The online dating industry is highly competitive, especially considering that there are over 8,000 of them and that about 325 million people use them worldwide. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry today, and it’s no wonder that those who want a piece of that pie are continually finding ways to attract and retain users.
One of the newest innovations has been the implementation of augmented reality to the experiences that users can enjoy.
In its simplest form, augmented reality overlays digital information onto the real world, and allows people to create highly engaging and immersive dates that go way beyond standard interactions, even in-person, physical dates. This technology promises to take online dating to an entirely new level.
Let’s unpack all that AR dating offers as well as its more sophisticated cousin, VR.
Immersive Dates
Imagine meeting up on the streets of Paris and just walking around and enjoying the sites together; imagine visiting the Accademia Gallery in Florence and experience the statue of David together. These are the dates that augmented reality can provide. The only tool needed is a smartphone or glasses.
A dating couple can actually experience one another’s body languages, gestures, and voice tones, all done in a 3D environment, the whole date feels natural.
One of the most exciting uses of AR dating is for long distance relationships, where daters can meet up virtually, rather than just use traditional methods of communication.
AR in Dating Profiles
When people join online dating apps, they create a profile – a bit of a biography highlighting their life, interests, etc., a few photos, and their preferences for dating partners.
AR puts a new dynamic on those profiles. Users can be more creative and genuine, creating 3D and interactive environments to present themselves and tell their stories in a truly engaging way. And it allows potential matches to get to know much more about each other and rather quickly decide if they have a connection or not.
Adding More Fun to Dating Experiences
One of the features that almost all dating apps have introduced is gamification – swiping, icebreaker quizzes, and such to engage their users. What AR can offer is interactive activities and challenges that dating couples can engage in together. This adds play and laughter into the dating mix, reducing some of the pressure and awkwardness of early dating.
International Dating Via AR
Single women dating someone in a foreign country are bound to experience a language barrier if neither speaks the other’s language. Fortunately, there are translation features offered by most of the larger dating apps, so texts and phone conversations can be translated, primarily by text to be read.
Augmented reality can give those women and their dating partners instant and real-time translations as conversations progress that hover above the daters.
AR-inspired icebreakers for New Matches
Most dating apps understand how awkward it can be for new matches to begin conversations. They offer lists of icebreaker questions members can use that certainly help. AR can add a new dynamic by such things as sending virtual gifts or creating conversation prompts that just appear in the new match’s environment. Just for fun, a user could send a virtual steak dinner to a match. And that match could then project a nice restaurant back. This could be the start of a fun conversation.
What’s in Store
As AR technology continues to evolve, and as dating apps explore the use of VR as well, the potential for online dating is pretty significant. Interactions between daters become more personal, more immersive, and add more insightful experiences.The only challenge will be the protection of privacy, better security, and safety of users.
One thing is for certain – online dating in the future will be merging physical and digital worlds.
