Enter The Real World Of Grindr
- Xinmeng Jiang
- Nov 28, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 30, 2021
Case study - User interview
What does the real Grindr look like? Is it really a free and equal website as we searched, gathering gay, bi, trans, queer communities all over the world? Or is it just overwhelming advertising or flawless marketing? What is the real story on this platform? With countless curiosity, I was so lucky to invite a good friend, Allen (anonymous), a Grindr user. Let us listen to his voice and walk closer to the real world of Grindr.
Not long after Allen came to France, he worked and studied here. I met him on a sunny afternoon, and it happened that we were drinking in the same coffee shop. He asked my friend and me to borrow a lighter, and then we started talking. He is an amiable person, funny and humorous. When the chat box opened, there seemed to be a steady stream of topics, from clothing to life and so on. Later, we became good friends; when he heard that I was preparing to write a blog about Grindr, he was delighted and willing to help me with this interview to let more people know about this group.
Allen told me that if you wanted to quickly enter a relationship or come into touch with the LGBTQ+ group in Europe, dating apps would be an excellent choice. After he came to France, he downloaded Grindr. In fact, he didn't know much about this app at first, which is different from the apps he used before, but it is very famous in Europe. The most apparent difference between Grindr and other dating apps is that Grindr does not have t sliding left and right functions. For example, in Tinder, when the user swipes a photo to the left, it proves that the user is not interested in it, and if the user swipes to the right, it means yes. Only when the two parties swipe right they will match and chat; and Grindr can directly say hello with other users without a two-way match. This is different from other dating apps, which makes chatting easier, but may lack the surprise of a two-way choice.
Grindr made him recognize some new friends, and made Allen, who was enjoying his honeymoon with a new lifestyle, receive a cultural shock. Compared with other dating apps, Grindr is more inclined to direct hook-up, and the resume on the user profile is more about sexual preference; when he first used Grindr, he honestly introduced his hobbies and interests. Sometimes he met someone who greeted him directly and asked him about his sexual preference and personal questions, which made him a little embarrassed and at a loss, but he gradually got used to and understood different cultures.
However, one problem bothers him is that he often meets people who sell him ads on Grindr. He feels that not all those people using Grindr belong to gay, bi, trans and queer group; they may only want to advertise their products for this group. This makes him a little bit angry because he thinks they might pretend as a gay man to chat with him and later launch their products to him. Their purpose is to make money without respect. If Grindr does not take action to prevent these events, this will reduce the user experience and have a negative impact on the brand image that Grindr established.
In general, Grindr plays a role as a tree hole for Allen, and those things that are difficult to tell the family can be shared with a stranger via the phone. Grindr is more like a community, where you can embrace different identities and tastes and find your own world, surrounded by people who are willing to identify and accept yourself, even if you are far away from your hometown, your parents and friends, and still have opportunities to harvest the warmth from strangers. That is very important to Allen who is living abroad.
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