Online Personals Watch: News on the Dating Industry and Business

$100,000 Matchmaker

TIME - Aug 2 - In this economy, it seems unthinkable that people would pay up to six figures just to find a mate. And yet expensive matchmakers are reporting that business is up these days. Janis Spindel, who charges clients between $50,000 and $500,000 a year to find the "woman of their dreams," says membership jumped 41% in 2009 from the year before and is up 46% so far this year. Premier Match, a New York City–based agency where annual membership costs a min of $5,500, logged $1.5M in sales last year, a 30% increase from the previous year. Matchmaking agencies advertise different strengths to attract high-end clients. Barbie Adler, CEO of Selective Search, worked in executive recruitment before she started her agency in Chicago 10 years ago. "My experience has been crucial to looking beyond a résumé to make a good match," she says. Indeed, clients are willing to part with a minimum of $15,000 for Adler to work with them. Other firms take a scientific approach. The British firm Seventy Thirty, which charges its clients a min of $15,000, has a team made up exclusively of psychologists. FULL ARTICLE @ TIME

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Matchmakers Cash In On Business Of Love

CHICAGO TRIBUNE -- Feb 9 -- "When the Dow is down, dating and love are up," said Barbie Adler, president of Selective Search, a matchmaking service based in Chicago. Selective Search charges $15,000 fee for a full year of service. The personal touch is also fueling growth for It's Just Lunch, a matchmaking service launched in Chicago seventeen years ago with offices in 100 locations. Members pay $1,800 a year to be matched for lunch, drinks or brunch. Chicago sales climbed 8% in 2008, and January was up 4% from the prior year. FULL ARTICLE @ CHICAGO TRIBUNE

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Online Dating Gets Competition From Local Matchmakers

MEDILL REPORTS -- May 1 -- Reasons for choosing an offline matchmaking service

• Singles work one-on-one with a relationship expert to assess goals and tactics for conquering the dating world.
• Staff members can vouch for his or her credibility. No more knights in rusted armor.
• Someone else does the preliminary work for you.  All you have to do is show up.
• A number of matchmaking services only select commitment-minded men and women, so it's easier to avoid those singles only looking for a fling.
• Many companies also have image and fashion consultants in addition to relationship and life coaches.
• You can avoid the bar scene. Period.

Selective Search (Chicago) focuses on a high-end clientele but the service is pricey: men pay $10,000. FULL ARTICLE @ MEDILL REPORTS

Mark Brooks: Together Dating / The Right One, Great Expectations, and It's Just Lunch all offer different spins on offline matchmaking. MyPartnerPerfect is headed by Patrick Perrine, a gay matchmaker and human sexuality expert.

Looking For Love in Cyber Places

BANKRATE -- Feb 11 -- Internet dating is by far the most common, and least expensive, matchmaking method. There's something for everyone, from AmericanSingles.com, Match.com and Yahoo! Personals to the more specialized.  With fees starting at $10,000, single men can use Selective Search and receive the "white glove treatment." Staff members are all former corporate recruiters and the company uses the same executive-search model as headhunters to find women to introduce to the men. "If you think about a traditional dating service, it's flawed in the sense that it's such a limited pool to pick from," says Adler.

Mark Brooks: See the future.  Well heeled singles will shell out more money for higher end services online.