FROM
THE EDITOR
I love to see new online dating services
enter the marketplace that are serious about being different
and offering stellar customer service. That's one reason
I was excited in 2003 to hear about the launch of Truebeginnings.com
(now True.com),
because from the start I could tell they would be different.
When True first
started, they did what many online dating services do to
get a large initial database - they offered free "lifetime" subscriptions
to anyone who signed up with the service within the first
few months. Those who signed up had their membership expiration
date set to 2059. As a result of spending a lot of money
on advertising and offering this free charter subscription, True built
a database that allowed it to become a big player within
the industry. They also offered free background screenings
as part of their service to help weed out married people
(which is a good thing since up to 30% of people on online
dating services are married) and criminals.
True offered
a unique concept, good customer service (in my early experiences
with True,
customer service was very responsive), and a pleasant experience
to build itself into a major online dating service contender.
But somewhere along the line, it appears the force started
to part ways with True. Like Anakin Skywalker, the service
started to slowly be swayed by the dark side.
In the past several months True has
done three major things, as I see it, to make me question
how good its service really is:
1) True has
started expiring those free memberships they promised
when the company first started. That's right... True has
gone into their free "lifetime" membership
accounts and changed the year of expiration from 2059
to first quarter 2005. Many charter members who helped
make True a
big online dating service have found themselves without
the ability to use the service anymore like they used
to. What's worse is that True's "customer
service" is of virtually no help to those who write
and complain. And to add insult to injury, True says
it will reinstate a charter member's "lifetime" membership
for $99! The free "lifetime" membership they "gave" to
charter members now costs $99 if you want to continue
it. For the record, True maintains
that it was never its intention to keep charter memberships
free for a lifetime and the 2059 date was only entered
because they had to put a future date into the system.
2) True is
trying to force other online dating services to do things
its way. True has
started a legal state-by-state campaign to get states
to pass laws that force online dating services to run
background checks on all members. True made
this move AFTER signing an EXCLUSIVE contract with one
of the largest online background check companies. Ironically
this has brought other major online dating service competitors
together in an effort to fight True.
Other services say that forcing background checks could
make the process of online dating more dangerous because
it would provide members with a false sense of security
and they would let down their guard. True doesn't
aggressively publicize to its members the failure rate
of their background checks. Perhaps that should be part
of their "requirements". I think True doing
background checks is a great thing that sets it apart
from other services, but trying to force other services
through legal action to do it too is, overall, a bad
idea. Every service is unique in its own way.
3) True's service
is becoming less customer friendly. It appears to me
that True is
starting to turn away from pleasing the customer (which
creates long-term loyalty) to focusing much more attention
on money. True has
already tightened the amount of information that non-paying
members can view without paying. But worse, True now
use deceptive ads to try and get non-paying members to
fork over money. For example, when you view a profile
and click on a person's picture, you are taken to a sign
up screen. However, on the left side of the signup screen
is a "chat screen" with a photo of the person
you are viewing and under it is their username and you
see the words typed out, "hi handsome, want to chat
sometime?" There is then a line that says "Your
Response" with a flashing cursor. True makes
it seem like the member is trying to contact you when
they are not. When you move your cursor over the form
to type a response, a window appears that says, "complete
the form to begin your free trial and start chatting." Of
course, you have to give your credit card number as part
of the so-called "free trial" and the person
you may think wants to chat with you never initiated
a chat.
Overall, True is
starting to turn away from being a major contender to being
a major headache - not only for other dating services,
but also for longtime loyal customers who helped make the
service successful.
My message to True is
that it is time to improve customer relations. Put the
focus back on customer service and the consumer. Stop promoting True as
eliminating deceptive members (through screening) while
being deceptive in the way you interact with members.
The truth is that True does
have a good online dating matchmaking service. I always
enjoyed using True's service
and I've had good success with it. I give True's actual
matching and communication abilities high marks. The problem
is that True is
no longer living up to the customer service standards that
it originally set when it opened its doors to the public.
And it's a shame because the online dating industry is
in need of a really good dating service with strong customer
values.
Walt Disney was a true visionary. He was able
to build a successful entertainment empire by putting 100%
of his focus on the consumer, consumer needs, and consumer
experience. Disney knew that loyalty and quality service
is what keeps people coming back. True could
learn a lot from the early days of Disney. True started
on the right track, but appears to be losing the force
of good that made them unique and customer friendly when
they first started. And that's a true disappointment. I
can only hope that six months from now I'm writing an editorial
praising True for
a great turnaround and for putting the focus back on the
consumer where it belongs. We'll see...
Sincerely,
Joe Tracy, editor
Online Dating Newsletter
P.S. There have been more updates to the Online Dating
Newsletter Website. We've added the ability to Search the
Online Dating Newsletter archives, plus we've uploaded
a new dating joke (to the Dating
Fun Zone) and a new Clicking Together cartoon (also
in the Dating
Fun Zone). Visit www.onlinedatingnewsletter.com and
enjoy your experience.
