Tinder is bringing the good ol group chat fun to its eponymous dating app. The platform is launching a new feature called Group Hangouts, where users can create groups and then hop across these groups to find interesting people and potential romantic partners. So, how does it work?
Tinder wants your friends in on the matching
The core concept behind Group Hangouts is quite similar to chat groups, with some interest-based matching at play. A person can start a group, or select a few activities (or interests), and send invites to their friends. Once a group has at least three members as part of the conversation, the group profile is pushed to the main Tinder feed, where it can be discovered by participants in other groups.
Users can freely check out other groups, drop a like, and if there is mutual interest, the group chat becomes open for all. Tinder says Group Hangouts was developed based on the success of the Double Date feature, which was launched last year and proved to be quite popular. Users are free to join or leave a group, and if there are miscreants, they can block them or report those accounts for policy violations.
Tinder says group profiles are getting more attention
“Once groups are formed, engagement increases significantly: women are 2.2x more likely to Like a group profile than a traditional one-to-one profile,” Tinder shared in a press release, adding that the acceptance rate of Group Hangouts invites is close to 40% based on testing conducted in Australia.
Just like standalone user profiles on Tinder, group recommendations are also based on a person’s interests and preferences. The new Tinder feature is already rolling out to users in the U.S. and will expand to other markets in the coming months.
Tinder won’t be the only platform that is experimenting with group-based discovery. There are plenty of dating apps out there that have a group-based social matchmaking feature to maximize the chances of meeting new people or just getting a nudge from their friends or family members regarding suitable romantic interests.
