The concept of dating has completely changed over the years, and it’s all thanks to technology and social media. People can go online and see whom they might match with based on looks and other bio descriptions to find out that it was all a lie and they are not the same person in real life. However, a company approached the commercial online dating scenario wholly based on personality, and that company is none other than So Syncd.
So Syncd is an online dating company that matches people with one another wholly based on their personalities. The application works on the Myers-Briggs tests modified for dating and the ones with the highest compatibility are matched together. It’s quite an innovative forefront and a unique approach towards a dating app that makes it meaningful and not just random connections being made. All the ingredients used in the pairing process are in the right amount of personality and the right amount of connection to create the initial spark between them. Venture Mirror had a small discussion with Jessica Alderson, CEO and Co-Founder of So Syncd, to learn more about the company. All the excerpts from the interview are stated below.
What is the startup / product / venture about? Give us a brief description of it.
So Syncd is a dating app that matches compatible personality types. Specifically, it’s based on the Myers-Briggs test, which is the most popular personality test in the world. Up until now, the Myers-Briggs test has largely been used by the business world; we are the first app and website to use it in the context of finding love. Our goal is to make dating more meaningful, fun and successful. We are revolutionizing the way people date by pairing couples who have just the right amount of similarities to form a strong connection and just the right amount of differences to create that spark.
How many co-founders are there? Please introduce them and their backgrounds.
Jessica Alderson, Co-founder & CEO: Jessica Alderson is the co-founder and CEO of So Syncd, the dating app that matches compatible personality types. She is also the UK lead for Women in Tech. Prior to setting up So Syncd, she worked as an equity research analyst at Morgan Stanley. After spending five years modelling balance sheets and quizzing management teams about their company strategy, Jessica decided to take a break to travel the world and learn more about personality compatibility. It was this path that led her to create So Syncd with her sister, Louella. The pair are on a mission to make dating more fun, meaningful and successful.
Louella Alderson: Co-founder & COO: Louella Alderson is the co-founder and COO of So Syncd, the dating app that matches compatible personality types. Prior to setting up So Syncd, she was one of the first employees at Empiric Student Property, where she helped scale the company from a valuation of £80m to over £1bn. During that time, she also qualified as a chartered surveyor, and has a Masters in Real Estate. Her entrepreneurial spirit led her to create So Syncd with her sister, Jessica. Their goal is to help people find love faster.
How did you come up with the idea? What motivated you to do this?
The idea for So Syncd was sparked by a break- up with a long-term partner. I started using Myers-Briggs personality types as a framework to understand what went wrong. The break-up coincided with me leaving my job at an investment bank and I decided to take a year out to travel and learn about personality type compatibility. It was clear that some personality type combinations worked better in relationships than others.
After my year of travelling, I was having drinks in Soho with my sister and she was telling me that her friends and colleagues were going on these terrible dates with people they’d met on dating apps. I explained what I’d learned over the past year. Louella, while being skeptical at first, became convinced of how accurate the personality-matching concept was when we applied the matching concept to our friends and her own successful relationship. It turned out that she’d been in a long-term relationship with her perfect personality match.
The next morning, I went to my sister’s flat and we started building So Syncd, our dating app that matches compatible personality types.
Who is your target market? Why do you think your product will appeal to them?
Our target market is people who are looking for meaningful connections. So Syncd is different to other dating apps because it factors in the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle: personality compatibility. Our members don’t join because they’re looking for a hook-up; they are looking for something more than that. They are looking for a real connection. We constantly hear feedback that our community is different to other apps and that people are having much better conversations. We’ve already had a wedding, two engagements and hundreds of couples have found a relationship through our app.
Who are your competitors? How are you different from them?
So Syncd is different to other dating apps because it takes personality into account. When you sign up, you take our free five-minute personality test and we’ll let you know your personality type, along with a comprehensive personality profile. For example, you might be an INTJ, also known as So Strategic, or an ENFP, So Enthusiastic. We’ll then let you know which personality types you are most compatible with. We do this by showing a compatibility percentage with each potential match. We have an active community on Instagram and we post blogs about personality types and love.
What are the future plans with the product/startup? Any new features you are planning on?
We are working on building a membership package with additional features. The core features will remain free though. Also, we are planning on adding a feature where you can meet friends because a lot of our members have asked for this. In fact, some people use our app to meet friends already.