The Connected Nation Blog: Technology Can Help Make Valentine's Day Extra Special

Monday, February 14, 2011

Technology Can Help Make Valentine's Day Extra Special

By Mandy Hale
Public Relations Specialist, Connected Tennessee

With modern technology, there is literally no shortage of ways to make Valentine’s Day an affair to remember. From ordering flowers online to booking reservations to navigating your way through the virtual Tiffany’s rather than having to visit the actual store, saying iLoveYou has become as easy as the click of a button.

Several free iPhone apps are available to make connecting with your significant other as simple and convenient as connecting to the World Wide Web:

“Be Mine Lite” – Send your Valentine a virtual card that you created with this free app. Choose different animations and backgrounds to show your adoration.
“Valentine Radio” – Listen to 20+ different radio stations to get your fix of slow jams, soft rock, or even Barry White.
“Tiffany & Co. Engagement Ring Finder” – Did he propose? Is he going to buy you a Tiffany’s ring? Well, not only are you incredibly lucky, but there’s an app for you to pick out your dream ring.
Yelp also has an app of its own for all smartphones. Don’t worry about waiting for a table at your favorite restaurant on your special night, book your dinner reservation with Yelp’s mobile app.

And if you happen to be single this Valentine’s Day, never fear! Someone on the other end of your Internet connection might be holding the key to your heart.

As the executive director for the Hickman County Economic Development Association, Daryl Phillips discovered a few years ago that high-speed Internet can be handier than speed dating when it comes to meeting your “Match.”

While Daryl is a champion for expanding broadband technology to all corners of his county … it’s not just for the reasons one might think. Daryl certainly recognizes the impact broadband can have on the economic success of Hickman County, he has also witnessed firsthand the profound impact broadband can have on more personal aspects of life. More specifically, on matters of the heart.

Back in 2001, Daryl found that with a busy career and an even busier schedule, he just didn’t have the time to meet eligible, quality romantic prospects. So he decided to give the wildly popular matchmaking site Match.com a try. At the same time Gayle Shay, associate professor at Vanderbilt University's Blair School of Music and director of Vanderbilt Opera Theatre, was also trying her luck at the online dating game. The couple met online, began e-mailing back on forth, and went out on their first date on January 12, 2002. By June of 2003 they were married and went on to live happily ever after … right? Isn’t that how it usually happens? In this high-tech couple’s case, there was a little more to it than that!

Wanting an engagement ring with a history, Gayle set out to locate the perfect ring online. And locate it she did, on Ebay.com! She also used an Internet search for her
wedding dress and wound up buying it online, too.

So whether you’re single, taken, or somewhere in the middle this Valentine’s Day, let technology be the tie that binds and the one that finds; whether it’s finding the perfect restaurant, the perfect gift, or even the perfect love.