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

The Rise of Niche Dating Apps in Tinder Era

VOGUE - Feb 12 - In an increasingly crowded market, a new generation of niche apps are going a step further by homing in on specific requirements that narrow down the dating pool drastically. "I've found that people from similar backgrounds tend to stick together," says Lydia Davis, founder of Toffee, the world's first dating app for the privately educated. Davis set up Toffee in 2018 with the aim of connecting people on the posher end of the spectrum. In nine months, the app has gained 25K subscribers in the UK and there are plans to expand into new markets including Australia, India and Nigeria. "In the UK, 8% of people are privately educated but in Australia that number is 35%. In India, it's 38%. The Inner Circle, an exclusive dating app launched in Amsterdam in 2012, is now active in 30 cities and has 1.4M members. Users are screened using their Facebook and LinkedIn before being allowed to join, though the required criteria remains a closely guarded secret. Not so with Luxy, a dating app for the super-rich where users are encouraged to verify their income by submitting their tax returns. Location and lifestyle are also important factors for niche dating platforms. In 2006, sisters Lucy Reeves and Emma Royall set up Muddy Matches, a dating site for "country-minded people". In fact, there's a dating app for everyone. Twindog is for dog lovers, Bristlr is for those with facial hair, Gluten Free Singles, JSwipe, Hater, a dating app that determines compatibility based on the things people hate, Donald Daters, etc.

by Radhika Seth
See full article at Vogue

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For Online Dating Sites, A Bumpy Road To Love

NY TIMES - Dec 24 - JDate was created in 1997; ChristianMingle was added in 2001. Spark Networks, the parent company, eventually grew to ~30 dating sites, but the crown jewel has always been JDate. Since 2011, Spark Networks has been led by a rotating array of chief executives — four over five years. According to Spark Networks' 2015 filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the number of paid subscribers to its Jewish networks declined to ~65k last year from 85k in 2012. Its total for all networks dropped by ~55k people, to under 204k. Some of the decline could reflect Spark's management turnover, but it is also indicative of the challenges facing the online dating industry. "It's never been cheaper to start a dating site and never been more expensive to grow one," said Mark Brooks, a consultant for the Internet dating industry who also runs Online Personals Watch. Part of the problem, he said, is that 70% of Internet dating in the US is now on mobile. "It used to be 10% of those who registered converted to paid," Mr. Brooks said. "Now it's more like 2 to 3%." Some also see a move toward ever more niche sites like MouseMingle.com (Disney lovers) and GlutenFreeSingles.com. Spark Networks already offers niche products, but Lisa McLafferty, Spark's new chief revenue officer, says its aim is now to "refresh the brand."

by Alina Tugend
See full article at NY Times

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Niche Dating Sites Have Sprung Up To Meet Demand

BBC - Sep 16 - GlutenFreeSingles.com was launched in January 2013 by Marcella Romaya, who is also coeliac, and Sheri Grande. Monthly membership costs $23.99; ~57% of members are female and 43% are male, and it currently covers only the US and the UK. "For a niche site to be successful, it must be about quality over quantity," says Trish McDermott, a private dating coach who was on the Match.com start-up team in 1995. Frank Mastronuzzi co-founded OneGoodCrush in July this year out of frustration that larger sites were not catering to the needs of the LGBTQ community. To date, Mr Mastronuzzi has fundraised ~$550K and is in the process of raising an additional $10M. Another niche dating site is DateBritishGuys.com, for American women seeking men in the UK and vice versa. The site currently has 25K members.

by Barbara Balfour
See full article at BBC

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Niche Sites - A Way To Fine-tune The Search For Compatible Partners

SF GATE - Feb 17 - GlutenfreeSingles.com is a fairly new niche dating site that was created in July 2013. It now has ~25K users, ~6K of them are active on a weekly basis. “Niche sites are like traditional dating on steroids,” said Eli Finkel, a psychologist at Northwestern University who studies relationships. "The idea is to meet someone who is especially compatible." Niche sites help cut down some of the noise of dating online. Sam Yagan, head of Match Group, is skeptical that sites catering to smaller niches will really take off. “For one, the marketing is very hard,” he said. “How do you even reach a gluten-free single? It’s just crazy.”

by Kristen V. Brown
See full article at SF Gate

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