Contributed by: ElyseRomano on Saturday, May 28 2011 @ 10:00 am
Last modified on
"Be unique."
If you've ever sought dating advice from devoted friends, concerned family members, or online experts, you've encountered this pearl of wisdom more times than you can possibly keep track of.
And why not? It's legitimately good advice. In a world where millions of singles are looking for love online, you have to stand out from the crowd in order to be noticed. For most online daters, that means nothing more crafting witty headlines and agonizing over which profile picture sums up their personality best For others, however - like Matt Simpson and Chas McFeely - the quest to be different in hopes of finding love online knows no bounds.
Matt Simpson was just a tech-savvy 30-something from Tempe, Arizona when his quest for The One, and an ad he purchased on Facebook, made him an Internet sensation. He describes himself as "a single guy with specific taste" on his blog, and adds "I'm only interested in women with the potential to become my intellectual and spiritual partner over the long term." To find this woman, Simpson turned to Facebook. Due to the incredible amount of data the site collects on its users, individuals looking to buy ads on Facebook - like Simpson - can adapt their campaigns to target very specific groups of people. In Simpson's case, the target is the "spiritual, yoga-practicing, between 28-35, and living within 25 miles of Tempe, Arizona" girl of his dreams (TIME[*1] ).
In addition to helping him stand out from the crowd, Simpson's unique approach to online dating might be saving him money: at $0.75 per click, there's a good chance he's spending less on his Facebook ad than he would in a bar or on a traditional online dating site!
Matt Simpson is not the only love-seeker who's capitalizing on the Internet's massive matchmaking possibilities. Chas McFeely, of San Francisco, CA, is so determined that the World Wide Web will find him love that he started a website - www.HookChasUp.com[*2] - solely devoted to locating his future wife. And he's offering a $10,000 reward to the person who introduces him to her.
When asked by Village Voice how he decided which women to go on dates with, McFeely said[*3] "I read the emails. I look at the photos. If something clicks, I get in touch and see if there's any interest in meeting. I also have my best girl friend lending a perceptive eye."
Odd as the idea may sound, McFeely seems to be on to something: as of March 2011, when the site had only been up for two weeks, he had received around 700 responses, one of which put him in touch with "a popular European musician."
Though neither Simpson or McFeely have found their dream girls yet, both have faith in the Web's ability to play Cupid. Simpson believes that allowing women to "opt in" to learning more about him, as opposed to seeing his name as one of many on a dating site, will increase his chances of finding love online, and McFeely reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to the cause to the Village Voice: "I'm in it until I find her," he declared. Best of luck to both.