According to online dating statistics, 1 out of 3 people are now using online dating as a method of finding their mate. Some may say that this is the new dating norm for the 30-something age range. Unlike the 20-something age range, according to the New York Times’ The End of Courtship?, 30-somethings still use phones for conversations, have one-on-one dates, and flirt in public not twitter.
So, I asked myself what can the 30-something group do to be just as tech savvy and unconventional to make our dating experiences more efficient? Ladies & Gents, I have found our answer!!! I am going to start this trend: Google + hangouts! What? Never heard of it? I recently started using it myself. Let me tell you all about it. It was launched over a year ago and is a video chat program that allows us to interact with up to 10 people face-to-face. It’s a different social networking concept from the other social network platforms, but the same in terms of sharing information, photos, latest news, etc. The key difference is it is LIVE human interaction! In addition to business conferencing; meetings; networking; connecting; and sharing, I found the best application: online dating screening! I have found Google+ hangouts to be the most effective & efficient method in screening potential dates.
Here’s my rationale:
1. Time
So, I thought what are 30-somethings most concerned with? Time, right? No one wants to waste time because we have a limited amount of it with our work and life schedules. Well, Google+ hangouts resolves this. Let’s consider the time invested in the initial phase of online dating. We go through the process of identifying a pool of potential candidates, email screen, and are now ready to talk on the phone/meet in person. I would use the phone conversation as my screener and hope that it would all go well when we met in life. That’s where the second phase of time investment is: preparing for the date. The process of aligning your schedules, dressing for it, and mentally preparing yourself for the date. That’s where the g+h/o (what I like to call it or h/o for short 🙂 ) comes in! You can schedule a face-to-face video chat to determine if you want to go that second phase of time investment. All you have to do is send a link to the g+ho and schedule a video chat!
2. Physical attraction
What frustrates us the most about meeting people face-to-face? If their photos and life have discrepancies, right? One of the top things both men and women lie about on their profiles is age. Seeing them on a video chat gives you the opportunity to determine whether you are really physically attracted to the person or the whatever year old photo they decided to use!
3. Lifestyle
People usually are conducting their g+ho from their homes. It’s either a bedroom, living room or home office. Which provides us with an easy way to determine: 1) whether they are messy/organized; 2) what their tastes are (art work, furniture, photos displayed), and 3) a small margin of if there is chemistry or not.
Oh, the other added bonus is that you may be able to determine if the person is married based on the room, too. If you like cyberstalking, this is another added bonus, you can see the person’s activities and profile if it’s completed!
Thanks Google+, Vic Gundotra, Chee Chew, Dori Storbeck and Natalie Villalobos for making my life so much easier! Here’s the link to learn more and join Google+ hangouts: http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/
For now, I have just tried the one-on-one video chat, but am going to be exploring different dating efficiency techniques and sharing them with you all! Looking forward to hearing about your experiences with the g+ho!