Previously I wrote about Salamz, a Muslim matrimonial app. This time, let me present to you Mat & Minah, an app which is very similar to what Salamz is trying to do – helping Muslim singles find their ideal match. Going by the name, the app seems to target Malays exclusively.
To use the app, you’ll have to log in using Facebook, which also means that if you don’t use Facebook (like me) then this app is no good for you. But assuming that 99% of Internet-using people have a Facebook account, you can easily log in and use this app. Once you are logged in, this app will scan your Facebook contacts and connect you with them automatically.
Once you know who else is on this platform, you can zero in and go after him or her with all guns blazing.
You can begin by ‘liking’ profiles of people you’re interested in to express your initial interest. One good feature of this app is that only couples who have mutually ‘liked’ each other will be able to have a chat. But for the impatient and curious, there is a paid feature called Peek & Seek, which allows you to see who has ‘liked’ your profile and get the “unfair advantage”, according to the company.
Peek & Seek will cost you US$1.99 for a week’s worth, US$9.99 for a month, and US$49.99 for a year. With the temptation to know who ‘liked’ his/her profile, this app almost seems useless without this service, which I personally think is a nice way to make the venture profitable.
I understand if there are some who may not totally ‘get’ this video. But trust me, most of the people from the Malay community will.
The purpose of this app is to help you marry and settle down. In Malaysia, like in many other Asian Muslim countries, traditional matchmaking is often left at the hands of the parents. With the times changing, the younger generation is looking forward to choosing a mate for themselves. This is the exact element that Mat & Minah wishes to target.
They want to help people to get to know their potential matches, and with the Peek & Seek feature, to know the potential candidates who have already expressed an interest in them. They may even bring its matchmaking service up a notch by organising offline activities, such as talks, counsellings and gatherings soon.
However, like I said in case of Salamz, Mat & Minah also suffers from the initial bottleneck of social networking sites: “Why should I use it if my friend is not there?” In fact, their iTunes page says: “We have not received enough ratings to display an average for the current version of this application.”
However, as it is launched only last month, we can not write this app off yet, especially not when Singapore’s Malay percentage is rising steadily. With the presence of Paktor, another dating app that offers similar service with a user base in millions, the app definitely has competition in the field. However, we can expect Mat & Minah to make an impression with the right kind of endorsement, publicity, and user feedback. Apps for matchmaking or dating purposes are becoming a sensational hit nowadays. I guess more people are going all out to look for love.
The app is the brainchild of Zuraimie Ismail, who was encouraged to build this app when he realised the need for such a service. His company, Zoosware, has also built other Muslim-centric apps like Skimly, My Doas, Iqra, CheApp, and BragBoard amongst others. Presently this app is only available on Apple iOS.