The service debuted with the name "Cheek'd". Founder Lori Cheek appeared on the television program, [[Shark Tank]] in February 2014, but did not succeed in obtaining funding from any of the five entrepreneur/investors to whom she pitched Cheek'd to on the showjudges. She said that sheCheek’d only had 1000 subscribers to her service at that time.<ref name="shark" />
===Business card model===
Cheek'd offered two user plans, paid and free. For $25, subscribers got a set of 50 [[business cards]] that could be given out once someone caught their eye.<ref name=trends>{{cite news |author= |coauthors= |title=Latest dating trends include Web-based calling cards and GPS-powered apps|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/latest-dating-trends-include-web-based-calling-cards-gps-powered-apps-article-1.202481 |work=[[New York Daily News]] |date=July 23, 2010 |accessdate=2010-08-15 | first=Paulina | last=Reso}}</ref> Each card had a phrase, an online code, and a URL to the subscriber's account at the website.<ref name=trends/><ref name=architect>{{cite news |title=The New Dating Tools: A Card and a Wink |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/22/fashion/22date.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=July 21, 2010 |accessdate=2010-07-23 }}</ref> Recipients of the cards could then look up the giver’s profile of the user with the information provided on the card.<ref>{{cite news|author=Jenny Block |title=Fox on Sex: The Art of Flirting|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,598671,00.html|accessdate=2010-08-14|publisher=Fox News|date=August 5, 2010}}</ref> In addition to the one-time cost of thepurchasing cards, there was a $9.95 monthly membership fee.<ref name="shark">{{cite web|last1=Taylor|first1=Jordyn|title=Tech CEO Loses on ‘Shark Tank’, Is Visited by On-Set Therapist|url=http://observer.com/2014/03/tech-ceo-loses-on-shark-tank-is-visited-by-on-set-therapist/|website=Observer|accessdate=22 May 2018|date=3 March 2014}}</ref>
If users chose the free plan, they did not pay a monthly subscription fee nor did they buy business cards. Instead, they would download the Cheekd app for free, and hand out virtual cards to any appealing strangers that were nearby.<ref name="shark" />
===Smartphone app===
In 2015, the service's name changed from the original "Cheek'd" to "Cheekd". The new app usesused Bluetooth technology to send alerts toalert users whenever a compatible user iswas within a 30-foot radius, instead of using business cards.<ref name="observer">{{cite web|last1=Taylor|first1=Jordyn|title=After Brutal ‘Shark Tank’ Rejection, Tech CEO Reinvents Her Dating Business|url=http://observer.com/2015/02/after-brutal-shark-tank-rejection-tech-ceo-reinvents-her-dating-business/|website=Observer|accessdate=22 May 2018|date=25 February 2015}}</ref>
