When most people think someone is cute, they swipe right on a dating app. But some younger app users are looking for potential professional connections.
These Gen Zers and younger millennials are using dating apps, like the new LinkedIn, to match them with people who might help them land their next big job. Even Grindr’s CEO thinks it’s a smart idea.But other dating app users looking for friendship (or love) are tired of these “serial networks,” especially when there are platforms designed specifically for finding jobs
A Hinge user, Grace Ling, told wall street journal In college, she would only swipe right on people who worked at companies she hoped to be hired for. While her current job isn’t the result of a swipe, it’s not for nothing — the connections she’s made have led to recommendations and job interviews at some of the biggest tech companies.
Even career coaches have caught on to the trend and are encouraging their younger clients to jump on the bandwagon.
Career coach Ella Goldstein told Magazine She would start telling her younger clients to use this unconventional approach to their job search because “where you can network, you should network.”
About one-third of U.S. adults say they have used a dating site or app, according to 2023 Pew Research Center data Reportabout half of whom are under the age of 30.
Why do these users want to take advantage of dating apps instead of professional networks like LinkedIn, which has nearly 80% How many of the U.S. adult population are members of it?This could be a sign of overgrowth “Hustle and bustle” cultureA trend beyond work that’s romanticized exhausted american. It could also indicate that young workers are becoming more creative, or more desperate, in finding work, even if it means crossing social boundaries.
“We encourage people to connect on Grindr”
While apps like Hinge and Bumble seem to be the most popular with web users, according to Magazine and other published articleTinder specifically discourages this behavior, asking users to “make personal connections, not business connections” within its site community guidelines.
But there was a dark horse: Grindr — a dating app popular among the LGBTQ+ community — was an unexpected social hub.About a quarter of users on Grindr do so for networking, the company says Magazine. Even its CEO encourages it as a career tool.
“Over the years, I’ve personally hired or developed a professional relationship with some of the people I’ve met on the app,” said Grindr CEO George Arison. Magazine.
“We encourage people to connect on Grindr,” he added.
In one sense, this isn’t a new trend: Dating apps have tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to expand beyond dating before.
In 2017, Bumble launched “Bumble Bizz” (short for “business”), which is similar to regular Bumble, but with the express purpose of showcasing your resume. Like the app’s dating model, women have to make the “first move,” meaning a man can’t message a woman first. This is probably for the best, since judging by the prolific data, many men try to use LinkedIn for non-professional reasons women’s complaints on the receiving end of these messages.
But not everyone is happy about the rise of social networking on dating apps. Grid Q Writer Laura Larson described the web as the new “friend zone” in a 2017 article article The headline reads “Stop trying to hook up on dating apps, you morons!”
“The beauty of dating apps is that you don’t have to wonder if someone is approaching you because they think you’re cute or because they want to connect with you,” Larson wrote, describing “connection” as a form of particularly harmful behavior. A bait and switch.
“When you sign up for a dating app, you enter into a social contract with all the other horny people out there: you say you’re available, and you’re going to use the app for its marketing purposes (sex).”
This may be one reason why efforts by dating apps such as Bumble For Friends to expand beyond the realm of romance have so far failed. Using apps to find romantic partners has become the norm, but there’s still a stigma about using it to form friendships, and it’s considered lame, according to Olivia Moore, partner at venture capital firm Andreesen Horowitz.
Perhaps this is the secret to the dating success of young job seekers: No one expected it. Besides, why not? They don’t lose anything by “shooting”.
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