Types (Niche)

Spark Networks, owner of JDate and ChristianMingle, has launched a brand-new iPhone app. Named simply Spark, the new app turns the swipe into a way to make conscious, informed dating choices.

The world of dating apps isn't exactly sparse. Far from it. And users are used to seeing the same features over and over again. So what sets Spark apart?

Spark is both free and ad free. It also pulls user profiles directly from Facebook, making it exceptionally easy to use. Its most distinctive feature is that Spark, unlike other dating apps, offers ‘swiping with a choice.’ Instead of mindlessly swiping past single profiles at a time, Spark users compare multiple profiles simultaneously.

Spark presents two pictures, one on top of the other. Tap a picture to bring up more information on the person. Swipe up or double tap to select your favorite and, if it's a match, the two of you will be able to message each other within the app. If it's not a mutual match, communication isn't allowed.

If you're not interested in either profile, you can tap the “Skip” button to receive two new profiles. You can skip up to five times within a 24-hour period. If you run out of skips, you can either wait for them to be replenished or purchase points within the app, which can then be used towards additional skips.

“After matching on most other dating apps, many users realize the match is not a good fit and don’t pursue additional communication. The Spark dating app’s unique interface changes this behavior by encouraging each person to take a moment to learn a bit more about their matches,” said Michael Egan, Chief Executive Officer, Spark Networks. “This process helps members to be more selective, which ultimately leads to better matches and better dates!”

Spark is very new on the online dating scene, but it has potential. A minimal profile and simple swipe suffice if physical attraction is what you're looking for, but if you're on the hunt for a more serious relationship, Spark's dual profiles could be the answer. The process encourages users to pause, spend more time reading profiles, and get a deeper understanding of their potential dates.

The Spark dating app launched on August 27 and has so far been a success. It was featured as a “Best New App” on iTunes and registered over 10,000 users in the first five days. iTunes also continues to feature it in their list of the top 100 Free Social Networking apps.

An article in last month’s Vanity Fair attacked apps like Tinder as being promoters of hook-up culture among young daters. The article caused a wave of dialogue, backlash and upset, with many people wondering if dating apps were in fact “killing” the culture of dating and navigating relationships.

While technology has been blamed for bad behavior, dating app Hinge is aiming to distinguish itself from its popular and notorious competitor, Tinder. Instead of taking the bait and offering more Tinder-like services like many dating apps looking for success in this growing market, Hinge is taking the hook-up culture argument to heart. Instead of fighting the article's argument, the company is offering an update to its app in acknowledgment of the problem - with an “Intentions” feature.

The update offers a new profile page where users are encouraged up front to include their intentions for using the app, whether it’s to find a relationship, to date, or a casual hook-up. Hinge hopes that this gives more transparency in the online dating process.

According to Hinge, most of the people coming to its app are looking for something more serious than a hook-up. When the company surveyed 1,500 of its users, they discovered that sixty-three percent claim they are looking for relationships, 33% for dating, and only 2% for hook-ups.

The company’s last update called out daters who weren’t being truthful about being single, which has also caused an uproar among Tinder users. (A survey earlier this year found that more than 40% of Tinder users were already in a relationship.) Hinge now publishes each user’s relationship status (that the user shares on Facebook), so there’s no mistaking whether or not a user is single.

The company also added a new feature in August called HingePerks for its most dedicated users, offering discounts and contests for things like trips, ball games, and drinks. The first promotion was a free “staycation” at a Starwood Hotel with a spa service included. They have also offered concert tickets for social media participation (including liking on Facebook, tagging and sharing), as well as a free bottle of wine for the Hinge couple that posts a fun photo on Instagram.

Since its inception, the company has focused on its primary user base – young professionals, another way to distinguish itself from Tinder, which got its start on college campuses and whose demographic skews a bit younger than Hinge’s. In the last month, Hinge has promoted their “most eligible” male and female users according to profession, offering basic profile information. Hinge also asks their most embarrassing date moment and greatest career accomplishment to date.

Whether Hinge's strategy succeed in this competitive dating app market is yet to be seen. But it does offer daters a more interesting and engaging alternative to the dating app experience. For more on this dating app, please check out our review of Hinge.

Just when you thought you'd mastered the swipe left and the swipe right, Tinder throws a curve ball into your love life: a swipe up.

Meet the 'Super Like,' a brand new feature that takes the grand romantic gesture into digital territory. By swiping upwards on a potential date instead of left or right, you can show them that you're interested – like, super interested – before they decide which way to swipe on your profile.

After Super Liking someone, a blue banner declaring “So-and-so super liked you!" will appear underneath your name and age in their list of matches. If the attraction is mutual, the super-swiper will have a blue star next to their name in your list of matches.

Super Liking is not something to take lightly. Each user gets a limited number of Super Likes per day – only one – so use them wisely.

"Because they're so limited in number, a Super Like, or a 'swipe up', sends a more powerful signal, conveying an especially high level of interest," Tinder CEO Sean Rad told Engadget. "People like to know that someone finds them special, and we think this will lead to even better matches."

Tech analysts have dug deeper into the intention behind the new feature. Many believe the Super Like was introduced because Tinder has deviated from its original purpose. Instead of using the app to find real dates, many are using it only to kill time. Super Like may help restore Tinder's lost value.

“I can't help feeling the fact that Tinder has to keep imposing limits on swiping and adding features to encourage selective swiping suggests the swiping system is feeling the strain,” writes Rich Trenholm for CNET. “With many profiles complaining their matches never actually chat with them, it seems the Super Like is an attempt to restore some of the weight of a match.”

Tinder has celebrated the arrival of the Super Like with a cinematic superhero-themed advertisement featuring models Erin Heatherton and Nina Agdal (see below). The feature will launch first in Australia and is slated to roll out globally later this year.

Alongside the Super Like, Rad has also stated that the Tinder Plus version will launch soon. The new version limits the number of right swipes a user can make in a 24-hour period, and introduces Undo and Passport options. These advanced settings will be available for a monthly fee.

For more on this dating app your can read our review of Tinder.

We all have that friend: the one who dates jerk after jerk, ending up in a string of relationships so bad they make you question why anyone bothers dating at all.

A new app helps you give that friend's hopeless love life a lift. Spritzr allows you to refer potential love interests to single friends using Facebook. With you as matchmaker, you no longer have to put up with your friend's endless parade of unsuitable suitors.

To sign up for Spritzr, you must first indicate if you're a Dater or a Matchmaker. If you choose the latter, start suggesting friends to each other. Friends who indicate mutual interest will be sent notifications and can connect. If mutual interest isn't established, no notifications are sent and no one is the wiser.

Online dating fatigue: it sounds silly, but it's a real phenomenon. You can only spend so much time in cyberspace before your head starts to spin and arthritis sets in on your swiping hand.

When burnout begins, it's time to take a hiatus from the smartphone. Do yourself a favor and delete your dating app.

Yes, I said it. It may sound drastic, but it's the only way to be 100% sure you won't succumb to temptation and start swiping again.

How do you know it's time to take such a radical step? If any of these signs sound like you, your dating app belongs in the bin.

You're logging in out of habit, not out of interest.

It's hardly news that we're addicted to our devices. We check Facebook every 30 minutes and our email every hour. And our online dating apps? They're right there in the same boat, squeezed between Instagram and Vine. Dating should never be done on auto-pilot. When checking your app becomes a habit or an obsession, not something you're actually invested in, it's time to take a break.

You've resorted to stock messages.

The copy/pasted greeting is never a good look. Creating a great introduction isn't easy for everyone (or maybe anyone), but it's essential. If you're not taking communication seriously, you're not taking dating seriously. Go on a dating diet until you're ready to read profiles and put real thought into your messages.

You immediately look for what's wrong instead of what's right.

Being too picky can be just as bad as not being picky enough. If you're experiencing online dating burnout, chances are your subconscious will subtly sabotage your efforts. Instead of looking for the good in each potential date, you'll zero in immediately on the negatives. Your brain is looking for any excuse to avoid yet another tedious date.

You're desperate for a boyfriend or girlfriend.

Wait, isn't finding a relationship the point of online dating? How can wanting one be wrong? Well, it isn't. “Desperate” is the key word here. If you're too focused on that specific outcome, you're more likely to settle for someone who isn't right for you. A title should never be more important than actual compatibility.

You're on there for a reason that isn't dating.

Be honest. What are you really looking for? Do you respond to messages? Do you go on dates? If not, you're wasting your time and everyone else's. It's tempting to use dating apps for validation – who doesn't love be on the receiving end of a right swipe? – but it's unfair to users who are looking for real connections. And don't even get me started on the evils of catfishing.

The dating app market is flooded, so new companies entering the field and looking to make their mark have to differentiate themselves. For some app developers, it’s taking a female-centric approach, like with Bumble. Others look to social networking connections to make people feel more secure about meeting strangers, like Coffee Meets Bagel or Hinge.

The latest grab for online daters’ attention comes in the form of creating a dating app that is as exclusive as possible.

In other words, a new crop of apps are taking a completely different approach from acquiring the most users, like with Tinder. The success of an online dating company or app has always been evaluated by how large its database of users is. But these apps are banking on another measure of success - that is, how coveted the app is. They are driving demand for the app, and then being selective about who gets to use it.