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How to Start a Dating Business in the Philippines: When we think about online dating in the Philippines, we tend to think about those giants such as Tinder, Match, or PinaLove. So, is starting a dating business in the Philippines a good idea?
Starting a dating business in the Philippines can be an excellent idea if you can successfully differentiate yourself through a robust and profitable business model.
There are many different types of dating experiences. Some prefer to find their soul mate and true connection, while others look for no strings attached to dating experiences. I say this to highlight that there are many different types of niches within the industry of dating.
So let’s take a look at how to start a dating business in the Philippines step by step.
Table of Contents
How To Start A Dating Business In The Philippines
1. Determine Your Dating Niche
Somebody who wants to know how to start a dating business in the Philippines has to offer something different since many dating sites and apps exist. Having a niche is important because many users decide based on what they want from a dating platform.
Researching can help them understand the extent of dating platforms in the country. This can also help them get an idea of the products and services offered in the dating industry.
There are dating platforms that focus on matching seniors or members of the LGBT community. In addition, you can try thinking of ideas or interests incorporated into online datings, such as matching people who like the same kind of music. There are more dating niches below if you are looking for more information.
We recently spoke about how to carry out market research in the Philippines, and it’s recommended to take a look at that article if you are thinking about starting a dating business in the Philippines, as market research is paramount when starting this type of business.
2. Pick The Right Business Model
An online dating business model answers important questions and sets out the vision for the business. Therefore, aspiring online dating business owners have to decide on matters such as whether they want to offer complimentary membership, charge members, or earn from advertisers.
You may also need to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of these carefully. All of these options can attract different users. Some users cannot afford to pay monthly, and some users are skeptical about joining dating sites free of charge.
Deciding on the tools and services is crucial on how to start a dating business in the Philippines. Quality tools and services are more costly, but the returns can be higher. After listing down the services you plan to provide, you can set a pricing guideline for each service.
This is often overlooked, but naturally, the business model will impact how much money you earn. We have a free downloadable business plan template and financial reports to help you start a dating business in the Philippines.
3. Decide on Your Dating Business’ Name and Register It
Doing research can also help aspiring dating business owners to come up with a unique and attention-grabbing name. First, you can check with the Department of Trade and Industry for the availability of the name. Next, check the licenses and permits needed to launch the dating business can be done in this step.
To come up with a good name, it should describe what the platform is. Ideally, it is best to choose a name with popular keywords so that when people search for a dating website or app, yours will likely show up in their search results.
Before you start, it’s best to take a look at the domain availability. A business name may already be taken on some occasions, so some new dating business owners create a new name by mixing two words together (portmanteau word). Example of this includes – Breakfast + Lunch = Brunch.
If you are not from the Philippines you may wish to check out our foreign business guide.
4. Consider Business Insurance
General liability insurance protects your dating business from possible litigation. Some clients may feel that they did not get the service they paid for your platform when a date does not end up how they expected it to be.
Dating business owners should also be prepared to deal with harassment complaints, confidentiality concerns, and other forms of online abuse.
In addition to this, when starting a dating business in the Philippines or an international business, the business owner will need to obey business law, including the Data Protection Act. If you decide to branch out into other countries, it’s important to also research specific. For instance, a few years ago, Europe introduced the General Data Protection Regulation.
5. Prepare Your Equipment, Software & Research
The most important equipment in the success of the dating business is computers, software, and website builders. Hiring an experienced web developer might be needed. Dating business entrepreneurs may also need to outsource functions such as moderating and detecting spam or instant messaging.
Making your website is also because of the availability of online website builders. The important thing to remember is that the website or app should not look amateur since potential users might not trust the site or not attract people to sign up.
Previously we have spoken about how to start a blog in the Philippines and explored the best web hosting services. Both of these contain critical information that will help you design and create a website for your dating business.
In addition, there may be additional software that needs to be purchased, such as a payment gateway/coding for your website or app. It’s often a great idea to include these when you create your original business plan.
Once you have all the equipment, software, and research needed, we then create the platform itself, which is our next step.
6. Create Your Platform
This step on how to start a dating business in the Philippines begins with choosing the technology. After that, aspiring dating business entrepreneurs can choose to have a website, app, or both.
One way to choose is to ask the preference of their target market. For example, if the target users are older, a website may be better. On the other hand, for users under 30, an app can be a better platform.
After choosing the right technology, the next thing to work on is the brand and design that show the image you want for your platform. The platform has to show that your business is trusted and positive.
If you have a tight budget in design, you can check out Canva. The website allows users to design their brand, logo, and social media materials for a free or low cost.
If you have a budget, you can get a web designer and graphic designer to create your logo and website. The recommended design for a dating platform is something light instead of something very serious.
You can also improve the algorithm by considering the values that are vital to users and how the ranking of their matches will be done. Again, hiring a programmer or doing it yourself can help you prepare your search tool. According to a study, people look for matches based on common interest, and 49% mentioned that they base it on how attractive a person is.
7. Market Your Dating Business
Dating business entrepreneurs can promote to their target market by advertising offline and online. Offline advertising can be done by attending events where their target market is at cafes or libraries.
For online advertising, one of the ideal strategies is doing social media marketing. For example, you can publish content that has dating stories, tips, and advice.
It can also help to give incentives to encourage people to sign up. Aside from great features, you can make sure that you have great customer support. Actively answering queries through live chat is a good way to get and keep users.
If you wish to succeed with a dating business in the Philippines, you will need to be super smart at the marketing stage. There have been countless examples of business owners succeeding; we’ve all the odds against them. In our modern world, it’s not just about the money; it’s about being smart with whatever budget you have available.
Think about the online community, for example. You could decide to reach out to YouTubers and bloggers and set up an affiliate marketing program where they are paid through every customer they bring to your platform. or you could decide to target a specific area.
If you are starting a new dating business in the Philippines, awareness marketing is what is needed more than anything. You need to ensure that people know you exist, and awareness is how you can achieve this.
How Much Does It Cost to Start a Dating Website Philippines?
Aspiring dating business owners can build their website by using a website builder or hiring a web designer. Whatever method they pick has a big impact. For instance, they can create content for free using a web builder.
However, low-end web designers need to pay Php 150 to Php 300 per hour and P1,000 to Php3,000 per hour for high-rate web designers.
They can create their platform for free on web-building websites such as WordPress, but they need to pay extra if they want themes, plugins, and hosting. However, the price is still affordable since it will not likely go more than Php 1,000 to have a website.
Outsourcing a web designer is costly. However, dating business owners do not have to feel stressed with technical stuff.
However, there are many other costs to consider. Many of which are optional, which will impact the total cost needed to start a dating business.
Based on the website only, the total cost needed will be around 5000. This includes domain registration, high-speed web hosting, and some basic website software.
To summarise, the cost to start a dating business in the Philippines cost less than P50,000, which includes a website, basic app, marketing, themes, and plugins. However, the scale of the business will ultimately impact the total financial capital needed to start a dating business in the Philippines.
How Much Does It Cost to Start a Dating App Philippines?
Some of the features of a dating app are… social media account registration, integration to sign up, ensuring anonymity of users, active protection from inappropriate and abusive content, suggestions, and an advanced algorithm for matching potential users.
A dating app development cost can be around $10 (Php 500) every hour. At least 600 to 700 development hours are needed to create a platform. Therefore, it can cost aspiring dating business owners $6,000 to $10,000 (Php 300,000 to Php 500,000).
Dating Business Ideas for the Philippines
International Dating
Because of globalization, many people from different countries have a lot in common. This makes it easier to create interracial relationships, such as a Western meeting an Eastern person, for example. In addition, many men and women are interested in meeting and dating foreigners.
Lunch Dating
One of the most important components of human society is food. Therefore, this can be a good dating business idea for people looking for love. A couple of dating platforms match people and set them up for a lunch date to get to know each other more.
Elite Dating
Many wealthy individuals are busy, but they also want to search for love. Your dating business can help them by connecting them to their counterparts or other wealthy clients. This type of dating business can be profitable, and there is a chance not to spend much if there is an investor.
Dating Suggestion
People have different definitions of their ideal date. Nevertheless, it can be challenging to find someone who has the same idea of a perfect date. This dating business idea is a great way for users to share their ideas on what date they want and make it a reality.
Age-Determinant Dating
Most people choose to go out with people the same age as them. However, some want to go out with younger or older people. Whatever age range they prefer, online dating can work.
LGBT Dating
Many big dating platforms make it possible for people who have gender preferences to find a date online. Some dating apps are exclusive to the LGBT community. Because society is more open to them, dating platforms like this are increasing in popularity.
Speed Dating
This dating business idea is helpful for people who are too busy to find love or for people who are shy to initiate a date. Even though the idea of speed dating is not new, creating a website or app for this can work out.
Group Dating
This is a good business idea on how to start a dating business in the Philippines if you think private conversations are stressful or boring. A group dating platform can be used to connect groups within an area or based on their preferences.
Advice On Setting Up A Dating Website In The Philippines
Considering everything, starting a brand new dating business and turning it from an idea to a successful business is challenging, but it is nowhere near impossible.
The Philippines is one of the best countries in the world to start an online business, so if you are planning to start an online website or dating app, then there are many advantages.
New business owners also face many challenges, whether they start an online dating business or a face-to-face dating business in the Philippines.
Differentiating your business is key. You may find success in combining two or three different ideas into one. Don’t be afraid to renovate the dating industry completely. The largest and most successful dating businesses worldwide were leaders and created new things the other businesses were not doing.
Aside from this, finances will need to be taken into account, and a significant amount of time will need to be dedicated to the financial aspects of the dating business. Profits will need to be reinvested, and capital may need to be raised for your business to reach that next level.
As always, we recommend speaking to an independent financial advisor and a business analyst before starting any business in the Philippines.
