Dating app Bumble has issued an apology for running a controversial ad campaign that seemingly mocked celibacy and shamed women for not being sexually active.
The campaign was promoted heavily with the messages, “A vow of celibacy is not the answer” and “”Thou shalt not give up on dating and become a nun”.
According to Bumble, the ad was supposed to be a humorous take on those “frustrated by modern dating”. However, the company provoked the ire of social media users, especially women, for their insensitive approach to dating. People emphasized how Bumble’s ad was the exact opposite of empowering, and was instead trying to use shame to coerce women to getting back on the app.
Bumble need to fuck off and stop trying to shame women into coming back to the apps.
Instead of them to run ads targeted at men telling them to be normal. pic.twitter.com/y6XVFXanaB
— Tinkerbell 🧚🏾♀️✨️| r-WNC (@BlobWithAGob) May 13, 2024
Bumble HQ
“We don’t have enough women on the app.”
“They’d rather be alone than deal with men.”
“Should we teach men to be better?”
“No, we should shame women so they come back to the app.”
“Yes! Let’s make them feel bad for choosing celibacy. Great idea!” pic.twitter.com/115zDdGKZo
— Arghavan Salles, MD, PhD (@arghavan_salles) May 14, 2024
Ima make a video on it, but Bumble doing a campaign attempting to shame celibacy/abstinence is an unserious way to tell the public yall are nervous.
It’s also a very offensive way to tell your female customers that you’re profiting off of their legs being open.
— Cindy Noir✨ (@thecindynoir) May 12, 2024
Shocked by the @bumble ad saying ‘a vow for celibacy is not the answer.’ In a world fighting for respect and autonomy over our bodies, it’s appalling to see a dating platform undermine women’s choices. Wasn’t this app supposed to empower women to date on their terms?
— Jordan Emanuel (@_jordyjor) May 13, 2024
Taking to Instagram, Bumble shared “a message to our community”, apologizing for the ad and promising that they have taken it down.
View this post on Instagram
However, this apology has also provoked criticism for calling out the alleged misogyny of the brand campaign, which most viewers felt had not been addressed as properly and explicitly as they’d hoped.
“Why doesn’t your next campaign focus on men changing their bad behavior instead of telling women to lower their standards and boundaries? I’d suggest some females on your marketing team,” a user commented.
“As a marketer, my secondhand embarrassment for y’all is strong. HUGE miss. Women are tired of the harrassment, gaslighting, abuse, and trauma we experience at the hands of men. Shaming us back into engaging with them will not work. It’s appalling that this company is managed by women who clearly have not read the room. I hope women continue to leave your app and others in droves. If anyone needs to be lectured or mocked about changing their behavior its MEN. Every woman i know has had many, many negative experiences on and off the dating apps. It’s not worth the time, effort and money and never was. BYE!” another wrote.
Bumble’s seemingly tone-deaf campaign has also provoked internet users to discuss the advantages of using outside creative agencies for marketing campaigns.
Both the ‘iPad crushes things people love’ Apple ad & the almost comically tone-deaf Bumble celibacy ad were made in-house. If ever there was an argument to use outside creative agencies, this would be it. pic.twitter.com/SQd1dR4c0J
— Ana Milicevic (@aexm) May 15, 2024
This controversy follows an already rough period for Bumble. It announced controversial plans to lay off around 350 employees in February, and its share price has fallen by roughly 45% since last July as young adults prefer making connections in person or independently via social media rather than through dating apps.
