Country Dating owner Sarah Schmidt finds fame on Sunrise program

And when Channel 7's Sunrise breakfast program gave Sarah Schmidt's Country Dating business a hefty plug on air this morning, her website went wild.

"At one stage my website crashed I had so many enquiries," the local love expert exclaimed.

"I was like, 'Oh my Lord', I don't know where to start."

Mrs Schmidt's match-making agency was chosen for Sunrise weatherman Sam Mac's 'Plugapalooza' segment, which promotes small business operators doing it tough in lockdown.

She was up against a woman who does online cabaret singing for nursing homes and a business that grinds up crickets to put into protein chips.

"They were awesome," she gushed of her competition for the limelight.

But ultimately the "novelty" factor of the Jindera-based dating business proved too irresistible for producers.

Donning akubras and cringe-worthy country accents, the Sunrise crew - including hosts Natalie Barr and 'Kochie' (David Koch) in a cheesy mock-up date - hammed it up in a light-hearted and lengthy plug for the lucky business on Tuesday.

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"Countrydating.com.au might just have the match for you for the love of your life," Mac said during the live 'advertisement'.

"Romance guru" Mark Beretta added his own corny lines for Country Dating's prospective singles:

"Nicole is 51 from Wodonga and she shouldn't be single any longer; Deb is 60 from Batemans Bay, join her now for a chardonnay."

And Edwina Bartholomew chimed in with: "Matt's a beekeeper and that's a fact so let him be your honey trap!"

The mock-up received mixed reactions on Sunrise's own expansive social media site with some folk claiming the segment was cringe-worthy and completely without humour.

"This was a disgraceful parody, mocking what this lovely lady has no doubt spent her time and money on establishing for the good of others," one viewer wrote.

Others saw the funny side and took no offence: "Omg this was hilarious .I lived in the country .thank god i have a sense of humour."

It was all received with good-hearted grace by Mrs Schmidt who was absolutely delighted with her five minutes of fame on air.

"It was very tongue in cheek and let's be honest, it plugged the f**k out of my business," she laughed.

"At one stage I saw it had 14,000 views and 20 shares so it's huge exposure even though it was super cheesy."

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