Internet dating greatly expanded the choices available to those seeking that special someone. Once, you were limited to whomever happened to be in your area.
Then, along came online dating and you enjoyed the possibility of meeting someone from far way you otherwise never would. Now, along comes mobile phone dating to combine the best of both worlds.
More and more people are on the road, connecting. They aren’t near the computer but still want to communicate. That option used to be limited to pay phones. Now, cell phones, PDAs and other mobile devices are everywhere.
With that extended reach comes new options in online dating. For a fee, you can add services to your mobile service, such as text messaging, email and Internet access. Along with those technical options there is another service offering: mobile dating services.
Sure, you can email anyone you know. You can text message others through Internet social networking sites. But mobile dating services combine all the technological features with something that Internet dating services have developed expertise at: matching.
A mobile dating matching service works much like its Internet counterpart. Sign-up, create a profile and the service uses sophisticated algorithms based on extensive psychological research to filter that vast pool of potential candidates. They narrow the number to zero in on those who are much more likely to be worth investigating further.
You get a set of potential prospects, then text message them or exchange emails. Responses to your text messages appear in your Inbox. You can add a photo or even video to that.
With the new, high-resolution color screens on contemporary cell phones, Blackberries and PDAs that can be a big plus. If you can watch a movie on a small screen, you can surely see a potential date clearly enough.
With all those features you can pile up quite a list of possible dating partners in a matter of minutes.
Those prospects can be targeted by more than just a personality profile, though. They can include zip code information so that the list contains only those you could actually have a realistic chance of getting together with.
Things have come full circle.
You get the advantages of the geographical proximity associated with traditional dating, with all the added benefits of a technology that helps you find them.
Pre-Internet, if you lived in a large city it could be difficult to find someone who shared your interests. The personal ads in the newspapers were about the only option. That function has been taken to a whole new level with mobile dating.
As with any dating service, there are no magic bullets. The service can be costly, especially if you’re on a limited or expensive text messaging plan. But now you need never be away from a way to connect with other members.
You can respond instantly to anyone who shows an interest and sometimes getting there first counts a lot.