Sweetsecond.com is a social networking site geared towards divorces singles. The site allows for users to post pictures, write personal blogs and connect with other divorcees. That all sounds all fine and dandy, because we all know there are millions upon millions of divorcees. Right?

The stats don’t lie. 50% of all American marriages will end in divorce. Does this mean that you, your friends and family have no chance at all of a lasting marriage? Who knows? But many of the leading marriage experts will tell you that the divorce rate is actually closer to 40% and that number tends to decline that older the spouses are when they get married. The 50% divorce rate that we hear so much about tends to be for a young couple marrying for the first time, when referring to these younger couples some analyst say the rate is even as high as 60%. What about the rest of the marrying population? Like your parents who have been married for 30, 40 or 50 years.

Studies show us that college grads are also less likely than others to get a divorce. College grads also tend to make more than non-grads, so it seems that education and income level tend to play a role in determining whether the marriage will last. Length of marriage is very important as most divorces occur during the first few years of marriage. Author James Mills talks about the “Two Year Itch”, which he states that 1 in 10 couples will split after 24 months of marriage. So based on Mill’s “two year itch” theory, the longer a couple stays married the less likely a divorce will occur. This is probably the reason your parents marriage of 40 years isn’t likely to end anytime soon.

What about kids? Couples who have kids divorce less than couples without children. This shows that couples are willing to stay in a bad relationship just for the sake of their children.

The mythical 50% divorce rate can be even more deceiving when the number of actual divorces is broken down by race. White Americans have the highest rate among the races, while Asian-Americans have the lowest. The divorce rate of Asian-Americans is nowhere near the 50% rate. In fact 8 out of 10 Asian-American children in the United States live with both parents, a rate than significantly higher than other ethnic group.

What do all of these stats amount to? What does all of this information mean? Well first and foremost the 50% divorce rate doesn’t exactly apply to everyone. This is especially true if you are a minority or have a college degree or decide to get married a little later in life. And even after all of this, there’s always Sweetsecond.com.

Let me understand something. There are 100% completely free dating and networking sites on the web, yet people are still paying Eharmony.com, Match.com, True.com and the countless others to help them find friends, love or possibly even marriage. What some people have realized is that there are free dating sites on the web right now that are just as good as the paid ones and in some cases even better. Take Plentyoffish.com for example, plentyoffish started off in Canada but has recent become a player in the United States market. With millions of registered users, the likelihood of finding that special someone is just as good on plentyoffish as there are on Match.com. Plus it’s free! If you don’t like the feel of plentyoffish, users can try Bookofmatches.com. Bookofmatches offer real-time email, forums, questionnaires and all the other features would find on Eharmony or Match. Plus it’s free!

There are even free niche dating sites that cater to the specific interest. For example Sweetsecond.com is a new networking site that is geared towards to divorced singles. Sweetsecond allows for its registered users to post pictures, create a personal blog and has all the other features of a paid site. Oh yeah did I mention it is free.

These are just a few of the many free dating/networking sites that are on the web. Here is a list of some others:

Friendfinder.com

Connectingsingles.com

What are some of the drawbacks of using a free site as opposed to a paid site? Well there is the fact that you don’t pay anything, but if you consider that a drawback then you have some issues that need to be worked out.

So now the question that you have to ask yourself is. Why Pay?

Now as I write this I do not use the term “over 40-crowd” in a negative way.  C’mon its 2007, age really isn’t that big of a deal anymore.  Especially in these modern times were people are getting married later, having kids later and settling on a career later.  Like I said being over 40 isn’t really a big deal.  The one problem seems to be with dating.  People over the age of 40 are having trouble finding that special someone.  Maybe it’s because they’ve been out of the “game” too long or they don’t have the time to look for a date.

Whatever the reason maybe, there are a number of websites that are geared towards the older, more mature market.  For instance there is Sweetsecond.com a site that is dedicated to helping divorced singles connect with each other.  The site is completely free and offers many of the same features as the larger subscription based sites.  Sweetsecond is a perfect for the over 40 crowd because, divorcees tend to be a little older and more mature than the members on a site such as Match.com or Lavalife.com.  

Another site that may help the 40 plus crowd is Theuniversityofdating.com; the site has been featured in many news publications as well as on MSNBC and the Today Show.  Universityofdating.com offers courses, tips and advice on how to date; whether it’s your 2^nd, 3^rd or 4^th time around.  It offers do’s and don’ts for dating after the age of 45 and members can even get one on one coaching from the dating diva Deanna Frazier. 

For those of you out there that are really serious of about being in a relationship there is Eharmony.com.  Eharmony differs from the other big sites because they tend to focus more on providing long lasting relationships rather than quick fun casual dates.  Eharmony claims more marriages than any other site because of their Compatibility Matching System which narrows the field for millions to a select few who share the same levels of compatibility.  The site has accounted for more than 6,000 marriages since 2001.  Eharmony’s test has 29 dimensions and is based on categories like humor, character, intellect, passion and spiritual beliefs.  Once the possible members have been narrowed down, Eharmony will actually guide its members through the process of getting to know each and eventually meeting. 
            As with other dating sites Eharmony gives users the opportunity to choose from a variety of membership options.  The one month subscription cost $49.95; the three month is $99.95, $149.95 for a six month subscription and $249.95 for an entire year of membership.
So whether you are looking just to talk to someone (Sweetsecond.com), need dating tips (Universityofdating.com) or are ready to find that special someone (Eharmony.com), there is a site out there for the over 40-crowd.  Besides 40 is the new 30.

America’s love affair with the Internet continues to bear fruit and multiply in the form of a new social networking site targeting divorced U.S. residents called SweetSecond (www.SweetSecond.com). And after surviving the financial workout that is the divorce process, the newly singled may be comforted to know that a SweetSecond.com membership is free.

“There are a number of dating-related social networking sites that target members based on race, religion, politics and sexual orientation. SweetSecond is the first to cater to 30+ aged divorced individuals,” Josh Alexander CEO of SweetSecond.com said. According to the last-reported U.S. divorce rate provided by the National Center for Health Statistics, there are 38% divorces per capita per year in the United States. The rate has steadily hovered around 40% over past last decade.   “The best estimates claim that there are around 23 million divorced singles living in the United States. At SweetSecond we believe that another divorced single can best understand and accept the sometimes complicated lifestyle of a potential mate—issues that arise when children are involved for example, and dealing with holidays and custody issues,” Alexander stated.Becoming a member of SweetSecond.com is fast and easy. Visitors fill out one simple form. Once the registration process is complete, members may build an online profile that includes the ability to upload up to ten images to their personal page. Members may contact one another via email, send ecards, blog and share stories about their “new life” with other divorced individuals in a special forum. “Movies like Must Love Dogs and You’ve Got Mail illustrate that older Americans have now embraced the Internet in many ways—especially as a viable way to meet Mr. or Ms. Right,” Alexander added. “The phrase ‘geographically undesirable’ is no longer a barrier to initiating or maintaining a relationship. As individuals learn about each other through the online community, they arrange for ‘get to know you better’ weekends or weeklong trips. For the person who is divorced, and may not have a very flexible schedule, an online community is a great way to ‘screen’ someone without a huge time investment.”