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The classics never die. Not at least if we talk about love and his things. Although Tinder, GrindrMeetic, Bumble and the rest of appointment apps (The list is long) They have made a considerable hole in the world of national romance, in Spain there are still people who continue to resort to those who for decades were the great allies of the single: marriage agencies. Its objective may not be to take couples before the altar, but a Fast search in Google to verify that there are still agencies operating, especially in the big cities. And from the sector they assure that they are not doing badly. “We are on the rise”, celebrate.
The big question is … How have you managed to survive appointment apps?
Don’t say Tinder, di agency. Ligar today is not the same as linking in the 80s the beginning of the 2000. Although the essence is always the same, each time has its own forms and codes. The history of Ligteo However, he also has his milestones and probably one of the most relevant was marked by the launch of Tinder In 2012. It was not the first platform to look for a partner (there were already match.com or okcupid), but it did clearly influenced the sector and somehow managed to knock down some taboos and stigmas.
In 2013 it was already one of the hundred apps more downloaded And in 2018, after experiencing a 58% growth in a matter of a five years, it exceeded the four million of paid users worldwide. Its expansion has experienced ups and downs (Like His social footprint), but A recent study GFK DAM shows that he continues to lead the ranking of the platforms to flirt in Spain, with an average of 1.5 million monthly users. In second and third are Badoo and Grindr, with 776,000 and 635,600 users.
And the marriage agencies? That revolution was not only felt in the networks or Apps downloads. The emergence of tools such as Tinder also affected a business model that had been implanted in the country and had experienced its golden era after the Divorce Law of 1981: Marriage agencies.
Suddenly those who wanted to flirt but did not have time or encouragement to go to a disco could do it from their mobile, without having to resort (and pay) to the services of a professional celestine. “We go from being the only way of searching for a couple to live a strong competition,” He recognized in 2023 to the newspaper ABC Alicia López, psychologist at the Apesian agency.
The agencies had to undertake their particular journey through the desert, face a crisis in their business model. And they had no choice but to “reinvent themselves”, like Remember López. Businesses organized workshops, looked for new income paths, influenced the strengths of their service … The idea was to relocate, find their coordinates after seeing how apps the apps “moved”.
And changed the wave. The Adagio says that every crisis is at the same time an opportunity. And in the world of pairing professionals seems to have been fulfilled. Appointment apps and websites continue to work in Spain with millions of monthly users (4.7, According to GFK DAM), but the agencies claim to have found their hole and even benefit from the new scenario. “A few years ago that wave has returned to us and many people are tired from the digital world and their disappointments and lies,” López comments.
“Of course, there is something that we thank these apps and that is that people have encouraged to ask for help to find a partner. Before it was a bit taboo, such as going to the psychologist,” he adds. It is not the only one that points in that direction. At the beginning of the year Carmen del Valle, director of Harmony, acknowledged in An interview With the being that at first the agencies like yours were “displaced” by apps, but over time the result was the opposite. “Now many people tired and frustrated.” And if there were doubts, he insists: “We are on the rise.”
The importance of the approach. The key is what the agencies contribute. Or rather, in their ability to differentiate from the apps that have arisen in recent years. In fact of the valley insists In what a good part of the single ones who knock on their door demand something very specific: “A personalized and direct treatment.” These two values are part of a cocktail to which agencies have added others, such as exclusivity, anonymity or even efficiency. “The agencies have existed a lifetime. Now, with apps, people look for safer and reliable options,” Confirm López to León News.
Its logic is simple. The agencies are sold as intermediaries, a professional ally capable of providing a more personalized and direct service than that of apps. Those responsible are offered to refine the search, connect potential couples with shared affinities and desires and speak of high success percentages, often 80% are around. All without the need for public exposure, having to upload personal photos an app and go through the ritual of the Match.
Not suitable for all pockets. For López Agencies offer “an alternative for people who want to avoid the dangers of staying with someone unknown in appointment apps.” As intermediaries, they assume the responsibility that the people who match share some affinity, something they try to guarantee with face -to -face interviews. Same important is discretion.
There are agencies that organize appointments without having Show even photos To the single ones who are going to meet. Other businesses presume of your ability in he Matchmaking and the application of methods not very different from those used in the human resources departments of the companies.
That assistance (of course) is not cheap. Prices may vary from one agency to another, but if interviews are reviewed to their managers in recent years there are rates for 300, 600, 1,800, 2,000, 6,000 or even 12,000 euros. It all depends on the contracted service, its duration and the extras it includes. Some They foresee for example image advice or staff Shopper.
And who use the agencies? Again, there may be changes between one agency and another, but they all point to A profile Similar: single with a status of High or medium high rentgood sociocultural level, university training and several languages. “Many have worked abroad, have traveled and really lead a full life,” reveals the valley. What they lack is margin to find an ancient romance used or in apps. “They do not have the necessary time to look for their compatible partner and in the circles in which they move it is not easy.”
As for the ages, professionals explain that they have single with less than 30 years and others who reach 75, but it is usual to move in a much more limited fork: of between 45 and 60 yearsusually divorced. Perhaps the “marriage agency” no longer fits exactly what everyone is looking for (go through the altar), but those responsible do take care that both parties want the same and have options to fit.
“Everyone has the same objective and we base the presentations on affinities and compatibilities,” guarantees One of the agencies.
Images | Mark Pecar (Unspash) and RENÉ RANISCH (UNSPLASH)
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