Challenger to Watch: Bumble Bizz

Bumble’s new brand extension, Bumble Bizz hopes to combat the dark side of online networking by putting the power back into the hands of women. Vice recently highlighted how the networking site LinkedIn is frequently used by men to hit on people.

Like it’s parent Bumble, Bumble Bizz is a women-first platform as women make the first move to complete the connection.

Wanting to redefine what it means to network, Bumble’s founder Whitney Wolfe Herd was keen to reinvent ‘swiping’ and disassociate this from dating apps. While universally acceptable, swiping can be seen as disposable and visually lead. Though Bizz is forcefully trying to take swiping into the networking category, I would be lying if I said I was genuinely comfortable swiping away at my desk as the interface doesn’t differ much from the dating app.

But Bizz isn’t just about the swiping. What piqued my interest in the platform was how the network is growing beyond our phone screens. Wolf-Herd often talks about how its users want experiences, rather than products, creating a broader brand ecosystem, which touches lifestyle and culture.

Bumble Date, Bizz and BFF have manifested physically as co-working space, a yoga studio, a conference centre and a café, and cleverly labelled ‘Hives’. Collaborating with women founders and entrepreneurs, Hives have popped up in NY, London and LA. As an extension of Bizz, Hives offer immersive sessions with women in business as well as space to network.

Bumble’s strategic partnership with Serena Williams as Global Advisor has allowed for the personification of its DNA and beliefs. As an ambassador for the brand, Williams is a guest speaker at many of Bumbles events, even featuring in Bumbles Super Bowl ad that finishes with the line, ‘ladies, the ball is in your court’ (i.e. make the first move). Bizz’s other collaborations have turned into investments. Priyanka Chopra-Jonas invested in 2018 to assist with Bumble Date, BFF and Bizz expansion into India.

In a world of scrolling for miles on LinkedIn, Bumble Bizz is a refreshing way of networking without the Facebook-like updates of jibber-jabber from that friend you had at Uni.

Even if it isn’t Bumble Bizz that cracks the next generation of networking, I think there is white space for something exciting to breakthrough here.