Background – Bumble is a dating and social networking app built on empowering women to make the first move. The brand positioning is to promote healthy relationships both on and off the platform, aiming to become a true partner on your dating journey.

2020 – A tough year for relationships. Despite the social challenges of the last 12 months – with COVID-19 taking hold and restrictions on meeting in place – dating apps had received a surge in interest. Bumble knew that although physical relationships should not be encouraged in the current climate, they still had a role to play in helping their users combat isolation and loneliness.

The Challenge – All dating apps see a spike in registrations and usage at the beginning of the year, so much so that the first Sunday of every January is referred to in the dating industry as “Dating Sunday”. Although with a full lockdown in the UK in January, this was a hurdle and Bumble had to adapt their approach and position itself as a partner for you, despite the challenging environment.

Objective – To capitalise on the positive momentum gained during a challenging year. To grow the Bumble community through downloads of the app by standing out from competitors and increase unprompted awareness.

Ambition – Bumble needed to deepen the meaning of the “Make the First Move” concept by not tying dating success to specific outcomes, but instead embracing dating as a gloriously imperfect journey— a collection of moments ranging from the joyful to the awkward, from romantic connection to self-discovery. Bumble wanted to ensure that their messaging was positive, helpful, and supportive, to counter the heightened sense of isolation and loneliness experienced by many in 2020.

Audience – There had never been such a dramatic shift in social behaviours than those seen during Covid. Even for the “Seasoned Daters” segment – those who have been dating for at least a few months and feel comfortable using dating apps – the dating rulebook changed, and they found themselves in unfamiliar territory, with no clear dating etiquette to lean on. Additionally, Bumble identified a new audience, the “New Dawn Daters” – a group of women who had become newly single because of the struggles of COVID. This group tended to be millennial or older, feel more affected by Covid than other users, feel an even higher degree of loneliness and have lower confidence and body positivity than the average user.

Creative Opportunity – The campaign, titled “You’ve Got This” encouraged women to take control of dating in 2021 after the challenges of dating in 2020, which left many women lacking confidence and feeling thoroughly out of practice. Each 90” film takes a playful look at the insecurities around dating and the pep-talks between yourself, your friends and your family before a first date. The film not only emphasised the importance of friendships in galvanising women throughout their dating journey, but also reframes the lived experiences of 2020. Rather than a year lost, it reminds women that this has actually been a year of resetting that’s made them stronger and more resilient than ever. Despite the challenges and nerves, there are meaningful connections to be made and women have in fact never been more ready to take control of their dating lives in 2021 – both virtually and in real life, when the world allows it.

“You’ve Got This” was produced in collaboration with earned-_rst advertising agency, The Brooklyn Brothers. The _lm was made with production company Caviar and French director Cloe Bailly, who previously won Gold at Cannes YDA, known for her unique comedy style, and ability to capture real life moments with authenticity, but with a sense of irony.

Successful delivery of the campaign was measured against views and attention of the video assets. We overdelivered against our primary KPI of VTRs across the campaign period, with all channels delivering above benchmarks.

The campaign created positive effects on brand measures and ad recall across Facebook and Instagram, and Spotify delivered strong uplifts against familiarity and association metrics.

The campaign also generated spikes in app downloads on dates correlating to paid media spends.