Get ready for round two of Tinder’s revolutionary Swipe Night!

Last week I was invited to the launch of Tinder’s Swipe Night.the Launch gave us a sneak peek of the interactive show, with a special DJ Set live from Europe and a very interesting panel from the creators.

But first! What is Swipe Night? Swipe Night is a first-person, interactive event where Tinder members can swipe at key points in the experience to move the story forward and see where it takes them. Their choices dictate more than just the story; they also impact who they match with and what they might chat about once the epic journey ends.  

Swipe Night follows a group of friends, with Tinder members playing the protagonist, during the final hours before an asteroid hits Earth. As the story unfolds, members will be challenged with moral dilemmas and practical choices that impact what happens next and who they match with once the event ends.  But they’ll have to act fast: there are only seven seconds to make each decision.  Following each installment, key choices are added to a member’s Tinder profile so there’s plenty of opportunity for post-apocalyptic banter making it easier for new matches to go beyond the dreaded “hey, how’s it going?” intro message.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s the power of conversational common ground powered by shared experiences. Social and physical distancing coupled with stay at home orders turned our members into chatty and creative digital daters with 52% more messages sent globally (peaking on April 5) and swipe volume among members under 25 also rising 39%. Now for three weekends in September, which started last weekend on September 12, Swipe Night will transport members from their homes to a new destination to discuss: an adventure live, right inside Tinder.

“When lockdowns began, we saw an immediate increase in our members’ engagement on Tinder, so we know we play an important role in their stay-at-home experience,” said Jim Lanzone, CEO of Tinder. “While the global health crisis continues, we believe Swipe Night can bring a welcome change of pace to our members around the world. We’re committed to driving innovation on Tinder that creates more ways to bring our members together, entertain them, and help them meet and get to know new people”

To make Swipe Night, Tinder tapped some of the biggest names in the business. The production was directed by 24-year old Karena Evans (Drake’s go-to music video director) and written by the quick witted Nicole Delaney (Big Mouth, Netflix) and Brandon Zuck (Five Points, Facebook Watch).

Be sure to show up to the Swipe Night event every weekend in September, starting September 12 at 10 a.m. The weekly Swipe Night event will only be available until midnight Sunday.

Live Times & Dates as follows:

• Saturday September 19th starting at 10:00 – Sunday 20th at 23:59
• Saturday September 26th staring at 10:00 – Sunday 27th at 23:59

Swipe Night was originally launched in the US at the end of 2019 to rave reviews. During the interactive event, Tinder saw matches increase by 26% and messages increase by 12% compared to a typical weekend. I had friends from Australia swiping away and it was even fun to discuss our choices while trying to get matches. My matches certainly increased Saturday night compared to normal.

The first night of Swipe Night was a lot of fun. It was definitely a change to the regular night of swiping, trying to find true love.

Here is some of the data from the decisions people made last weekend:

• #TeamPuppy. 58% of Brits decided to save the puppy over the person Our status as a nation of dog lovers was confirmed, as UK Tinder members led the charge globally on saving man’s best friend over Alexis. (47% globally)
•  Covered for Graham? Watch out. bucking the trend globally 59% of 18-25 years old Brits decide to tell Lucy the truth about her boyfriend’s two timing.

• Missing the dance floor? Under 25’s in the UK have been missing nightclubs and dancing the night away over the past few months, with 61% of them choosing to hit the dance floor when given the choice between dancing and getting a drink.
• Doing it for the gram? Although we love posting, the comet was something that we had to watch IRL with 86% choosing to watch it with friends rather than post.

It was a lot of fun and I can’t wait to see where this weekend takes the story! Fingers crossed you’ll be reading about how Swipe Night found me a boyfriend in the near future.

Written by Tegan LeBon