Should eharmony allow NPM to see pics during FCW


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sony12 is offline sony12 Post #1  June 1,2010, 5:31pm
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Should the non paying members be allowed to see pictures during the free communication weekend.

Do you think the opportunity to see their matches photos would increase or decrease their likelihood of paying for a membership.
 
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cal_dude is offline cal_dude Post #2  June 1,2010, 5:59pm
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Yes. Seeing photos leads to a much more meaningful exchange, resulting in an increased likelihood.
But first user friendliness has to be improved so that NPMs are comfortable with the interface faster.
Last edited by cal_dude; June 1,2010 at 6:01pm.
 
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ScottK is offline ScottK Post #3  June 1,2010, 6:24pm
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I am not sure whether showing Photos will convert people over.

Fact is, I don't think FCWs in any form will work all that well for converting non-paid members to paid members.

Freeloaders are freeloaders, and since EH holds FCW every month or two, the freeloaders exploit this by just queuing up a bunch of matches, go into FCW, trade emails in OC with a bunch of them, and then pick the top couple to try to date.

If those work out, great, if they don't, they wait until the next FCW...
Rinse and Repeat.

I think EH has acknowledged this fact, by trying an even worse idea on the .ca site, by attempting a Free General Communication Weekend.
This is where they lead the non-paid members up to and including Stage 3, but shut down the communication before OC, thus stopping people from trading external email addresses.

In theory, this might be a better idea, but in practice, EH did it in the most horrible way possible.
They do NOT tell the paid member that the person they are working through Stage 1 -> Stage 3 with, is an unpaid member.
Thus, they are exploiting the paid member way way way too far, by making us invest time and energy into communicating with these matches, in hopes of using US, the PAID member, to convert the unpaid members over.

I am absolutely appalled and disgusted by that, and I sure hope the .ca users yelled and screamed at EH for that horrible idea.
 
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Work_in_Progress is offline Work_in_Progress Post #4  June 1,2010, 6:32pm
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YES. This is the only site I'm aware of that doesn't allow it. I'm guessing it's because they figure the no-pays will recognize matches from other sites and contact them there, but probably most people who aren't paying here also aren't paying on other sites they're on, and I've recognized plenty of matches here from other sites without photos just from their descriptions, locations, etc. matching. I suppose they could search the free sites for those whose photos they like, but how many are going to go to that trouble, and how many of us are likely to be there?

I think it's more likely that non-payers are going to sign up if they can see photos of matches they find attractive and who also sound truly compatible, since that's the difference most of us sign up here for.
 
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ScottK is offline ScottK Post #5  June 1,2010, 6:40pm
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cal_dude wrote :
Yes. Seeing photos leads to a much more meaningful exchange, resulting in an increased likelihood.
But first user friendliness has to be improved so that NPMs are comfortable with the interface faster.
I disagree. I don't think it would increase the likelihood.

Lets face it, we all tend to dream it is Brad Pitt or Scarlett Johansson on the other side of that screen, and when the Photos are shown, reality comes crashing down.
 
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ScottK is offline ScottK Post #6  June 1,2010, 6:45pm
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Work_in_Progress wrote :
I think it's more likely that non-payers are going to sign up if they can see photos of matches they find attractive and who also sound truly compatible, since that's the difference most of us sign up here for.
And what happens when they see that the only people that want to communicate with them are the not-so-attractive Matches?

This will not convert them to a paid member.
They will just breathe a sign of relief, saying, WHEW, I just saved myself some money there!

However, by not showing Photos, the "Hope Springs Eternal" aspect kicks in, and they start to hope/dream that the person that is communicating with them is attractive?

THAT will convert them to a paid member.
 
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Mr79percent is offline Mr79percent Post #7  June 1,2010, 7:19pm
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They don't want to create a match where they don't profit. I just wish they would at least acknowledge that WE are paying members, and it's to OUR benefit if our matches they see our photos so at least we don't get sucked into a doomed line of communication. "Thanks for your Facebook account. Oh, I see you are bald. I don't date bald guys. Seeya!"
 
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Mr79percent is offline Mr79percent Post #8  June 1,2010, 7:23pm
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ScottK wrote :
And what happens when they see that the only people that want to communicate with them are the not-so-attractive Matches?

This will not convert them to a paid member.
They will just breathe a sign of relief, saying, WHEW, I just saved myself some money there!

However, by not showing Photos, the "Hope Springs Eternal" aspect kicks in, and they start to hope/dream that the person that is communicating with them is attractive?

THAT will convert them to a paid member.
I personally believe without any proof whatsoever that eHarmony keeps track of matches that receive a high rate of requests--and they skew FCW's matching towards them.

At least if I were a greedy business man, that's how I would think. It's not totally without proof...there does seem to be some anecdotal evidence (the worst kind) of some people seeing a LOT of new matches, and others seeing hardly anything. And those people that do fess up to a high amount of activity and have actual photos published...do seem to fall on the attractive side. So even though a FCW can't see a photo, at least when they do see a photo after getting to OC they have a positive impression on the eH experience.
 
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Work_in_Progress is offline Work_in_Progress Post #9  June 1,2010, 8:36pm
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ScottK wrote :
And what happens when they see that the only people that want to communicate with them are the not-so-attractive Matches?

This will not convert them to a paid member.
They will just breathe a sign of relief, saying, WHEW, I just saved myself some money there!

However, by not showing Photos, the "Hope Springs Eternal" aspect kicks in, and they start to hope/dream that the person that is communicating with them is attractive?

THAT will convert them to a paid member.
I think most of us having been paying members on at least one site at one time or another, so we realize that most matches aren't going to be particularly attractive to us. But even in my tiny pool, there are a few now and then, and it only takes one.

I'm currently on a 3-month subscription, and this is only my third time subscribing (for 3 months each time)in the few years since I first tried it, and that's in part because I hated not being able to see photos to determine whether there were any decent potential matches at all. I don't need my entire pool to be attractive, but I do want to SEE proof that there is at least hope.

How many of us have been swayed to subscribe at other sites in the past because there were just a handful - or even a couple - of decent, attractive matches among several pages returned for our area search? I know I have....
 
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Wonderwoman402 is offline Wonderwoman402 Post #10  June 1,2010, 10:27pm
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ScottK wrote :
Freeloaders are freeloaders, and since EH holds FCW every month or two, the freeloaders exploit this by just queuing up a bunch of matches, go into FCW, trade emails in OC with a bunch of them, and then pick the top couple to try to date.

If those work out, great, if they don't, they wait until the next FCW...
Rinse and Repeat.
Scott, I generally agree with your posts on this matter, but question your disgust with the above.

By your definition, I am a "freeloader." I have paid for a total of 18 months of eHarmony, but I now only participate in the FCWs. This is because eHarmony has very few potential matches in my demographic and geographic radius. This is evidenced by the fact that I had matching turned off for the 10 weeks since the last FCW. I turned matching back on several days before this most recent FCW started and it turned out that eHarmony had a grand total of 12 matches to deliver... pent up over the past 10 weeks! Nearly all of them were 'flexible matches.' Now tell me, would YOU pay for that?!? I seriously doubt it.

So yes, I "exploit" the FCW by communicating with all matches that are not obviously incompatible. This time I managed to get to OC with two of them. I still haven't seen their photos, but we are now emailing. They are paid members.... so THEY got value out of the FCW by making a connection with me as I would not have been online except for the FCW. All I did was follow the rules of the free promotion, as encouraged by eHarmony.

If they work out, great! If they don't, then I'll wait until the next FCW (my matching is turned off until then). Rinse and Repeat. I see absolutely nothing wrong with that, and do not understand your complaint.
 
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