New App Precisely Offers Data-Driven Matching
Contributed by: kellyseal on Thursday, February 25 2016 @ 10:49 am
Last modified on Wednesday, August 24 2022 @ 06:59 am
Another new dating app has hit the market to compete with Tinder, the ever-popular app that is both cherished and demonized for changing the landscape of dating. Precisely takes the user-friendly format of Tinder (swiping), and combines it with a clickable menu of over 200 filters across 25 different categories, so you can select descriptions according to your preferences.
Dating sites like OkCupid and Match are two successful yet traditional online dating platforms, and their matching algorithms also use descriptions. However, these sites rely on users answering questions and writing detailed profiles, which can take a lot of time. Precisely aims to take the time-consuming part out, but still maintain the helpful filters.
So instead of writing about who you are or what you want, you can choose to “activate” or include in your profile adjectives that the app provides in a ready-made list. For instance, you can choose descriptors like: “vegetarian,” “blonde,” “curvy,” “freckles,” “tattoos.”
The app provides a variety of personality-based filters in addition to physical descriptors, covering art, fitness, politics, diet and religion, for instance. If your religious or political views are important in your relationships, you can make your beliefs known to others. Or you can choose to not make them part of your filters.
The filters work in reverse, too. Precisely shows you not only the people who have the most in common with you and your filters (showing a percentage rank of how closely they match with you), but it also reveals the most common traits of users who are attracted to you. In other words, Precisely will tell you if the kind of guys who go for you on the app are surfers, into hip hop, or are libertarian.
The app is taking a cue from social media (and OkCupid) by offering a “trending” filter, where you can see users’ responses to hot topics like the Super Bowl or Kardashians, for instance. And if you want to offer something a little more personal to potential matches, thanks to the popularity of Snapchat and Vine, you can also create a 10-second video of yourself to show potential matches.
Note: Unfortunately the source to the video and/or image which once was displayed here has since been removed by the authors for an unknown reason.While I like the ease Precisely offers - ready-made descriptors to just click on and go, I have to wonder: will this mean users of the app will expect to find a relationship with their ideal match, practically made to order? I hope not. After all, love is really about chemistry in the end. It doesn’t happen between two people who happen to love hiking, or vote Democratic. Filters might be an important part of the online dating process to many people, but remember, the more filters you use in your search, the more you narrow your options and opportunities.