Issue #48: It's Dating App Season

Looking at two (quite different) dating app campaigns.

Hi friends – first of all, I’m thinking of everyone in the LA area affected by the fires this week. It’s so scary and heartbreaking. ❤️‍🩹

I spoke with

Henry Galicich

for an issue of

Brandscape

on Tuesday and it was super fun. You can read about my job at Mailchimp, why I started Brand Baby, my favorite marketing moment of 2024, and more. Thank you for the feature, Henry!

Caroline Albro on 2025 brand marketing trends

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It’s Dating App Season 💘

So it’s the new year, which is typically a time when a lot of people are dating. Maybe you set a new year’s resolution to go on ten dates in 2025, maybe you were tired of family members asking you if you’re seeing anyone over the holidays, or maybe you’re dedicated to finding a valentine by February 14th.

So it makes sense that some of the leading dating apps in the market have launched new marketing campaigns over the past few weeks. This is their time to shine! Today, I’m comparing two new campaigns with very different strategies from two dating apps: Bumble and Hinge.

Bumble

Let’s start with Bumble. Recently, Bumble announced a year-long content series where they’ll be sharing celebrity profiles and editorial content in collaboration with the creative director and editor-in-chief of Interview Magazine. Their first star of the series is the iconic Amelia Dimoldenberg, host of Chicken Shop Date and viral celebrity interviewer.

bumble

A post shared by @bumble

Okay, backing up a bit… About a year ago, I wrote about how dating apps are not as beloved as they once were. Gen Z and Gen Alpha are now craving old-school, IRL ways of finding romantic partners (which harkens back to some of my 2025 predictions around the resurgence of run clubs and other community groups.) So in the wake of our collective disillusionment with dating apps, I think that Bumble is making some smart moves here – by providing valuable, entertaining lifestyle content around dating and culture, they’re not only distinguishing themselves from other dating apps, but also establishing an additional value prop beyond their digital swipe-right-swipe-left dating tool. Honestly, I would love to see them continue to grow their content offerings, maybe open an in-house production agency, and create a series about dating and relationships in partnership with Netflix or HBO.

Bumble is also creating aspirational content by working with celebrities and influencers who appeal to younger generations – generations that likely make up a majority of Bumble’s target audience. And specifically with Amelia, Bumble has aligned the brand with someone who we all associate with dating and who we all admire for her quirky sense of confidence.

bumble

A post shared by @bumble

I’m curious to see who Bumble chooses to feature throughout the rest of the series, and if this campaign will help them bounce back after their billboard drama last year. Remember “You Know Full Well a Vow of Celibacy is Not the Answer.” ??!

Hinge

Okay, next up, we have Hinge, who also launched a new campaign back in December with their “It’s Funny We Met on Hinge” film series. The campaign features real couples talking about their romantic journeys, and it’s intended to demonstrate how modern relationships are sometimes formed through a complicated mix of in-person and digital connections.

I think Hinge is really answering the brief with this one. Young people are over the apps and trying to meet in-person now? Let’s show them how Hinge can support and strengthen in-person connections, and how relationships can be formed with a little help from our app.

I love that Hinge is acknowledging the nuances of modern dating with this campaign and speaking directly to Gen Z’s recent desire to meet people in more traditional ways. They’re successfully distancing themselves from fake, fairytale love stories, and representing authentic, messy, beautiful romances between real people. In this way, Hinge is taking a different approach than Bumble, who’s featuring a buzzy influencer who is probably not using their app :) Don’t get me wrong – I think Amelia is one of the most authentic influencer picks for Bumble’s campaign, but she’s still an influencer who went on a date with Andrew Garfield, and for that, she’s not representing the messy, frustrating lived experiences that us regular people are out here battling day in and day out. While Amelia is aspirational, her dating experiences are likely not relatable to most.

So, what’s more important for dating apps these days: being aspirational or being relatable? I might argue that relatability is crucial right now, as people seek real, authentic, in-person connections with potential partners. But what are your thoughts? Did you like one campaign more than the other?

See you on Sunday. xx