These days there are numerous success stories of couples who found each other through dating apps and have gone on to have long, happy relationships and even marriages.
In a time when many people have given up on dating apps as a legit place to look for romance, these couples are reminders that love can blossom anywhere.
With these narratives, the number of dating apps and the number of people using them has had a constant increase in the past few years. The dating app phenomenon is so incredible that I even tried it myself. So, let us look at why dating apps are so successful.
- The Beginnings of Online Dating Apps
- Filtering Means Finding a Good Match Quickly
- Matching Conditions Create a Comfortable Space
- Opportunity for Self-Presentation
- Getting-to-Know Stage Matters
The Beginnings of Online Dating Apps
Dating apps as we know them today began with the apps Grindr and Scruff, apps that connect members of the gay community to each other based on geographic proximity.
This eventually lead to the creation of Tinder, a dating app for all romantic inclinations, available for Android and iOS devices.
Since Tinder's massive explosion on the dating app market, many other dating apps with varying features and dating tactics have emerged, including Bumble, Hinge, and popular dating websites developing and releasing applications of their own, like Okcupid and Match.com.
These days, it's one of the most common ways to find a romantic partner and actively participate in the dating world. It is a common way to simply meet people a well, and is used to connect with locals and other travelers while visiting a new city.
Technology: Game Changer for Romance
With dating apps now one of the main ways people find potential romantic partners, technology has changed the landscape of romance.
People claim that using an online dating app diminishes the value of “love” because the way in which they met was through an app and not the traditional way of encountering someone in person.
But nevertheless, with the aid of technology, dating apps have risen in popularity for a number of reasons, many of which make the process of finding a partner easier and more focused. Let's look at a couple of these reasons below.
Filtering Means Finding a Good Match Quickly
With online dating apps, potential romantic partners are displayed as profiles and can be filtered based on age, proximity, gender, sexual orientation, at a basic level.
Certain apps allow for more specific dating criteria, including similar tastes in music or hobbies. This lets users sort through the available profiles for someone with whom they will having something in common.
This gives an advantage over the traditional way of meeting someone, where these basic elements need to be discussed openly in order to find compatibility, and can be a time-wasting effort compared to the ease of search filtering on the dating app.
Mobile Convenience
The appeal of dating apps can also be rooted in their being available on mobile phones: convenience.
This means that the task of finding a romantic partner can be tackled from the mobile device you carry around with you all day. When you have downtime, you can easily open the app and scroll through some options.
Dating apps also have messaging capabilities built into them so you can chat directly with your matches in an instant messaging format, further speeding up the 'get to know you' process by being able to chat anywhere, anytime, and find out if you have enough in common to meet-up in person.
Matching Conditions Create a Comfortable Space
One can find their potential partners on the app by swiping through the profiles of the other users. There is an unlimited chance to swipe on the profiles to find someone who is interesting and matches my preferences. After we match, dating apps become a messaging platform as it allows us to send messages to each other.
Dating apps have unique conditions on how the two users can exchange chats. On Tinder, both users have to ‘swipe’ their desire to match with each other before the opportunity opens up to allow them to chat.
On Bumble, women hold the power and are the only ones who can message first, initiating a match and conversation with an interested opposing user.
These various options for messaging give users the kind of online dating experience they're comfortable with. They offer a safe space where users are only approached by profiles they're interested in, or do the approaching themselves.
Vet Before You Meet
Being able to chat with a potential match on the dating app allows people to spend more time vetting someone prior to meeting them.
This is something women tend to appreciate the most about dating apps, being able to learn more about someone they may meet in person.
While no dating app is 100% safe, this allows users to do further due diligence prior to meeting up with strangers from online in real life.
Opportunity for Self-Presentation
Besides the basic features of dating apps, there are some things that I grew to love and appreciate because of novelty and convenience. One striking feature of dating apps that I love the most is creating my profile.
Setting up my profile on a dating app is a challenge, but a challenge that I like. I am forced to reflect on who I am in order to showcase my best self so that other people will be interested in me. I highlight my strengths, hobbies, skills, interests, and passion.
On dating apps, first impressions are a “do-or-die” situation. Other users will only spend a few seconds on my profile, so I need to capture their attention quickly. Thus, I made sure that my profile is striking enough to be noticed and pique their interest.
Moreover, dating apps allow me to filter the information that I wish to share online. These apps understand that users have the freedom to choose the things they can provide on the platform.
Finding My Ideal One
I would say that another appealing feature of dating apps is that it makes me get to know myself more, especially with my potential partner. With my experience on the app, I can meet many people with different personalities, backgrounds, and characteristics.
With this, I was able to deduce the things I genuinely look for in a potential partner. For example, I value humor, so I make sure that I am talking with people who match my humor and interests.
Though dating apps immediately ask for my dating preferences, they will try my best to match me with people who fit those criteria.
Getting-to-Know Stage Matters
In my dating experience, the getting-to-know stage is crucial because it can either make or break the budding relationship. This phase of the relationship takes time because I need to spend time with the other person and see if we are a match.
I have to go out with this person before realizing if we can proceed with our relationship. So, there is an investment of time and effort already. However, dating apps save me from this wasted time and effort because I can get to know the person through online messaging.
Unlike before where I am compelled to meet the person physically just to get to know them dating apps remove this hassle for me. I can spend some time chatting with the people I match with and immediately check if we click or not.
Moreover, the messaging feature of the app allows me to build a foundation of our possible relationship. It is because I can showcase my personality and so the other person. I can also test whether the person I am talking with is trustworthy.
Building Friendships
There are things that people use dating apps for aside from finding a partner for a potential romantic relationship. As for me, I eventually gave up using the app for dating alone but instead found it a good way to find friends.
I wanted to meet new friends on the app because of its features to filter users’ interests. Also, I can find these people who are just nearby to catch up or hang out quickly.
Lastly, people I chat with on the app do not automatically end up being my partner. Since dating apps help us check whether the person we are talking to is a potential lover, I also met many people who are just fit to be my friend only.
Conclusion
Dating apps became popular because they have provided a different take on romance or starting a romantic relationship. People have the freedom to present themselves online depending on how they want to be seen and perceived by other people.
Moreover, these dating apps allow us to meet many people who may fit our preferences. It provides all the necessary features like matching with other users, messaging, and many more.
