Sometimes, navigating the often frustrating world of dating takes a little intervention. Two UNLV graduates are taking different approaches to helping their clients find love.
Dallisa Hocking
'03 BA Communication Studies
Founder of
Day job
Director of alumni and constituent relations at the Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University, where colleagues helped her develop her business plan. "Launching a company has not been great for my insomnia, but sometimes my best ideas are born in the middle of the night."
Her niche
The "matchmaking" part involves pairing a client with the right FrogKisser advisor. The advisors work one-on-one with clients, helping them find the own dating approaches and improve their presentation online and in person. "It's really not about age or other demographics, but instead about where a person is in their life and their desire to find love."
Her start
It was a natural outgrowth of her career in promoting institutional engagement, and she was frustrated by her own online dating experiences. "I began to realize that most online daters didn't understand their personal brand, and were therefore not getting the attention or interaction they wanted. It was time to take dating back to basics and blend the technology and breadth of online dating with personal branding that is both authentic and appealing."
Dating Advice
It comes down to figuring out your non-negotiables and when to be flexible. "It is important to take time for self-reflection and to keep your heart open ... You have to understand that you are worthy of love and that it's okay to have standards and not settle."
Lauren Pe?a
'04 BA Communication Studies and '07 JD
Co-founder of
Day job
A Las Vegas bankruptcy attorney. She draws a distinct line between her two vocations. She wakes up at 5 a.m. to work on DuoVegas for a couple hours, reaching out to clients, blogging, and maintaining the website, and then tends to it again in the evenings.
Her niche
A matchmaking service for affluent professionals who want to avoid the online grind. Her male clients pay for the service; women join for free after a vetting process. One matched couple plans to marry in May, a first for Project Duo.
Her start
Pe?a has had a knack for pairing up friends since high school; her co-founder Steven Peralta encouraged her to turn the hobby into a profession. In 2014, she gained certification from the Matchmaking Institute and follows the research of Rutgers professor Helen Fisher on personality types. "[Matchmaking] was completely for fun and a labor of love," she said. "I realized there was a market for it. It just snowballed from there."
Biggest challenge
Pe?a's world comes with its share of unrealistic expectations. Wealthy but unhealthy males looking for fit and active 24-year-olds. A woman who won't date a guy who drives a Ford. Another woman who won't go near a man shorter than 5 foot 11 inches tall. "In the beginning, Steven and I were like 'Everybody wants love' ... We just wanted to help as many people not be lonely as possible. Now we are able to see a lot quicker who is really looking for a relationship and who is [not]."
