Sparkology: Luxury Dating Site for Young Professionals

Looking for a serious dating service and not something like match.com? This website is an invite only online dating site and only accepts college graduates and men must be graduates of US News and World Reports top 50 universities, top 15 liberal arts schools or top international schools. Many of the men on the website has studied law, medicine or business.

The online dating website began because of the unsatisfied of the current online dating website services. Alex Furmansky, founder of Sparkology included, “The problem is the current mass market [for dating sites] is amplifying the bar scene. I believe there has to be a better approach to dating where the guy with the wine and flowers wins” (Mashable).

What makes this site luxurious is that Furmansky hands out personal invites seal with a wax stamp to educated singles he approves of. There is even sessions on how to teach men about courtship, manners and how to be classy. There is even classes on how to dress well and learn about fine scotch.

Right now Sparkology has 1,200 members and only is in New York. However, the site plans to expand to San Francisco, Boston, Washington DC, and Chicago in the future. They are also planning to let gays and lesbians join the site in the future as the site grows.

The online dating site is free but guys pay $2 per spark, and girls only pay $15 a month and can send unlimited messages. So why the difference in prices among men and women? Because then men can’t send spam therefore less messages and girls will respond to them if they wish.

So is this a good online dating website? How can an educated person be better than the average Joe? Many studies have shown that people who have a college degree are less likely to divorce and more likely to make longer commitments. Regardless, it will make you feel a little safer knowing who is messaging you rather than some guy in some state out west (that has no profile picture).

Are you a college graduate and would you join Sparkology?

Hitch.Me: A Professional Dating Site

Hitch.Me is a new dating site for professionals on LinkedIn. There are many risks in dating online. There are many scammers and sex offenders on dating sites and it is easy to become a victim. That is why Hitch.me was created, to create a safe dating site for professionals.

Naveed Nadir, Founder of Hitch.me included, “There are a lot of dating websites out there but most people on those sites lie and have fake profiles. With LinkedIn, people get a sense of security and they feel more comfortable with the network” (Mashable).

To sign up you connect your LinkedIn account, and to keep it even more professional you cannot change or modify your profile photo. Users can fill out their own personal profile such as age, date of birth, interests, photos, etc. You can browse hundreds of profiles and send them private smiles, pitches and even presentations. Hitch.me even searches compatible users for people on Hitch.me.

What is even more great is that Hitch.me does not charge a monthly fee. It’s completely free! However, credits are required to view personal profiles and send messages. When users sign up they receive 200 free credits and 100 credits per person that signs up using the users shared link. Credits cost $10 for 300, $25 for 1,000, and $50 for 2,500.
Twenty credits are required to unlock a profile, 50 to send a pitch, and 100 to send a presentation.

Hitch.me is a new dating website that makes it safe for users to date online. Makes meeting people a lot easier!

If you are single, would you join a site like Hitch.me?

 

When the Geriatrics Flock to Online Dating

Online dating may have lost its inherent uncool factor, but its still viewed as a past time for the young.  Or, more accurately, the young at heart.  Sites such as SeniorPeopleMeet.com and SeniorsMeet.com are experiencing exponential growth.  So, what gives?  Social media has become more and more normalized in industrialized cultures which means even the elderly are getting in on the action (pun very much intended).  Moreover, the increase of sites catering to a very specific group indicates that enough of an audience exists for niche subcultures.

We’ve previously discussed the prevalence of online dating and its impact on how we communicate, both online and offline.  Ultimately, turning to online dating legitimatizes our online world.  By meeting someone and perhaps even marrying them after you found each other online you’re indicating that online interaction can be very meaningful.

Yet another issue to bring up is how marketers can actually utilize this information.  It’s tempting to ignore the gray dollar because they aren’t as tech savvy, but the rise of online dating for the elderly demonstrates that there is a demand for a product.  As such, it’s conceivable that consulting firms geared towards online dating newbies for the senior set could be lucrative.

How do you you think online dating has changed social media?

Make It a Double: Online Dating Site Allows You to Partner Up

Online dating is no longer as stigmatized as it was in years past, but the fact remains that there’s something intrinsically unnerving about agreeing to a latte with a venerable stranger.  However, the fine folks at DuoDater have stepped up to combat this ever growing problem by allowing users to chat with singles online and meet with them in real life, along with a friend.

The project has users create joint accounts with friends as a means to encourage everyone to hunt for romance with a trusted buddy.

However, as a casual observer numerous problems are already calling to me.  Namely, what if you don’t have any friends of the same gender? Or you simply don’t have any friends you’d feel comfortable enough setting up a profile with?  Furthermore, awkward first dates suck, but awkward double dates?  That’s all sorts of awful.

What other problems do you envision occurring as a result of a site such this?  Or do you think this is a good idea and you’re excited to give it a whirl?  Let us know.