Recently, Fox promoted “The Mindy Project” on Tinder, the popular dating app. While swiping left or right to judge potential matches, two characters from the show would pop up in the same fashion, giving users the option to “match” with lead characters Mindy Lahiri or Danny Castellano. Interesting move, right? Well, not everyone agreed.
Buzzfeed thought the profiles were a desperate attempt for the show to gain more viewers, just as certain users on Tinder seem desperate. Others did not like what they considered blatant advertising on the app. Tinder views its work with “The Mindy Project”as a partnership rather than advertising, as the show featured heavy references to the app in a recent episode.
Tinder has not yet introduced a revenue model, but we may soon see some paid advertisements on the app. Would you rather see more blatant ads or more profiles similar to Mindy and Danny’s?
Here are a few reasons we think Tinder’s partnership with “The Mindy Project” could be useful:
- If you have seen “The Mindy Project,” you already know how an app like Tinder would fit just fine into any conversation on the show. Mindy is a hopeless romantic looking for love in a busy city, she’s the perfect candidate for a Tinder profile.
- The profiles are pretty funny! In the midst of swiping left a few hundred times, finding an out-of-the-box profile provides some entertainment, hopefully leading users to the show.
- It fits within the app and doesn’t take up a huge amount of time. You know how hard it is to shut down automatic video playing on the Facebook app now? Yeah, well on Tinder, if you don’t like the ad, just swipe left and it’s gone.
Some reasons the partnership may not work:
- If you are unfamiliar with the show, the profiles might not make sense. We’re assuming the goal is to attract new viewers, so this may not help with that objective.
- There’s not a huge call to action, and no real measurement opportunity. Fox is just hoping you will tune into the show. If you are a “match” for one of the characters, you can find a link to a YouTube video, but then again if you’re confused by the characters and swipe left, there’s no hope.
Of course the biggest drawback is not actually meeting Mindy or Danny, but we’ll let that slide.
Do you think that native advertising or partnerships can work on dating apps?
