Love is in the air for progressives seeking social justice BAEs, apparently. People with the ACLU badges on their OkCupid profile are more likely to get a date than those who don’t, said Chief Marketing Officer Melissa Hobley to The Hill.
“100 percent you are more likely to go on a date with the ACLU badge,” Hobley told The Hill. She also mentions how discussing politics is so much more popular, especially in our current political “climate" because “what helps inform ... decisions on our partnerships, like the ACLU badge, is what we see...users talking about.”
Back in June, the popular dating app offered users the option to add a pro-ACLU badge to their profile. Hobley told The Hill that the badges and causes acted as a sort of filter for those seeking politically like minded partners. About 90 percent of OkCupid users responded “yes” to the question “Do you support the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)?”
Keep your eyes peeled for the @ACLU#RightToLove profile badge. 👀 It can tell you *a lot* about your date. https://t.co/VNvSeP28AK
— OkCupid (@okcupid) June 28, 2018
The company also says that ACLU supporters have 10 percent more conversations in the app than users who don’t. Pro-ACLU supporters also receive 15 percent more “likes”.
The questions aren’t meant to single anyone out though: “We welcome all political leanings and all types of people. You can use our ‘filters’ about Trump and other things to find people who might not be on the progressive side,” Hobley said.
OkCupid uses questionnaires on a variety of topics as filters for uses on the app and website. The filters are rated on a scale based on importance and significance to the users life. An algorithm is then used to show a user people who have a similar or close interest on the same issues. One of them being simply “Trump?”. “The options are ‘hell yes,’ ‘hell no,’ ‘yes,’ and ‘no,’ and you can skip it. And then you’re asked how important that question is to you. By answering that question you are essentially creating a filter.”
The dating app donates $1 to the ACLU for every user who answers “yes” to the ACLU support question, according the The Hill. OkCupid planned to raise $50,000 dollars but has already surpassed that goal.
The pro-ACLU badge is suppose to be available all throughout the summer, but due to the immense amount of support the company may continue with the badges well beyond the deadline.