Online dating scam reputation end is coming
Japanese top online agencies have agreed to introduce quality certification system (in the US we know of background check systems, but entire industry quality certification system is something new). The idea is to improve and guarantee the quality of online dating services.
Will other countries adopt this sort of system? I guess it depends how successful it will be in Japan. If yes, I do not doubt that it will be duplicated:
An industry association set up by the eight will introduce a system to certify their quality of service by the end of this year in response to a large number of customer complaints including false explanation of services and the difficulty in canceling contracts without incurring penalties.
Specifically, third-party entities entrusted by the eight, including O-net Inc. and Zwei Co., will issue a certificate to marriage-service companies meeting certain quality levels in their services.
The matchmaking industry has become Japan’s second in the services sector to adopt a quality-certification system, following the beauty industry.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will help the new industry association to launch the quality-certification system.
Under the new system, companies providing an introduction service for marriage partners will be checked if their service is meeting a service guideline compiled by METI and the industry association.
Among the requirements set under the guideline are clear-cut explanations of contract documents, cancellation policies and an obligation by the service providers to obtain public documents certifying that applicants are single.
Certified companies can post a certification mark on their service offices.
Read the entire article
Mature dating is a nice target for online dating services
General dating is the niche that is so competitive that one needs millions or some smart ideas to enter and to compete with those who are key players now. So most newly started dating sites target some niche. Seniors are a nice niche to target – now they feel comfortable with PC & internet – thanks to their children and grandchildren. And they are less likely to hang out at the discos looking for a new affair.
Just to confirm the above make a simple query for ’online dating site’ with demographics prediction tool to discover that this search is most popular with:
• 23% - 35-49
• 27.20% - 25-34
• 13.20% - 50+
I think you get the picture.
A few services of this kind are reviewed at this website. New are launched on a monthly basis I guess.
If you would like to understand how matures really approach online dating then you should not miss this CBS news published article with experienced shared by 56-old lady. For those who do not get excited to read that - a new senior dating service (UK based) press release:
MatureFreeAndSingle.com, a New Dating and Friendship Site Launches for the Over Fifties
This month sees the launch of MatureFreeAndSingle.com, a niche online dating site aimed at the over fifties singles in the UK.
Even though the popularity of internet dating continues to grow, one of the UK’s largest consumer groups has rarely been catered for specifically - single men and women over the age of fifty. It was this gap in the market that gave Paula Taylor the inspiration to launch MatureFreeAndSingle.com, an online dating service aimed specifically at senior singles.
“The over fifties feel that the more general dating sites do not always cater for them well enough” says founder Paula Taylor. “At MFS, we’ve made it so that people who join know exactly what to expect. A vibrant community of like-minded mature adults and an easy-to-use, no-nonsense website.”
And they won’t be disappointed. MatureFreeAndSingle has thousands of UK over fifties members. While people can join, browse and fill out their profile for free, Full Membership starts at just £5.41 a month (for a 12 month subscription), and provides a whole host of features and benefits:
- Confidential Email service
- Full profile and demographic searching
- Automatch
- Give gifts to potential friends
- Keep your diary and read your friends’
- Have your personality profiled
- Horoscopes
- Romantic & personality matching with potential partners.
Although MatureFreeAndSingle.com is a niche dating site, this is a niche that is certainly growing. There were 20 million people aged 50 and over in the United Kingdom in 2003. The number is projected to continue increasing, with the over fifties accounting for over 50% of the UK population by 2020. And they are becoming increasingly active and socially mobile too.
“People in their fifties and above are in the prime of life, and are great fun to work with. The common misconception is that if you’re over fifty, it’s the beginning of the end. But far from it!” says Paula. “People are rich with experience, affluent, keen to enjoy their life to the full, and know what they want from life or a partner. I’m really proud that MatureFreeAndSingle.com has been so well received so far.”
Online Dating Services: Myth And Reality
With so many new and old dating services that come in so many shapes:
- regional
- international
- religious
- ethnic
- adult
- general
- gay
- lesbian
- etc, etc…
one would logically expect a growing popularity of online dating services with users.
But Google says that we are wrong. Have a look global “online dating” market:
And now stats on US ‘online dating’ market only:
Source: Google
What are the reasons of popularity decline? The Internet user database grows (though not fast as it used to be a few years back). We will search the answer to this question on the pages of this blog.
It is much easier to justify the growth of multiple dating sites – it is a lucrative niche that attracts new players (though according to some reliable stats source only 5% of dating websites ever used a paid kind of service. On the oother hand there are other ways t monetize online dating website – an excellent sample: Plenty of Fish). Old players also tend to expand – often with new online projects going niche wide or niche deep.