— Pros and Cons of PinkCupid—

Pros

• Free version sufficient to properly evaluate the site
• 20 million worldwide user base
• Insightful user profiles
• Android app available

Cons

• Requires a paid upgrade for full functionality
• Limited to five picture on your profile
• Focused on worldwide reach, lacks local “warmth” and appeal

 

— In Depth PinkCupid Review —

Over the last two decades, the internet has fundamentally changed the way that people meet and start relationships. Online dating sites have given millions of people an opportunity to find the perfect mate with the simple act of swiping a screen or clicking a mouse. All segments of society have taken advantage of online dating — the young, the old, straight, LGBT — dating sites have played a central role in the formation of millions of happy couples. If you look specifically at the LGBT demographic, however, you will find a huge disparity between the number of users coming from the gay community as opposed to the lesbian community. Statistics show that 70 percent of gay men have used, or currently use, an online dating service. This figure is only 47 percent within the lesbian community.

You may ask yourself, “why?” As a lesbian woman, I can give you my two cents — there are comparably fewer sites designed specifically for the lesbian community. Sure, there are many hookup sites that include a “lesbian/bisexual” category, but those sites are just clumping us into a larger pool of straight or LGBT users. That inevitably leads to unwanted messages from straight guys wanting to “know” about your lifestyle, or bi-curious women wanting you to be their “analysts” and help them determine if they really want to be with another woman or not. That is so frustrating.

That is why when a lesbian-only dating site comes along I have made it my mission to analyze it and review it in order to determine if it truly meets the wants and needs of my community. PinkCupid.com is just such a site.

— First Impression of PinkCupid —

When I first heard of PinkCupid the name struck me as being a little bothersome. Was it a site targeting lipstick lesbians only? Was it geared more toward bisexual women wanting to experiment? Was it sterile branding based on some generic stereotype? When I brought the name up to other lesbian women I got a similar response. So, yes, starting with the branding there is an issue — it can turn some of its target audience away.

When I actually visited the site some of the trepidation that I felt when I had based my judgment solely on the brand name began to fade. The welcome page to PinkCupid was professionally designed and informative. It wasn’t the type of welcome page that serves only to encourage new users to register. It actually provided real information about how the site operates and the community that it purports to want to develop. (So far, so good.)

— A Little Further Digging —

In the run up to my review of PinkCupid the figure of 20 million registered users appeared frequently in its marketing material. That figure, especially for a niche dating site, in my opinion, seemed to be too large. Prior to actually registering on the site I probed and discovered that PinkCupid is part of the larger Cupid Media network. No need to bore you with the details, but it’s a company that owns and operates over 35 niche dating sites. Now I was intrigued, were the “20 million” users exclusive to PinkCupid or were they the aggregate for the media group as a whole. (Hmmm, the mystery deepened.)

— PinkCupid Registration —

PinkCupid uses a “fast-track” registration process. I was literally done with my initial registration in less than 30 seconds. I probably could have cut that time down further if I had chosen to register using my Facebook credentials. Being ever the stickler for privacy, I chose the manual route. Even so, I only had to enter my first name, age, desired password and a valid email — that was it. With that, I was redirected instantly to the main member page.

For those of you that decide to use the manual registration process yourselves, make sure to check the email that you used to register. PinkCupid will send you an email with a verification link that you must click on to validate your registration. Mine did not arrive until more than 15 minutes following my initial registration. Just don’t forget to click on the link, otherwise, your account gets suspended.

— Building Your Profile —

For those of you worried that PinkCupid sacrifices proper user profiles for speedy registration, there is no need to be concerned. The profile building on PinkCupid takes place at your own leisure once you are in the members’ area. You can build out your profile immediately after registering, or at any other point in the future. The level of detail that you can include on your profile is pretty thorough. Most of the profile questions are answered in checkbox format. Approximately one-third of the questions involve the physical, personality and sexual criteria that you are looking for in a partner. The remaining two-thirds involve your own personality, appearance, lifestyle, values and sexuality. You are free to skip over any question that you do not wish to answer.

Profile pics can be uploaded provided that they do not contain explicit nudity. You are allowed a total of five pictures on your profile

— Features —

PinkCupid has the standard features commonly found on all dating sites, such as search, messaging and online chat. What stands out, however, are two advanced features. One of these is labeled as “personality profiling.” This requires you to respond to additional questionnaires. The answers that you provide are used to analyze your personality. This personality analysis is, in turn, converted into easily digestible snippets about yourself that are posted on your profile. It may sound mechanical, but it can be an effective way to describe your inner self to potential matches.

The other interesting feature is the translation service. PinkCupid attracts users from all over the world. While starting a long-distance romance may not be your thing, in the event that two users meet and there is a language barrier, PinkCupid offers message translation for your communication. Speaking candidly, the translation feature may be more of a gimmick than a practical dating tool, but it is interesting nonetheless.

— PinkCupid Cost —

The free version of PinkCupid offers a sufficient window to get a feel for the site and its potential, but it fails to empower the use with the full functionality of its features. As such, in order to be able to successfully use PinkCupid as a dating tool, you must upgrade to a paid version.