In examining existing systems, we've decided to use a speed dating company named HurryDate as our principal example. It's quite similar to other speed dating services, including Aaron Levisohn's experiences with speed dating events organized by Match.com.
On 09/15/04, Matt McKeon attended an event organized by HurryDate. This section detais the process of using the HurryDate website and scorecard to facilitate the speed dating process.
Registration
Users first go to HurryDate.com in order to find a speed dating event in their city. They enter their gender, sexual preference, and location to parameterize their search, and are presented with a list of upcoming parties in their area.
Figure 2: Party Search Results
An attendee must then choose a party to attend. In order to pre-register for the party, they must log into HurryDate.com. If they do not have an account with HurryDate, they may create one for free.
Account Creation
Creating an account involves creating an online profile. This profile can be used to perform online matches with other HurryDaters, much like a traditional personals service. More importantly, it serves as a contact point for HurryDaters with whom you have been matched via a speed dating event.
Figure 3: Profile Creation
HurryDaters can add biographical information to their profiles, upload photos, answer questions about their relationship preferences, and personalize their profile with headlines or fun questions to be answered by other HurryDaters.
Signing up for the event
Once they have created or logged into their account, the user can sign up for the speed dating event. The $35 fee is charged to their credit card. Signups for speed dating events generally close five to six days before the event. However, users can also attend on standby, in the hopes that a preregistered attendee fails to show up.
The HurryDate event
Upon arrival at the HurryDate event, attendees are handed a score card. The score card includes instructions, an area to take notes about dates, boxes to check off "Yes" or "No" for each date, and helpful information such as "icebreaker" questions.
The scorecard is slick paper, and has a tendency to become soaked through pretty quickly. Users take it home with them as a record of their evening.
Entering Selections and Viewing Matches
After the event is over, participants return home and log on to the HurryDate site. They are immediately presented with a form that allows them to input any selections from the scorecard.
The user must then wait until 24 hours after the event in order to view their matches.
After 24 hours have elapsed, the user logs back into HurryDate.com and brings up their main page.
Figure 4: Matt's main page.
From this page, the user can select the option to view their party matches.
Figure 5: Viewing matches from Matt's HurryDate session
Notice that the user is presented with both mutual matches (in which both attendees selected each other) and "missed opportunities" (attendees that selected the user, but whom were not selected BY the user).
Figure 6: A detailed view of one of Matt's matches, with callouts describing what's been greeked.
A user can click on the "Email me" icon to bring up an interface that forwards email from one user to another. This maintains anonymity until each attendee in a match is sure they want to reveal personally identifying information to the other.
Ballot Inside [low-res 300k] [hi-res 5MB]
Ballot Inside [low-res 300k] [hi-res 5MB]
