Online Dating Declines as Traditional Dating Service Gains Expected

Owing to a lack of security, specifically, in-person verification and background checks in the online dating world as well as the novelty of online dating having worn off, growth in online dating at more than 850 websites fell to just 4.5 percent in 2005, as compared to 47 percent growth in 2003. Online dating currently represents 49 percent of the market.

What does it all mean? According to Paul A. Falzone, CEO of the world’s largest bricks and mortar dating service, The Right One and Together Dating, "Online dating is not new and it’s not trendy anymore. And, there are too many problems with misrepresentation online. Most online dating sites do not perform background checks on members, and not everyone using these websites is honest. From the guy who says he’s single when he’s really married with six kids, to those folks with an even darker side who misrepresent themselves. It’s like the Wild West. Eligible singles are just frustrated and looking for a better, safer alternative to online dating and they are finding it with traditional matchmakers and dating services."

In the survey findings, traditional dating services outperformed online dating due to a number of factors, including in-person verification and "higher lifetime customer value".

Falzone continued, "Traditional dating services will remain popular because of the human element – relationship experts work one on one with eligible singles to find a compatible match. If there is a shift in the online dating segment and growth increases, it will more than likely be due to the element of safety, brought about by changes in legislation requiring verification and background checks at dating websites."

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Singles help is on the way
Catering to more than 300,000 members at over 60 locations throughout North America, The Right One, Together Dating and Elove.com are the largest bricks and mortar dating services as well as online hybrid in the industry, offering a more consistent product, a greater number of potentially compatible mates and added value of flexibility in transferring memberships to another geographic region.

Celebrating More Than 30 Years
The merger of national offices of The Right One with North American branches of Together resulted in a partnership that has created the largest personal introduction service in the United States.

Now celebrating their 32nd anniversary, The Right One, Together Dating and Elove.com have an ambitious plan to open between 12/24 new offices a year. The Right One and Together have more than 300,000 members – many of whom have their memberships on hold while they take the time to explore a successful relationship. With more than 500 employees, The Right One and Together gross more than $45 million a year in revenue.

Romantic Locations
The Right One’s offices and affiliates located throughout the United States include: California (San Diego); Colorado (Glendale); Florida (Miami); Georgia (Atlanta); Kansas (Wichita and Overland Park); Illinois (Downers Grove, Rockford and Bloomington); New Jersey (Cherry Hill, Hackensack); Massachusetts (Norwell, Newton, Shrewsbury and Woburn); Nebraska (Omaha and Lincoln); Pennsylvania (King of Prussia, Pittsburgh and Monroeville); Rhode Island (Warwick); Texas (Dallas, Austin); and Wisconsin (Madison, Appleton, Brookfield).

North American locations and affiliates of Together are: California (Encino, Irvine, Los Angeles, Upland); Florida (Palm Beach, Vero Beach); Georgia (Savannah); Indiana (Ft. Wayne, Indianapolis, South Bend); Kentucky (Lexington, Louisville); Louisiana (New Orleans); Maryland (Columbia, Frederick); Minnesota (Minneapolis); Nevada (Reno); New Hampshire (Hooksett, Nashua, Portsmouth and Salem); New Jersey (Bridgewater, Clark, Colts Neck and Lawrenceville); Ohio (Cincinnati); Pennsylvania (Mechanicsburg); South Carolina (Greenville); South Dakota (Sioux Falls); Texas (San Antonio, Beaumont and Houston) and Virginia (Falls Church).

For more information about Together Dating and The Right One, please visit their websites at www.therightone.com, www.togetherdating.com, and www.elove.com or call
(800) 818-DATE (3283).


(Editor note: For interviews with the colorful and articulate Paul A. Falzone, CEO of eLove, The Right One and Together Dating and the author of a recent book on the history of dating, please contact Steve Dubin, PR Works, at (781) 582-1061 or, by e-mail, at sdubin@prworkzone.com.)