Bumble Inc. announced the launch of Bumble For Friends, a standalone app for finding friends in the Philippines. The app creates a new way for people to grow their friendship circles by discovering meaningful, kind, and fun connections in their local area that are separate from the Bumble dating app.
The new app follows the successful BFF mode that’s been available within the Bumble app since 2016, when it expanded upon the company’s dating offering to enable members to find friends and meet up locally.
Lucille McCart, Bumble’s APAC communications director, said: “At Bumble, we have always believed that relationships are the foundation of a happy and healthy life. While many people know us as being in the business of romance, friendship is just as important to our mission, which is why we are so excited by the launch of the Bumble For Friends app in the Philippines. Recent research has shown us that the majority of Gen Zs want to make new friends, but they don’t know where to meet people and are intimidated by approaching people IRL. This is where we step in to make it easier, less awkward, and more fun. It has been wonderful to see how apps like Bumble have revolutionized the way people fall in love romantically and removed the stigma around meeting people online. We can’t wait to see how Bumble For Friends has a similar impact on our ability to connect socially and build platonic love in a time when so many of us feel disconnected.”
Among Filipinos, there is an innate yearning to find their own people and build connections with others. In fact, Bumble revealed in their recent survey that 3 out of 4 (74%) people globally are keen to find their ‘tribe’ or a group of like-minded people that they can create real friendships with. Additionally, more than half (68%) of those surveyed are keen to find new friends in their local area for the convenience of meeting up and doing things together. All data were commissioned by Bumble between August and September 2022, with a global sample size of 10,108 across Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Poland, the US, and the UK.
With people embracing the opportunities to expand their social circles and foster meaningful connections, people are venturing into the realm of ‘digital’ friendships. In fact, 3 out of 5 individuals surveyed stated that their numerous online activities have opened their minds to finding their internet friends. This highlights the impact of platforms like Bumble For Friends on fostering kind connections and establishing healthy relationships.
How Bumble For Friends Works
- It starts with creating a profile that reflects the member’s personality and interests through uploading photos and showcasing hobbies that illustrate where the person is in their life and what kind of friends they’re looking to meet.
- Bumble For Friends models a similar experience as Bumble date, where members see profiles for potential friends based on common interests, swipe right on profiles they would like to connect with, and are notified if a match is made. A person has 24 hours to begin a conversation.
- Anyone currently using BFF mode with the Bumble app who wishes to migrate their profile and connections into the Bumble For Friends app will be able to skip the setup and easily do so upon downloading and logging in as an existing member.
- Once a BFF profile is moved over to the Bumble For Friends app, BFF mode is no longer available in the Bumble app. The Date and Bizz functionality remains.
A new, easier way to plan group meetups is exclusively available in the Bumble For Friends app
- Starting to roll out within the new Bumble For Friends app, it’s easy to get a group together to make a plan to meet IRL.
- Any member can create a plan for a group meetup with at least two of their connections from the conversations tab.
- A member selects a planned activity from a list of suggestions or creates their own.
- Once a member selects a plan theme or creates a title for the group chat, they can invite at least two of their matches.
- Their matches receive an invite in their chat that is titled the name of the planned activity, which can be edited.
- Anyone who accepts the invite can join the group chat and start discussing any of the meetup details.
“Friendship has always been a critical part of Bumble’s goal to live a healthy and happy life. With feelings of loneliness and isolation at an all-time high, now more than ever is a time to prioritize self-love and friendships for our well-being. Having a dedicated Bumble For Friends app that’s separate from the dating experience makes friendship-finding easier for people looking to make meaningful platonic connections in their area,” said Whitney Wolfe Herd, Bumble’s founder and CEO.
“No matter your life stage — whether it’s moving off to college, looking for a travel partner, or becoming a new mom — Bumble For Friends creates a fun way to connect with people while helping solve the extremely important issue of loneliness,” Herd said.
Bumble For Friends is free to download and is available on the App Store and Google Play in the Philippines, as well as Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with more regions to come.
*All data was commissioned by Bumble between August and September 2022 with a Global sample size of 10,108 across Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Poland, the US, and the UK.