Is there any hope for finding love online? And is it even something Gen Y is interested in? We asked our panel to find out….

2 out of 10 Millennials in our survey told us that they have struck up a relationship with someone they met online. But online dating for this generation is shaping up to look different to the way Gen X have gone about it. Moving away from formal dating sites with ‘finding the one’ mantras, towards more informal networks. Unlike our predecessors we’ve grown up in the digital age, and as with other aspects of our lives we’re used to moving fluidly between the online and offline worlds. So it seems that online dating is becoming increasingly naturalised for GenY as just another method of meeting people, rather than something done ‘as a last resort’ or to ‘find the one’.

Dating Online 2.0

Insta-love: Dating sites can feel too formal, so Millennials are finding ways around the awkwardness of dating-site protocol. Millennials would rather connect over shared interests (outside of finding a partner) so Instagram is a surprise dating hit. Following friends of friends or even strangers, liking their pictures and talking about shared interests (based on what it looks like they’re getting up to) and striking up a friendship/romance that way.

Mazily: A Swedish site which is now also available in the UK. Its USP is that at the heart of the site is shared interests and shared experiences rather than just ‘finding the one’ – aspects of the site such as ‘What’s on Tonight’ allows members to meet up at events. Hitting key Millennial passion points and giving online dating a real world offline aspect. Add that to an on-point website design and there’s a valuable combination in there.

Georgina Palmer, 24.

Research Analyst/ Editor of Sticky