Speed Dating Singles with Filteroff CEO Zach Schleien

In this slogging AMA we chat to Filteroff CEO Zach Schleien. Filteroff is a dating app that singles use for speed dating. It uses video to help bring like-minded people together. Unlike traditional dating apps, its speed dating model is unique and effective. This thread by Jack Boreham, Zach, Limarc Ambalina, Mónica Freitas and Sara Pinto occurred in slogging's official #amas channel, and has been edited for readability. Slogging Jack Boreham Feb 3, 2022, 3:31 PM Hey @channel, please join me in welcoming our next AMA guest, Zach. Zach is the CEO of a new dating app known as Filteroff. Filteroff allows you to host your very own speed dating event, creating a novel way to meet like-minded singles. Please feel free to ask Zach anything about: What made him come up with Filteroff? What has changed about online dating since the pandemic? How Filteroff helps communities Most major swipe apps (Tinder, Bumble) have added video. What sets Filteroff apart from the competition? Dating apps in general Jack Boreham Feb 3, 2022, 3:34 PM Hi, Zach a pleasure to have you with us. Can you start off by explaining about yourself and how your career led you to create Filteroff! Zach Feb 3, 2022, 3:38 PM Sure! I grew up in Westchester, NY. I went to college at Syracuse University. I was an avid online dater and while in school I started a dating blog called TopRomp which covered apps/hacks for the modern dater. A couple of years later I started a subreddit for a small dating app at the time which was for Hinge. Overall I was pretty dissatisfied with the online dating experience of swiping, being catfished, and lousy first dates. I started asking my dates beforehand if they’d be open to video chatting. I discovered video chatting with my matches first rather than the long swiping and messaging process that allowed me to get to know the person. That’s how I came up with Filteroff. I wanted to provide a more authentic online dating experience. We got out of beta in Feb ’20 right before the pandemic. Limarc Ambalina Feb 3, 2022, 3:41 PM Hey Zach I'm married so I won't be using this :rolling_on_the_floor_laughing: but I used my fair share of Tinder throughout my university days so I'm familiar with that platform. What sets Filteroff apart from big dating apps like this and how do you plan to compete in such a competitive space? Zach Feb 3, 2022, 3:46 PM Hey Limarc Ambalina thanks for the question! Glad you found your person 🙂 For one, Filteroff is video first. We remove the aspect of swiping and endless messaging. But aside from being video first, our moat is community. We allow communities to create virtual speed dating events on our platform providing their members with a fun experience, the ability to grow their community and even monetize. In terms of the competition, most daters have 3-5 dating apps on their phone — it’s not a winner take all industry. Filteroff targets what I call an someone who cares about quality over quantity. That’s where all dating apps fall short. intention dater Mónica Freitas Feb 3, 2022, 3:51 PM Hi Zach what made you come up with Filteroff? And what has the feedback been like? Zach Feb 3, 2022, 3:54 PM Mónica Freitas I was honestly sick of online dating. It was basically just a game — swiping and messaging. I wanted to provide daters with an authentic experience where they could let their personalities shine and just have singles meet face to face over video. Since we’ve launched we’ve now run over 6K virtual speed dating events and created quite a few marriages. One of our marriages was covered by the NYT I think it’s time to retire the swipe 😉 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/26/style/weddings-jewelry-designer.html 🔥 1 Mónica Freitas Feb 3, 2022, 4:00 PM Zach WOW, that's awesome! Would you say your app has reached a point of global usage, or do you have more local users? In other words, is any geographical area where your app is more popular? Zach Feb 3, 2022, 4:06 PM With online dating, daters prefer to date local however there has been some change in sentiment to this since the pandemic. The majority of our users are local. Our largest city is NYC followed by Los Angeles. 🔥 1 Jack Boreham Feb 3, 2022, 4:37 PM Zach awesome! So I met my significant other on a major dating site....what makes yours different as most use video functionality? Zach Feb 3, 2022, 4:59 PM Congrats! And sure, dating apps that simply add video functionality, are still stuck in the old paradigm. You’re still being judged by your profile. You are still left with the same experience as beforehand. Sure, there’s a video feature but that’s more so an afterthought to the core product. Limarc Ambalina Feb 4, 2022, 2:10 AM Hey, Zach thanks for the thoughtful answers! One important question for all dating apps: how do you handle security? Limarc Ambalina Feb 4, 2022, 2:11 AM There are a lot of creeps out there, and who knows if you're being catfished or whatever else scam there is on dating apps. 🔥 1 Zach Feb 4, 2022, 4:09 PM Filteroff encrypts in transit and at rest. The video is being used via WebRTC so video content is not stored on Filteroff’s servers. Jack Boreham Feb 4, 2022, 4:40 PM Zach so how does your video feature differ? Zach Feb 4, 2022, 4:41 PM Here’s how it works: Create your account Find an event and RSVP Go on up to 10 video speed dates If you have any mutual matches you can then message or continue to video chat Zach Feb 4, 2022, 4:42 PM Swipe apps still require swiping, messaging etc. It’s extremely superficial and time-consuming. Once you’re a match you can then ask to video chat, but again that’s more so an afterthought to the core product. Once you hop on a video chat it may be very difficult to then hop off, if it’s not a fit. Mónica Freitas Feb 4, 2022, 9:25 PM Zach what do you think will be the future for dating apps? Zach Feb 7, 2022, 3:46 PM Mónica Freitas daters will continue to push for a more authentic dating experience. They don’t want to feel scammed or catfished. 🔥 1 Sara Pinto Feb 4, 2022, 10:46 PM Hi Zach, glad to have you here! Online dating must have gained more ground during the pandemic. Were there any changes to better adapt to the new reality? Zach Feb 7, 2022, 3:47 PM Sara Pinto we’ve all been video chatting on Zoom meetings, FaceTiming with friends and family. So now video chatting with complete strangers on a dating app is no big deal. It’s so much more authentic to connect on video versus text alone. Jack Boreham Feb 5, 2022, 10:02 AM Zach that's a great idea! So, how successful has the app been at getting people that person? I'm not sure if you have any stats on that, but I just thought I would ask, haha Zach Feb 7, 2022, 3:48 PM Jack Boreham we’ve hosted over 6K virtual speed dating events and created a number of marriages Sara Pinto Feb 8, 2022, 12:15 PM Zach So what do you think will be the next step to make it an even more dynamic experience? Is there any specific feature you would like to see on dating apps? Zach Feb 8, 2022, 3:43 PM The next step would definitely be an immersive environment. However, I think moving away from the swipe to a more authentic experience is the key. Tech will continue to advance, but dating behavior definitely lags. The pandemic sped up the acceptance of video-first by 3-5 years. 🔥 1 Jack Boreham Feb 9, 2022, 12:42 PM Thank you Zach for your time. How can people check out your platform, to wrap up this AMA? Zach Feb 9, 2022, 12:57 PM Filteroff is available on iOS, Android, and Web. They can learn more here https://www.getfilteroff.com/ Zach Feb 9, 2022, 12:57 PM Thank you!