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A January 2006 JupiterResearch consumer survey found that 5% of Internet users paid for online dating subscriptions in the last year, down slightly from 6% in 2005. Industry-wide user conversion rates fell for the first time since JupiterResearch began tracking that metric. According to an “Online Dating” report by JupiterResearch Analyst Nate Elliott, industry growth in the last twelve months has been driven by higher monthly fees rather than an increasing number of subscribers.
Elliott said “...thirty seven percent of visitors who don’t convert say dating sites cost too much, making it their leading complaint. Only one-third of Internet users who went to dating sites in the last year became paying subscribers.”
The JupiterResearch report also concludes that social networking sites pose little threat to the online dating industry. Just 14% of dating site visitors who don’t pay for subscriptions say they use free sites, like social networks, for online dating instead.
Everything hits a bad patch, and online dating has registered a significant decline. Since the figures are down from 6% of online subscribers using online dating systems, to now only 5% percent resorting to online dating, there is close to a 17% decline in online dating members.
The decline is more than likely the result of trashed expectations or severe disappointments. After shelling out cash for an online dating members, no ones wants to discover there is not much doing on the radar screen. We didn’t buy in to end up sitting alone on weekends eating too much ice cream in front of the television. Or worse yet, we end up out in a bar doing the same-same scene with your horny friends.
So you joined some dating site and you spent your bucks courting dreamboat of the cyberworld, only to discover when they are up close and personal they are more like the Gila Monster from Hell than any dream you had since childhood. But then what did you expect? Did you really think online dating was somehow removed and therefore different than life? Did you buy all that hype about soul mates, compatability tests and harmonic relationships being the cure to all your missed opportunities? Maybe. Maybe you should hang in there and go another month with an online dating membership. Or say forget it and check out the Starbucks for someone who looks interesting.
Among other things, we always found it odd that so many online dating sites, could claim to arrange the perfect match while neglecting something as basic but as essential as background checks. While we don’t believe online dating background checks should be legislated by the states, we do believe the self governing responsiblity of a respectable online dating site should be to at least offer if not mandate a background checks for every member.
Because at the end of the day whether you are online, offline or wallowing in your solitude, finding a mate is one of life’s more complicated obstacles. There is no magic bullet. You are either a lucky person who backs into the best relationship of their lives, or you work at it. If you are good at meeting people in life, then you are probably good at finding them on line. It’s life, just plain old ordinary luck of the draw take your best shot life, and that’s how it works on most occasions.
So forget all the statistics. Sometimes they work in our favor, and sometimes they are too daunting to contemplate. Just enjoy yourself, whether your are online or offline. And if you do meet someone either in reality or the cyberworld, be smart enough to run a background check and make sure they are really who they say they are. It’s by no means the total answer, but it is a good start.
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