How Hinge Drove 200% More App Engagement With Cross-Channel Messaging

Dating apps are notorious for their endless, fruitless cycle of swiping—but Hinge is working to change all that. The Hinge mobile app is “designed to be deleted,” which means the brand is dedicated to fostering real relationships that get people off dating apps for good. Every user touchpoint, from profile setup to push notification, has to support authentic connections in order for the app to be successful. It’s no small feat.

In order to help their users fall in love (or at least go out on that all-important first date), the Hinge team wanted to design highly-engaging tactics to focus attention on their app. However, as they began to explore some exciting ideas, they realized they needed a technology that allowed them to seamlessly implement more dynamic campaigns. So they switched to Braze.

Hinge Makes Sure Users Look for Love in All the Right Places

Every Hinge campaign is designed to push users towards more dates in real life and fewer empty sessions on the app. Tactically, almost all campaigns have an email element, which they often combine with push notifications and/or in-app messaging to maximize effectiveness. The team consistently A/B tests copy, subject lines, and timing in order to optimize for engagement while respecting eligibility rules and avoiding spamming users. It’s all to create a worthwhile app experience which, in Hinge’s case, they believe leads to love.

Last year, Hinge launched its “Most Compatible” campaign, which uses a Nobel Prize-winning algorithm to pair users every 24 hours with people they’re most likely to connect with, based on preferences and activity within the app. According to Hinge, users are 8x more likely to go out on dates with their “Most Compatible” matches.

Hinge built out a cross-channel messaging campaign to ensure users get the most out of the feature. Matches are introduced in an icebreaker email that prompts users to open the app and view their potential new date. Initially, the email included the match’s name and profile picture, but after some experimentation, the company found that removing the photo dramatically increased the click-through rate. Hinge believes that users can make more thoughtful decisions by viewing their “Most Compatible” match’s entire profile in the app instead of making snap decisions based on a single headshot in an email.

Push notifications also drive user engagement with the app’s “Most Compatible” feature. Hinge sends one push in the morning to inform users that their match is ready, and another at night as a reminder before it expires. In order to maximize effectiveness, Hinge A/B tested delivery times and quantity of sends. They wanted the push notifications to feel like a natural nudge, not like spam.

Hinge’s Results: Higher Click-Throughs and Conversion Rates

Hinge determined which actions encouraged users to form real connections—leading to first dates—by combining creative campaign ideas with data-focused experimentation. After launching the “Most Compatible” campaign, click-through rates soared by 200%.

Key Takeaway

Building a dating app that’s “designed to be deleted” means every email, push notification, and in-app message needs to be calibrated to promote authentic connections between users. By using Braze to build creative messaging campaigns, Hinge ensures users frequently engage not only with the app, but with each other in a more effective way.

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