educational

Dating Sites for Dummies

Here are a few tips, tricks and basic considerations that can point you in the right direction to create your own dating site, and help you to profit from lonely people seeking companionship, a relationship, sex without strings — or something else entirely.

The first questions that you should ask yourself are: "What type of dating site do I want to start and why?" If your answers to these questions are "A site that brings people together," and "To make money" — then you need to do some more homework on your business and marketing plans before wasting your time, energy and resources.

In today's ultra-competitive dating-site market, simply wanting to be a "one size fits all" matchmaker isn't going to cut it, unless you have the virtually unlimited advertising budget you'll need in order to compete with players such as eHarmony — a mainstream dating site that has successfully extended its brand by offering quality services, via aggressive (and very expensive) television advertising.

This isn't to say that competing against these sites is impossible; just that it's very likely to be unprofitable for all but the most highly capitalized organizations. Having said that, David does not need to take on Goliath; he can simply eke out a living where the giant fears to tread.

As many e-commerce operators will tell you, specialization is the key to realizing success — it's all about finding a niche. For most XBIZ readers, this will be found within the realm of "adult dating," meaning those people seeking casual sex rather than marriage or any other form of long-term relationship.

But even in this limited arena, the competition is fierce, with heavyweights like Adult Friend Finder, IwantU.com and other players leading the way. A quick search on Google for "adult dating" returns well over a million listings, as well as a robust selection of paid listings, illustrating the competitiveness of the market and the need to specialize.

Narrow your market as tightly as possible and see if there's a place for you: perhaps you might want to focus on hooking up gay dads, or swinging housewives, or even narrower markets like handicapped lesbian voyeurs. Just as in the adult site business, the smaller the slice of the pie, the juicier and sweeter the taste may be.

For those who perform their market research with due diligence, the thought of competing with the established players can be daunting. All is not lost, however, because most of the heavyweight dating site operators offer affiliate programs, often with substantial payouts. This allows potential dating site owners to profit from established brands, while dramatically reducing start-up and operational costs and lowering their barriers to entry.

Geo-IP targeted advertising tools are commonly offered by these programs, allowing affiliates to place profile listings on their web pages that seem to show a bounty of ready and willing folks from your town, all just a click away. This is especially useful for those affiliates who wish to construct a local or regional portal (or at least one that appears so).

Dating site affiliate program DatingGold.com offers free, ready-made Wordpress themes, allowing for a quick and easy dating-site solution using this popular free blogging tool. Get yourself an amateur or dating-related domain name, sign up for a basic hosting package, install Wordpress and the DatingGold-supplied theme, and you can be up and running with your own dating site in a matter of hours with very little start-up expense. Just add traffic and you're on your way to profitability — it doesn't get much easier than that.

Of course, for some potential operators, doing things the easy way isn't the goal; trying to address shortcomings in existing programs while offering enhanced, value-added services is more important.

For example, while FriendsAndSoulmates.com isn't "an adult site" in the sense that it doesn't target users simply seeking sex, but instead, it is designed to introduce individuals looking for romance and want to establish a long-term relationship with the right person. Some of their approaches and ideas are interesting and worth noting.

Like many dating sites, registration and posting a basic profile will be free of charge, as will be seeing whether or not there are any responses to the profile. Accessing those responses, however, will require a paid membership. There are three membership tiers: the free profile; a "special friends" level that allows access to the profiles and provides for communication between members; and the "soulmates" level that offers a variety of enhanced services.

The site will also offer advice columns from both a man's and woman's perspective, as well as shopping and gift-giving features, where members can "pre-shop," building up a virtual "wish list" of items that other members can send them with the click of a button. This is a great revenue stream that will be fueled by announcements such as notifications of member birthdays, as well as holiday specials and other seasonal promotions.

But what the builders hope sets them apart is their travel services. "Our main focus is travel: a lot of people get on dating sites and chat but they never meet," said partner Dan McLind. "Ours will have a travel club and it will show on the member's profile when they're traveling and where they're going. We'll offer special cruises and parties where members can meet in a safe environment. And if those meetings go really well, discounts on a wedding in Maui will also be available. But if they go really badly, our 'Rate-A-Date' feature will let the next guy or gal know just what to expect."

Regardless of the approach you take to profiting from online dating sites, it's clear that one size does not fit all, but as long as people are lonely and looking for love, lust or something in between, there is money to be made in this market segment.

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

profile

'Traffic Captain' Andy Wullmer Braves the High Seas as Spirited Exec

Wullmer networked and hobnobbed, gaining expertise in everything from ecommerce to SEO and traffic, making connections and over time rising through the ranks of several companies to become CEO Mobile at TrafficPartner.

Alejandro Freixes ·
opinion

To Cloud or Not to Cloud, That Is the Question

Let’s be honest. It just sounds way cooler to say your business is “in the cloud,” right? Buzzwords make everything sound chic and relevant. In fact, someone uninformed might even assume that any hosting that is not in the cloud is inferior. So what’s the truth?

Brad Mitchell ·
opinion

Upcoming Visa Price Changes to Registration, Transaction Fees

Visa is updating its fee structure. Effective April 1, both the card brand’s initial nonrefundable application fee and annual renewal fee will increase from $500 to $950. Visa is also introducing a fee of 10 cents for each transaction, and 10 basis points — 0.1% — on the payment volume of certain merchant accounts.

Jonathan Corona ·
opinion

Unpacking the New Digital Services Act

Do you hear the word “regulation” and get nervous? When it comes to the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), you shouldn’t worry. If you’re complying with the most up-to-date card brand regulations, you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Cathy Beardsley ·
opinion

The Perils of Relying on ChatGPT for Legal Advice

It surprised me how many people admitted that they had used ChatGPT or similar services either to draft legal documents or to provide legal advice. “Surprised” is probably an understatement of my reaction to learning about this, as “horrified” more accurately describes my emotional response.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
profile

WIA Profile: Holly Randall

If you’re one of the many regular listeners to Holly Randall’s celebrated podcast, you are already familiar with her charming intro spiel: “Hi, I’m Holly Randall and welcome to my podcast, ‘Holly Randall Unfiltered.’ This is the show about sex, the adult industry and the people in it.

Women In Adult ·
trends

What's Hot Now: Leading Content Players on Trending Genres, Monetization Strategies

The juggernaut creator economy hurtles along, fueled by ever-ascendant demand for personality-based authenticity and intimacy — yet any reports of the demise of the traditional paysite are greatly exaggerated.

Alejandro Freixes ·
opinion

An Ethical Approach to Global Tech Staffing

One thing my 24-year career as a technologist working to support the online adult entertainment industry has taught me about is the power of global staffing. Without a doubt, I have achieved significantly more business success as a direct result of hiring abroad.

Brad Mitchell ·
opinion

Finding the Right Payment Partner

Whenever I am talking with businesses that are just getting started, one particular question comes up a lot: “How do I get a merchant account?” It’s a simple question, but it has a complicated answer.

Jonathan Corona ·
opinion

The Taxman Cometh for Every Business

February may be the month of romance, but it is also a time when we need to think about something that inspires very little love: taxes. April is not far away, and the taxman is always waiting. This year, federal and most state income taxes are due Monday, April 15.

Cathy Beardsley ·
Show More