Culling members from all IAC's other online dating sites, it debuted with a membership of more than 1 million, making it the world's largest site for baby boomers.Laurie Davis, founder and CEO of dating coach service e Flirt Expert, says much of her work involves helping people -- often older active adults -- figure out which dating sites to join.
With people living longer and America's active baby boomers reaching retirement age, more and more people are turning to online dating services to find (or replace) Mr. The most popular online dating sites among active older adults are the biggies like and e Harmony.com, which serve millions of people of all ages and thus have the biggest pool of potential mates. In May 2011, operator IAC launched Our Time.com, a site dedicated to the 50-plus crowd.
A quick example: Over the past two years, the number of singles older than 50 who joined one of the dating sites run by People Media -- the number one provider of targeted, online dating communities for singles seeking meaningful relationships -- skyrocketed 400 percent.
But a new study reveals a surprising statistic: Baby boomers are just as likely as millennials to be swiping for sweethearts.
A national survey from the Pew Research Center shows that online dating by 55- to 64-year-olds has doubled since 2013, rejecting conventional wisdom that the older generation is afraid of technology.
But recently a number of factors have turned the industry’s attention toward older tech users: the ranks of silver surfers are growing fast as baby boomers retire; they have spending power and free time, and they have widely adopted smartphones and social networking.
“I look at the boomers, and I’m like, ‘God, there’s so many ways I could help these people. I’m going to do it’,” says Marcie Rogo, 30, Stitch’s co-founder.Now, as we reach our 60s and 70s, we are also one of the most sought after demographics for companies selling everything from cruises and retirement homes to makeup and clothing.Given all of the interest in our generation, perhaps it’s no surprise that hundreds of baby boomer websites have popped up in the past few years.Many of these websites help us to celebrate our past and relive our best memories.Others are more focused on the future and provide advice on getting the most from retirement and experiencing healthy aging.Though millennials still lead the way in app usage, the silver sneaker set is not far behind.