2. If my friend has used a dating service and it has either been very successful for them or unsuccessful for them, is that a good way to judge the service? Will I likely have the same outcome?
A big mistake that many people make is to judge a service by their friend’s success or lack thereof. Each person has his/her own expectations, peculiarities, taste, personality and preferences. Consequently each person may have a different experience in one service.
I may present 10 profiles to your friend that they accept and want to meet. When you come in, based on your preferences and other information I may show you 15 profiles and you only have an interest in 2. Everyone is different…look at your married friends’ spouses. Would you marry them or even go on a date with them? To each their own.
I believe, from my observations, that timing and fate have alot to do with an individual’s success, along with the aforementioned characteristics which differ from person to person. So it is unwise to judge a service by the experience of another.
What you can judge are length of time in business, success rate, whether the clientele fits for your personality and background and whether the fees are reasonable. It is very important that the structure of the service fits with your particular personality.