In a challenging job market, a Swedish graduate’s unconventional approach to networking has resurfaced, highlighting the lengths job seekers are going to in order to secure employment. Samantha Rogers, after relocating to London in 2018 without a job lined up, turned to Tinder – a dating app – to solicit work opportunities.
Rogers, now a PR account director, told Fortune she proactively added “seeking work opportunities” to her Tinder bio, recognizing the value of expanding her network beyond traditional job boards like LinkedIn, and Indeed. “For a long time Tinder offered little to no value exchange for me, but just due to the fact that I didn’t locate dating successful on the app, didn’t indicate I couldn’t apply the platform creatively for other purposes such as networking, promoting my business, or exploring recent social connections,” she recalled. Her gamble paid off, generating interview opportunities within a week.
According to Rogers, men on the app not only offered leads but also recommended her for roles internally. “It got me in the door quite quickly for interviews,” she said. “I got two interviews with recruitment consultancies and then I got one sales job.” She ultimately received multiple job offers, allowing her to decline those sourced through Tinder.
Rogers recommends the tactic, particularly for women, as a way to tap into potentially overlooked channels. “It’s obviously a very crowded marketplace and there’s so many new emerging channels all the time that may be untapped,” she stated.
Her experience reflects a broader trend of blurring lines between dating and professional networking. Bumble, a women-first dating app, launched Bumble Biz in 2017 to facilitate both romantic connections and career opportunities. Even Grindr, a platform primarily known for LGBTQ+ social networking, reports that approximately 25% of its users are also seeking professional connections.
However, this convergence has also led to increased instances of unwanted advances towards women on professional platforms. A 2023 study revealed that over 90% of women reported receiving at least one unwelcome message on LinkedIn. Rogers acknowledged experiencing similar unwanted attention, prompting her to proactively utilize a dating app for job seeking as a way to “turn the tables.”
Tinder itself acknowledges that its primary function is to facilitate romantic connections. A spokesperson for the company told Fortune that “Tinder is the most popular dating app in the world, dedicated to fostering meaningful personal connections, not business ones.”
Despite Tinder’s stated purpose, Rogers argues that the app’s relatively untapped nature provides a competitive advantage for job seekers. She also emphasized the importance of caution, advising women to thoroughly research companies and interviewers, and to share their location with a friend or family member when meeting someone for an interview sourced through the app – mirroring safety precautions typically taken during online dating.
Rogers, now married, says she would consider revisiting the strategy if she were to find herself unemployed again, though she admits she’d need to inform her husband first.