Though most people meet their dates at social organizations, in their daily life and work, or are introduced through friends or relatives, and took their dating from there, the dating agency industry emerged strongly, but discreetly, in the Western world after World War II, mostly catering for the 25–44 age group. Newspaper and magazine personal ads also became common as introduction services.

In the last five years, dating and courtship have seen changes due to online dating services and introduction services. Telecommunications and computer technologies have developed rapidly since around 1995, allowing people that are dating the use of home telephones with answering machines – mobile phones, web-based systems or by visiting a matchmaking agency to find prospective partners. "Pre-dates" can take place by telephone or online via instant messaging, e-mail, or even video communication. A disadvantage is that, with no initial personal interview by a traditional dating agency head, Internet daters are free to exaggerate or lie about their characteristics.

While the growing popularity of the Internet took some time, now one in five singles is said to look for love on the Web, either by joining single dating sites or searching for a dating agency which has led to a dramatic shift in dating patterns. In 2004 research in the United Kingdom suggests that there were around 150 introduction services there, and the market was growing at around 20 percent a year due to, first, the very low entry barriers to setting up a dating site, and secondly, the rising number of single people. However, even academic researchers find it impossible to find precise figures about crucial statistics, such as the ratio of people dating to the large number of inactive members (whom an agency will often wrongly claim as potential partners, leaving them 'on the books' long after they have left) and the overall ratio of men to women in an agency's membership. Academic research on traditional pre-Internet agencies suggests that most such agencies had far more men than women in their membership.

Traditionally, in many societies (including Western societies), in dating men were expected to fill the role of the pursuer. However, the anonymity of the Internet (as well as other factors) has allowed women to take on that role online. A recent study indicated that "women pay to contact men as often as the reverse, which is quite different from behavior in telephone-based dating system[s]" (from Wired magazine).
There is still plenty of room for a matchmaker to thrive, however, and only time will tell which industry wins out in the end.

An introduction agency we believe with good reason is the country's most successful dating agency is a success in London called Drawing Down The Moon. It began in 1984 in a bookshop near the British Museum, bringing together people from the local business, professional and creative communities.

The many success stories have encouraged the staff to extend their dating agency in separate premises and we now have expanded into offices in Adam and Eve Mews, Kensington