Let me ask you a question and be honest: do you really think the future of online dating is on a mega-sites like the ones that’ve dominated the market for the last decade (and utterly failed if you judge by online reviews), or smaller niche dating sites?

Across the board the big dating sites are losing money and it’s not just because we’re in a struggling economy. It’s because these sites have turned into cesspools, are filled to the brim with bots or cost too much without really delivering on the goods.

Interest for Niche Dating Sites is Going Stratospheric

We’re in the midst of a paradigm shift in online dating. Right now everyone and their mother is looking for the next generations of these platforms to be born and most people are focused on websites that center around particular interests rather than focusing on proximity, lengthy ridiculous questionnaires and sales-orientated algorithms that make ridiculous connections.

Niche Dating is the Next Trend

Data simply doesn’t lie. The fact is that by 2020 online dating will be carved into many different niches and sub-niche dating sites that cater to specific people. So, for example, how about a site for people that are really into hiking and fitness? These people don’t want to sift through endless profiles of obese people. Or, how about one for 30 something’s with no kids? They don’t want to be on a dating site dominated by single parents.

The Big-5 Benefits of a Niche Dating Site

When you begin to ask around or take a look in forums or relevant discussion on the topic, here’s the top 5 reasons people are engaged with and interested in niche sites:

1. Common Ground: No, not simple tags, proximity or generic common interests. People want to start out on more solid common ground. How much easier is it to open up to someone when you know you’re both passionate about the same things: specific types of music, activities, fitness, lifestyle, etc.?
2. No Deal Breakers: With niche dating sites the amount of deal breakers has been minimized. These networks can be curated just like a LinkedIn group, Facebook page or forum. See the beauty in that?
3. Closer Community: These two things above lead to a much tighter community that people will be happy to be a part of in general, not only just in terms of dating. Like, how about a cowboy/cowgirl website, or Seattle movie lovers or even digital nomads? It’s not just a place to date, but a great place to make friends and network (added value without added features)!
4. Trendy: Love it or hate, we all love to be a part of a niche-trend. Do we ever really leave our formative years behind? No. Remember how high school was carved into particular groups of people that liked certain things. That’s exactly what the future of online dating looks like in a digital sense!
5. Floating Different Crowds: Imagine being able to join a handful of easy to use niche dating sites around different interests so you can cast a wider net while enjoying the four previous benefits? Yeah…

What do you think? Is this making sense or does it sound insane? We hold that the future of online dating revolves around niche dating sites and so far there’s no evidence to think otherwise. If there is some, we’d sure love to see it! Thanks for reading.