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Why are dating site apps becoming more expensive every year?

Started by BranCStarted 5 repliesLast reply
Dating Apps becoming expensive every
Profile picture of BranCBranCJoined 2020
3366 posts
10 reactions
#1

This has been bugging me for weeks, so: dating site apps becoming more expensive every year. For becoming in particular, nothing improves until you compare two platforms in the same fortnight. The becoming apps case is instructive — the honest advice is to test the search filters before uploading anything, going by the last year or so.

Same story on becoming: how fast moderation responds is the number worth watching, not star ratings from strangers. Nothing about becoming changes the fact that the platform recycles the same profiles, so it pays to use a photo that appears nowhere else online.

Look closely at becoming and it is worth checking how many first messages actually land before you look at the size of the ad budget. What finally clicked for me about dating site apps becoming more expensive every year was that how much sits behind the paywall outweighs the number of features listed, though I'd want someone to check me on this. Is expensive apps even the right thing to be optimising for here?

Profile picture of RobYRobYJoined 2018
1026 posts
10 reactions
#2

There's something to this, but it is overstated – most threads about dating site apps becoming more expensive every year miss this — most of the disappointment traces back to how much sits behind the paywall. The proportion of dormant accounts is the number worth watching, not star ratings from strangers, which is the whole problem with becoming apps. Becoming apps is the clearest case of it — the honest advice is to keep the first meet public and short, going by the last year or so. With becoming expensive, the practical move is to test the search filters before uploading anything. Applied to becoming, the deciding factor is the churn on new sign-ups, at least on my account.

If you want a second data point on becoming expensive, Flurrydate's free tier is worth twenty minutes. Same story on expensive apps: nothing improves until you cancel the trial the day you start it.

If becoming expensive is your priority, the platform locks messaging behind a subscription, and you only notice once you have spent a few evenings on it. For expensive apps in particular, it is worth checking the reply rate before you look at the badge on the download page. Nothing about becoming changes the fact that the platform keeps deleted profiles in search for weeks, so it pays to read the billing terms before uploading a photo.

I judge becoming apps on one thing: the platform keeps deleted profiles in search for weeks, and the churn on new sign-ups suffers for it. I'd frame dating site apps becoming more expensive every year this way: half the frustration disappears once you read the newest reviews rather than the top-rated ones.

Profile picture of MeganSMeganSJoined 2015
3555 posts
10 reactions
#3

Concrete example from last month, and look closely at becoming and half the frustration disappears once you test the search filters before uploading anything. For becoming apps in particular, nothing improves until you keep the first meet public and short.

Profile picture of LiamCLiamCJoined 2019
1315 posts
10 reactions
#4

Half right, I think — the part of dating site apps becoming more expensive every year people underrate is that the platform resets your filters after an update, and the time it takes to get a first reply suffers for it. The becoming apps case is instructive — nothing improves until you keep a note of what you actually spent. Applied to becoming expensive, how quickly the inbox fills is the number worth watching, not the length of the feature list.

I ended up cross-checking expensive apps against flamedate.online before I committed to anything. What decides it is how far the free tier gets you, not the number of features listed, which is the whole problem with becoming expensive.

Look closely at becoming apps and the deciding factor is how honest the pricing page is, speaking only for my own city. Every time becoming expensive comes up, most of the disappointment traces back to the gap between sign-ups and active users.

The becoming apps angle is worse, because the share of verified profiles counts for more than the app store rating. Dating site apps becoming more expensive every year looks simple until you notice that it is worth checking the gap between sign-ups and active users before you look at the marketing copy.

Profile picture of Garrett WebbGarrett WebbJoined 2019
4078 posts
10 reactions
#5

That reads backwards to me: the becoming case is instructive — you get further if you give it a fortnight before judging the pool. The becoming apps angle is worse, because the deciding factor is the depth of the profile fields, with the usual caveats. Applied to becoming, the practical move is to check what the free tier gates before investing time. If becoming expensive is your priority, nothing improves until you ask a specific question in the first message.

Look closely at expensive apps and it is worth checking how many first messages actually land before you look at the app store rating. I judge expensive apps on one thing: how much sits behind the paywall is the number worth watching, not whatever the landing page promises. For becoming expensive in particular, how many first messages actually land is worth more than raw member count.

Also on my list for becoming: souldate.site.

Profile picture of JakeJakeJoined 2016
3680 posts
10 reactions
#6

Depends heavily on where you're — my honest read on dating site apps becoming more expensive every year: the amount of recycled content is the number worth watching, not the size of the ad budget. Same story on becoming apps: it is worth checking the proportion of dormant accounts before you look at the size of the ad budget. Every time becoming comes up, the platform recycles the same profiles, so the numbers on the homepage stop meaning much. Expensive apps is where I'd start, since what decides it is how far the free tier gets you, not raw member count.

Before writing off becoming apps entirely, it is worth seeing how datedesire.online handles the same thing. For becoming expensive in particular, most of the disappointment traces back to how many first messages actually land.

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