Online Dating

The divide between dating and politics is getting smaller, especially since the 2016 election. Many American daters are opting to put the political beliefs of potential partners front and center when it comes to seeing if there’s a spark. And dating apps are noticing this trend, too.

In September, OkCupid announced its alliance with Planned Parenthood Federation of America to allow its customers to show their political leanings when it comes to female reproductive health. OkCupid is offering an #IStandWithPP badge that shows up on the profile of anyone who has publicly answered “no” to the question “should the government defund Planned Parenthood?” The app’s algorithms will also consider the badge when matching you with potential partners.

But users can choose to keep their feelings to themselves. “When you answer a question on OkCupid, you have the option to make your answer public or private,” Melissa Hobley, CMO of OkCupid, told website Bustle. “Only if you publicly answered that you support Planned Parenthood, then you receive the badge automatically. If you don't want the badge on your profile, then you can mark your answer as private.”

eHarmony New Skill for Amazons Alexa

There’s no shortage of apps and websites to help lonely hearts find love, but there’s only one voice-activated digital assistant playing matchmaker for tech-savvy singles.

Amazon is teaming up with online dating platform eHarmony to launch a new skill for its AI-equipped, hands-free Alexa speaker. eHarmony users who enable the skill will be able to hear their matches and messages by voice, and ask Alexa for more details about their dating prospects.

The ability to access eHarmony matches through Alexa is the latest move by eHarmony to make it easier for people to connect and date in a fast paced world. "Alexa provides a unique, human element to eHarmony," said Grant Langston, chief executive officer of eHarmony, in a statement. "The eHarmony skill for Alexa advises singles on matches who are compatible and sent messages. The eHarmony skill for Alexa also surfaces pertinent information, like location and occupation that some people might gloss over if they are just quickly swiping at attractive pictures. With the eHarmony skill for Alexa, people can focus more on the other elements of a profile by listening to her."

Singles in the United States this weekend get a chance to try out eHarmony.com and message matches for free. It starts Friday October 6^th and continues to late Monday evening, October 9^th 2017.

No coupon code or credit card is required to message your match for free. All you need to do is sign up as a free member and create a profile. Once that is done you can then go ahead and take the personality questionnaire which is used by eHarmony to determine your matches. This takes about 20 to 30 minutes. Once complete you will receive your first batch of matches. From here you can take a look at their profiles and contact the ones you like.

eHarmony is usually extra busy during free communication events so it is an ideal time to try out the service since a lot of other singles will be doing the same. The only feature not available during this event is viewing of profile photos. To be able to do this you must become an eHarmony subscriber.

For more on this dating service known for creating long term relationships, please read our review of eHarmony.

Meet up on Facebook

Facebook has never made a secret of its desire to dominate almost every aspect of daily life in the digital age.

The company has blatantly swiped features from Twitter, Snapchat, Foursquare, Periscope, and more. It’s also experimented with workplace collaboration tools, the ability to call Lyft and Uber rides in Messenger, and a food delivery feature.

Now the social networking giant has plans to capitalize on the massive online dating market and “borrow” from a Millennial-favourite brand: Tinder.

The new feature is for Messenger and was spotted by Motherboard’s Jacob Dubé, who noted that it was also available to some of his friends in Canada but none of his colleagues so far.

Remember when people wondered if Tinder would ever successfully monetize? Those days seem like a lifetime ago.

The company has released a string of money-making features since its 2012 launch, ranging from Super Like to the premium Tinder Plus membership. The latest to join the line-up is Tinder Gold - an optional, upgradeable tier that allows users to see who swiped right on their profile without swiping right back.

Tinder Gold was released in the United States in late August following testing in select markets around the world. The members-only service offers the app’s most popular exclusive features, including Passport, Rewind, Unlimited Likes, five Super Likes per day, one Boost per month, and more profile controls. It also includes the new Likes You feature, which reveals who’s into you before you swipe.

eHarmony is offering 50% off a 3 month membership this Saturday and Sunday here in the United States. This 2 day promotion runs from September 30^th to October 1^st, 2017. A coupon code is required and when you purchase a 3 month plan you should save about $45.

To receive the discount use the code: JOIN

In order to use the code you will need to first create a free membership and profile on eHarmony. After you have given eHarmony your basic profile details you will need to complete the personality questionnaire. This takes about 30 minutes to complete and is the information eHarmony will use to match you with other members using their famous matchmaking algorithm. Once the questionnaire is complete you will receive your first batch of matches right away. Take a look at your matches profiles and pictures and I am sure you will find a couple that interest you. If you want to communicate with them you will then need to purchase a subscription to the service. At this point when you give your credit card is when you will enter the coupon code.

For more on eHarmony, you can read our review.