In this fast-paced world with little time left to socialize, no wonder the singles need an alternative way to mingle. Online dating, first introduced as personal ads in the 90s, saw a massive surge with the appearance of dating websites and apps.
According to Statistic Brain the online dating industry’s annual revenue is over $1.9 billion dollars. From 2010 to 2015, the revenue expanded at an annual rate of 5%. Also, 30% of online daters are between 18 and 29 years old.
Online dating is the norm & no longer an exception. Safe to say, it is one of the most lucrative industries today and the numbers are only predicted to grow at a steady pace.
Planning on launching your own dating website? It’s not as easy as you might think. Apart from being an over-saturated market with restricted laws, online dating merchants also have a tough time dealing with financial institutions.
Being an online business with a prime young demographic, it becomes extremely essential to provide credit card processing services to a generation who grew up with technology. However, the lack of co-operation from banks makes it difficult to secure merchant account services for online dating businesses.
High chargeback ratios, adult oriented services and content, frauds and scams, unhappy customers, strict laws and regulations are some of the major reasons businesses are denied online dating merchant account services.
Finding the right Online Dating Merchant Account solution for your business
While the odds of finding a merchant account from a regular bank or merchant account providers are low. Online dating merchants then need to approach merchant account providers that offer customized merchant account solutions for such businesses.
Although you may find multiple providers willing to take on your business, it is important to find the right merchant account provider that suits your business requirements.
Some important questions to ask a potential merchant account provider when looking for an online dating merchant account:
- Does the provider have expertise offering services for the online dating industry?
- What kind of chargeback protection tools does the processor offer?
- What are the processing rates? Are there any hidden fees?
- What are the security measures in place for safe credit card processing?
- Is the merchant account provider offering your choice of payment processing options?
- Do they provide 24*7 customer support?
Getting the right merchant services for your online dating business will help you in the long run. Do not hurry, be patient, ask the right questions and go over your options before finally deciding on the best online dating merchant account solution for your business.