An analysis of eHarmony, including the five forces according to Porter Essay

1.1 The threat of in the altogether entrantsThe biggest threat to eHarmony and opposite remunerative dating stations was the free dating sites that were the newest entrants into the market. These sites did not take a shit major restrictions to joining and did not inescapably do the match-making for the members. According to Piskorski, Halaburda & Smith, very some people subscribed to such sites as witnessed by the rise of Plenty of angle in 2007 to become the most frequently visited in Canada and the U.K, and fourth in the coupled States(8).1.2 negotiate power of suppliersA muse by eHarmony showed that couples who met through eHarmony had happier and more than than favored relationships than those from other on railway sites (Piskorski, Halaburda & Smith 6). Accordingly, eHarmony supercharged in two ways as much prescription fees as other sites only the comp both gross continued growing mostly because the customers were squelched with the product.1.3 Rivalry among existing competitorseHarmonys biggest competitor, Match, had also come up with Chemistry a new dating site that had the like match-making idea as eHarmony. However, Match priced its site at 10% less than what eHarmony was charging. However, disrespect such competition eHarmony was able to get wind itself by offering more individualizedise services that every(prenominal)owed for command communication surrounded by would-be accomplices by use of record profiles.1.4 The threat posed by stand in productsApart from Match, according to Piskorski, Halaburda, & Smith other free sites were coming up all everyplace the internet that made it heavy for paid online sites to go forward members (1). People were opting for the more personalize yet free online sites instead of having to pay for similar services on paid sites. However, these users were more of the everyday daters but those seeking serious relationships continued their subscription to eHarmony.1.5 Bargaining power o f buyersBeing a paid online site means that the participation charged premiums for peopleto communicate with the people they had been matched with. However, sluice non-paying members could be matched with potential partners only that the former could not send messages. This caused paying members to opine that sometimes they sent messages to non-paying members and never got any response, meaning it was a loss in investment. This made the companionship consider cover paying members which messages had been read and which ones had not.2. eHarmonys look on propositionAt eHarmony, the customer gets the chance to communicate with a potential partner later having paid for the communication process. The hold dear provided in eHarmonys line of business put concerns giving the paying member guided communication with a potential partner. The participation ensures that they consider the preferences of the applicants before starting on the match-making process. According to Piskorski , Halaburda & Smith, the company considers the similarities among applicants in narrate to start the match-making process (6).In line with this, the company considers a persons characteristics, interests, and values and looks for a person whose profile is similar. In fact, the company has gone against the tralatitious idea that opposites attract and opted for the similar traits age match-making. This assures the customer of the value of the investment they sop up when subscribing for the site as it offers more personalized and workable options than other sites.3. eHarmonys business take strategyeHarmonys mastery is based on the business level strategy employed by the company through which, the company is able to key out its customer base, the services needed, and how to satisfy those needs. When eHarmony started in 2001, the customer base was, mainly dispassionate of people seeking serious relationships curiously among faith-based communities. Piskorski, Halaburda & Smith w rite that eHarmony received over 100,000 subscriptions within the first few weeks after launching (4). However, with time, the company was able to magnify its customer base to cover a broader customer base especially as a result of massive advertising. By 2004, the company had managed 3 million subscriptions. eHarmony soundless that the customers were in search of potential lifetime partners, thus making the companys match-making process very specific.The customers personal interests wereanalyzed through a matching algorithm that often guarantees personal satisfaction. According to Piskorski, Halaburda & Smith, results from a study conducted in 2005 showed that on average in the united States, members belonging to the eHarmony site married everyday, and by 2007on average, 236 eHarmony members were getting married daily (8). The company continued to strategize in a tempt to invent products that would attract more members and retain the current ones. For instance, according to Pi skorski, Halaburda & Smith, the company was considering rest some of the restrictions to joining the site, allowing more casual daters, and expanding geographically (13-14).In addition, the company looks to focus more customers life events such as weddings, births, parenting, and tutorship for the elderly.Work CitedPiskorski, Mikolaj., Halaburda, Hanna. &Smith, Troy. eHarmony. Harvard Harvard Business School, 2008. Print.