With the ever increasing number of online dating services, and the decreasing cost of webmaster php scripting it’s not really surprising that we see more and more free niche dating sites, most of whom seem to rely on Google Adwords or Yahoo Search Marketing for their income. But is offering a free membership to online dating sites the way forward?

The significant difference between online dating sites and other membership sites is that when joining an online dating website, you are required to create an attractive profile, to present yourself to other members in the most attractive way. Without a completed profile you will not attract the attention of other genuine members who are actively seeking a partner.

Many members consider the creation of a profile as boring and time consuming and especially so in the case of totally free membership sites. A large percentage of free members will neither complete their profile or upload a photo, and in fact many will never even return to the website.

Researchers are in agreement that those who join a website community solely because it is free, will rarely return to the site or sustain an interest longer than a few days. And it’s not because they forget because the website admin staff will almost certainly send out reminders daily. Online dating sites would not exist if it was not for the members in their databases and it is important that every member who registers, take an active part in the community and the services it offers. Otherwise it is a waste of everyone’s time, including the website administrator and other genuine members.

Whereas, in the case of those online dating sites that charge a monthly fee to become part of their community, will have very few users who register and don’t bother to complete a profile. Once a member has been tempted to take out his or her credit card, they are more inclined to take their membership seriously, build a quality profile and visit the site regularly to monitor interest from other members.

Fee charging online dating sites will find it much tougher to get new members, but what is the point in having a thousand members in your database if 80% of the accounts are dormant and never respond to your emails? Much better for all concerned to have five hundred serious members who pay regular visits to the website and take advantage of all the facilities.

But what of fee charging online dating sites that offer a free period trial membership as an incentive to become a paying member? Well that word “free” will always cause complacency, yet to a lesser degree. Whilst a free trial will tempt some to join as a paying member, there are still those free users, who do not return to the site after subscribing.

The highest percentage of long term signups per 1000 new visitors is enjoyed by those online dating sites offering a free basic membership with limited facilities, and required to upgrade to paying membership to increase the features available. The lowest percentage of long term signups per 1000 new visitors is demonstrated in the success rates of the ‘absolutely free for all’ membership websites, online dating sites or otherwise.

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