Omaha Love Story started with a Video Date

Hello singles,

I think I speak for most of us when I say that the last few months have been very hard.

Fear. Loneliness. Isolation. These have been the common emotions felt by almost all of my clients since the first case of COVID19 was announced in our country. It has changed the way we all live, in one way or another.

As a Kansas City matchmaker, I have always encouraged my clients to meet for the first time in person, so that they can interact with each other and determine if there is chemistry. As restaurants, coffee shops, and bars all closed in every city, I realized that I was going to have to come up with a new approach for singles still open to dating. My matchmaking team and I finally decided to suggest video dates and virtual Des Moines Speed Dating as a great alternative to face to face interactions. 

Many of our clients were hesitant about this approach as it was something many of them weren’t familiar with. Some of my clients have chosen to hold off on dating for a while until it is safe to meet in person, while others decided to try out this new video dating concept (Click to read how to Create an Authentic Dating Experience Virtually)  

Sparks at First Video Date

One of the first couples I set up for a video date was in mid-March. James had been working with me off and on for about 6 months. He had recently called off a three month relationship with another client, and was ready to get back in the game.

James is a divorced man in his early 50’s with adult children. He hired me because he is extremely busy with his career, and he was burnt out sifting through profile after profile on online dating sites. He realized that Midwest Matchmaking would allow him to outsource this area of his life to the professionals, who would simply send him the best quality matches and arrange all date details for him.  

Sarah came to me shortly after James signed up. While she had been on some good dates, and was having a positive experience with the Omaha dating services, she simply had not yet had that ‘spark’ with anyone. Sarah had a no “rush” attitude, and she said when it was meant to be it would be, and for the time being was just excited to meet men of her caliber, as opposed to the men she had been meeting online. 

Both Sarah and James quickly accepted the match when I sent it, and they said they would be more than happy to try a virtual date. I set them up for a Friday night video call.

I couldn’t help but smile as I read their date feedback the following Monday. They both had wonderful things to say about each other and had already met for their second date!

Sarah had the following to say:

“I appreciate James’ strong faith, solid work ethic, open communicator. I’m excited about this one! We met for a picnic yesterday and he brought my favorite wine and my favorite dessert – which really showed he was listening during our video call! We spent hours talking. He’s a really good guy. I’m cautiously hopeful…”

James shared similar sentiments:

“I love her personality. faith, and intelligence. Our video chat was great, but she wowed me even more in person. I can’t wait to see where this goes.”

They both also mentioned how much they enjoyed the virtual first date, as it allowed them to see whether there was a connection from the comfort of their own homes, which was appreciated after a long day’s work.

Their Love Story Continued

Sarah and James continued to meet up over the next few days, and less than two weeks after their first video call, they both reached out to let me know they wanted to hold off on any further matches so they could pursue each other.

A few months have gone by, and Sarah and James are doing great. They have each transferred their memberships to friends, placing their trust in us that we can find them someone special as well.

This is just one of the many positive pandemic love stories that our clients are sharing with us. Based on the date feedback I have gathered from those who have been open-minded about video dates, there are a lot of positives about this approach, and clients’ are enjoying it a lot more than they thought they would.

Virtual Dating is Here to Stay

Virtual dating allows people to slow down and take a step back, bypassing a lot of the pressure that usually comes with dating. They are able to get to know each other on a deeper level before meeting in person, and there is no pressure for things to get physical. 

I am also seeing that singles in Kansas are more open minded when it comes to who they are choosing to meet, since it’s “just a video date.” One of the most common pieces of advice we are giving clients is to meet people they normally wouldn’t, as there is a reason their type hasn’t worked out in the past, so virtual dating is opening up a lot of potential for relationships that may not have happened if we were still setting dates in person.

 

I would encourage anyone reading this who is wanting to wait until we can all meet again in person to at least try video dating. It’s better than the flipside of staying at home and watching Netflix alone! The biggest risk in life is not taking one, and this small risk comes with a potential for great reward.

 

Love,

Courtney Quinlan, CEO/Matchmaker