After the ecommerce boom in India, is online dating next?

Ecommerce is not an unknown thing these days across the world. It is on its high spree right now with multi-billion dollar start-up valuations.  Not only developed countries but developing countries have also come a long way in the journey. But it seems the ecommerce bubble is getting down from the eyes as only big players are able to survive and smaller ones are either being acquired by big players or need to pivot or close, for example Tradus (Pivoted to Coupon website).

Hundreds of millions of users are buying products online, from groceries to big appliances, or even vehicles. It is really an era of ecommerce.

Today, users go online not only to just buy everything but also search valuable informations or use the platform to learn. With this increased interest of information sharing & search, this has led to online communication in real time which evolved years back and has been ever-changing with advancement in technology in messenger applications. The cheap smart phones are also one of the reasons for increased online user base and use of online information, communication and sharing. The ecommerce itself has integrated with the existing communication channels for  example WhatsApp, WeChat, Facebook and more.

According to Global Retail Ecommerce index, the highest growth in the ecommerce segment is at 27%, and to reach $3.8 billion, with 21% the projected growth rate for the next 5 years. These are significant statistics to prove how the ecommerce bubble exists in the market. According to Nomura’s Internet India Report this year, the Indian ecommerce market is estimated to reach $45 billion in the next five years.

Users go online to find and gather information they want and are also trying to connect with each other in the process. We live in such a time now where youths and their beliefs and thought processes are changing and their views have added technology to bring a new dimension. Not only youths but parents and societies are changing, their traditions are changing and they are coming forward to welcome new changes by giving responsibility to youth at early age itself. The belief in caste-ism have devolved and openness has entered in the families and societies.

The other important factor is the decline in arranged marriages among societies in India. India is becoming modern and individual ethos are taking shape. Though arranged marriages largely remains as a social stigma, parents in India have also shown willingness to adjust to their children’s romantic aspirations. According to ‘Bloomberg Study’, in India, the decline in arranged marriages dropped from 56% in 1970 to 27% today.

These new changes have pushed youths to look for alternate solutions, so dating sites such as shaadi.com or bharatmatrominy.com came into existence to solve the social stigma among youths. These platforms allowed users to find out partner for themselves, for their siblings or for their children’s. But these are also dying too rapidly because these platforms are working as ‘Online Pandit’ meaning ‘arranged marriages’ online. Youths do not want to spend much time browsing profile directories created by parents or siblings but want to connect and interact fast. One good examples is ‘Tinder’. Though Tinder is very simple to get matches, it has became a tool for hook-ups only, and not allowing for serious relationships.

The online messaging, finding, interactions have given new direction to online dating. The real time communication and interaction have made meeting and engaging with people easier. This has attracted youths in a new way and they are loving it. More than 115 Million users are on online dating websites in India and trying their luck to meet someone. They are spending on an average 10 mins on online dating websites or apps each day. The average yearly spending on online dating sites are US$239. This spending is also cost effective in comparison to the amount spent for arranged marriages.

Therefore, the ‘online dating’ is ready to take off in India now. The future will be of those who proves the following in Indian market:

• Safe & Secure platform

• Real Time

• Engagement

• Real Life experience

• Going beyond just recommending online

The time has come now to meet real people, real time without wasting money and time.Online dating is growing with 5X year on year basis and market has reached more than US$4 billion. Be Ready for the Change in India Now. The time has come.