It was not, it would seem, a match made in heaven. Tinder’s chief executive, Renate Nyborg, has left the dating app less than a year after taking over as boss.
The firm’s parent company, Match Group – which operates the world’s largest portfolio of online dating services including Match, OkCupid, Hinge and PlentyOfFish – said Nyborg’s departure was part of a company-wide shake-up in a bid to improve Tinder’s money-making potential.
Match’s boss, Bernard Kim, confirmed he would take up Ms Nyborg’s role while the Texas-based company looks for a replacement.
As the ending of corporate affairs go, it appears to be amicable. Ms Nyborg, 36, appointed as Tinder’s first female leader in September last year, wrote that she had “loved every moment of the last 2 years, working with an I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E. team on the magic of human connection”.
With a quick swipe left she added: “It’s been so special to work on a product that literally changes lives, and there are many other problems I’m excited to work on. But first. My first true break in 16 years, starting with a few weeks in nature with my very own Tinder match.”
While many swipe right on the app and find happiness, it seems the app itself did not find the same satisfaction. Money did not buy it love; in fact, substantially less of it ruined the relationship.
In a letter to shareholders, Match said its revenue growth for the second half of the year was below expectations, rising 12 per cent to $795m (£654m).
“We have not been able to realise the monetisation successes we typically deliver,” it said. “Tinder’s revenue growth expectations for the second half of the year are below our expectations as a result of disappointing execution on several optimisations and new product initiatives.
In classic Dear John (or Jane) fashion, Mr Kim explained: “While people have generally moved past lockdowns and entered into a more normal way of life, their willingness to try online dating products for the first time hasn’t yet returned to pre-pandemic levels.
“I believe Tinder’s overall product execution and velocity can be improved and we need to do more to excite our user base.”
Tinder’s plans to introduce new technologies, such as virtual currencies and metaverse-based dating, are also under review.
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“After seeing mixed results from testing Tinder Coins, we’ve decided to take a step back and re-examine that initiative,” he said. “We also intend to do more thinking about virtual goods.”
The writing has been on the wall for all to see, say some experts. Tinder’s user numbers have declined in the face of competitors such as Hinge and Bumble.
Then there is the number of fake users, which has caused its app rating to plummet.
Dylan Wiwad, a researcher at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in Illinois, says since its peak in October 2014, Tinder ratings have been steadily declining to its current state – a 42 per cent drop in its average rating over eight years.
Then there was the reputational damage from the Tinder Swindler, the fraudulent shenanigans of “love rat” Simon Leviev, who conned millions from unsuspecting women on the app and whose comeuppance was made into a hugely successful Netflix hit.
Restoring trust was a key part of Ms Nyborg’s pitch. She told Fortune magazine earlier this year that her priorities were to “improve inclusivity, enhance safety features, and localise the Tinder experience across the 190 countries in which it operates”.
Despite ridding itself of its first female boss, Match told shareholders it would be examining how the app can “better serve” more female users.
Mr Kim explained: “To that end, we’ll be rolling out a new subscription package based on curated recommendations that we believe will appeal particularly to women.
“We also plan to introduce several features to get users’ friends more involved, such as a new patented Swipe Party feature, increasing the utility of Tinder and expanding its market.
“Additionally, we intend to introduce a shorter-term subscription package, which we think will appeal to newer Tinder users and drive incremental revenue.”
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