Types (Niche)

File this one under “Cool Or Creepy?”

It’s no surprise that Facebook gathers a lot of data about its users, but what is surprising is the conclusions the site can draw by interpreting that information. Of course Facebook knows when you’re “Single,” when you’re “In A Relationship,” or when “It’s Complicated,” but it turns out the social networking site actually knows a whole lot more than that about your love life.

Facebook data scientist Mike Develin works on the site’s search function, studying how people use it, what they’re searching for that isn't available, and how to make it more useful. Along the way, Develin and his team noticed some intriguing romance-related patterns.

It starts with a period of courtship. On Facebook, ‘courtship’ means messages are exchanged, profiles are visited, and posts are shared on each other's timelines. During the 100 days before the relationship starts, there is a slow but steady increase in the number of timeline posts shared between the future couple. The peak is reached 12 days before the relationship begin, at 1.67 posts per day

At “Day 0,” when the relationship officially begins, a couple’s Facebook interactions start to decline. Presumably because they are now spending more time together in person, the happy couple feels less need to communicate online. The lowest point is 1.53 posts per day, reached 85 days into the relationship. Along with that decrease in Facebook interactions comes good news about the content: the interactions may be fewer, but they also get sweeter and more positive. Warm fuzzy feelings are dramatically on the upswing after Day 0.

On the not-so-warm-and-fuzzy side is the breakup data. The research team also took a look at couples who split up and got back together, and documented the saga on their profiles. The maximum, Develin reports to USA Today, was a couple who went in and out of a relationship 27 times in one year. Yikes. It’s a good thing Facebook also found an increase in private messages, timeline posts, and comments from supportive friends during tough times.

What all this means is that horoscopes won’t accurately predict lasting love any time soon, but Facebook might. "We have such a wide-ranging set of data, including on places there may not be data on otherwise," Develin told USA Today. And because Facebook knows so much about its users’ authentic identity, there is very little territory its researchers couldn’t explore. The patterns they identify could be instrumental in mapping human interactions and proving or disproving theories about relationships. 

For more on how to use this social network to find dates you should read our Facebook review.

Good news for single Apple fans: eHarmony has added a new feature to its iPhone app for version 4.1.

The app feature, called Datebook, is designed to help users plan, manage, and track their dates with anyone. Yes, that's right, I said anyone. Your date doesn’t even have to be an eHarmony member for you to use the app to keep track of them.

Vanessa Petrosky, Mobile Product Manager for eHarmony, says that “Datebook is the first eHarmony feature to be released on a mobile platform before launching on eHarmony’s desktop website.” As mobile usage grows, and with it the demand for mobile access to just about everything we do online, eHarmony is doing its best to provide resources to simplify and enhance the dating experience.

“Our customers have loved the eHarmony app for checking their matches on the go,” continues Petrosky, “and now with Datebook as a companion, singles will be able to schedule details for each date, bridging the online and offline dating experience.” And that’s not all – Datebook also helps singles make better decisions about who to date by doubling as a diary in which users can record their personal dating history and private ratings. “This new feedback feature also allows eHarmony to take the data into account and provide ever-better results for its users,” Petrosky adds.

Highlights of Datebook include:

• Add anyone: Add both eHarmony matches and people you’re dating outside of eHarmony to your Datebook contact list.
• Calendar sync: Any dates you enter are automatically synced to your iPhone calendar.
• Foursquare integration: Search for locations and get invaluable info provided by Foursquare, including photos, phone numbers, addresses, dollar ratings, and tips from other Foursquare users.
• Date history: Save all of your date details plus any private info you want to remember about your companions.
• Rate your dates: Privately rate who you're dating and where you're going. eHarmony will use the data in the future to suggest great date ideas tailored specifically to your tastes and interests.
• Date questions: At a loss for what talk about on the first date? Your iPhone to the rescue! Save your icebreaker questions to your Datebook Favorites, so you never run out of conversation ideas.

Datebook is free to all eHarmony users who register and complete the relationship questionnaire. And, of course, any information entered in Datebook is confidential and will not be shared with any of your matches. Want to give it a whirl? You can find the regular eHarmony app in iTunes here. Once you have completed the personality profile you will have access to the Datebook.

For more information on this dating site please read our eHarmony review.

I've met a lot of very attractive women who have come through a divorce or break-up looking to meet someone new. The problem? The men who are their ages (in their 40s and 50s) seem to want to date younger women only.

Many women wonder why this is. After all, they aren't looking at only younger men. It doesn't seem fair, does it?

There is an element of truth to this notion: many men do prefer to date younger women, and we see this reflected in TV shows and movies. It's not a problem for a man to date someone half his age, and in fact it's expected. Maybe it's due to biology, or maybe he just wants to ignore his own aging process.

There's also a certain amount of relief in dating a younger woman because she likely doesn't have the baggage that an older woman does. Chances are he looks for simplicity above all else - a woman who has no children, not much debt, or no messy break-up that has taken a toll on her psyche and finances.

So then we wonder - is it possible to find older men who are interested in women their own age?

Absolutely. Just because you've noticed a pattern in your own life or among your friends (or even in a Hollywood movie) doesn't mean that it is true for everyone. There are many single men in the world, and a lot of them enjoy the company of women their own age. You just have to know where to look and what to look for.

First of all, it might be time to refresh your online dating profile. Make sure you are focusing on what you want to bring into your life, not on what has happened in the past. Mention your interests, your career, or whatever makes you happy - and let that be the tone with which you craft your profile. Men can pick up on the energy and tone a woman sends from a profile or a first message. It's important to keep it positive so you can attract as many men as possible.

Second, I would suggest picking a new dating site. OkCupid and PlentyofFish are great for people looking for something casual (i.e. younger), but if you're looking for an emotional connection, it's better to go with a paid site like eHarmony or Match. OurTime is a good niche option specifically for older daters, so you know that your dates won't discount you because of your age.

Third, keep an open mind about the possibilities open to you right now. Say yes to more men that you might not normally consider, just to see what dating someone new is like. Allow yourself a little more fun in the dating process - it doesn't have to be so focused on the end result. It's a journey, after all.

“They both swiped right. (For professional purposes, that is.)”

That’s how TIME describes the meeting of Sean Rad and Justin Mateen during the first semester of their freshman year at University of Southern California in 2004. At the time they were both working on their own businesses, but soon enough they joined forces and became co-founders of mobile dating’s most impressive success story so far: Tinder.

In just 17 months, Tinder has become a phenomenon. “For the uninitiated,” writes TIME, “Tinder is a smartphone app that at first seems like a higher tech version of ‘hot or not.’ Users are shown photos of nearby potential matches and can swipe right to ‘like’ and left for ‘nope.’” It's now getting 600 million swipes per day from its obsessive 18-24 year-old userbase, and landed two of its founding team on the Forbes 2013 “30 Under 30” list.

Why did it become so big, so fast? Because traditional dating sites require extended periods of time and attention spent filling out and browsing long profiles, and in our speedy modern era we no longer have time for that kind of commitment. Tinder can be played – because yes, it is a game – in short bursts on the go, making it the most convenient way to meet your match currently on the scene.

Tinder snagged TechCrunch’s Crunchie award for best new startup on February 10, 2014, an honor it fully deserved for its mind-boggling success in 2013. There's no doubt that Tinder is the hottest thing on the mobile market right now, but the question is: can it maintain its success in the future?

“Nobody joins Tinder because they’re looking for something,” Rad told TIME. “They join because they want to have fun. It doesn’t even matter if you match because swiping is so fun.” So with fun in mind, the Tinder team plans to extend their reach beyond dating. The plan is for the app to evolve into a social discovery service, one that’s useful for meeting people beyond the romantic context.

“You’ll be able to eventually interact with friends for other purposes,” Mateen said. “So even if you’re in a relationship you’re going to be able to find good value in Tinder in the coming months.” The problems encountered when connecting with someone new are universal, whether you’re meeting someone with romantic, professional, or friendly intentions, and Tinder hopes to help.

Other plans for the future of the app include an updated communication system that goes beyond text messaging and further international expansion.

Match.com's Singles in America study, now in its fourth year, examines the attitudes and behaviors of over 5,300 American singles from all walks of life in order to get a glimpse into how love and relationships are viewed today.

"U.S. singles most often have sex at night, don't want to know their partner's sexual history, have trouble deciding when to have sex with a new dating partner, and overall just want more sex," says Dr. Justin R. Garcia, PhD., Scientific Advisor at Match.com. "But why?"

That's the million-dollar question, one of the many questions Match.com tried to answer in the latest Singles in America study. A survey of what it means to be single would be incomplete without an examination of what it means to be single and sexual, because whether you're a new couple or have been married for half a century, sex is an important ingredient in almost every romantic relationship.

Research has shown that sexual satisfaction influences a huge range of outcomes, from one's happiness, to one's health, to the likelihood of a breakup. So what's the state of sexuality in America today? Match.com says:

• Singles want more sex. We probably didn't need a study to tell us that, but we got one anyway. 68% of single men and 57% of single women say they want more sex in 2014, although it may still be less sex than you're expecting. Most singles ideally would like to have sex 2 to 3 times per week - only 15% of single men 12% of single women would ideally have sex every day.
• We are all really confused about when we "should" have sex. Everyone is stressed out about when to take a new relationship to the next step. Nearly half of singles think it's only okay to have sex with a new partner once they've reached the 6th date. Men, on average, tend to count the number of dates (and observe totally idiosyncratic rules about which number it's appropriate to have sex on). Women, on the other hand, tend to rely on relationship milestones - such as a clear sign of commitment or exclusivity - to mark when it's okay to make things sexual.
• Some of us are keeping our number under wraps, but it's fewer than you might expect. 21% of women and 23% of men admit to altering their number of sexual partners (in either direction) when asked about it. Nearly half singles of both genders simply say they've don't want to know their partner's sexual history at all.
• Television is totally killing the vibe. 77% of men and 82% of women consider the TV a huge turn-off. In fact, it's the #2 sexual turn-off for women and the #1 sexual turn-off for men. Why? Because TV is hugely distracting, and satisfying sex doesn't happen when your attention is focused elsewhere.

If anyone knows how to crack the code of online dating it’s Greg Liberman. Liberman has been president and CEO of Spark Networks since 2004, giving him more insight into the industry than almost anyone else in the biz. He spoke with The Forward in early February about the tremendous success of JDate, the Internet’s most popular Jewish dating service.

Liberman chalks the company’s success up to one simple thing: “this company was built out of a need.” And not just any need – one specific person's need. One of the founders had recently been divorced and was looking to expand his social circle of single Jewish women. Out of that quest, JDate grew organically.

Once the site had gotten its start, it set itself apart from the competition by creating a strong culturally focused community. “Religion is obviously at the core,” says Liberman, “but the majority of the members are Conservative and Reform and interested in a more culturally based identity.” The site provided a meeting place for Jewish singles who wanted to continue the traditions they were raised with, but weren't interested in a heavy emphasis on faith.

When asked how things have changed over the course of JDate’s history, Liberman nominates mobile dating as the decade’s biggest innovation. Mobile is becoming an increasingly important part of our lives, and that includes our love lives. “We saw in 2013 a 114% increase in log-ins via mobile,” Liberman says of JDate. “People are connected all the time, and for us it’s really important. I mean, it’s a huge opportunity for us to continue to drive our mission.”

Mobile isn’t the only change in store for JDate. The site announced the launch of a new marketing campaign on Valentine’s Day 2014 that further stresses the “J” half of its name. The rebranding initiative – JDate’s first – is called “Get Chosen.” Liberman hopes that it will help strengthen the Jewish community and ensure that Jewish traditions are passed on for generations to come. He calls it a “fun, living, breathing campaign” designed to “remind Jewish singles of the cultural ties, not just the religious ones, that make dating, and ultimately marrying, someone else who is Jewish so special.”

The multi-platform campaign will begin immediately across various channels, including print, digital and social. In addition to adding the tagline “Get Chosen” to the logo, JDate revealed a new homepage design for the website. The company also plans to run digital billboards in New York’s Times Square and a street sign campaign throughout Chicago. Other creative elements, including television and web videos to support the “Get Chosen” theme, will roll out later this year.