
– Photos - Avoid Flash: According to data analysis by OkCupid, flash adds 7 years to your age. Men, Smiles are Out of Style. Women, Smiles are In Style
– Messages: Focus on the most active users
– Tailor your approach to your audience: While women of all ages respond well to humor, women in their early 30s and above responded well to longer, more thoughtful emails. Women in their 20s rejected these more serious emails.
– Profile Updates: Increase your visibility by keeping your content fresh
– Tailor your approach to your audience: While women of all ages respond well to humor, women in their early 30s and above responded well to longer, more thoughtful emails. Women in their 20s rejected these more serious emails.
– Profile Updates: Increase your visibility by keeping your content fresh
Valentine, Don’t Sweat Online Dating: Outsource
CNET NEWS – Feb 11 – Virtual Dating Assistants makes heady promises on its site. For example: "We do it. You date. Online dating, simplified." For the lowest price of $360 a month, VIDA will scour between one and three online dating sites and do all sorts of things that make you look better than you really are. They will write your profile, choose your photos and correspond with all potential candidates. $1,440 a month VIDA will give you an executive briefing before you go on your date and date concierge services.
The full article was originally published at CNet News, but is no longer available.
Outsourced Online Dating
MSNBC – July 14 – Creating profiles, searching for potential dates, sending emails, finding love online can feel like a part time job but now people can hire help. ProfileHelper.com writes profiles and other sites can the full service dating assistant.
Scott Valdez’s company Virtual Dating Assistants is one of them.
Scott: We start off with a 2 hour interview to get to know the clients so we can create their profile on a number of dating sites. We browse the sites for candidates and put them in a short list. Then we have the openers and they send the initial messages. Their job is to get an agreement to meet, either to talk on the phone or meet offline. It’s up to them to make an impression on the date.
And here with more of the pros and cons of outsourcing your dating life is Michelle Callahan, psychologist and contributor to Women’s Health magazine.
Michelle: I think a lot of people would be peeved if they found out about it. I think this service is being targeted to people who are really, really busy professional people who just don’t want to be bothered. Then I question their ability to present themselves well when it comes to a first date.
The Cyber Cyrano
BBC.CO.UK – July 8 – The modern-day cupids are popping up across the internet. They specialise in ghost writing witty, charming, flirtatious messages on behalf of single men and women unwilling, unable or too busy to do it themselves. "We've noticed a definite trend with more and more of these companies springing up- and there is a huge demand," says Mark Brooks, editor of Online Personals Watch, a site that tracks internet dating trends. "Necessity is the mother of invention," says Evan Marc Katz, who has worked as a dating coach since 2003 and runs e-cyrano.com, one of the first of this new breed of companies. "There are a surprising number of people out there who don't know how to market themselves in an original way." TargetLove offers everything, from basic profile writing for £150 to dating coaches who, for around £90 an hour, will talk the unlucky and inept through every step of the dating game. Some companies will go so far as posing as their client on dating sites and writing messages to potential partners to arrange first dates. Critics claim it is a dishonest way to try to find true love. Not so, insists Scott Valdez, the founder and president of Virtual Dating Assistants (VDA). "We are representing our clients as honestly and accurately as possible online," he says. FULL ARTICLE @ BBC.CO.UK