MATCH GROUP - Tinder's COO Faye Iosotaluno and CPO Mark Van Ryswyk, shared their first impressions of Tinder when they joined in August 2022 and insights on Tinder's operations and priorities. They were interviewed by Dan Salmon, U.S. Internet Team Lead, New Street Research at the Online Dating Summit in New York. Faye Iosotaluno is responsible for day-to-day operations, working closely with Match Group's CEO Bernard Kim and other executives. Mark Van Ryswyk focuses on the roadmap (competitive trends, GenZ,..)
Dan Salmon: What would you identify as the top unexpected opportunities and challenges when you joined Tinder?
Mark Van Ryswyk: I discovered several low-hanging fruit opportunities at Tinder due to the lack of leadership in delivering them to the market. What surprised me? When you join an organization with a long history, there are often many things you can't do because of that history. However, I found this team to be highly responsive and dynamic.
Faye Iosotaluno: Many people assume that Tinder has been optimizing all along the way for the past 10 years, but that's not entirely true, as we grew so fast. Tinder's focus was mainly on scaling the platform to work in over 190 countries, making Tinder available to every part of the world. Now we see tremendous low-hanging fruit that we are pursuing, and Mark is right that it presents an opportunity.
Dan: How do you plan to appeal to GenZ, women, and the LGBT community?
Faye: We want every person who identifies as a woman to have a terrific experience on Tinder. Many times Tinder is the first app somebody tries when they are dipping their toe into online dating. Tinder aims to be the go-to app for all individuals turning 18 and looking to meet new people, regardless of whether they belong to GenZ or not. Additionally, Tinder is proud to have more LGBTQ+ members than any other mainstream dating platform in the USA and is committed to providing a positive experience for this community.
Dan: Let's move to payers...Do users want different products to pay for?
Mark: Tinder's focus has been on men, who have a higher propensity to spend. Boost and Super Like are helpful, but the company is exploring avenues to increase conversion and paid memberships. Women want more value, such as filtering recommendations and personalized features. Tinder is developing a paid feature called "Just For You" that provides personalized recommendations based on user behavior. This feature is currently being tested in Australia.
Dan: How does Tinder think about testing different things and choosing what to lean into or what to pull back?
Faye: We methodically test new product features by analyzing user data and conducting AB testing. We take a holistic view and prioritize ecosystem health over just maximizing revenue.
Dan: We have had some reports about testing a super-priced premium tier. What can you share on that?
Mark: We are exploring ways to broaden our monetization strategy. We are looking at engaging non-spenders who may be value-conscious or not understand the value proposition. We conducted a smoke test after the acquisition of The League. We saw high engagement from members who were likely high-intent daters, with 70% of them under 30, which reflects our target demographics. The team will continue to explore this opportunity.
Dan: We heard the search for the new CEO has been put on hold. Tell us about that.
Faye: The new Tinder team is working well together and has complementary skills, so the CEO search has been paused to allow the team to focus and deliver their plan. The Tinder culture is healthy, and there is a commitment to the roadmap.
