Online Dating Commercials Are Like Fantasy Island

Have you seen the commercials for match.com? There are 2 very attractive people who have never met before, dressed to the nines and meeting for drinks in a very upscale bar in the evening. In no time flat they’ve figured out that they have everything in common and are planning their second date. On what planet did this online dating experience occur? 

I’ve been on and off several online dating sites (both free and paid) with equal results – unmitigated disaster! Yes, I’ve been on match, home of the perfect date. However, my experiences bear no resemblance to the commercials. In the real world of online dating no one meets in cocktail wear at upscale bars. You meet for coffee at a local Starbucks or Second Cup, or perish the thought, downscale at Tim Hortons. You don’t discover in a nanosecond that you were made for each other. In fact you’re farklempt if you can actually recognize him from his profile photo. I had a guy say that he was 5’8” tall when he would have had to look up to see a jockey face to face. Another said he was of average weight, and he was if you consider average at least 350 pounds. A guy who was supposedly an active outdoorsman 5 years younger than me was so frail that he could barely lift his coffee cup.

I’ve discovered that they lie about everything – height, weight, interests, job… I met a lawyer who said that he played golf. I love to golf so I asked where he usually played. He proceeded to tell me that he didn’t really play golf but he did take his son once to play mini-putt. I guess in his fine legal mind, this constituted playing golf. On top of that he was a communist and had a boa constrictor. The only boa I want to know about has feathers and can be worn to jazz up a great evening dress.

Of course these commercials try to make you believe that you’ll meet the great love of your life and get married on their online dating sites, but here are the real statistics according to the Pew Research Center:

• 20% of adults aged 25-34 years old have used online dating, but it’s also popular with older singles, too.  
•  33% of people who have used online dating have never actually gone on a date with someone they met on these sites. 
•  5% of Americans who are in a marriage or committed relationship say they met their significant other online.

Yes, only 5% of Americans met their spouse or significant other online. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, is it? And it certainly refutes the crap that eHarmony feeds you. Neil Clark Warren and his insufferable granddaughter are enough to make anyone vomit. Yet, as long as we’re all looking for love, online dating sites are here to stay. 

Here’s one of my favourite quotes about online dating.

“It's kind of freaky to send your picture over the Internet to someone you don't really know and then have to sit waiting for their judgement on how you look. Maybe that's why my aunt Penny, who got divorced two years ago, hates online dating so much. Mom's always nagging her to go back on Match.com but Aunt Penny says she'd rather have root canal work - without anesthetic.”
 Sarah Darer Littman

Make someone smile today.

Geri