In fact, about 40 million Americans use dating sites. Among them, the adult sector, 55 to 64 years old, is registering the fastest growth: from 6% in 2013 to 12% in 2015.
Dating sites have come a long way since it first appeared in 1995. By 2002, it had 26.6 million subscribers and by 2007, dating sites became the highest online industry with paid content (next to Porn).
Dating sites are far from porn sites though there have been complaints among women of men who want to engage in lascivious chats. They serve a good purpose of providing an online venue for people of the same interests, likes and dislikes, sexual orientation, and perhaps, sexual proclivities to meet.
While a few online dating encounters amounted to nothing more than one-night-stands, there are success stories, too. According to statistics, 20% of committed relationships started online and, in 2015, 7% of marriages resulted from casual online meet-ups.
Why use dating sites?
Relationship experts still agree that offline meeting is still the best way to connect with others, specifically of the opposite sex, but they are not downplaying the importance of these sites, as well.
However, nobody can give a specific answer to the question because people have different reasons and motivations that guide their actions.
But there are some common reasons, like:
1. It is more convenient:
You need not go out of your home to meet someone. You just log in and you are in a virtual place of unlimited relationship possibilities. For a first meet-up, it is also cheap.
2. There are more choices:
With thousands of members, your choices are practically limitless.
3. It removes the awkwardness:
Seniors who have been out of the dating circuit feel so self-conscious of their age, or health condition will find it awkward to meet someone the first time. Dating sites are very convenient for them.
4. It allows both parties to know each other more:
Dating sites allow both parties to get to know each other better. Should they take their online relationship to a higher level, it would be like meeting an old friend.
Pros and Cons of Dating Sites:
While membership in a dating site is fun, there are pros and cons to consider before getting too involved in them. These are:
Pro: The choices of people to make friends with is unlimited.
Con: “Too many cooks spoil the broth.” It can be very confusing that you can lose track of people you have befriended with. and you easily lose track of people you have befriended with.
Some of them are just collecting names but never interact, never answer messages.
Pro: You get to know a lot more about a person before meeting him/her should it comes to it.
Con: A lot of them lie. Their profiles don’t show the right personal information, such as age, name, marital status, and place of residence.
Some would use somebody else’s photos, while others will scam you like an unsuspecting LA woman who dined with a guy she met online, or the Florida guy who was robbed and killed after his second date with a woman he met online.
Pro: Meet people you may never meet any other way:
Con: Meeting people online is one thing, knowing who they really are is only possible through actual interaction.
Pro: One out of five relationships start online.
Con: “Easy come, easy go,” that’s how a lot of online relationships end.
I once met a very lovely woman online who proved to be a game-changer in my life. We had a whirlwind romance for the good part of three months until circumstances doused it cold, proving once again that “soul mates have already been taken.”
I am using only one dating site but I have been a member of it for so many years. I have had the chance of meeting, offline, a lot of women I have befriended online. All of them, except the above, was as fleeting as the wind. Some meet-ups were memorable while most were grossly embarrassing.
Now I do it for fun. Surfing through all those women is a good way to take a break from the serious business of writing.
But I’ve learned two valuable lessons from it:
1. Never push your luck. Somewhere out there is a man or woman waiting for you. When fate wills that you meet, you will. And when that happens you will find out that he/she was worth waiting for.
2. Online dating sites are easy to use and easy to find someone to have a potential relationship with. It is cheap. But at the end of the day, offline encounters have higher chances for success.
Please share with others so they, too, will discover the fun, or sorry, that comes from using dating sites.
~oOo~
