Tinder Ads: Swipe Left or Right?

There has been some speculation for a while now whether Tinder would allow advertising or not. It’s safe to say, they’ve officially accepted advertising on the platform.

Last week, Tinder released its first video ad promoting Budweiser’s next Whatever, USA campaign. The ad will appear when users open the app and start swiping. Users will land on Bud Light’s profile and a video will auto play, prompting users to enter the #UpForWhatever contest. This is a fun, interactive way Bud Light is reaching their younger consumers. 

Tinder has the potential of being a great place for advertising because users gladly hand over valuable targeting information like age, gender, location and interests. Marketers would then be able to target people based specifically on the information users provide the platform with, just like we can with Facebook. Marketers can assume since you’re on Tinder, that you’re single and would potentially be thinking about the next place to bring a date, like a bar or restaurant – which would make advertising on Tinder a good option, but Diapers.com wouldn’t make a lot of sense on Tinder. 

If you’re a marketer or a business owner that’s trying to reach millennials, you should be looking at where the millennials are. There’s a lot of data that shows that millennials are leaving “traditional” social media (Facebook and Twitter) and going to Snapchat and other networks to communicate with their friends. So, in order to reach your consumers, you need to be where they are. 

It’s exciting that new, popular social networks and apps are rolling out with different ways to advertise. It allows marketers to reach their target consumer more accessibly. Do I think advertising on Facebook and Twitter is dying out? No, definitely not. I think Facebook advertising will only get stronger and more relevant with every new ad they roll out. I just think if you’re Bud Light and trying to reach 21 year old singles, Tinder is a great option for you. 

What do you think about Tinder coming out with a different way to advertise?