eHarmony
Anna Gray
EECS441 Section 001
September 28, 2016
Mission
“To empower people with the knowledge and
inspiration needed to grow and strengthen their most
important relationships for a lifetime of happiness”
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
History
1998:
Founded
2000:
Launched
2005: New
CEO
2007:
eHarmony
labs open
2009:
Exceed $1B
cumulative
revenue
2012:
Founder
becomes
CEO again
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Products and Customers
Standard Website Standard App
Premium Website
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Business Model
Gain users for
network
effect and
data
Subscription
based income
model
Sell
advertisement
space
Value
and
Revenue
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Company and Performance
• Today’s Financials:
• Private company, owns 14% of
$2.4B dating service industry ($340M)
• > 66M users, ~800K subscribers (1.2%)
• 2M eH marriages, divorce rate 3.86%
Turn results into insights
Convert users to paid
subscribers
Become leading match-
making site in their segment
GOALS
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Competitors
Paid
do-it yourself
Free
do-it yourself
Niche Sites Social Networks
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Competitors
Serious relationships only, no casual daters
Double Match.com prices
Higher quality matches
Quicker and more thorough sign-up process
Less modern app features
vs.
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Secret Sauce: Quality Differentiation
Proven track
record
Patented matching
algorithm
Extensive profiling
Network affect
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Conclusion
YES, eHarmony is successful
eHarmony
Entry Threat
Buyer Power
CompetitorsSubstitutes
Supplier
Power
Risks:
1. Expansion challenges (saturated
niches and cultural differences)
2. Not attracting subscribers
3. Founder Dr. Warren death
Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
Questions?
References
• http://www.eharmony.com/press-release/10/
• http://www.onlinedatingmagazine.com/history/eharmonyhistory.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EHarmony
• http://www.datingsitesreviews.com/staticpages/index.php?page=eHarmony-Statistics-Facts-
History
• http://www.datingsitesreviews.com/article.php?story=eHarmony-Financial-Market-Estimates
• http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2010/07/12/the-100m-revenue-club-eharmony-captures-
hearts-of-vcs/

Anna gray eHarmony sept28

  • 1.
    eHarmony Anna Gray EECS441 Section001 September 28, 2016
  • 2.
    Mission “To empower peoplewith the knowledge and inspiration needed to grow and strengthen their most important relationships for a lifetime of happiness” Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 3.
    History 1998: Founded 2000: Launched 2005: New CEO 2007: eHarmony labs open 2009: Exceed$1B cumulative revenue 2012: Founder becomes CEO again Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 4.
    Products and Customers StandardWebsite Standard App Premium Website Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 5.
    Business Model Gain usersfor network effect and data Subscription based income model Sell advertisement space Value and Revenue Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 6.
    Company and Performance •Today’s Financials: • Private company, owns 14% of $2.4B dating service industry ($340M) • > 66M users, ~800K subscribers (1.2%) • 2M eH marriages, divorce rate 3.86% Turn results into insights Convert users to paid subscribers Become leading match- making site in their segment GOALS Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 7.
    Competitors Paid do-it yourself Free do-it yourself NicheSites Social Networks Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 8.
    Competitors Serious relationships only,no casual daters Double Match.com prices Higher quality matches Quicker and more thorough sign-up process Less modern app features vs. Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 9.
    Secret Sauce: QualityDifferentiation Proven track record Patented matching algorithm Extensive profiling Network affect Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 10.
    Conclusion YES, eHarmony issuccessful eHarmony Entry Threat Buyer Power CompetitorsSubstitutes Supplier Power Risks: 1. Expansion challenges (saturated niches and cultural differences) 2. Not attracting subscribers 3. Founder Dr. Warren death Business Products Performance Competitors Secret Sauce Conclusion
  • 11.
  • 12.
    References • http://www.eharmony.com/press-release/10/ • http://www.onlinedatingmagazine.com/history/eharmonyhistory.html •https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EHarmony • http://www.datingsitesreviews.com/staticpages/index.php?page=eHarmony-Statistics-Facts- History • http://www.datingsitesreviews.com/article.php?story=eHarmony-Financial-Market-Estimates • http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2010/07/12/the-100m-revenue-club-eharmony-captures- hearts-of-vcs/

Editor's Notes

  • #2 Reason for choice: India project it’s a very interesting internet service space - relies a lot on network effect, issues with loyalty
  • #3 First lets begin with the problem eHarmony is addressing: Basically dating and searching for long term relationships has changed over the course of time to become more of a partnership search and friendship for compatibility rather than a formal arrangement What are some ways or setting you guys find someone to date? Activity – common interests, but risk of narrowing pool too much Broker – expand pool a little more, but risk bias of friend and still limited network Market – random meetings or parties (chance), good for lots of people, but risk little info, not knowing intentions, time consuming Candidate pool, info on person, info on interest eHarmony acts as a broker who analyzes other peoples’ interests and profile information, but also expands the pool significantly with the power of internet. They saw an opportunity to help singles search for long term relationships
  • #4 After Dr. Warren and Forgatch founded eHarmony, they received $3M investment from companies and investors which allowed them to launch in 2000 during the .com bubble. They have received patents for their research and matchmaking algorithm which is huge for competitive advantage and currently they have 10-15K new users per day But they have also had bumps along the way: It started off as an informational site but then became a matchmaking site. In 2005 they appointed a new CEO because investors needed assurance that the leader had experience in high growth markets They have also encountered many law suits because they segmented their market so much and filter out a lot of people (casual daters, gay searchers) In 2012, the coFounder Warren (78 years old) came out of retirement to go back as CEO to close unprofitable international operations, switch advertisers, change the board etc
  • #5 2-3min mark Subscriptions of $60/m or $20/m for year
  • #6 Subscription = bulk month sales
  • #7 40-50%
  • #8 1min Paid do-it-yourself Free do-it-yourself Niche sites Social Networks Match is biggest competitor (IAC owns 24% market) - Eharmony fits in paid do it yourself but it’s algorithm and assisted communication makes it more like a broker. They also segment themselves into a niche by focusing on long term relationships
  • #9 1min Paid do-it-yourself Free do-it-yourself Niche sites Social Networks Match is biggest competitor (IAC owns 24% market) -
  • #10 1-2min
  • #11 1min
  • #14 1min Paid do-it-yourself Free do-it-yourself Niche sites Social Networks Match is biggest competitor (IAC owns 24% market) - Eharmony fits in paid do it yourself but it’s algorithm and assisted communication makes it more like a broker. They also segment themselves into a niche by focusing on long term relationships
  • #15 I think eHarmony will succeed but we’ll look more into: company history and current performance industry as a whole how they are positioned in the market how they sustain competitive advantage aka their secret sauce
  • #16 1min Paid do-it-yourself Free do-it-yourself Niche sites Social Networks Match is biggest competitor (IAC owns 24% market) -
  • #17 1min
  • #18 1min
  • #19 1min