Online Dating Heavyweights In U.S Take Aim At Lucrative Australian Market
Released
on: February 25, 2010, 8:54 am
Author:
Matt Fuller
Industry: Media
American online dating corporations have hit the Australian online dating market with
full force. The emergence has sparked wide spread interest amongst
consumers and singles with massive media coverage in a move that has
set the scene for all out war amongst the opposing local and
international dating companies.
Australia has gone against international economic trends in recent years fairing
better than virtually any other country during the recession. Annalists are
questioning if Australia was in fact ever in a recession. The strong Aussie dollar,
an impressive inflation rate of around 2% combined with increasing retail sales at
the check outs has forced the hand of the U.S dating giants to set up shop down
under.
The online dating scene in Australia is dominated by only a handful of dating companies. While the
search engines are seemingly saturated with online personals the majority are dating
reviews that are affiliated to the dominant sites.
eHarmony have opened their doors to the Australian singles market and is making
steady ground according to the latest hit analysis. The eHarmony brand is one of the
biggest in America and combined with their financial muscle they are likely to gain
a strong hold in Australia too.
With an active database of 17 million users, eHarmony looks well placed to derail
the Fairfax-owned rsvp site stronghold which currently enjoys no major competitors.
The eHarmony concept is based on a subscription model with an annual turnover of
$200 million dollars. eHarmony is using prime time TV commercials for exposure and
is in partnership with the neverblueads affiliate network.
Match.com, probably the world's most recognized online dating brand has also
commenced its marketing blitz on Australian television. New local competitors such
as www.hookmeup.com.au are also continuing to challenge for market share.
Social media including Tweets and rss (real simple information) feeds are a huge
leverage tool to get the word out for the dating sites who can create the biggest
buzz. American run www.todaysdating.com is attracting plenty of interest and looks
poised to make its mark in 2010.
A recent case study carried out by 'mystery daters' compared the eHarmony and
match.com experiences. Findings revealed eHarmony's matching algorithms were the
preferred dating site for singles who were looking to be taken by the hand to let
eHarmony choose the dates for them. The IAC/InterActiveCorp-owned match.com dating
site experience was rated as somewhat more of a generic online dating site offering
members a large pool of members to browse.
The online dating market is currently undergoing a new phase with a fresh influx of
interest in Australia and is gathering momentum. There appears to be a fascination
of sorts given that targeted internet traffic is setting new benchmarks day after
day.
Former Australian current affair queen Naomi Robson, ex host of Today Tonight, has
just launched an online dating chat web
show focusing on sex, love,relationships and everything in between. 46 year old
Robson's - Naomi Show - has been 3 years in production and can be viewed online
Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays.
Current figures suggest there are 1.5 million registered online singles in Australia
with growth projections topping the 2 million mark by 2020.
This news item is presented by the American
singles chat rooms community. The website also provides relationships advice
for singles and couples.
Contact Details: http://www.hookmeup.com.au | P0 Box 1104 Caloundra QLD
Australia | matt@hookmeup.com.au
2012
