Online Dating In The New Normal Era: Why I Think Bumble Will The Be The Next Big Thing
While the whole world was working from home, a sect of youngsters was dating from home too. The trend evidently created a paradigm shift in dating habits.
“Jaan pehchaan ho…jeena aasan ho…”
Start Something Epic!
Whoo!
Though I loved the Tinder campaign but did it start anything epic?
In a country like India, where the concepts of ‘consent’, ‘limits’ and ‘right & wrong approach’ are so blurry, and dating is taboo; Tinder, as a dating platform is not the kind of platform women would prefer! Strictly my personal opinion but for the next 10 mins of your read, I would love to highlight some stark facts.
The pandemic, along with the other things, has changed the entire scenario and game for the online dating sector as well.
Tinder, which made its ‘Passport’ feature free for all, saw the highest number of swipes on March 29, 2020, at 3 million.
Priyanka Chopra backed Bumble saw a 25% increase in average messages sent during the initial period of social distancing (13–22 March 2020).
OkCupid is also among the many online dating apps to have witnessed an increase in usage by 10% worldwide since March 2020.
(Source- Business Insider)
Now, as per figures, all the leading dating platforms in the country did well during the lockdown. In fact, the home-grown app Aisle sees 3 million installs worldwide, too.
But amongst the top ones, Bumble is the kind of online dating platform, I would suggest my dear ones to use, not to mention the girls specifically.
(Source- PCMAG.com)
Now, clearly, more pros and fewer cons win the hearts of strong, independent women of the country who are not conventional in their idea of choosing a friend, a partner in their life yet are completely aware of their rights and safety.
There are other reasons to add on.
1) Tinder is generally and widely known for not dating but for what we call- “hookups”
2) Labelling is a big issue yet we tend to label everything, judging on the first go if things don’t work in our way
3) Just like the other segments such as voting, birth, population; the gender ratio on Tinder is pretty bad
4) Once you are in, people could stalk you. There are innumerable cases reported
“Online dating is still a pretty alien concept in India as opposed to other countries and it will take some time for the people to change their thinking about it. Till that happens, I guess we all just have to put extra efforts into finding our “the one” on Tinder or leave all hopes of Tinder working out for us altogether!”- Sneha Barua (ED Times)
(Source- ED Times and Quartz India)
(Source- Mashable India)
While searching for the same, came across a healthy conversation on Quora. Some, valid arguments there
https://www.quora.com/Why-doesn%E2%80%99t-Tinder-work-in-India
Now, let’s talk about Bumble. So, from a broader perspective, Bumble as a dating app, not only gives women a chance to take the lead considering the safety scenario, it also lets you make friends as per your preferences and likes. Gender positivity is its core objective.
“Bumble is an app whose time has come. While Tinder started it all, Bumble brought gender positivity to it all. When women make the first move, it means the world has come a full circle,”- Brand strategist and founder Harish Bijoor.
· Bumble allows only women to make the first move in heterosexual matches.
· Along with this, the platform is focusing on women’s safety.
“Bumble today is more than a dating app. Bumble Bizz for instance offers those opportunities that women have craved for a while,” added Bijoor.
“During our research, we heard from potential users that they wanted us to give them a safer and more comfortable environment. So, we launched in India with a feature that allows women to show only their initials and not full name to avoid online stalking and harassment.
Another feature is the private detector which is an in-app feature that does not allow sharing of unsolicited rude images without the other person’s consent. In case such a photo is sent, it will be blurred until the other person accepts it. There’s also an option to block the photo and also the person,” — Priti Joshi, VP, Bumble India.
While the online dating scene is hot in India, Indians are looking for more than romantic relationships online. Indian users are excited about social networking platforms. They are getting on Bumble to connect for platonic dates as well as professional relationships,” she added.
Sharing an interesting data, Joshi, said: “Women in India continue to be empowered and are making the first move. They made their first move six million times on Bumble and are sending two times the messages when compared to women in the rest of the world. Also, women in India are making connections in all aspects of life. So, we see 40 percent of women in India use more than one mode on Bumble.”
(Source- Money Control)
Bumble offers three modes for the user-base
1) Bumble date for romantic bonds
2) Bumble BFF for friendships
3) Bumble Bizz to build a professional network
In India, Bumble has reportedly crossed over 4 million users during the lockdown period.
With women-first features, Bumble has witnessed women making the first move over 15 million times. In comparison to women users globally, women in India are sending twice the number of messages on Bumble. Also, 32% of women users in India use more than one mode on Bumble. In addition to dating, Bumble offers ‘BFF’ and ‘Bizz’ modes as well.
Bumble also conducted a survey among its users on dating during Covid-19. The survey revealed that 57% of users find online dating more important than before. 47% of users have experienced a good online dating experience. Interestingly, 62% of users want to find a partner so they don’t have to go through another pandemic alone.
(Source- Hindustan Times)
As a marketing person, I would say the communication and advertising of Bumble add to its favourability. It’s very positive.
I won’t disagree that Tinder’s social game isn’t strong or for that matter, OK Cupid’s latest campaign ‘Love is…’ isn’t great but Bumble is a perfect fit for the new age mindset of Millennials and Gen Z.
Bumble’s #EqualNotLoose according to me and for a lot of industry experts was an amazing campaign.
“Bumble’s approach is interesting because they have opened up the sphere of online dating (which hasn’t taken off in India yet) to beyond dating and by putting women at the center they have tried to remove the misconception of women on dating apps”- Kaizad Pardiwala, President & Chief Operating Officer, The 120 Media Collective
“Given the current scenario, I think Bumble’s campaign may be the most effective approach”- Naresh Gupta, CSO, Managing Partner, Bang In The Middle
(Source- Social Samosa)
Last but not the least, even if I talk about UI/UX, the brand colors of Bumble are quite friendly and eye-catchy in comparison to Tinder and OK Cupid.
It’s more Indian- bright yellow- the color of joy, positivity; cheerful lively hue paving way for millions of happy faces.
I personally feel Bumble is way more engaging than Tinder and Ok Cupid- s of the dating world.
Tinder is undoubtedly fabulous in many developed countries across the globe but Bumble is definitely tapping on to culture, society rules, and on-going and hopefully glorious in the coming future, the wave of equality; in India.
Let’s see how this prediction of mine unfolds in the years to come!
