Well, If I didnt get a $hit ton of b.s. from my friends for having a “love” category on this blog. Now I hit you with some results of what I have found to be the best online dating sites. In my defense: I am a 30 yr old entrepreneur that barely has time to eat a meal. Owning a micro management consulting firm and heavily involved in the club/music industry. I just dont have the time to waste these days.
The winner is Match.com in 1st & eHarmony in 2nd.
Time to sign up for both and give you an indepth look at their programing behind their multi million dollar marketing campaigns.
NOTE: When it comes to price for a service like this, I dont think anyone should complain about paying for the best ROI of your life. So fork up a few bucks chump!
==== USEFUL REVIEWS I FOUND====
Price: Free.
Users per month*: 2.75 million.
Registration time: 12.5 minutes.
Pros: Costs nothing; easy to use; has a huge pool of people to flirt and connect with; boasts 120,000 marriages a year.
Cons: Distorted or fuzzy images; unattractive website.
Since this is a free site, I’m going to the big players on this service. Since pay sites are constantly getting capitol from their user’s to invest in new programing/technology.
Price: $30 per month.
Users per month*: 2.75 million.
Registration time: 15 minutes.
Pros: Simple to navigate; finds matches based on keyword descriptions; provides apps for smartphones.
Cons: Poor screening techniques.
Positive Features
- Newly upgraded site (Dec 2008) has a much easier flow and not as busy as old design. The colors are not as dark.
- A first in the dating world, a Make Love Happen Guarantee. Read below in Costs for more details
- Keyword search on member’s profiles (called matchWords).
- Very large online dating service (maybe the largest general orinented dating site on the internet).
- Allowed to remove singles from your search results.
- Find out when your match reads the email you sent them with Email Read Notification.
- Customer Care available 7 days a week from 8:00am to 8:00pm CST – 1 (866) 962-8244
Negative Features
- To many ads are shown on the site about there other ventures. – UPDATE – They have greatly reduced this with their new update (Jan, 2007)
- New customer service hours. Match.com customer service is only open Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 8 PM CST. Their site is easy to use and has a great online help system but for people really new to the internet, they may need some live support. Since most of us use these dating sites after work and on weekends I am not sure what they were thinking here.
REVIEW 1 – With over 15 million subscribers, Match.com is the largest dating site catering to a diverse population. Reviews praise it for ease of use and excellent search options; however, the site doesn’t offer automated matching based on any scientific approach. You can search and browse for free, but you must subscribe for one month or longer to send or reply to emails. Match.com experts help you create a profile, which can include up to 26 photos, video and a voice greeting. The site offers mobile access, but you must pay an additional fee and subscribe for at least six months.
REVIEW 2
Editors of DatingSitesReviews.com provide overviews, pros and cons, and fees for more than 50 online dating sites. For the third year in a row, Match.com is the editors’ top pick overall in 2009. Editors primarily base this award on popularity and the website’s new mobile application. Readers also get the opportunity to vote on their favorite fee-based and free online dating sites. For 2009, Match.com wins in the fee-based category with 201 votes, representing almost 30 percent of respondents. EHarmony takes second place with 153 votes. The top choice for free online dating website is PlentyOfFish.com, which earns one-third of the votes. This site also has articles about dating and the online dating industry.
REVIEW 3
Our Assessment Online dating industry professionals vote on their favorite dating site in 11 categories. We don’t know how many votes were cast. Match.com is named the best dating site and also earns honors for site design. Zoosk.com is named best mobile dating site and best up-and-coming dating site.
Price: $50 a month.
Users per month*: 2.5 million people.
Registration time: 10 minutes.
Pros: Safer than some sites, since members must submit to a background check; has a fun, flirty environment.
Cons: Tacky advertisements.
Positive Features
- Every True.com member is screened against one of the largest criminal records databases on the Internet before they are allowed to communicate with other members. They are looking for felony offenses.
- Member’s marital status is checked against public records.
- Free Trial for 7 days which is extended for another 30 days if you upload a photo.
Negative Features
- More and more dating services seem to be displaying ads on their web sites and True.com is no exception. At least there are not a lot of ads listed and the ads are integrated into the site so they are not obtrusive.
- Some member complaints of difficulties in deactivating their True account.
Price: $60 a month.
Users per month*: 1.75 million.
Registration time: 25 minutes.
Pros: They do the matching for you, based on a detailed questionnaire; an advice section with expert and member tips.
Cons: Generic profiles; more expensive than other sites.
Positive Features
- Very detailed matching model based on 29 key dimensions that predict relationship success as well as examines 10 areas vital to your happiness and a fulfilling marriage.
- For men who are serious about a relationship eHarmony is one of the few sites that have a fair number more women then men.
- No more endless searching. You are shown just the members that match your profile.
Negative Features
- One of the more expensive dating sites.
- This point can be a positive or a negative depending on the person: They present to you the matches based on your profile you created, you can’t perform your own searches.
- You can only communicate with other single members who have paid for a subscription.
If you prefer a guided approach to dating rather than searching through online profiles on your own, eHarmony touts its 29 “dimensions of compatibility” to match singles that have the potential for a successful long-term relationship. This information is collected through a time-consuming questionnaire containing 256 questions. After signing up for a subscription ranging from one month to a year, the site encourages members to follow a guided communication process that uses multiple-choice questions to break the ice. Certain features like anonymous phone calls require paying an additional fee. Although the site’s claim to 20 million members is enticing, critics say the site is more expensive than many other sites and doesn’t allow users to perform their own searches. EHarmony only matches up straight couples, but now offers a spin-off same-sex dating site, CompatiblePartners.net.
REVIEW2
Unless you’re brand new to the internet and don’t watch television, you’ve heard of eHarmony. The reason why I feel 2010 will be a great year for eHarmony is because over the last couple of years, it has become one of, if not the, largest online dating site for singles who are seeking true love and more importantly, marriage. That is where eHarmony excels. If you are tired of the “dating scene” and truly want to find your soulmate that you want to marry and spend the rest of your life with, eHarmony is the site for you.
Unlike other sites, eHarmony is different because it actually finds people who are compatible to you rather than you browsing thousands of photo profiles to find someone you find physically attractive. For this reason, the signup process is extensive, but worth it if your goal is a long-term, serious relationship. As with most sites, you can signup for free to get started. Frankly, if you’re single, you need to at least have a free account on eHarmony.
*The numbers for users per month are based on research by ComScore.
Pasted from <http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/money/cost-comparison-internet-dating-sites-00000000028239/index.html>
referencing sites:
http://www.consumersearch.com/online-dating/reviews>
http://www.alternative-dating-sites.com/top-five-dating-sites-for-2010.html>
http://www.datingsitesreviews.com
