What Makes Online Dating Work (or Not)?

What’s the Latest Development?

A new dating website run by the former president of the Onion wants to make online matchmaking more personal and less gimmicky. The site will take lessons from social media, allowing its users to interact in real time about things that interest them. Users can review restaurants and movies, for example, putting them in control of their fate rather than at the mercy of so-called ‘love algorithms’. And rather than writing a painful self-summary, the initial message is limited to a short 140 characters, to keep things light at the start.

What’s the Big Idea?

There are certain things that make online dating work and others that hinder it, a lot. Security is paramount so charging a nominal fee is important to improving the service and keeping the site free of unsavory characters. Anything that can help the transition from online to real dating is a help, so some sites would be well-advised to host evening gatherings for its members. Finally, don’t connect to Facebook. People want to be anonymous when dating and prefer to keep it apart from their established online life. 

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