“I just got out of a troubled story, would you like it if we’re just friends”? At least once in their life it has happened to everyone to hear this and, let’s face it, this is not usually the phrase you hope to hear when you are meeting a new person and are looking for a date. Whether you’re aiming for a lasting relationship or a fleeting encounter, surely friendship isn’t a favored option in such circumstances. At least that was the case in the pre-Covid era. Yes, because today everything seems to have changed, to the point that even users looking for online dating seem to prioritize having fun under the sheets.
As reported by the Reuters news agency, in fact, from a recent research on the use of dating apps, it would have emerged that reaching sexual intercourse is no longer the primary goal of new acquaintances on the Net. precisely, the desire to find a friend.
FRIENDSHIP BEATS SEX
“A really interesting trend has been taking place lately, which is the desire to develop platonic relationships. – said Whitney Wolfe Herd, founder and CEO of the App Bumble. – If before the pandemic people used to cultivate their friendships offline, and rely on online for other types of approaches, this is no longer the case.“. The reason for this sudden change of course and the desire to weave relationships that are not only superficial and based on eroticism, is most likely to be found in the current state of mind of many individuals, who after long periods of pandemic isolation, have reviewed its own scale of priorities. This obviously does not mean that sexuality has lost its appeal, but simply that a collective awareness is taking place that is leading to think that eros alone is not enough. Those who have lived through the various lockdowns alone, perhaps out of fear that the event may repeat itself, is today running for cover, seeking in advance new friendships, sociability and real and lasting affection.
DATING APPS ADAPT TO THE NEW TREND
To meet these new user needs, many dating apps are creating or purchasing new services focused on making and keeping friends. The same Bumble launched the function Bumble BFF (best friends forever), which by the launch of September 2020 had already intercepted about 9% of the total monthly active users of the circuit, and has been growing steadily since then.
But the rivals are certainly not watching. The giant Match Group, owner of a number of platforms including Hinge and the very famous Tinder, has decided to go beyond love and lust by acquiring the South Korean social media company for $ 1.7 billion Hyperconnect, whose apps allow people to chat from all over the world using real-time translation. A successful deal and absolutely in line with the trend of the period, given that the revenue of Hyperconnect they increased by 50% last year.
Not even up Meetup, which helps meet people with similar interests at local or online events, the music changes, with “friends” as the most searched word in recent months and the increase in new users from January 2021 by over 22%, probably driven by this new trend.
The LGBTQ + community is also an active part of the revolution, which has all the prerequisites to become a lasting condition. The founder and CEO of Hornet, Christof Wittig, who said that it is unlikely that people will return to the old ways of connecting with their community exclusively offline, through nightlife, activism or LGBTQ + events, but that although the world has changed, the desire to create synergies remained. This is why his company’s current goal is to increasingly become a virtual meeting place based on the personal interests of users, rather than a connection service focused on physical appearance and sexual goals.
DESIRE FOR REAL
However, friendship has always developed mainly offline, and this is also demonstrated by the fact that, despite the need to create a new core of people with whom to dialogue and discuss, it materialized during the hardest months of the pandemic. , the peak of this phenomenon is now. Dating apps, in fact, are seeing more engagement from users since COVID-19 restrictions have been gradually lifted around the world, allowing them to meet in person. From the series, let’s get to know each other online but hang out offline.
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