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The feedback from iDate has started coming in. If you attended, we all want to hear your thoughts, make sure to add them in the comments or email me anonymously via the contact form. Make sure to send along positive stories/experiences. Deals done, new connections, money raised? If you presented, send me a copy and I’ll make available to those of us who couldn’t make the show.
Overall, the conference displayed a lack of thought leadership for the people looking for guidance and advice.
No one seemed to address issues and strategy “to save online dating.�
The vibe was vendors selling wares to dating sites.
Many in attendance were people starting dating sites. Why would Yahoo/Match/Eharmony want to meet with them?
The key players were there covertly, covering badges as usual.
Eharmony attendee was called the Mystery Man.
Match not there.
14 exhibitors, half of last year’s number, looked sparse compared to previous years, space too large?
Yahoo’s Susan Mernit avoided questions, said social networking is not competition.
Only 10% of attendees were social networking. Several vendors disppinted in the lack of social networking company presence.
Lack of new voices adding value to the conversations. Same old industry recaps.
Mikes Jones gave what people are saying was the best presentation, highlight of show.
Cocktail party at 8:30 pm, not 5:30. People exhausted by that time.
Paul Falzone of Together/Right One in the catbird seat this year.
Vintacom looked deflated.
It appears that Jlove not doing well. Can anyone back this up or refute it?
Here’s what the Miami Herald had to say about the show.
While I would have liked to see everyone in Miami, this is how I spent my weekend.
Blog reactions
11 responses so far ↓
1
Bill Broadbent (Check me out!)
// Jan 17, 2007 at 4:20 pm
You didn’t hear about “the Thriller in Miami” that almost went down Dave? “Bobby the Bayou Brawler vs. Stevie the Jersey Kid.” Quite an interesting moment.
2
Robert Fisher (Check me out!)
// Jan 17, 2007 at 6:01 pm
IDate is a great conference and Mark Lesnik does a good job of getting it done. His job as a conference organizer is first to just get people there. He succeeded. It would be nice if all were dynamic, but they won’t be. The biggest complaint is the same presenters over and over (Mark Brooks, Mark Resnik, Julie Fermin, the lawyer, another background company) and you hear this from all. Michael Jones with Userplane was the highlight in terms of presentations, unfortunately, he was the keynote.
Vintacom is deflated, that sucks because they have been real innovators and great people to work with.
As to the “Thriller in Miami” it appears that Bobby the Brawler works out - a lot - and is experienced with a hell of a corner man (Paul the Lebanese Terror!). Stevie appeared a bit, well fleshy and I hear his mom trains him….who knows.
Knowing Bill Broadbent, this saga will continue - he recently learned to type.
3
David Evans (Check me out!)
// Jan 17, 2007 at 6:11 pm
I need more context on this Thriller in Miami, sounds interesting. Agree about the repeat presenters. Next year we might have another show to attend.
4
Markus (Check me out!)
// Jan 18, 2007 at 9:47 am
There were 2 conferences there the one that happened in public and the one that happened in private.
I don’t want to comment much, but I can tell you there will be more change in the next 6 months then in the entire history of this industry. Expect one bombshell after the next to drop this year.
5
Bill Broadbent (Check me out!)
// Jan 18, 2007 at 10:56 am
And did I mention - the Bruiser from Vancouver through some nice jabs too. He also predicted a knockout and wearing the championship belt in the near future.
Good to see you Markus.
6
David Evans (Check me out!)
// Jan 18, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Posted on behalf of “anon”:
The vendor room was a sad, sad place. There were a few people there (enlaso) whose presence made absolutely no sense, and of course nobody was talking to them. It was the right size when it was packed full of people between sessions.
I ran into Sam Yagan, didn’t recognize him at first. He was incredibly cagy and really, a sourpuss. Shouldn’t someone who just landed financing be happy? Something’s wrong there.
Speaking of cagy sourpusses, if the transparensee guys interrupt my conversations to pitch their AMAZING SEARCH TECHNOLOGY with their cruddy real estate demo, I’ll give them the wedgie they so richly deserve.
In fact, everyone who was okcupid sized and up was quiet and low key. Except Markus, who did his geek-powered, fact-based superiority thing which pissed everyone off to no end and which I, as a geek, deeply enjoyed watching.
In the final beer session, it was a great delight to hear the Europeans say “I don’t know what’s up with all this background check paranoia bullshit. Throughout the EU that stuff is illegal, and nobody really cares anyway.” The Honesty Online people were visibly deflated by that.
The most valuable aspect of the conference for me was networking. There was a squadron of Canadian companies up there, and they were all nice. The classmates.com people were there, also incredibly nice. Eric Strauss has the highest richness-to-laidbackness ratio of the industry. Respect, yo.
The least valuable aspect was the talks. The SEO chat was a rehash of Google’s webmaster guidelines. The pretty but visibly uncomfortable Google woman tried to explain how to connect emotionally with my customers. Yeah. Thanks. Susan Merrit put me to sleep with her monotone and oceans of powerpoint.
Best of the talks was Brooks’s keynote, the private equity talk (something I never understood until that show), and the Tickle talk which is admirably factual. The morning session on relationship advice was a great way to clear the hangover.
The conference itself was in a lame location, with no wifi, at a conference hotel that wasn’t big enough to hold all the attendees, with a cocktail party at the tail end of an intensely busy day. I could have done with about 75% fewer verbal contributions from the Mark, the host of the show.
7
meir (Check me out!)
// Jan 19, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Nice air!
Did you land the jump or wipe out after the picture was taken?
We missed you Dave
8
David Evans (Check me out!)
// Jan 19, 2007 at 5:32 pm
I stuck that one, although I have plenty of crash landing shots and videos, which are always someone else’s fault; “It’s too cold, there are too many people in the way, my board is broken, a loud noise frightened me, the sun is too bright, etc.”
9
David Evans (Check me out!)
// Jan 22, 2007 at 11:30 am
More anon feedback from iDate. This is consistent with what others have been saying. Sounds like iDate needs a conference track and better pre and post-event networking for next year.
The biggest problem with these iDate conferences as organized by Marc Lesnick is that it is IMPOSSIBLE to meet everyone you’d like to meet. There are no rosters, no contact information, no way to know who is there. And with 300+ attendees, how can you possibly look at enough nametags in between presentations? I know that Lesnick would maintain that he just want to keep a secure database, but unless I can get access to the big players in the industry, what’s the point of spending $1000+ to be there?
10 speedy-matchmaking.1matchmaking // Sep 9, 2007 at 12:53 am
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11 Matchmaking » Comment on iDate Recap by speedy-matchmaking.1matchmaking // Sep 25, 2007 at 5:45 am
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