Tinder vs. Fruzo - The Study
This study features statistics drawn from a range of resources, all of which are listed in the “Works Cited” section at the end of the study. The purpose of the study is to gain an insight into users of dating social networking service, Fruzo, display its potential for growth, and demonstrate the need for a new type of dating service. Fruzo was launched online 12 months ago, with an Apple iOS app released at the beginning of September 2016 and an Android app currently in development.
The success of the online social network led to the development of mobile applications, which offers users the opportunity to instant video chat with people they meet via the dating social network. Although a significant level of interest was displayed in Fruzo as an exclusively online service, the launch of the mobile application has seen a sharp rise in interest as shown in the graph below sourced from Google Trends.
The steep rise in interest for Fruzo coincides with the release of the app in early September 2016. Fruzo also received a record number of signups in the first week of September in comparison to any other week since the service was launched. Another interesting detail about the growth of Fruzo over the last 12 months is that it is quite similar to the growth experienced by dating app Tinder during the first 12 months of its release as shown below.
As you can see from the trend curves above, Tinder experienced slow growth for a period after its launch before growth quickly accelerates towards the end of the first year. Similarly, Fruzo has begun to experience a rapid acceleration in growth towards the end of the first year as users are now able to access the service on both web and mobile platforms.
Fruzo & Tinder Dating App Comparisons
Another comparison to be made between Fruzo and Tinder is the ratings gained in the iTunes App Store. Obviously it is extremely difficult to take into account overall ratings between an app which has only recently been released and an app which has been available for over three years. However, it is possible to gain some measure of comparison in recent ratings as Tinder updated their app on the same day that Fruzo was released. Taking into account ratings gained by Tinder since their latest update and ratings gained by Fruzo since its release is a fairer comparison of both applications. Both are shown below:
Customer Ratings
Customer Ratings
Although Tinder maintains a strong overall rating, the ratings submitted since the last update indicates a level of uncertainty about the future of the app. On the other hand, Fruzo has gained a consistent 5 star rating since its release with users in particular praising the ability to cam chat live with other users of the app.
The reasons behind the recent surge in growth of Fruzo is likely due to the unique features offered by the app. Unlike Tinder, Fruzo allows people to chat via live video instead of simply seeing images of potential matches. However, unlike other video chatting apps such as Skype or Facebook Messenger, users can connect with people they don’t already know or have the ID for. This mashup of social networking and meeting new people via video chat is a concept that allows people to connect with others around the world without the fear of wasting time talking to fake profiles or spam profiles. The game-changer and what sets Fruzo apart from other dating apps is:
the ability to video chat with potential matches before meeting in person!
Fruzo's unique features give users a range of benefits in comparison to other social networking and dating applications. The main draw of Fruzo is the ability to chat with potential dates using their webcam or camera on their smartphone. This makes it much easier to establish a connection with someone rather than simply chatting over text messages and being unable to see the person in real time and just via pictures. It also eliminates the worry that a user is chatting to a spam or fake profile, which is a consistent worry on apps such as Tinder as reported by The Guardian and also reported IBTimes recently.
This data isn’t new information with numerous reports surfacing about the scams, spam, and other annoyances found on Tinder such as this report by The Guardian. A more recent report by IBTimes claimed that Tinder has decreased fake profiles by 90%, however a major identity problem still remains throughout the app.
It is also interesting to look at how this new take on social networking affects the demographics of users. We will use Tinder as a comparison due to its popularity as a social and dating application. Below are the demographics for users of Tinder:
Users are Female
Users are Male
The data displays a strong male presence on the app as well as majority usage by people between the ages of 16 and 34. This isn’t unusual for services which are considered to be used for dating or hooking up. On the other hand, as Fruzo is marketed as a social network with many social features for making friends as well as dating, the figures look slightly different. The demographic of Fruzo users is shown below:
Users are Female
Users are Male
As you can see there is a closer correlation between the gender of users as well as a slightly more mature user base, with the majority of users falling into the 25 to 44 age category. This change in demographics is likely to do with the features offered by Fruzo such as the ability to see who you are chatting with in real time via video and the ability to create a list of friends as you would in any other social network.
The data displayed above was sourced by Fruzo in an attempt to improve their service for all users. It in no way reflects the personal views of Fruzo and is simply analyzed for the purposes of market research. Should you require any further information on the data, please do not hesitate to contact Fruzo.