Online Personals Watch: News on the Online Dating Industry and Business

The Future of Matrimonial Sites in India

MEDIANEWS4U - Matrimony.com's founder and CMD, Murugavel Janakiraman, is reflecting on the future of his company in light of recent reports that Match Group is considering investing in Shaadi.com, an Indian matrimony site, and InfoEdge's acquisition of the dating site Aisle through JeevanSaathi.com. Janakiraman notes that while dating sites have been around in India for about a decade, they haven't generated the expected revenues and have realized that matrimony sites are where the money is. He also observes that women are increasingly taking the decision to marry into their own hands and that the younger generation wants equality in marriages. Janakiraman believes that communication and design are the keys to successful marriages and plans to host webinars for couples to educate them on this. The company is committed to serving its audience and building a long-lasting organization that can evolve beyond the founder's involvement. Matrimony.com also has a growing wedding services business, including Wedding Bazaar and Mandap.com, and recently launched RainbowLuv for the LGBTQIA+ community.

by Gokul Krishnamoorthy
See full article at MediaNews4U

See the top news on Matrimony.com              See the top news on Shaadi
See the top news on Jeevansathi                    See the top news on Aisle

Company Behind Indian Dating App Aisle Launches GenZ App

AFAQS - Last month, Aisle launched a dating app, called Jalebi. It has been exclusively designed for Gen Z who, according to the platform, are tired of casual dating and want to engage in something more substantial. Profiles on Jalebi are 100% selfie-verified. Jalebi's profile design lays more emphasis on the personalities of users, instead of pictures.

by Ubaid Zargar
See full article at Afaqs

See the top news on Aisle

Indian Dating Apps Take on International Rivals

AFAQS - Though the end goal is the same - to find a partner, maybe get married, Indian and international dating apps are positioned distinctly. When it comes to advertising and marketing messages, Tinder and Bumble focus on the fine nuances of relationships, such as compatibility and consent. Whereas local dating apps like QuackQuack and Aisle have simpler messaging - focussing on finding a life partner. Aisle takes cheeky digs at Tinder and Bumble in its campaigns that highlight that it is not a 'casual' app at all. Tinder and Bumble tend to focus more on urban audiences. A Tier-II or III audience may not even understand the ads. 70% of QuackQuack's users now come from Tier-II and III cities, and there's an 11% increase in the app's female user base. The company has been around for 12 years now but, thanks to the smartphone boom and cheaper Internet access, it has added 10M users over the last two years alone.

by Aishwarya Ramesh
See full article at AFAQS

See the top news on QuackQuack       See the top news on Bumble
See the top news on Aisle                   See the top news on Tinder

Aisle Takes on the Horrors of Casual Dating in Its New Campaign

BESTMEDIAINFO - Dating app Aisle has unveiled its 'Dating Horrors' ad campaign, which comprises a series of five films. With its 'Let's Get Real' tagline, Aisle hopes to discourage users from accepting dating faux pas as commonplace. The ads, Unsolicited Pics, Misleading Profiles, Insistent Messaging, Ghosting, and No Labels are available across key social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

See full article at BestMediaInfo

See the top news on Aisle

Aisle Unveils '10M Reasons Why' Campaign

FINANCIAL EXPRESS - The campaign celebrates its 10M users milestone. The week-long campaign was kickstarted by visiting couples that have matched and married via the platform, followed by the release of a YouTube video featuring the happy couples. Based out of Bangalore, Aisle is a high-intent dating app built for Indians.

by Smriti Mishra
See full article at Financial Express

See the top news on Aisle

How Indian Dating App Aisle Is Trying to Make Dating Locally Relevant

THE DRUM - India-born da ing site Aisle wants to be the 'high-intent dating app', founded by Able Joseph, who is also the CEO of the company. The cultural uniqueness makes India a complex market, even in categories such as love and dating. Joseph says: "Although the entry of western apps warmed people to online dating, they don't fully match up to Indian dating needs." Aisle completed seven years in 2022, and has built a community of ~7M members and a consistent position in the top three on revenue charts. Recently Info Edge, one of the largest tech public companies in India, behind brands such as Naukri, Jeevansaathi, 99 acres and Shiksha, acquired 76% of Aisle. According to Joseph: "Aisle does not fall into the same category as most casual dating apps, nor is it a conservative matrimony app - it aims to empower users to independently find a partner and forge long-lasting relationships."

by Amit Bapna
See full article at The Drum

See the top news on Aisle

Aisle Says It's the Real Dating App in New Campaign

BRAND EQUITY - Dating platform Aisle has launched a new campaign titled 'Real Dating App', that criticises other dating apps for being too casual and positions Aisle as a more serious and secure dating app. Aisle has also been rebranded with a new logo and tagline. The tagline has been changed from 'Designed for Romance' to 'Nothing Casual About This Dating App' while the logo has been made more bold and modern. The campaign consists of four ad films.

See full article at Brand Equity

See the top news on Aisle

How Aisle Aims to Scale Business After Closing Deal With Info Edge

YOUR STORY - Founded in 2014, Bengaluru-based high-intent dating app Aisle has taken a vernacular approach to the online dating game. On Tuesday, Info Edge acquired a 76% stake in Aisle after investing Rs 91 crore ($12M), making it the single largest stakeholder in the dating company. Talking about the deal, Able Joseph, Founder and CEO, Aisle, said the company was always on the lookout for a partner that could help it reach its potential and compete with market leaders. Able will continue to lead the company with support from Info Edge's ecosystem. Moreover, Aisle and Info Edge will frequently exchange knowledge and work together to scale the business.

by Suryatapa Chakraborty
See full article at Your Story

See the top news on Aisle

Info Edge Acquires 76% Stake in Aisle for $12M

ECONOMIC TIMES - IT company Info Edge, which owns platforms such as Naukri.com and Jeevansathi, has acquired a 76% stake in online dating company Aisle Network for Rs 91 crore ($12M). Aisle runs multiple dating platforms - Aisle, Anbe, Arike and HeyDil. Aisle had a turnover of Rs 7.56 crore ($980K) in 2020-21, the filing said.

See full article at Economic Times

See the top news on Aisle

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.com

Info Edge to Acquire Dating Platform Aisle for INR 150 Cr ($20M)

INC42 - Info Edge will be acquiring Aisle in two tranches with capital infusion of INR 75 Cr each ($10M). This will be Info Edge's first acquisition in 2022 after acquiring two HR tech startups DoSelect and Zwayam Digital in 2021. With Aisle's acquisition and already profitable Jeevansathi, Info Edge wants to double down on its matchmaking business. Founded in 2014 by Able Joseph, Aisle is an Indian dating app for people looking for a serious relationship. Aisle has acquired ~6.5M users. Aisle's total earning in FY19 was $466K, up 161% from FY18. Founded by Sanjeev Bikhchandani in 1995, Info Edge is the parent company of popular job classifieds platform - Naukri.com. The internet company also owns a matrimonial service - Jeevansathi, which was the only profitable business of Info Edge in the pandemic devastated Q1 of FY21 (April - June of 2020).

by Debarghya Sil
See full article at Inc42

See the top news on Aisle

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.com

Podcast With Able Joseph, CEO of Aisle

SPOTIFY - On this episode, Able Joseph, Founder & CEO of Aisle talks about why he started 'Aisle', how it was built, its success story and the tech they use on the platform. He further talks about why venture capitalists were not ready to fuel their investments, innovations being the key in making the product more popular, and tons more.

See the top news on Aisle

Indian Dating Apps Add New Language Badges

DESIBLITZ - Indian dating apps such as Bumble, Aisle and Neetho have added new language badges to aid connections. Users can showcase multiple languages.

by Ravinder Kaur
See full article at Desiblitz

Aisle Launches Neetho, a Matchmaking App for Telugu Speakers

THE PLUNGE DAILY - Aisle, India's second most downloaded dating app, has launched its vernacular dating app 'Neetho', for Telugu singles residing in and out of India. Aisle's portfolio of apps currently include high intent dating app Aisle and vernacular apps 'Arike', 'Anbe' and 'Neetho'. Over the last two years, Aisle's revenue has grown by 70%, while the revenue from newly launched vernacular apps is growing 30% month on month.

by Rakesh Jha
See full article at The Plunge Daily

See the top news on Aisle
See the top news on Anbe
See the top news on Arike

Aisle's Portfolio Reaches 6.5M Members

BW DISRUPT - Sep 2 - Over the last two years, Aisle's member base has grown by 100% and in 2020 alone, Aisle's member base grew by 50%. 45% of Aisle's revenue came from Tier 2 & 3 cities in 2020 as compared to 38% in 2019. Aisle is India's second most downloaded dating app. It has announced that the total member base on its portfolio apps has now touched ~6.5M. Aisle's portfolio of apps include high intent dating app Aisle and vernacular apps 'Arike' and 'Anbe' designed exclusively for Malayalam and Tamil speaking audiences respectively.

See full article at BW Disrupt

See the top news on Aisle
See the top news on Anbe
See the top news on Arike

From Aisle to Anbe: a Vernacular Dating Story

NEW INDIAN EXPRESS - Aug 5 - Aisle, India's second most downloaded dating app, achieved a milestone on March 21, 2021, with the launch of its vernacular dating app Arike, exclusively for Malayalam-speaking users. Following its success, Aisle recently rolled out its second vernacular offering Anbe, catering to Tamil-speaking subscribers residing in and out of India. The app has special features designed specifically for the community, with reference to Tamil pop culture. Able Joseph, founder, Aisle, explains, "We're old-school at heart and hence the name Anbe. The word translates to 'dear' in Tamil. Our core philosophy is to bring a native feel to the whole dating experience so that it would be easier to strike meaningful conversations with like-minded individuals."

by Vaishali Vijaykumar
See full article at New Indian Express

See the top news on Aisle
See the top news on Anbe
See the top news on Arike