Global Love Report – August 4, 2021
A translated article by Pamela Stephanie
“If we’re talking about love, it’s a life-long journey,” said Zola Yoana in an interview with IDN Times. The woman better known as Zola is the founder of a matchmaking company called Heart Inc. At the company, she’s a matchmaker and a relationship coach for her clients.
1. The Impact of the pandemic on the development of the matchmaking business: it has tripled!
It has been 8 years since Zola founded Heart Inc. Now, the business has been relaunched with new branding and a new concept. “On July 11th, on my birthday, I rebranded Heart Inc by Zola Yoana. The concept has also changed,” she concluded.
There are a number of services that she manages, including matchmaking, relationship coaching, and image consulting. The thing that has changed from the new look of Heart Inc is the concept: which puts forward a person’s love journey. She said, “So, I don’t just help them find the right person. But I also support them so that they’re successful in their relationship in terms of fostering a healthy and intimate relationship.”
The matchmaking process itself underwent several changes due to the Covid-19 pandemic situation. Some clients postponed the dating process and did the “getting to know” session virtually.
Before doing any matchmaking activities, this 37-year-old woman usually has a live chat session with her clients to get to know them better. “I have to personally meet with my clients, I have to sit with them for at least one hour to get to know more about their personal life. What are their issues, what their previous love story was like, how their character is like, what the aim of their love life is,” she added.
However, this obstacle is not a big problem in the growth of her business. Zola admits that the pandemic has actually brought benefits to Heart Inc. She said, “during the pandemic, our business actually tripled. A lot of people chose to stay at home and be more careful with online dating where it’s not clear who the other person in.”
2. “Find a partner is part of life’s journey as well. We have to know what we are like and the kind of person that we want,” said Zola.
In the first three years of building Heart Inc, she realized that there was still a stigma attached to the process of matchmaking. This made a lot of people doubt the matchmaking activities that Zola does.
One of those things are that a lot of people think that people who look to a matchmaker for help are people who are desperate about their love life. Zola refutes this, saying, “In fact, you know what you want, that’s why you went to the matchmaker. That means that you don’t want to meet random people again. Desperate is when you know your standard but you lower that standard because you met someone.”
Over time, a lot of people are starting to become more accepting to the work that she does. The age range of her clients is younger now compared to when she first started her business. “In the past, my clients were, on average, 35 years old. The youngest client that I have right now is 27 years old,” she said.
To take part in the program offered by Heart Inc., potential clients can register on their official website. Then, the recruiting team will filter their profile. The second screening process will continue after the prospective clients meet with Zola. “After talking about all kinds of things then I offer them a membership that is suitable for them. Some are for a period of 6 months and also 1 year,” she said.
According to her, this matchmaking program that takes place globally needs to be filtered. Because there are some prospective clients who don’t understand that the concept of love takes time and process. “Finding a partner is part of life’s journey as well. We have to know what we are like and the kind of person that we want,” said Zola.
3. Zola studied at the Matchmaking Institute for a year
Zola studied at the Matchmaking Institute for a year. While studying there, Zola learned about how to build a matchmaking business and human relations theories. “Speaking about matchmaking, it’s all about intuition, it’s an art. So, it’s like a calling, it’s about helping people, right. That’s why I call it a happiness business,” she said.
This woman with a hobby of traveling is the only certified matchmaker in Indonesia. She has also studied Science-based relationship coaching. Zola’s relationship coach activities has a personal concept. Because according to her, each person has a different relationship problem.
From her matchmaking and coaching activities, Zola admits that she is more grateful in living her life. He said, “Every time I had a problem, but when I hear clients sharing their personal life, I realize that there are a lot more problems that other people out there are experiencing.”
The impact felt by her own clients also differs, according to Zola, one of which is to create hope. She said that in the matchmaking process, clients can develop their own personal growth.
For Zola, the problem of love is not something that can be learned through theory alone. “We don’t learn about love at school, right. If you join Heart Inc, it’s not only about matching, but it’s about your life journey,” she concluded.
4. This is the difference between the matchmaking process at Heart Inc and online dating
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the problem of finding a partner is a challenge for some people. According to Zola, one of the underlying things is that there a lack of opportunity and time to meet someone. That’s why the getting to know process is mostly done online.
According Zola, there are a few significant differences between Heart Inc’s matchmaking process and online dating apps. The first concerns the security of the user’s profile.
“Through an application, you create your own profile, you can see and talk to anyone. However there’s no screening process at all. So, it’s possible that it’s a false profile,” she said. She emphasized that not all dating applications have a negative impact on its users but caution is needed to go through all the processes.
As explained in the previous point, in the services offered by Heart Inc, there are two screening processes that each potential client have to go through. The screening process and background check is done in a confidential or closed manner. “If it’s online dating, it’s like you’re finding a date. Meanwhile, with my service, it’s like you’re finding the one,” she added.”
During the 8 years of building the business Zola has never given a guarantee that her clients will definitely marry or date. However, she makes sure that each client meets with someone who fits their profile and has the same core values.
Zola feels that there are many unique matchmaking experiences that she has gone through. But, in all of the events, she’s happiest when she matches her client with someone who is outside of their criteria. “They think that it’s not possible with someone of this type, but actually it’s more suitable. Because I can see that they will be a suitable couple,” she added.
5. The turning point of Zola’s life began at the age of 36. She learned that showing a vulnerable side isn’t a sign of weakness.
Zola’s birthday is on 11th of July 1984. This woman whose zodiac is Cancer admitted that she experienced a turning point on her 36th birthday, in 2020. “So, when someone says life begins at 40, my life began at 36,” she said with a chuckle.
At that time, Zola realized that becoming vulnerable or showing a fragile side is a valuable thing. As someone who works in the matchmaking industry, she confessed that she is familiar with all the theories on love and romance. However, she failed in directly implementing the intimate side.
“Because when I met my current partner, it was then that I learned about vulnerability. I felt a deep connection with myself and my partner. So, I can create a deep emotional intimacy,” she said.
This is the basis for Heart Inc’s re-branding process. She revealed, “when I went through that, that is also what I’m offering to my coaching. I’m focusing more on that. How to build intimacy and how to be vulnerable.”
To read the full article (in Bahasa Indonesia), please click here.
Original article written by IDN News.
(Image source: Unsplash, Gema Saputera)
