Is Badoo useful for starting a relationship, or is it a complete waste of time?
The problem with Badoo is that for a few years now, it’s been imitating the Tinder model, meaning more and more emphasis is placed on the “Encounters” section, where the user has to swipe right or left depending on whether they like the person (or, more accurately, the photo) or not.
By imitating the Tinder model but maintaining its original functions and limitations, limiting the length of the personal ad and the ability to classify your own photos, Badoo has experienced a significant loss of its internal quality. Another major problem with Badoo is that its features are now limited to be used on computers, for example, by the end of 2023, it was forcing users to use GPS, and computers, including most laptops, don’t have one.
But the biggest problem with these types of apps is the total gender imbalance. On average, these platforms have a 70:30 ratio between men and women, meaning there are 70 men for every 30 women, and this creates problems on both sides. Women feel overwhelmed by the number of messages they receive, very often low-quality messages from prosaic men who are short on conversation topics. No one pays them to read so many messages, and in the end, most of the chats are forgotten; the women get bored and possibly stop using the platform. On the other hand, the men also get tired because they constantly have to deal with low-level competition, and the man who seriously has things to say and serious intentions never manages to be read, or almost never.
These platforms also make money by showing advertising. If you find the person you like there, you stop using the platform, and Badoo stops making money from you. It’s more than natural, therefore, that Badoo will try everything possible to prevent you from succeeding.
One of the methods used is to classify profiles according to their success rate on the platform, the reactions, the views, the messages. If you have a low profile, you will only be able to see profiles that are also low. In other words, according to Badoo’s “reasoning,” if you’re ugly, if you’re bad, you’ll only see ugly and bad people. The main problem with this is that almost always in social networks, it is the women who receive reactions, visits, and messages. It is quite rare for a man, even a good-looking one, to provoke these types of reactions. We are once again facing another gender limitation and another of the reasons why the platform doesn’t work.
I prefer to use newer platforms, perhaps with less success but that work better. For example, meetero.com (https://www.meetero.com), which has been designed with the purpose of avoiding all these problems, where the quality of the profiles is constantly sought, where the complete profile is valued instead of the photos, and where there are also no algorithmic traps or geographical restrictions. With additional social network functions, it seems like a good alternative to me.
And there are other alternatives as well, but they are more specialized. For example, there are platforms that are only for practicing languages, like speakingclub, but there are several others; it’s enough to search, and my advice is that you never directly look for dating platforms, because nowadays these platforms are highly pigeonholed in the concept of looking for people nearby and all imitate the Tinder model. Instead, it is preferable to search more indirectly; for example, you have a specific social need, what do I know, maybe you are a doctor and want to socialize with other doctors, then you could look for something like a social network for socializing among doctors. A very elementary example, but it applies to all things.
Always look for what you want, but if it’s about dating, try to be indirect, always try to enter from the social side. This is my general advice, and of course, my opinion too.