As the title suggests this is a new approach bumble and tinder are using to market their apps to students on college campuses. Dating Apps are partnering with fraternities in various universities (Oklahoma University, Tulane University and Northwestern University) and having them sign contracts, which ask that they align their house with either tinder or bumble.

When it comes to the parties, app companies are responsible for covering production costs and offering branded merchandise. Some frats are stretching the theme even further by requiring attendees to show their dating profiles at the door as a ticket into the party. The more attendees a frat can get signed up for tinder, the more cash bonuses they’re rewarded with. Overall, the goal with this content strategy is to receive guaranteed growth in tinder and bumble’s target demographics of 18 to 24 year olds.

Of course, the idea of a fraternity throwing a tinder or bumble themed party is not in the least bit intriguing or surprising to me. It strikes me as a kind of partnership that you’d expect to exist in today’s digital age.

When it comes to my thoughts regarding the potential effectiveness of employing such a strategy, I think there is little for tinder and bumble to gain, and the reason I say that has to do with how prevalent and widely used dating apps already are amongst college students.

Which begs the question, what would be the pay off in pushing dating apps on college students if many of them are already on dating apps? Perhaps the answer has nothing to do with dating apps trying convince people to sign up, but to convince current users to remain on their apps and keep users endlessly swiping.

To further explain, people often up and abandon a certain app if it’s not delivering any convenience in their lives. If not for this reason, then it is sometimes because the app has fulfilled some purpose at some point for the user, but not so much anymore, prompting them to uninstall the app.

Now, I may be speaking based off my own assumptions here, but I think when people are consistently sold the idea that an app has worked for others and continues to work for others, then it keeps them from uninstalling the app regardless of their experiences. I find this idea to be generally true when it comes to dating apps.

Therefore, having fraternities sponsor dating apps, and throw app-sponsored parties, makes for an interesting tactic as it gives Tinder and Bumble a large platform to further sell the idea that their apps are working for a large party of people.

Additionally, an ideal consumer for Tinder and Bumble is a dating app user who isn’t looking for anything serious or long-term. This is because in order for dating apps like Tinder and Bumble to truly thrive, “hookup culture” must flourish, as the more prominent hookup culture is, the more dating apps can profit off of it.

Therefore, it makes sense that they’re marketing their apps to young people and college students (tinderU) as opposed to people who are at the end of their 20s and early 30s. The latter is the more likely of the two age groups to want a steady partner rather than a series of short term flings.

https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/8/20/20814152/tinder-bumble-dating-apps-frat-parties-college

https://www.papermag.com/tinder-bumble-fraternities-2639838092.html

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