One of the most common complaints about first-time online daters is that they can’t find the right site on the first attempt. For many, heading to Match.com or eHarmony seems like an easy enough choice as both have millions of users and very comfortable privacy settings. Sites like Chemistry.com have an equal buffer against the crazies and offer money-back guarantees. However, sometimes the best solution, and the way to save money and fall in love is to specialize.
Like the modern workforce (and journalism) specialization means better results and more money. The same principles that apply in a work setting can be transposed and adapted to the dating setting. For those in the online dating community who want to find the most number of dates they can every week, or use sites as a means to create friendships, Match.com is the perfect site for your needs. However, if you have a special interest and want to find an individual within that interest, go to a site that promotes that interest.
Online Dating: Origins of Specialized Dating Websites
The first site to encourage specialization in the dating field was J-Date an online community of Jewish women and men who wanted to date other Jewish women and men. Based on that success other sites started to be created. Recently ChristianMingle.com and other Christian dating sites also became popular with those seeking evangelical or largely Christian partners. While the specialization has been primarily in the religious sectors, other trends are developing.
The Fitness dating sites have also been seeing rapid growth. FitnessSingles.com has millions of users who rank each other on what type of indoor and outdoor activities they most want to maintain with their future partners. The fitness craze in America could never be contained by gyms, right? And anyone who has been to a gym in the past ten years knows that they have in large part become meet markets for singles and those looking to mingle. The entrepreneurial dot-com community has simply put that community online for easier accessibility and less distraction to those gym souls actually interested in running on the treadmill.
How to Find One for You
The idea is to find one of the dating areas and stick to the one you think best represents your interest. Too many members of the online dating community use the wide reach of the Internet and combine it with several sits. Localization and specialization however not only tend to garner better results for focused individuals, it’s a lot cheaper than paying the hefty dues for five or six online dating sites – it might even save the headache of all that profile updating.
If you want to save money and find love all you have to do is take a minute and consider which things you value most in a partner and find a dating site that caters to those interests. You will save time and money on the front end, not to mention avoiding all those bad dates you might have to take.
Have you tried online dating? Do you think that it is okay for Christians to date online? Meet us in the comments!
This was a guest post from LC Cooper who frequently writes articles for ChristianDating.org.
My mother has suggested I try online dating. I have yet to try it because I feel it would be taking matters into my own hands rather than letting God work it out for me.
I have to chime in on this. I happened to meet my wife on a specialized dating site. I had done some research as to which “Christian” website had the most actual Christians. From what I could tell, Christiancafe.com did have a good record of actual Christians. I signed up, made my profile, and after a month or so of chatting with gals on there, I was found by Brianna.
Now I’m happily married and love telling people about our success.
The advice I give is to make sure your values line up before even meeting. Be intentional in your questions and in your conversations. Find out how the person communicates and work that out between you.
JC, thanks for commenting! I met my wife online too! I think that being able to search through a variety of people and making sure values add up lead to our success.
My brother met his wife online, and I met my boyfriend online. Not through dating sites, but I have been on those. I hesitated at first, thinking along the same lines as you, Cherelle, but someone told me “who’s to say that God couldn’t work through a dating site?” So I gave it a try to appease my curiosity.