Looking for A Change? – Digital Advertising on Dating Apps

It’s safe to say that most marketers are familiar with the Googles and Facebooks of the world when it comes to digital marketing platforms. But what other types of platforms are out there? Have you ever considered advertising on a dating app? In this post, we’ll take you through the basics of advertising on dating apps and some of the things we have learned in our experience with these platforms.

The popularity of dating apps amongst Canadians is increasing enormously. You can find thousands of Canadians on a variety of online dating sites looking out for a companion. According to statistics Canada, these apps are heavily populated by young, single Canadians.

The availability of several online dating sites has increased the acceptance of online dating, to the point where it is now very common in Canada. Because of this, marketers are also hopping on the thriving opportunities that these types of apps provide. 

While the existing numbers are impressive, the online dating scene in Canada continues to grow. IBISWorld’s analysis reveals that since 2010, Canadians’ use of online dating sites and related services has increased by $6M annually. 

Why should brands or marketers leverage advertising on dating apps?

Large user base: If you want to target your ads to mobile users, then, online dating apps are one of the most commonly used media options.  As per the research, most online dating app users open the online dating app an average of 11 times a day. The average total time spent on the dating app Tinder alone is 90 minutes a day. 

High engagement: The advertisements on online dating apps work well to engage the user. For example, Tinder users have the option to swipe left or right on an advertisement as if it were a potential match, which requires engagement and feels natural on the platform. Additionally, if a user swipes right, the advertiser has the chance to engage with the user further. The marketer can display deals, describe their brand’s history, and provide links to the website.

Customized Communication: On dating apps, users have a more cohesive objective than on social media, where they could be surfing for a variety of reasons. They’ll spend time to ensure their profile reflects well on their appearance, for example, to hopefully find a match. Additionally, users may be organizing a future date, including the dinner menus, drink options, and a venue. Brands in related spaces (hair and beauty, fashion, nightlife) have an opportunity to provide messaging to seamlessly fit the platform. 

Targeting and Data: Dating apps provide advertisers with considerable user-related data, similar to other social media platforms. The dating apps record gender, age ranges, likes, hobbies, and more, simplifying audience segmenting. As more than 72% of general dating app users are men and over half of the user base is between 18-25, it is an ad space that makes sense for marketers aiming to target young males. This isn’t true of all dating apps though, 75% of members on Match.com, for example, are over 30 and those in their 50s make up the fastest-growing cohort.

Move away from the crowd: Dating apps display one advertisement for every 10 -15 profiles, few in comparison to what we see on typical social media platforms. This does come with a cost though, as advertising on dating apps is typically more costly than that of the more well-known social media networks. 

Here are just a few insights from Vovia’s experience with advertising on dating apps: 

• Dating apps can perform well as part of the channel mix as the niche targeting options available can often be a seamless fit with the desired target audience.        
• Our typical approach is to customize and test different types of messaging to reach the optimal engagement level, so often these campaigns take a bit of time to gain traction.
• Compared to other channels on some campaigns, we have seen dating apps drive the highest number of clicks to the site with 20% more than other social media channels. In one campaign we also saw it help drive business results in the form of test bookings and app downloads. In that same campaign, the channel worked well to drive awareness of the client’s services and complemented other channels in the mix.

Need a hand with exploring new social channels to advertise on? Make sure to contact us today!