interested in innovation and creativity

match.com vs. consumating.com

Posted: July 7th, 2005 | Author: | Filed under: Marketing | 10 Comments »

I should be embarrassed to have had as long and unsuccessful experience with online dating as I have had, but I’m not, it’s just another channel to meet people and it seems every channel is as mundane as the next right now, or maybe I’m just getting jaded. Anyway, what has this got to do with customer experience?

Well, match.com has been pissing me off for some time, most recently with it’s mandate that you can’t be wearing sunglasses in your “main” picture. This is just an indication of match’s authoritarian view of its customers, you’d better listen “because match knows best”. Lot’s of guidelines, lots of bureaucracy, and everyone’s profile sounds the same as everyone else’s, I mean, who doesn’t like good food and watching movies. Somehow matches control over the “profile” creation process has stunted their customers creativity as opposed to enhanced, encouraged or motivated it.

Enter consumating.com, a dating concept from Austin, and in keeping with Austin’s freewheeling attitudes, you don’t get the feeling that this is a dating site that will try and squeeze you into a palatable shape for the rest of the internet community to consume. One of the interesting aspects of consumating is it is a dating site that asks questions of the community on a regular basis, in some ways, encouraging its customers to contribute to a community blog on different topics, so instead of a stagnant profile to get to know people you get to see their answers to some more interesting questions. For example, the week that the crazy woman escaped to las vegas and faked rape to escape a wedding, consumating.com asked “what would you do to get out of a wedding?” And, yes, people do use swear words on the site, and also give some answers that might lead you to believe that they are sociopaths, but at least it gives these profiles a human voice and a chance to cut through the veneer that most of us have.

And of course note the obligitory Folksonomy, although this is the first folksonomy I’ve seen that contains the term “mexicancandy”

Here are some of the questions they ask:

  • http://www.marketallica.blogspot.com ??zg?ºr alaz

    That’s great. nowadays the most popular Tv show in Turkey is named “Ah Kalbim”. It’s a dating compettion. One person asks questions to the candidate behind the barrier. And candidates reply and their answers show their personality. same concept but cool.

  • http://todayspolls.googlepages.com Blake

    I think match.com is ahead of the others. In my perception match.com has a greater number of features and searching capabilities. Also, now Dr. Phil is getting involved with Match.com, I think match.com would win the online date service poll.

    See for yourself: http://todayspolls.googlepages.com/match_dating_poll

  • Hubbs

    Match.com is a scam… I tried it and found no one worth responding to. I tried to cancel my subscription after the first two weeks of seeing what they had to offer – then I got an email that said I had to reactivate my account in order to read it – when I did – unbeknownst to me – it reupped my renewal and I just got a deduction from my checking account for $60. I protested the charge with Match.com and was told “Match.com does not have a refund policy” so in other words, I was tricked into renewing and even though as soon as I noticed it, I cancelled again, they still charged my account 3 months later. THIS IS A TOTAL SCAM – DON’T FALL FOR IT…

  • mika

    A MUST-READ FOR ANYONE SCREWED OVER BY MATCH.COM

    I just experienced what many of you have shared: the highly anti-consumer “auto-renewal” feature that supposedly appears in match.com’s contract. Following lollipop’s advice to John, I, too, did the following:

    -Called the following number
    1.800.926.2824

    -Selected 1 for general inquiries, NOT the cancellation prompt, or anything related to complaints

    -Got through to Kelly, a rep who politely stated that the auto-renewal policy was part of the contract to which I agreed

    -Made Kelly aware that I am a legal assistant for a major local firm and after discussing the “policy” with my lawyer friends, was urged to take legal action over fraud

    - She reiterated the agreeed-upon policy but did say that she would speak to her supervisor about my demand for a refund

    - I also added that I want something in writing to assure me that I will not be billed in the future after canceling my account

    - Kelly returned and said that she would refund my auto-renewal fee in 72 hours but could not provide a written assurance. I could write to the following address and/or email and try there:

    match.com
    customer care
    po 45272
    dallas, texas
    75225

    executiveteam@match.com

    So…I’m not in the clear, yet. I will update to let you know if I see the auto-renewal fee refunded on my VISA statement. The point is that if this works, we have more power than we think. We can get our money back by not backing down and do our best to inform others to stay the hell away from this scam.

    Perhaps, we can also suggest places for lonely souls to connect online without paying a cent.

  • mika

    (Follow up to previous post) Fought match.com and won.
    They refunded the renewal fee the very same day. Dropping the word “fraud” and threatening to expose their anti-consumer practices seemed to work. Using a VERY stern tone and demanding to speak to the supervisor if the rep couldn’t do anything didn’t hurt either.

    Remember, no matter what crap they feed you about wanting to provide convenience, putting the customer’s interests first, don’t be fooled into thinking they care in the least. These are manipulative, unfeeling vultures of human desperation. They don’t expect you to stand up to them.

    Best of luck to you all.

  • betsy

    I ended my membership in November only to have Match renew my subscription in May. They removed the monies from my account. After being refused a refund on the phone and e-mail. I changed my profile to expose what they had done. Threated legal action and to expose them on the internet…..then Instant refund.

  • Mo

    I am really dissapointed in Match.com. I have been a member with Match and it seems like all the women that I talk to are these stuck UP women that all they want are these TALL jackass/asshole men which are mostly LOOSERS!! Women on Match from what I have done with Match.com are all legit but just simply really STUCK UP BITCHES that do not GROW up and get into REALITY!!!! On the other hand YahooPersonals which I think I am going to rejoin I had so many dates through YahooPersonals it was great and women on YahooPersonals seem REAL and actually invest their time in the dating scene rather than Match.com a lot of the women seems like they just piss away their money only in hopes for their “BAD BOYS”, Tall Jackass/Duschbags. WOMEN THESE DAYS WATCH WAY TOO MUCH TV AND GET A BAD PERCEPTION OF MEN FROM TV THEY THINK THEY MUST HAVE THE ASSHOLE TALL MEN. TALL MEN ARE NOT NECESSALRY BETTER AS WOMEN THINK!!!! Women from Match.com seem like a BAD BROKEN RECORD PLAYER They say the same thing over and over and over and over again and again!! It would be refreashing to see women on Match.com that actually think outside their (BOX) :) :) rather than the same ol same ol boring shit of (I MUST HAVE A TALL 6′ and over even if she is like 5’2″ which by the way is BS, THE GUYS MUST BE ASSHOLES, APPEARENTLY WIFE BEATERS ARE “COOL” TO WOMEN THESE DAYS.) Seems like women these days for some stupid reason get off on getting beat up if they come home from a date with a black eye or such they for some wierd reason get a thrill out of that and crawl back to that JACKASS/SERIOUS LOOSER. Anyways, Match.com women need to GROW UP, GET INTO REALITY and GET SERIOUS ABOUT DATING WHICH FOR A LOT OF WOMEN SEEM LIKE THEY HAVE FORGOTTEN THAT’S WHAT THESE SITES ARE FOR!!!!!! If women want to pull pranks or be LURCHERS for their GOD FORSAKEN GIANT then go to http://www.ionlydreamoftallassholemen.com

  • http://www.thisishowyoudoit.com/blog/matchcom-get-laid-while-looking-for-love/ Match.com: Get Laid While Looking for Love

    [...] has forsaken match.com for a site out of Austin called consumating.com.  Perhaps, match.com should buy them since consummating seems to the bulk of what is done on [...]

  • http://www.match.com.ru Match

    I think that I was more surprised that online dating has been around for so long than I was about the number of people meeting online. I referenced your study in a recent post. My audience is used to people meeting online, but they were quite interested in the number of couples who actually marry after meeting online.

    By a certain age, people are fairly set in their ways, and online dating does provide the biggest opportunity to reach beyond their normal circle of acquaintances to meet someone that they wouldn’t have met otherwise.

  • Karen

    A WARNING ABOUT SITES LIKE MATCH.COM. Match.com allows people who do not live in town, who are of wrong age, who are married or otherwise in relationships to date on its site. So they may not be thieves but they are looking to take ADVANTAGE OF WOMEN.

    I have noticed that since 2009 a lot of men who would have actually used prostitutes have moved to sites like Match.com to find sex and they will lie through their teeth to get it. I know one guy who actually put down he is 44 but is actually 51, wants kids but doesn’t, doesn’t live in the location his profile indicates, has been incarcerated, and generally has a pretty incorrect profile. Also he is in a relationship with another woman in the city he actually lives in. All of this I reported to Match.com…and they will not shut down his profile. They continue to keep it up…knowing that the entire profile is a lie.

    I think Match.com specifically has become a magnet for men who were otherwise no longer able to afford prostitutes and now come to the site for the same…only they pay 10th of the price and lie to the women to take advantage of them.

    Online dating…especially Match.com are the way of johns.com now. Any decent person who is looking for a real relationship…BEWARE!!!

    If the man is an American, I suggest you do a complete background check on Intellus.com site where you can find out the real age, if they are married, if they have a criminal background or otherwise are lying about where they actually live. It costs about $12 and is worth every penny!