This year I had the opportunity to attend my first ever professional conference, the 8th Annual Matchmaker Alliance Conference, in St. George, Utah. When Maria Avgitidis, CEO of Agape Match (my boss), announced that I will be attending in the conference, I was thrilled. I knew I would be able to interact with people from the matchmaking industry, and better understand my peers and industry.
As the Community Manager at Agape Match, my job is to help support the matchmakers and call in potential matches for our VIP Clients. I also help coordinate the dates our clients go on and collect their date feedback. The date feedback is crucial to the matchmaking team as it helps calibrate the search for The One.
I attended the convention with my colleagues, Matchmaker Maria and Matchmaker Louie, and we had a blast! Spending the days listening to inspirational speakers talking about modern relationships exceeded my expectations. More specifically, our keynote speaker and clinical psychologist, Dr. Ramani, gave a presentation on narcissism and dating. She used real examples on how to deal with narcissists. This presentation was very informative and insightful for myself and my peers as we deal with different personalities. This information can help us make sense of red flags that sometimes we overlook. This helps our clients, of course, as we try to vet out toxic personalities and behaviors before our clients have a chance to meet them.
Of course, one of the most important parts of attending a conference is the networking bit. I connected with many people from the global matchmaking industry. Good to know in case any of our clients are interested in national or international matches!
The Matchmakers Conference is unique as it’s part conference, part retreat. This year, we were at Red Mountain Resort and hiked Zion National Park! This was truly an experience of a lifetime!
Photos do not give justice on how magical this place is. We hiked the trail overlooking the canyon where it lead you to a large pool surrounded by three sides of tall cliffs. During the hike, the matchmakers continued to share struggles and we all contributed experiences and creative solutions.
I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to people who have made the Matchmakers Alliance conference possible. I also want to say thank you to the professional matchmakers that shared their experiences and knowledge. I truly benefited from this fantastic event, and I look forward to the next one. Stay tuned!
