I got wind of this new entrepreneurial venture, Ignighter, awhile ago from my friend Hannah and thought I would share it all with you. Two recent college grads (both guys) have started an online dating site that allows groups of friends to mingle and jangle, rather than depending on that one little love connection.
How it works: basically you get together with all your college roommates or your cubicle crew or your James Baldwin book club (look, I know someone who has one), and then you create a profile as a group. Once you've created your group's page, you can then browse the other groups and--if all parties consent--make a time to meet up and see how it all shakes out.
I see some major advantages to this scenario. First and foremost, it's way more natural than the big pressure of meeting a total stranger in a bar or whatever and hoping to hit it off. As we all know, online profiles rarely predict blast off chemistry. With this set up, you get to evaluate the vibe of a bunch of people in the flesh.
I also like that it sort of takes away the emphasis on ROMANTIC relationships. Two crews hanging seems like it would lead to a love connection or two and plenty of friendships, whereas when it doesn't work out one on one, sometimes it's hard to transition into a friendship.
And as the founders argue, it is safer. Though I haven't heard much about sketchy online dating experiences (have you, readers?), I do see the advantage of having your crew of friends around in case some meet up ends up feeling sketchy.
Downsides? The pictures on the site seem pretty white (no love for people of color?). I'm sure if you really get deep into profile browsing you can find yourself love of all kinds, but it would be nice to feature some people of color on the homepage.
So what do you all think? Group pumpkin pickin' date?
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I really like the idea behind this site, although in addition to being predominately white, it seems to be pretty heterosexist as well. I.e. groups of all men and groups of all women meeting up with one another. I'll be interested to see if any mixed groups get involved and if there is space for people who are looking to meet someone of the same gender.
Yeah, the founders said there already are mixed gender and sexual orientation groups. IDK.
I was super excited at first because I thought this might be a great way for my boyfriend and I, who are new to the area, and a few of our friends here (some single, some not) to meet new people. But it definitely seems to be more about groups of single women meeting groups of single men for drinks, etc. The site looks like it has potential, but it doesn't seem quite there yet.
Ahh well, back to good ol craigslist for me!
Heatherinspring: I was hoping for the exact same thing. It's rough being a young couple in a new city looking for friends!
It sounds like a great idea. Safer- yes, less pressure- yes. And if a group is hanging with another each individual stands a better chance of finding a good match, rather than meeting one on one many times. In this scenario, you're meeting several potential partners all at once. If you don't connect with one person, maybe your friend will.
The downside is that if you don't have a group, you're out of luck. I don't have a group.
Sounds like a great idea. Hopefully, as it matures, it'll move away from its white heterosexual semi-dating function (whether it's by design or not, that's where it seems to be right now) into something broader, where people can just find groups of people to hang with.
Singles sites kind of creep me out - groups do seem like a better idea (also safer, less pressure, and more likely to introduce you to interesting people in general). Still, their whole group-of-guys meet group-of-women thing puzzles me - single-gender groups are the expectation? Really? Ever-so-slightly heterosexist, no?
In terms of other ways to meet people, though... When I first moved to Montreal, I didn't know anyone in the city, and didn't really click with people in my class at uni. However, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) looked interesting, and the Montreal group had coffee shop meet-ups, so I went a few times. I met a good dozen or so fantastic people, several of who are part of my core group of friends 5 years later. (November, people! If you're looking to meet people and write a bit!)
Friends with varied social circles who have movie nights can be a great way to integrate multiple groups of people. Sci-fi groups (the Browncoats, if you're a Firefly fan, for example) tend to have screenings and fun time. Gaming groups do tend to look for new people. Poetry readings, book launches, storytelling nights, political groups (or anarchist collectives, depending on your beliefs), the local pagan circle... All good places to meet people with similar interests, if you're into that sort of thing. All else fails, I've met people while hanging out in bookstores (including one guy I wound up dating for 2 years). Good luck! :)
The downside is that if you don't have a group, you're out of luck. I don't have a group.
This was my first reaction. It's offering social interaction assistance to the folks who need it least.