Virtually in love
Skype and Speeddater.co.uk held the first cross country speed dating event last week. Men and women in London and Birmingham, whilst divided by miles were brought face-to-face by Skype as they joined in a new singles scene on screen.
Speeddater.co.uk hosted the event, which was attended by 35 daters who fancied finding love further afield. Ahead of the event all singles recorded a Skype video card for other attendees as a short introduction to themselves and a chance to start winning hearts over.
Dater’s feedback to their Skype dates was positive. Katie Hudson from Birmingham came to the session with a friend. “I had such a laugh. I want to meet someone but I also want to have fun in the process. The Skype video really put me at ease and I had no problem with conversation. It was great to be able to talk to, and see people from halfway down the country, I was spoilt for choice!”
Cate Hamilton aged 30 from London said: “It’s not easy to find Mr Right given today’s busy schedules and career focus. Speed dating is a fun way of meeting new people but the addition of Skype video opens the door to lots more would-be suitors. I had a great time at the event and thought this was a really innovative way of meeting guys. I don’t want to jinx it, but there were a couple of cuties I would be keen to contact again. A trip to Birmingham may be on the cards.”
Skype is the glue holding together many long distance relationships. For example; Aisling Keogh and her boyfriend Rob, have kept their romance going with free video calls on Skype every day, in spite of being separated by the Atlantic - she’s located at Dublin University and he works in New York. This Valentine’s however, they are doing something extra special. They will join each other face-to-face on Skype, cook up a gourmet feast together, and toast their love.
“Skype brings people together wherever they are, whether that is friends, family, partners, or new contacts that might just turn out to be ‘the one’,” said Jonathan Watson, Skype’s Marketing Manager for EMEA. “Skype breaks down barriers and makes the world a little smaller”.
Prior to and during last night’s event participants were advised by professional flirt diva, Sue Ostler, on how to record a great video card on Skype and offered one-to-one sessions and group tutorials, to help attendees maximise the three minutes they had with each date and provide tips on how to come across well when dating via video on Skype.
“2010 welcomes a new decade of dating. One of the most up to date ways to meet someone special – and bridge the geographical gap – is through real-time video calls,” said Sue. “Skype has been keeping long distance romances alive for some time, but now the focus is on igniting them. There is no doubt that in years to come the experience of dating via video will be commonplace and while the medium may still faze those not accustomed to it, now is absolutely the time to start preparing for it.”
Build confidence for Skype dating with the '3 Ps': Practice, Preparation and Play
Practice
1. Eye contact: stage a ‘dress rehearsal’ in the mirror as silly as it sounds, the mirror will capture exactly what the video will film. Work on connecting with the person behind the glass. Or trial run the real thing, record a Skype video card and watch yourself back.
2. Camera presence: Trial run the real thing, record a Skype video card and watch yourself back. The challenge is to come across as naturally and un-posed as possible. If this is not the result you’re getting, keep practising until you feel comfortable using a webcam.
3. Body language: positive body language speaks volumes about you and sends out good vibes. Keep your shoulders back, sit up straight and don’t fidget.
4. Facial expressions: try to default to a smile in between banter – it’s more flattering and will help your date relax. No fake smiles though. Smile because you mean it.
5. Become an Observational Superpower: observe your date’s use of eye-contact, body language and facial expressions to get a better idea about how they’re coping with it all.
Prepare
1. Make the effort: Prepare for your video call in exactly the same way as you would a normal date – that means making the same amount of effort. Just because the camera may only capture your top half, that’s no excuse to sloth online in your pajama bottoms.
2. Create your mood: Once you’ve done your hair, donned your favourite outfit - the one that makes you feel special - and you’re looking good, you will find yourself looking forward to the experience, rather than feeling like a nervous wreck.
3. Avoid alcohol: you may not realise it, but the tipsier you get, the more you tend to lose the control of your facial muscles and can end up looking like a distorted mess. Since it’s mainly your face that’s in the frame, it’s essential to keep your composure.
4. Content: be ready to dish out a few witty, light-hearted ice-breakers and have some fun topics up your sleeve that will enable you to kick things off with some good old fashioned banter.
5. Conversation: don’t worry about gaps in the conversation, they’re natural so there’s no need to panic about trying to fill them – sometimes it’s more interesting to wait a few seconds to see where the conversation goes.
6. Questions: put your date at ease by using ‘tag’ questions which reveal a little about you, before they’ve opened out to your date. For example: ‘I’m a big fan of live music, I see new bands whenever I get time. What about you? What kind of music do you like?
7. Relax: think of this as an exchange of information. It’s not an interrogation and the challenge is not to extract as much information from your date as possible, rather to get a sense of the ‘essence’ of them. There’s plenty of time for fact finding later.
Play
Always remember, the key to successful dating of any kind is to be light hearted and playful. It’s flirting, it’s meant to be fun.
Skype video cards are available to download from skypevideocards.com.
