A study conducted in April 2023 showed that close to 300 million people worldwide use dating apps.
If you’re interested in creating a dating app, now’s the best time to bring potential soulmates together. But how exactly do you go about starting a company based on matchmaking?
This detailed guide will show you how to create a dating app that’ll stand out from the competition.
Here’s what you need to know:
Get a Merchant Account
The first step before you launch your dating website is to get a merchant account. You need to find one that specializes in high-risk adult entertainment businesses.
This will help you receive your payments without issues from your bank. You have to remember that dating apps are still a controversial business.
Many banks and payment processors won’t want to work with your dating website. Even if they do, there might be issues with each payment. This can delay the continuation of your business.
Now let’s look at some of the features that make a great dating app.
What’s Your Niche?
If you want your dating app to stand out, you want it to have a unique niche from others.
For example, Tinder — for better or worse — is known as the dating app for hookup culture and casual sex. Bumble became popular because it allowed women to make the first move.
So how will your dating app stand out?
Do you want your dating app to target a particular demographic? Will it have features that other apps don’t have? Will it purposely not have features that other dating apps have?
Take your time to carve out your niche and determine how your dating app will be different. You’ll have to use these differences to promote your dating app. You’ll have to find a way to convince users to choose your app over others.
Understand Your Target Market
Once you’ve decided on your niche, you’ll have to learn how to reach your target market.
For example, here are some of the factors to consider:
- What day(s) do they most spend time on a typical dating website?
- What are their hobbies, interests, and passions?
- What issues do they feel when it comes to dating? What do they hate about dating culture?
- What are their values, culture, morals, etc.?
These are just some of the factors that you can use to understand what your target market wants from you. Make sure you always keep abreast of your target market so that you never lose them to your competition.
For example, let’s return to the previous example. Many women might have felt that Tinder was too male-focused.
They might have felt it wasn’t ideal for serious relationships. Bumble was a response to this and it’s one of the most popular dating apps in the market today. That’s how you should approach your dating app.
Relationship Tips
Now let’s look at how you match couples together. Before you think about coding and algorithms, you have to decide what actually makes a great match.
Let’s look at a few scenarios. We’ll look at three important factors that can serve as the foundation for matchmaking.
Matchmaking Via Values
Let’s assume there’s a girl named Shraddha. Shraddha has identified herself as a conservative. In such a scenario, what conclusions can you make about her?
You can presume that she is religious and wants someone who is the same. You can also assume that she wants a serious relationship and wants to avoid casual sex.
You want to find her a match that has similar values to hers. Now, let’s say you have 2 matches, Raju and Vikram. For the sake of argument, let’s say you can only match her with one of these chaps.
How do you decide with whom to match Shraddha?
Matchmaking Via Distance
First, you want to match with someone who lives at a closer distance. While some long-distance relationships work, this isn’t always ideal. You want this couple to spend as much time together as possible.
If Raju lives 10 miles away from her and Vikram lives 20 miles away, then you want to match her with Raju. If Vikram lives 12 miles away, you can consider matching her with both.
Matchmaking Via Interest
The final consideration for the basics of matchmaking is to connect couples via their interests.
For example, let’s say you wish to match Shraddha with Raju and Vikram. Both of them look like they’ll make a great match for her. But what about their interests?
Let’s assume Shraddha loves watching movies and wants to go on a date to see RRR at the cinema. Perhaps Raju also loves movies and is willing to take her to the cinema. If Vikram only likes reading books and falls asleep at the cinema, then this match isn’t going to go far.
Of course, if their interests line up you can match her with both men. But what if you don’t see similarities in interests? In this case, it’s better to only match her with the one who has shared interests.
Create a Dating App That’s Safe
One of the defining factors of any dating app is that it offers security to its users. Without strong security measures, your dating app is doomed from the start.
You have to consider what steps you’ll take to make your dating app safer. The first step is to verify your users.
More than ever, it’s easier to create a fake profile online. With the rise of AI, the possibility of deep fakes to create dating profiles is also here. Let’s look at how you can do this.
Profile Verification and Background Checks
You must ask every user to upload their profile photo to start using the app. Delete any user’s account that doesn’t upload their profile photo within three days of registering an account on your dating website.
You should also require each user to upload a copy of their official ID. This is a great way to check that they’re a real person. It’s also a great way to conduct background checks.
If the user has even the most minor convictions, it’s probably best to prevent them from using your app. If the convictions are sex crimes then you must ban them and report them to your local police department.
As a side note, your jurisdiction might have certain laws regulating dating apps. One can expect more such legislation in the near future.
Educating About Precautions and Offering Emergency Services
Your dating website should feature content that offers advice on how users can feel safe on the app. You want every user to know how they can feel safe when using your app.
For example, advise them to never give out their contact information until they meet in person. They should only use your in-built messaging service to communicate.
Advise them to always meet their matches in a public place. They should share their location with you during their first date.
If possible, the dating app should have a feature to report an emergency. They should be able to tap a simple button on your app. This should alert your team to call the police.
After a date, follow up with your users. Ask them if they feel comfortable and if they want to report any issues.
Final Considerations
Let’s wrap up by looking at a few final considerations when you create a dating app.
Make sure you don’t collect your client’s data without asking them. Unless required by law, you should allow them to manage their data. If they delete their account, their data should get deleted from your servers.
Make your guidelines clear from the beginning. You might want to prohibit language that can be construed as harassment. But as you can see, like the previous sentence, it’s not clear what “harassing” language is!
You need to specify whether profane language can get used or not. You need to specify whether sex can get discussed or not.
Can users share intimate photos of themselves via your app? Get the rules clear before you launch your app.
It’s also best to test out your dating app with a small group first. Get the group members to give you feedback on their likes and dislikes. Don’t be in a rush to launch your dating app. If you need to do several test runs first, then this is the best option.
If you follow the strategies in this guide, you’ll have no problem launching the best dating app. If some lucky couples meet their soulmates, we’ve got you to thank for it!
That’s How to Create a Dating App
Now you know how to create a dating app and make it succeed amongst the competition.
The first step is to get a merchant account. This helps you receive payments without having issues with your bank.
Take your time to understand what makes a great match. As you build your app, you must focus on security features above everything else. Follow our best practices to test out your dating app before launch.
Who knows, maybe you’ll find love on your app! In the meantime, you’ll love the other business tips on our website!
