One in Ten American Internet Users Have Visited Dating Website, Show Pew Study
Sixteen million Americans, or 11% of Internet users, have visited a dating Website, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project study.
Online dating is, increasingly, a familiar part of America's social life:
- 31% of American adults say they know someone who has used a dating site
- 15% know someone married, or in a long-term relationship, who met online
64% of online daters feel that online services offer potential for a good match because of the larger pool of prospective mates.
How Much Money Can Be Made In Online Dating?
The online dating industry has seen average pricing jump from $19.99 per month to industry averages of $49-59 dollars per month for dating subscribers in the U.S.
Some analyst predict that by 2008, revenues for dating-related sites will top $600 million.
It's not just an American opportunity either: European online services are seeing revenues jump by nearly half, with revenues potentially topping €200 million by year's end.
What Types of Dating Sites Are Out There?
There are a number of different models for online dating sites:
- eHarmony.com is an example of a relationship site: one that actively works (in eHarmony's case with a profiling test) to evaluate and present only similarly matched singles to subscribers
- Match.com is typical of general dating sites where there is no active matching, but rather an open interplay between subscribers
- Niche services, like jdates.com seek to appeal to a specific demographic — in the case of jdates.com, Jewish singles are the target audience
The industry remains vibrant, and innovative businesspeople are continuing to find a solid revenue stream in the sector.
Featured Article:
Establishing an Online Dating Business: Ten Steps to Success »
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How Much Dating-Related Traffic Is There on the Web?
May keyword searches according to Yahoo!®:
- 1,382,665 searches on "dating"
- 1,781,336 searches on "dating service"
- 1,439,271 searches on "dating site"
Other, related, searches for May included:
- 811,763 searches on "online dating"
- 275,578 searches on "online dating service"
- 141,937 searches on "adult dating services online"
This is a solid, organic traffic base on which to build your business.
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