The Facilitated Match Meeting: What to Expect and Why it’s Important
The facilitated match meeting is a unique offering on the Moxi Matching platform. At EM•POWER we aren’t matchmakers, we are match facilitators, because we don’t believe in being a gatekeeper or making important front-end decisions for you. Rather, our platform allows recipients to view profiles and request a facilitated match meeting. Once requested, we work to make the connection, and if everyone agrees it’s a potential match to explore, one of our EM•POWER staff members host a virtual match meeting to help break the ice and move conversation along, highlighting important considerations along the way. If it feels like a match, we take the next steps together. If it doesn’t, we support that process as well, understanding that sometimes it may take a bit of “dating” before finding the ideal fit.
Let’s break down the process:
WHEN TO REQUEST A MATCH MEETING
When exploring different profiles, many people say they “just have a feeling.” Sometimes people connect to photos, or a narrative. Sometimes there are certain specifics that are important, like what kind of relationship is desired, or geographical location. If it feels like there is enough in common to possibly be a good fit, that’s a good time to make the request. If you need to clarify a few things, just ask us! We are happy to gather additional information as needed. There is a $125 fee to the recipient, which helps to ensure that only serious inquiries are being made. There is no obligation to match after the meeting, just a commitment to seeing if it might work. If it doesn’t feel like an appropriate fit on the front-end, it’s ok for donors to decline the request to meet. Sometimes it’s better not to engage if one side is certain it doesn’t feel like a good fit.
HOW TO PREPARE
Participants are free to share as much or as little identifying information as they would like, so adjust your zoom settings/names accordingly. Prior to the match meeting we will send along some additional information (such as the medical/genetic questionnaire that our donors fill out) and encourage additional questions to be asked (through us) that might inform the match meeting. We also encourage participants to think about the kind of communication/relationship they are hoping for and what things feel important to know or clarify before moving forward. It is likely you will be asked about your fertility journey, lifestyle and extended family, and other questions about yourself and your feelings/conceptualizations around embryo donation.
ETIQUETTE AND EXPECTATIONS
One thing we ask is that honesty and respect are at the core of all communication through your embryo donation journey. We want people to be honest about who they are and what they are hoping for. We want people to understand that when a match meeting is requested, one party is eagerly awaiting a response, so being mindful and prompt with a response is appreciated and expected. Whether it’s a “let’s go” or a “no-go”, letting the EM•POWER team know your response to a request for a match meeting within 48 hours helps us respect the process for all participants.
We’re excited to offer this service and honored to be a part of your journey from the first date and beyond. And we are here to hold your hand through the process, wherever it might lead.