“Reading between the lines, they just don’t have any men.”
She felt if the service couldn’t attract enough men, “they need to give our money back. Even though it may have been a great idea, they haven’t been able to do it”.
Hill was one of 10 unhappy women paying for Compatico who contacted the Herald in response to a story about customer complaints.
Compatico, a “premium, curated matchmaking service” fronted by high-profile entrepreneur Dame Theresa Gattung [snort], is marketed for Kiwis aged 40-plus and charges up to $5995 annually.
Managing partner and head matchmaker Cindy Mitchner said the business had filled a “huge need for mature singles” and said she was “happy that we’ve got enough men”.
[...] Mitchner said the business has made changes in response to feedback. It now calls its customers when they have a concern, instead of responding by email.
“We have flipped our process ... I’m now ringing them straight away.
Some customers have been offered a three-month extension of their membership, Mitchner said, “because in a way they’re flying on the plane and we were still building bits”.
Translation: We’ve been bleeding clients.
[...] The Herald spoke to a male gold customer provided by Compatico, who said the service appealed to him because it was more secure than other dating options.[...]
The man had been offered six “matches” since he signed up in June, and had been on two dates with different women, with a third planned soon.
“They can’t promise me a perfect match, even if they do provide me with a really good person to meet, it’s up to her and me, ultimately, to make it work or not.”
So, out of the six women he’s been matched with, none of them have been “good.”
The annual Gold membership fee is the more affordable option at $795, but that does not include the cost of the compulsory dating profile photography session, which starts at $245 and can be as expensive as $465. [...]
When women raised concerns with Compatico staff, some said it felt like they were trying to upsell them to the $5995 Platinum membership.
Basically monitising the sunken-cost fallacy.
“When I approached Compatico a month ago they came back with the same old line – we don’t match gold members and that’s clear in the terms and conditions,” another disgruntled subscriber said.
Yet they charge, what, $795 plus?
[...] The Herald spoke to a female gold customer provided by Compatico, who said she had received two “matches” since signing up.
“I’ve been single for four years ... I’ve never been on a date with anyone until Compatico and they made it really easy for me.”
The woman, who asked to be kept anonymous, said neither man ended up being the “one” for her, but she was impressed with the service so far.
“I take my hat off to them [Compatico].”
So two matches, both duds. And she thinks the service she’s been given is great?
Nine women told the Herald they had been on no dates despite paying for the service for over six months, and they suspected there was a “poor balance of men” subscribing.
[...] “I expect that very few men have joined, but they should be honest,” one disgruntled member said.
[...] “I am a very attractive woman, and when signed for Bumble or Tinder, during the first 24 hrs I have 600+ likes! It is impossible, they are unable to find for me any match!”
Yet none of them were good enough for her...Let’s be honest here. Women who are willing to pay a dating service $1000 or more aren’t looking for love. They’re looking for a rich man; one who will meet their impossibly high expectations. Or they’re desperately lonely women who are being taken...I’ll leave you to decide the rest.
It’s no secret that dating sites, apps, etc, have far more men than women. It’s not unusual for a woman to sign up and be inundated with replies. So if you’re a guy the chances of finding anyone is very slim. But here’s the kicker. Women using these dating services compete for the top 10 per cent of men. So even they lose. This means that the only ones who win are the top 10 per cent of guys.
Good, aye?
Finally, nothing above should be construed as saying Compatico does not provide the highest-quality service that it can. Providing a dating service that satisfies everyone is difficult. It is also possible that the women mentioned may not be a fair representation of their clients.
