Staff writer at Entrepreneur magazine Laura Entis published an article today with a very provocative question as its headline: Why on Earth does eHarmony Offer Real-Life Matchmakers?
I’m happy to answer that question.
As most of you may know, in January eHarmony launched a new service called eH+, which combines eHarmony’s compatibility matching model with personal matchmakers. This service was designed to address a market that was not currently being addressed at eHarmony.com. It’s a market that might not use an online service, despite its advantages, for a few reasons.
The number one reason to provide real-life matchmakers is because some percentage of people prefer to have the help of a coach or a matchmaker during their search for love. They want someone they can call to discuss a potential match or to do a post-date analysis. They want a person who will give them feedback about their choices and preferences. They also want someone to personally vet their matches, and eH+ matchmakers perform that service.
The second reason to provide a real-life matchmaker is because having a professional person talk with you, ask questions about your romantic past, listen to your concerns, and understand the needs underneath your expressed thoughts helps us choose matches who are more compatible with you. We provide this service in addition to the standard eHarmony Relationship Questionnaire that everyone takes. It’s like getting an extra layer of analysis, a human layer on top of the compatibility algorithm.
Elizabeth Dwoskin of the Wall Street Journal did ask if a computer algorithm could be designed to do exactly what the matchmaker is doing. Maybe someday, but that day is far, far in the future. For now, human therapists and psychologists play a unique and important role.
There are some other reasons eH+ uses matchmakers – it’s offline and some people don’t want to spend the time to manage their own online dating profiles. eH+ provides anonymity, and matchmakers are great at helping clients understand why they may have had a hard time finding love online. At the end of the day, we think eH+ serves a person who isn’t getting what they need from online dating options, and more choice is a good thing.
Thanks to Laura Entis for asking such a great question. If you want more information, visit eH+.
Thanks,
Grant
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