Online, everyone else is doing it!

just a few years back if you were to met a couple, who met online, how they met, they would only quietly and reluctantly tell you that is was online. There seemed to be this embarrassment associated with it. Now almost half of the weddings we photograph are for people who met online. it has become such a great way for people to get connected without the awkward pick up lines, crowded bar scenes, uncomfortable blind dates,

now people who mmet online are proud of that fact. I think it is amazing how our social paradigms shift through time and the progress of technology.

here is a small sample of some online dating stats:

- Online Dating Magazine estimates that more than 20 million people visit at least one online dating service a month. (Online Dating Magazine - 2007)

- Online Dating Magazine estimates that there are more than 120,000 marriages a year that occur as a result of online dating. (Online Dating Magazine - 2007)

- 31% of adults in America say they know someone who has used an online dating service. (Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project Report: Online Dating, March 2006)

- In 2003 it was estimated that three million people paid for an online dating service listing. (Source: Jupiter Research)

- In the first half of 2003, consumers spent over $214 million for online dating services. This number is 76 percent higher than the same time last year. (Source: Online Publishers Association)

- On average, those paying for online dating services spend a total of $239 per year. (Source: Jupiter Research)

- It is estimated that the financial growth of online dating will reach $642 million in 2008. (Source: Jupiter Research)

- As of February 2005, 33% fewer consumers are browsing online personals today than one year ago, causing the industry growth to slow considerably. (Source: Jupiter Research)

- Consumers spent $214.3 million on personals and dating content during the first half of 2003, up 76 percent from the same period in 2002. (Source: Online Publishers Association).