Bumble Just Made Creepy LinkedIn Randos Part Of Their Business Plan
Bumble was revolutionary in the over-saturated dating app market because they forced girls to make the first move. Then, they introduced Bumble BFF, which helped girls to meet other girls for friendship purposes. Now, they’ve announced plans to launch Bumble Bizz to help you network.
And while we can appreciate the idea behind it, we’re not sure they’ve thought it completely through.
At first glance, I almost thought Bumble Bizz was a good idea. Bumble is leaning in, they want women to initiate conversations with potential business contacts and expand their network. The creators behind Bumble (and literally everyone else looking for a job rn) know that it’s all about who you know, and potential job offers weigh more heavily on your Instagram followers than your skill-set these days.
I hate networking, and it’d probably be so much easier for me to meet people via an app rather than awkwardly approaching people at a happy hour. But, do you know what I hate more than networking? This:
I got this message on LinkedIn when I was studying abroad in London and using Happn. Normally when I get a message on LinkedIn, I am hopeful that it’s a recruiter, or a job opportunity, or at least something useful. Instead, I was confronted with a dude who somehow found my LinkedIn profile from my Happn profile and decided that since we didn’t match he’d find another way to contact me.
This isn’t a unique occurrence either. I’ve heard plenty of other girls complaining that they’ve gotten creepy LinkedIn messages from dudes who clearly don’t know the difference between a dating app and a professional networking site.
If these same creepy dudes get a hold of Bumble Bizz, they’re only going to get worse. I mean sure, Bumble Bizz isn’t supposed to be for dating, but this is men we’re talking about here. It’s not like it would be the first time that a guy hit on a potential employee or promised a chick a job if she agrees to go out with him.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure that the girl-on-girl Bumble Bizz networking will do just fine, because girls aren’t dogs. But as for the dudes, I’m not so sure. Then again, it’s unclear whether Bumble is actually going to have Bumble Bizz open to both males and females, but considering that they already have BFF as a boys-free zone, it seems that they would open Bizz to both girls and guys.
Either way, we’re interested to see how this one pans out when Bumble Bizz launches in the fall. And when that happens, maybe contact HR of the firm where that creeper works and see what they have to say about it.
