Breaking News: Christian online dating services ChristianCafe.com and Single Christian Network have merged.
Sam Moorcroft, CEO of ChristianCafe.com, and I are talking on Skype right now. He is filling me in with some additional details of the deal. Sam is going to guest post here next week to provide additional depth to the story.
Single Christian Network launched way back in 1991. Started as a snail mail operation and evolved into a web-based site around 1994.
The two companies have engaged in co-opetition since day one, helping each out with traffic swaps and other business-related activities like shared spammer lists.
Single Christian Network always kept the organization small, as online dating continued to become more competitive in recent years, they decided to get out and they called Sam to see if a deal could be done between the two friendly competitors.
The hope is that the companies will be stronger together than apart. Only time will tell, the Compete numbers are only up to the end of April, will take a few months to see the effects of the merger.
The two companies have spent the last several months working on merging the database, facing several technical hurdles, as would be expected when combining databases and other back office system.
There is much more to write about the story, I’m looking forward to Sam’s guest post next week to clue us into the deal in greater detail.
Link to full press release.
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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Interesting that you have omitted the 2nd largest Christian dating site in the US from your compete site comparisons: LoveAndSeek.com. LoveAndSeek.com continues to grow strong organically and through partnerships like AOL Personals. The name doesn’t scream Christian dating site but it’s the flagship Christian dating site for People Media and we are on the verge of striking other partnerships that will catapult it into the stratosphere.
Wasn’t showing up on my list of Christian sites, generic name and all. It is now.
Greg, with respect, it doesn’t appear to us that LoveandSeek.com is serving the same market as we do (or Single Christian Network). We serve a definite niche: primarily born-again/evangelical/fundamentalist/non-denominational/Biblical Christian/Conservative Protestants. While we don’t define what a “Christian” is – it is not our role to judge – the reality is that 90%+ of our members define themselves as such (as do we, the owners).
LoveandSeek.com appears to serve a more “generic” or “mainstream” Christian audience. In fact, it even encourages them to date outside their faith. For example, on http://www.loveandseek.com/articles/index.cfm/4/Hes-Orthodox-Youre-Not-Should-You-Call-the-Whole-Thing-Off, “He’s Orthodox, You’re Not. Should You Call the Whole Thing Off?” it states in part,
“…But while Craig was of Greek Orthodox descent, Ana was brought up Protestant…”
&
“…That bigger picture includes the challenges with which many interfaith marriages are fraught…”
Our members wouldn’t talk like that. They would say, e.g. “…Ana is Pentecostal…” (not the generic label “Protestant”). Also, the vast majority of our members wouldn’t consider an “interfaith” marriage in the first place. If that was the case, they wouldn’t be on ChristianCafe.com.
Or, on http://www.loveandseek.com/articles/index.cfm/3/Getting-Over-the-Good-Girl-Guilt, “Getting Over the Good Girl Guilt”, it says in part,
“…But when it comes to sexual flings…”
&
“…If you are kind, honest, loyal and giving in all other aspects of your life, those intimate encounters should not weigh so heavily on your heart and mind…”
Our members would also never talk like that. This is not to say they are all chaste, but they *ought* to be and we would never have articles about this, intimating that having pre-marital sex is not something to be overly concerned about. It most definitely is.
Other articles on LoveandSeek.com are the type I would expect to see on a secular website.
Even your name doesn’t have anything to do with anything Christian – as you freely admit.
I am not intending to criticise your market – my point is simply that it is not the *same* market we serve. Consequently, a comparison with us (and our direct competitors) is more of an apples-to-oranges comparison than an apples-to-apples comparison.
Sam
I’m surprised your on the verge of striking other partnerships. I had nothing but problems trying to contact PeopleMedia a couple of months ago.
Yeah I’d never heard of LoveandSeek.com either.
Single Christian Network’s target market sound terrifying.
I hope both of the sites are stronger after the merger financially but I know the users will love all the new choices.
When do we get the juicy details?
Magic 8-ball says “sometime next week”.
What’s the 8-ball say now?
You’re just dying for the juicy detals, eh?:) I didn’t get to where I am now by showing my cards! Who are you, anyway, “Ben”?
How you are still talking business!
Huh?
Christian Mingle offers poor services and is an automated system at best. I would best assume that other religious social online community services will be the same.
Reason for my disgrunt? Refusal to refund my money after not telling me that my 3 month trial subscription will renew itself, scamming money from my paypal account without me knowing!!!
No notification, reminders nothing.
Absolutely terrible and I realised it in the first 2 weeks of using it. 2 months I have not used it and there is another 3 months that I have to pay for not using it.
If you are a Christian and you offer a business like this you should be ashamed really. Scamming does not come to mind in my house of God. I don’t care if you think you have to be cut through in business, I run one too, if you like here’s a business tip, try using the fruit of the spirit to run your business.
That is, if you even know what that means.
Gouki Mee.
Gouki, your opening statement says, “I would best assume that other religious social online community services will be the same.”
Why would you assume that?