The big freeze which swept across the UK from the end of 2009 and on into 2010, still shows no sign of letting-up, with the possibility of more snow looming over the coming weeks, on into February. Travel of all kinds has been disrupted resulting in many businesses having to close their doors and employees staying at home because they’re unable to make it to work. This has resulted in an unexpected effect on the online dating industry.

With all this extra time on their hands, singletons have apparently been turning their attention to the quest to find love, and there has been a reported surge in the number of people exploring online dating sites.

Two online dating sites which invest significantly in online PR and digital advertising, Mysinglefriend.com and Singles365.com, both reported huge traffic increases during the week ending 8th January. Mysinglefriend.com saw a massive 55% increase in visitors on Tuesday 5th, with Singles365.com seeing an increase of 27% over Tuesday and Wednesday.

Katie Mowe, spokeswoman for Singles365.com, said, “January is our busiest month anyway, as many single people make it their New Years Resolution to find a partner. However, the increase in traffic over the past two days has been very unusual, as typically they are quiet days for us – we are usually busiest at weekends. We can only put this down to the bad weather meaning more people are staying at home.”

Similarly, Sarah Beeny, founder of Mysinglefriend.com, said the snow was “proving to be an icebreaker for singles out there. January has always been our busiest month, but this surge in traffic is unprecedented.”

Elsewhere in the online dating world, IllicitEncounters.com, which provides a platform for married couples to conduct affairs, said it gained a record number of new users during the week – 37% more than usual – with the majority of new members coming from areas such as Hampshire, Berkshire and the West Country, which were among the worst hit by the extreme weather.

Spokeswoman Sara Hartley said, “In light of these figures, I’d be interested to see how much work those working from home have actually done!”

These findings can help other online dating agencies to fine-tune their online PR campaigns to take full advantage of this unusual scenario. Any dating company employing a digital agency must ensure they are doing everything to optimize their website’s visibility during this period, and using tools such as strategic link building to ensure their sites achieve the highest possible search engine rankings. And with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, the timing could not be more critical.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites