Cupid.com/PreDating World Record Attempt

OPW -- Feb 6th -- I'm live blogging from the Decathlon Club in Silicon Valley where Cupid.com is attempting a world record attempt for speed dating. Over 3000 singles, across the U.S.A., will be brought together for speed dating this evening. There are 46 people here. It's a classy venue, and at $34 a head it should be. One person left at the interlude, that's typical, and there were several no shows, which always amazes me, at $34 a pop. People get shy, or busy, or get hooked up and bail on the event at the last minute. Then they get hotlisted as no-shows by PreDating and can't book again. No shows are a major pain for speed dating events. I've run and monitored many speed dating events, and Ace-Club events and I think speed dating events are still the easiest way for singles to get out from behind the computer and easily meet a room full of people. Hikes and wine tastings are better events in many ways, but speed dating events are more consistent and controllable as an event format that is safe and scalable. On average people make two or three double matches each evening.  - Mark Brooks 

Comments

[Julia Dorofeeva]

Dear Mark,

Thank you for interesting details. But the question is "How well the event is organized?"

Good splendid organization will make shy people participate. Events like that you have described are rather safe but anyway people are tired of speaking at the end)

So probably they can make wrong choice in the end remembering the first person they have talked to. Do you have any results of that event? Any logic in choosing people?

[Gwendolyn Alston]

Hi Mark, I organize Speed Dating events in Madrid, where this kind of activity is still novel. So far, we have been fairly successful, although it is very true that you have to expect a few no-shows, even when they have paid ahead. I appreciate your article and have cited it on my blog mocaenboca.com/blog, so that my local readers can really see how easy and worthwhile it is to go to these events to meet new people. On the whole, we have had very good feedback on our events, because we do our best to make people feel at ease and ensure that, above all, they enjoy themselves. A free drink always helps!

[Paul]

Its an intersting article and clearly a form of dating that works, however when you start putting on events with that many people does it risk becoming regimented and lacking in atmosphere. It sounds a bit like throwing people into a warehouse and pressing a buzzer every 5 minutes.