David Brown

Is Bumble for us or for the guys?

Weeks later, Jones and Wolf Hurd appear together at a Wall Street Journal event.

A moderator asks Jones about those billboards.

jones keeps talking but her answer starts to wander it grows longer and less certain she glances toward wolf herd and finally the founder steps in we made a mistake we will learn from it and we will overcome

In one sentence, she does what CEOs are supposed to do.

She stops the bleeding.

But the damage has already been done.

In less than two weeks, Bumble has managed to alienate its core audience and undermine the very thing that made it different.

That's two strikes.

And a third is on its way.

It's November 2024 in Austin.

Bumble's marketing team is putting the finishing touches on a new series of online video ads.

Most of them follow a similar theme.

A couple who met on Bumble shares how they found each other on the app, how their first date went, how the relationship grew from there.

Each ad highlights a different aspect of the dating app's new features.

In one ad, the focus is on Bumble's new updated Dating Intentions feature.

It rolled out earlier in the year with the company's spring rebrand and allows users to pin their intentions to their profile.

So, if you're looking for something serious and a potential match says their intentions are casual, you just keep swiping.

In the Bumble ad, both users have declared the same intention, looking for a long-term relationship.

Their voices are layered over shots of the couple smiling, hugging, holding hands, and kissing.