Milestones

It looks like Tinder has swiped left on its latest CEO Chris Payne, and is asking co-founder Sean Rad to take control once again of running the company behind the infamously popular dating app. Rad will re-assume his position as CEO and Greg Blatt, Chairman of Match Group, will assume the newly created position of Executive Chairman of Tinder. Match Group is the parent company of online dating brands that include some of the most successful dating sites, including Tinder, Match.com and OkCupid.

Payne, a former eBay and Microsoft executive, is leaving the company after only five months as CEO. While Match Group originally hired him because of his experience, hoping to bring more corporate strategic thinking to the company, Rad remained the face of Tinder in the news thanks to his part in the app’s early success and his outspoken manner. (At the time, it didn’t help that he was embroiled in a sexual harassment lawsuit by former employee Whitney Wolfe, founder of new female-friendly dating app Bumble.)

For now, Payne seems to be content with the decision for him to step down. "I enjoyed my time at Tinder but we mutually determined that this wasn't going to be optimal and thought that a quick transition served everybody best," said Mr. Payne in a statement. "I think Tinder's going to be an incredible company." 

Website Mashable (who reported Tinder’s executive shake-up) has linked the decision to re-establish Rad in the CEO position as part of Match Group’s financial strategy. The company plans an initial public offering later this year. According to Blatt, the dating industry has come a long way since the company’s inception, but the category remains “underpenetrated.”

Tinder introduced a new premium paid service earlier this year, offering extra perks like the ability to go back and change a previously rejected profile or giving users more profiles to swipe per day. One analyst predicted Tinder’s valuation would top $1 billion in 2015.

For now, the company and Rad are focused on the future. "I'm committed to continuing to drive Tinder's growth and to make Tinder one of the great businesses of our time," said Mr. Rad. "I look forward to working closely with Greg to make that happen."

"It's only been a few months, but there was mutual agreement here that it was not the right long-term fit, and given Tinder's rapid growth trajectory both Christopher and the Board thought prompt action was best for everyone," said Matt Cohler, of Benchmark, a Tinder director. "We appreciate Christopher's work here and wish him well in future endeavors."

 

You can kiss SexyGirl88 goodbye. Usernames will no longer be part of the dating profile, at least on Match.com. The dating website giant has announced that it will no longer require its members to sign up with usernames, which have long been the cornerstone of the dating profile.

Since Match was created 20 years ago people have used catchy, cute, and frankly sometimes crazy usernames as a way to express themselves. But given the ubiquity of online dating coupled with the popularity of social media, the stigma of “being seen” online no longer exists. Despite the creativity usernames require and how they have playfully enhanced profiles seen by potential matches, Match feels there’s no longer a need for people to hide behind an alias.

Match decided to pay homage to the art of the username by providing some final statistics about them, gathered from its own user database. They created a list of the top 10 “most memorable” user names (making it understandable why many people won’t be sad to see them go):

• TwisDemNipples
• Hardworkingmilf
• IWantAllDaSecks
• DilettosJunkie
• SkittleFartz
• TonyPonyNY
• GlitterIsAColor21
• SPF70Always
• BigGulps32oz
• Assless_Chaps

Match also conducted a survey of its members on some of the best and worst usernames employed over the years. (Although we should note that daters could have used this kind of information when usernames were still a part of the equation.) Perhaps this information can help you with your profiles on other dating sites.

Match discovered that your given name matters. Guys named Mike (61%), Dave (60%) and Steve (59%) are the most likely to get messaged by a woman on Match, while men are more likely to contact Sarah (62%), Michelle (60%), and Lisa (59%).

Country music has always been a money-making business, and it seems that daters on Match likewise preferred to emphasize their own country roots. “Countryboy” and “Countrygirl” have been two of the most popularly utilized names on the site, but 78% of women and 36% of men would NOT reach out to someone with that moniker. The least popular usernames - “Babygirl” ( 14%) “Angel” ( 29%) and “Cowboy” (16% ) did not fare too well, either.

Match also found that men and women differed on what they felt made usernames “bad.” According to the survey, 62% of men felt that immature names were a turn-off, while 81% of women felt offensive names were a turn off.

Now that Match no longer requires usernames, perhaps other dating sites will follow suit. Thanks to dating apps, profiles are being streamlined down to their basic elements: photos and a few tags. It makes sense that usernames would become sidelined, too.

For ore on this dating service you can read our review of Match.

IAC is no doubt a leader in the dating market, with such prominent online dating brands as Match.com, Tinder, and OkCupid, which make up a company subsidiary called The Match Group.

The Match Group has announced its plans to launch its first IPO, making the company available for investment dollars from the general public. Match.com has long been a cash cow in the online dating industry with its paid subscription service, and Tinder with its new premium paid service has been reported to be worth about $1 billion by the end of the year. In fact, the combined revenues of all the companies in The Match Group accounted for nearly one third of IAC's overall revenue in the most recent quarter. They're also growing rapidly, surging 13% year-over-year in the most recent quarter to about $239 million.

Greg Blatt, Chairman of The Match Group said in a statement: "The Match Group is poised for substantial growth in the coming years. The dating industry has come a long way since its inception, but the category remains underpenetrated.  We believe the combination of our more established businesses such as Match, Meetic, and OurTime, and earlier stage businesses such as Tinder and OkCupid, creates an attractive combination of significant cash flow generation, strong margins and meaningful growth potential.” 

This comes at a good time, as Zoosk recently pulled its plans to launch an IPO, leaving the dating space wide open for potential investors. Ashley Madison, a dating site for infidelity, was quick to throw its hat in the ring, too. They are planning a second attempt at an IPO for later this year after a forfeited attempt in 2011.

The Match Group joins other prominent and publicly traded online dating services, notably Spark Networks, which owns several niche dating sites such as JDate, Christian Mingle, and BlackSingles.com, as well as Jiayuan.com, the largest online dating site in China.

After the IPO, investors will be able to buy stock in the company, although the ticker symbol is not yet known. Notably, IAC made the decision to split The Match Group from its parent company to do the IPO.

Barry Diller, IAC’s Chairman and Senior Executive said in a statement: "As many know from our actions over the last 20 years, I'm not a believer in simply agglomerating assets in perpetuity.  I've long felt that as entities grow into size and maturity it's healthy to give them separation and independence from a mother church.”

2015 is a momentous year for Match.com. The site debuted in 1995, making this its 20^th birthday. In a world that's hit with a new app – the next big thing! – practically every other day, that kind of longevity is something to celebrate.

The world has changed drastically since Match first hit the scene. The intense stigma around online dating is all but gone. And though Match used to be the only one in its class, it's now one of thousands of dating services competing for attention.

In honor of two decades in the biz, Match CEO Sam Yagan sat down with Here & Now’s Lisa Mullins for View From The Top on NPR. He shared his insights on getting ahead and staying ahead in a competitive industry, and the impact Match has had on the world.

Yagan is a firm believer in the power of numbers. “When the choice was: Do I want my love life determined by a psychologist or a mathematician,” he says, “I pick mathematician every day of the week.” He happily puts his trust in online dating algorithms and data as a means of finding love.

However, he also admits that they have limitations. “I think it’s unrealistic to say that we can look through millions of people and find the one person who is best for you,” he adds, “but what we can do is of these millions of people, here are the top 100 that might be the best for you.” It's up to you to do the rest. A dating service may one day be able to predict chemistry well enough to identify “the one,” but Yagan speculates that it's still a long way off.

As CEO, Yagan goes to great lengths to keep Match on top. His first focus is the customer. He regularly asks friends, family, and other singles what's going on in their dating lives, so he knows what pain points his product can solve. He also keeps an eye on the competition. “I have all of our competitors’ apps on my phone,” he says.

So far, his strategies are working. Yagan isn't shy about discussing the influence of Match. “If you think about products that really impact humanity,” he says, “dating is one of the most influential out there.”

It's not just about helping people find love for Yagan. It's about breaking down barriers and expanding horizons. He adds, “The relationships that come out of online dating cross more boundaries than those that don’t, so I think in that way it’s very influential and it has a huge impact in the trajectory of our society.”

Big words and big promises, but with all Match has achieved so far, the next 20 years of dating are guaranteed to be interesting.

It's been a year of bumps and bruises for Zoosk.

After reaching 26 million users in 2014, the online dating network announced plans for a $100 million IPO. It was major news, but now Zoosk has submitted a regulatory filing to withdraw its plan to go public.

In an email to VentureBeat, Zoosk chief executive Kelly Steckelberg offered the following explanation:

“Since the time we filed, the market condition around comparables that would be used to help value our company, like Angie’s List and Care.com, have not performed well. While the overall market might seem receptive to a public offering, subscription businesses have suffered.”

The canceled IPO isn't the only wound Zoosk has suffered recently. The company's founders, Shayan Zadeh and Alex Mehr, abruptly handed over executive control to former CFO Steckelberg at the end of 2014, leaving some to wonder what happens when a founder-led company loses its founders.

In the wake of those major developments, Zoosk implemented a new strategy focused on its customer base and on attracting fresh talent behind the scenes. The company reduced its workforce by approximately 15 percent to better align with its new strategy, leaving morale at an all-time low. The company was in desperate need of reevaluation.

Vice President of Marketing, Carol Mahoney, worked with a team of 3 human resources professionals to identify four areas of improvement. First, to serve customers better. Second, to boost engagement of employees. Third, to get clear on the company's vision and mission. Fourth, to achieve sustainable growth.

According to CIO.com, Mahoney found that transparency was a key issue. Employees were desperate to know what was happening in the midst of such upheaval and sought open communication from top-level executives.

"We realized we had to over-communicate about everything that was happening to make sure people knew we cared about their fears and their anxieties,” Mahoney says. “Now, we talk about our profits, our subscription base, hiring, attrition -- everything. People need to trust that we're honest about the ups and downs of the business if they're going to stay.”

Zoosk also highlights company culture to set it apart from the fierce competition in its native San Francisco. Dogs are allowed in the office. Weekly happy hours are hosted with beer on tap. Employees are encouraged to volunteer in the city's most disadvantaged areas. Three-day hackathons are held to develop new ideas.

Although Mahoney says there's still work do be done, she's feeling positive about the future. “We've made huge strides and we're going to be stronger than ever because of the emphasis we've placed on retaining our talent," she says.

Infamous hookup app Grindr may quietly be looking for a hookup of its own: a hookup with a buyer.

Word on the street is that the LA-based company has hired Raine Group LLC to advise on a possible sale. Bloomberg reports that “the sale process is early and no deal is assured,” so for the moment Grindr is keeping details under wraps.

Joel Simkhai founded Grindr in 2009 with $5,000. Since then, the explosively popular app has gained more than 5 million users in 192 countries. It claims to be the biggest male mobile social network in the world, and has become a bona fide pop culture phenomenon.

Oddly, despite its meteoric rise to the top of the gay dating app heap, Grindr remains self-funded with no outside investors. Revenue comes from a premium subscription service called Grindr Xtra, a paid upgrade that offers increased functionality and eliminates advertising for $12 per month.

In 2011 Simkhai launched Blendr, a dating app for both men and women that uses similar geolocation technology. So far it has yet to soar to the heights reached by its predecessor.

The problems Grindr and Blendr currently face are not unique. The dating industry is massive and cutthroat. Research by IBISWorld found 3,924 dating services in the US alone, which add up to revenue of about $2 billion. Competition is in ample supply, and it isn't easy for paid services to go head-to-head with free options.

The business model itself offers a special set of challenges. Dating services struggle to retain customers and sustain revenue growth for an amusingly obvious reason: because ideal use of the service means no more need of it. A success story ends in finding love, settling down, and never needing to date again.

A short-term solution to the problem, at least for Simkhai himself, is a sale. IAC (InterActiveCorp) could perhaps be a likely buyer, as it controls the majority of the online dating market in America through ownership in platforms like Tinder, OKCupid, and Match.com. Grindr would be a powerful addition to IAC's already-powerful lineup.

It is not known how – or even if – a sale would impact users, but it's probably safe to assume drastic changes aren't on the way for an app that's already had so much success. Although with more money and muscle behind it, who knows how much growth could be in store for Grindr?