How To... Get Consumers to Swipe Right

Captivating content is key to capturing the hearts and minds of consumers. By creating engaging content, brands can attract consumers and help them make the first step in their purchase journey. Single consumers are one of the most valuable audiences for brands, they have immense buying power which means everything from retail to travel and lifestyle brands are able to benefit on this behaviour.  

With consumers exposed to around 5,000 ads per day, it’s no easy feat to break through the noise. And with an ever-proliferating stream of competition out there – how do you stand out?

Value the consumer experience above all else

Single people are looking for love on these channels, but they’re also looking for new friends, tour guides, activity partners, or like-minded people who share their passion. 

This interest in new experiences is ideal for brands who are offering brand new opportunities for single people. But, brands need to understand exactly what this audience is looking for in order to succeed. For us, this starts with ensuring that the formats that we create for brands tread the fine line between being engaging and standing out, while also fitting seamlessly within the app or on the website. Context is king, and there is a risk that consumers disengage if we get this balance wrong. 

Single people are looking for the same features in both the dating experience and their partner. They don’t want a formulaic experience. They want to feel that the experience is being tailored to them, and that they are getting a true value out of the relationship with the brand. 

Use targeting, but don’t obsess over it

Targeting consumers needs to go beyond looking at basic demographic information like age, gender, likes and dislikes. Other factors like user location and recent purchases can be used to tailor the experience further. 

However, hyper-targeting shouldn’t be at the detriment to the scale and effectiveness of ads. Brands should find a balance between casting a wide net and obsessing over finding the one perfect needle in the haystack. 

Finding the right balance allows brands to gain insight and get a better picture of what is going to benefit consumers, and drive engagement. Understanding the buying power of the single consumer is vital, and can help brands ensure that they are creating content and offering products that are relevant. For example, single people spend on average 5.56 hours a day on overall leisure activities, compared to married people, who spend an average 4.87 hours a day on leisure.

Get creative

By using a variety of formats, you can really get creative with advertising on mobile devices. For Tinder in particular, we have created formats that ensure that the advertising fits seamlessly into the environment by combining the brand messaging with context that consumers will expect to see. In some cases this is within a profile card that looks very similar to an individual's dating profile, but gives the opportunity to engage with a brand without leaving the app environment. 

By having a variety of formats including branded profile cards, native video, games and quizzes and sponsored messages - as well as in-app interstitials and standard desktop formats on OkCupid, brands are able to use a combination of tactics to reach their target audience.                              

A recent project with Delta included a combined approach across both online through standard ad formats and offline with the use of an image wall, showed their understanding of the target market, and created an experience that millennials want to engage with. 

Emerging technologies such as video, games and quizzes, VR and AR have all become useful technologies for brands, and can make advertising more creative. But, it’s more important for the advert to be creative and appropriate, rather than just a gimmick to combine lots of new technologies in the hope that they will stand out. 

Create experiences for each consumer

Creating an engaging user experience is critical when trying to build a relationship with consumers. If a message is too disruptive users are likely to associate your brand with the annoyance they feel. 

Across the travel, leisure and lifestyle sectors, brands can use dating apps to reach consumers while they are in the right frame of mind to make a purchase. Focusing on engagement is a fundamental aspect of successful advertising campaigns, especially when brands are trying to tap into the hugely lucrative market of the single consumer.