7for7: FAQ

What does the name 7for7 and the logo mean?

7for7 organizes speed dating events where participants get to meet 7 dates for 7 minutes each. The logo is a version of the twinned Mars symbol, a well known symbol of the LGBT movement, adapted to incorporate the name 7for7..

What is speed dating?

Speed dating is a dating system designed to encourage singles to meet a large number of other singles in a short space of time. Its origins are credited to a Jewish rabbi who wanted to help Jewish singles meet other Jewish singles. The first speed dating event was held in a café in Beverly Hills in 1998.

Since then, speed dating has become very popular and is often used to target niche demographic groups, among them LGBT people.

Why speed dating? Why 7for7?

We originally conceived 7for7 as a personal project because we experienced problems ourselves finding good dates within the gay community. There is no gay equivalent of "Lunch Actually" or "It's Just Lunch!" in Singapore. In particular, because we are time-pressed professionals, we wanted there to be a speed dating service because that seemed like the most efficient way to meet a large number of relationship-oriented people in the shortest amount of time.

If you share a similar sentiment, then speed dating may be for you.

As to why 7for7? Well, if there was a similar service operating, we would not have felt the need to set one up ourselves (pun unintended!).

That said, as the project developed over time, the importance of executing the project well became paramount, over and above the prospect of meeting new dates ourselves. We are confident that with our organizational skills, we can hold events that all our participants will enjoy.

How does speed dating at 7for7 work?

At each speed dating event at 7for7, we invite a group of 20 gay men to participate.

During registration, we ask our participants to provide their age as well as information on their activities and interests. As best as we can, we then attempt to match each participant by age and interests to 7 other participants.

On the day of the event, every participant will be seated at a designated table for two. Each participant will also receive a program sheet with instructions indicating whether he is a ‘stationary’ participant or a ‘moving’ participant.

At the start of the event, each participant will have 7 minutes to have a conversation with his seating partner.

After 7 minutes have elapsed, we will ring a bell. At this point, the moving participants will rotate to the next seating table to have a new 7-minute conversation with their next date. The order of rotation will be indicated on the program sheet. The stationary participants will remain seated.

The process repeats so that each participant will have the opportunity to meet 7 other participants in intimate conversation.

At the conclusion of the 7 dates, there will be a free and easy singles mixer where everyone is free to meet and talk to everyone else.

On the program sheet, there will be the names of all 20 participants at the event. Before leaving, each participant indicates on the program sheet which of the other participants they would like to meet again.

7for7 collects these program sheets at the end of the event and collates the information. We then email all participants who mutually want to meet each other again their contact information.

And then you take it from there. =)

Why are there 20 participants in each event but only 7 dates per participant? Why not 10 dates per participant?

Although most participants at speed dating events are motivated to meet many new people at a single event, we felt that more than 7 dates might be too overwhelming for some participants.

In addition, we wanted a balance between speed dating and a casual singles mixer. 7 dates seemed like a good compromise for an event projected to last a little over 2 hours.

Having a full complement of 10 dates out of 10 pairs of participants would also constrain the seating arrangements considerably in the event that some participants already know each other (see question 8). We chose 7 dates to provide ourselves a buffer in managing seating arrangements.

Finally, 7 dates fits conceptually with the name and logo of 7for7.

Is there an age limit for participation?

When we first launched, we restricted participation to between the ages of 28 and 40. This was because we were concerned that too wide a divergence in ages would make it difficult to create matches between participants.

However, due to interest from participants outside this age bracket, we've decided to remove this age limitation.

If you have previously registered with us, do rest assured that we will still endeavor to pair you with participants who are closer in age to yourself. However, as a result of the relaxation of the age limits, participants will now come from all ages. We hope all participants respect the inclusive nature of the event such that participants of all ages can meet in a convivial, casual setting.

What do I talk about during the event?

Anything you like!

However, if you are at a loss for conversation topics, we have printed suggested conversation topics on the placeholders on each table.

We do however request that participants refrain from asking for each other’s contact information during the 7 dates. This will help to raise the comfort level of meeting several new people in a short space of time during the event.

And after all, that’s what we’re here for! To exchange contact information on your behalf. =)

What if I’m seated with someone I already know?

This was an issue that we anticipated when we first conceived this project. Given how small the LGBT community is, there’s certainly some likelihood of meeting someone at the event you already know from a different context.

Prior to the event, we will circulate a list of names of participants to all participants. Just indicate whom you do not wish to speed date and we’ll take care of the seating arrangements.

We can’t guarantee that you’ll see 19 new faces during each event, but we’ll try our best so that for the 7 speed dates at least, you will meet someone you have not speed dated before.

Where and when do events take place?

Events will generally be held on weekday evenings at suitable restaurants and cafes in the CBD area. All venues will be gay-friendly. Indeed, some selected venues will be gay-owned and gay-operated establishments.

However, because of the relatively small number of participants, we cannot guarantee that the venues will close to regular clientele and that the event will be a private one. All participants should be comfortable being seen in public at a gay speed dating event.

There is no regular schedule of events. Because the organizers of 7for7 are doing this as a personal project rather than as a for-profit business, events will be held on an ad hoc basis and publicized periodically.

Should there be sufficient demand however, we anticipate holding one event every month.

How long is an entire event? What's the typical event schedule like?

A typical event would run about 2 hours and follow the schedule below:

Registration 1945 - 1955 h
Introduction and Instructions 1955 - 2000 h
Speed Dating 2000 - 2050 h
Closing Announcements 2050 - 2055 h
Singles Mixer 2055 - 2200 h

How much does attending an event cost?

We charge a fee of $25 per participant per event. 7for7 is run as a personal project rather than as a business, so the bulk of the fee is used primarily to cover our costs. A large part of the fee also goes toward covering the cost of refreshments to be provided during the event. This also helps us to build goodwill with the restaurant/cafe owners who have been gracious enough to permit us to use their premises as an event venue.

Payment is through electronic funds transfer, details of which will be provided during event registration.

No refunds are available once registration is confirmed. If you are unable to attend the event subsequent to registration, we appreciate the courtesy of informing us prior to the commencement of the event. This will permit us to reconfigure the seating arrangements so that there will be no ‘missing’ dates during the event.

By notifying us early, we will be happy to invite your participation in future events.

I’m sold! How do I sign up!

First, register with us here.

Approximately 3-4 weeks before a scheduled event, we will publicize the event through our mailing list as well as on this blog. You can either subscribe to our mailing list or to our RSS feed to receive automatic notifications. You may also follow us on Twitter Follow @SevenForseven1

Registration for each event is done through a Google Form similar to site registration.

Submitting the registration form DOES NOT confirm your registration.

Because of capacity constraints (20 participants per event), registration is on a first come first served basis, unless otherwise stated.

If you are among the 20 selected participants, we will contact you subsequently with payment advice. Only after we have received payment will we confirm your registration. In the event that the event is cancelled because there are too few participants registered, we will refund the payment in full.

If you submitted the registration form but were unsuccessful in registering for the forthcoming event, we will prioritize your registration at the next event whenever it is held. We will contact you before general registration opens for the next event to check if you might still be interested in attending.

I have other questions...

If you have questions that weren’t addressed, please email us at 747speeddating[at]gmail[dot]com.