Why Tinder is more than just a dating app

Tinder is much more than just a dating app, according to Taru Kapoor, General Manager, India, Tinder and Match Group.

“Tinder is what you make of it. Especially the younger folks, they are a creative hacker generation, that’s what I call them. They will take it and make a platform and a tool of what they want to do and we see those stories every single day,” she said while appearing on YourStory’s new show, Human Beyond Resources.

More than half of Tinder’s users are in the 18-25 age bracket and over 90 per cent of the app’s users are between the ages of 18 and 30.

Taru reveals that people have not just found romantic connections and friendships through the app, but also important resources. 

“There have been a number of people who have found co-founders, employees and designers and accountants, band members, just referrals...these are all human connections and we see that happen organically all the time on our product.

“Recently, during the pandemic we saw some people find plasma for their family members during COVID, some people even organising blood donation and plasma donation,” she said. 

In fact, a few years back, a US woman had found a kidney donor through her friend’s Tinder date, an event that saved her life.

“I think humanity at its core is great, human beings actually like helping each other for most parts...Tinder becomes just the tool and the facilitator,” Taru highlighted.

Through the pandemic, especially for the parts where the country stayed in lockdown, activity on the app hit record highs.

“I remember last year in March 2020, when the lockdown first hit. I think the Sunday thereafter, 29th of March, was the highest day for swipes and conversations, just hit an all-time record.[sic] Everyone was home, everyone was talking to people on Tinder. The record day kept getting broken, it got broken 103 times, where the conversations on average became 20 mins and longer, engagement became longer.”

On the Tinder app, if a user likes someone and wants to connect, they ‘swipe right’ on the profile, if the other person too swipes right on the said user, then it’s a ‘match’ and they can start a conversation. Swiping left on a profile means you didn’t like it.

To ensure privacy, Tinder doesn’t let a user start a conversation with anyone unless there’s been a ‘match’.

Humans connect emotionally and intellectually when there is chemistry and there is a spark, Tinder’s job is to provide a platform where those ‘sparks’ can happen, according to Taru.

“Sometimes it leads you to finding your soulmate, sometimes it helps you to finding a great relationship, sometimes it’s a friendship, sometimes something ephemeral but conversation that you really needed to hear that day or something more functional like a job.”