Facebook Dating officially launched in the United States yesterday (and quickly started trending on Twitter), bringing a whole new meaning to “Facebook official.”
Facebook has always been about bringing offline relationships online, and the company is treading lightly in a crowded market where Tinder, Bumble, Dig, Vespr, Bound and Hinge already exist. Facebook Dating has a few key differences from the typical swipe left, swipe right on a stranger experience that defines most modern dating apps. In fact, it isn’t a swipe experience at all. 👀
How it works: Since most people already have a profile on Facebook, users must first opt in to Facebook Dating and create an entirely new profile. And what about all those connections you already have on Facebook? Facebook Dating won’t show other users their Facebook friends — you can even remove friends or friends of friends as potential matches.
If you’re interested in friends (or friends of friends), you can find matches that way too. Facebook Dating’s most *unique* feature is something called “Secret Crush,” where you can add up to nine Facebook or Instagram followers to a list, sort of like how you would in your 13-year-old diary. If any of the people in your list secretly crush you back, you’ll both get notified (ah!). 💕
More features that could make the online dating experience a little more human:
- You can opt to find matches who attended or will be attending the same event as you 👋
- You make IRL meetups less sketch and share the details of your date with your friends via Messenger 💬
By the end of the year, you’ll also be able to add Instagram (and Facebook) Stories to your dating profile, so you can get a feel for a person via videos before you match.
Do you think Facebook Dating will be successful? Take our poll here.
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