This Dating App Was the Worst and Then Wouldn’t Reimburse Me

I couldn’t resist making an online dating profile after 3 Friends Found Love Online. I was all in and it only took a few glasses of pinot grigio to seal the deal.

I even wrote about it here Online Dating is Amazing so Far.

But a few days in, I decided to get off the platform because there were too many hookup-type guys. I thought Bumble was more of a dating app and less of a Tinder situation.

I wasn’t into the following types of guys:

“I’m in a loveless marriage so obviously I can’t host.”

Gee, ya think?!

I hope your wife knows your loveless marriage has materialized into an online dating profile. Or maybe she’s cool with it as long as you’re not hosting your tryst.

On to the next guy, every girl wants to hear from.

“I’m looking for a long-term FWB situation.”

Uh, I’m not sure you even need to create an online dating profile for this. You seem like the kinda guy who would hang out at a bar looking for a woman to sleep with. Maybe save your online dating pennies and invest them in a cocktail-with-benefits-type situation.

I didn’t get on Bumble to meet a guy looking for a long-term “Friends With Benefits” relationship.

If these guys don’t attract you maybe this winner will.

“I’m married to the love of my life in an ENM relationship.”

Okay, I had to hit up Google to decipher this ultimately unattractive and unenticing acronym. Evidently, stepping out on your spouse, I’m sorry I mean the love of your life, is okay if you are in an ‘Ethically Non-Monogomous’ relationship.

Who knew?

I thought that was called an open marriage.

And aren’t there clandestine groups for those types of peeps?

Anyway, this and a few other tantalizing stories gave me pause.

I decided I didn’t want to be on Bumble at the moment.

I was actually going to give it another try in a month or so. I figured maybe it was a fluke since my friends have met great people on Bumble. Maybe it was the wrong timing.

Maybe the dating gods were saying lose a few more pounds first.

Maybe it was a bad month for men.

I wasn’t going to be all out or all in.

I was flexible. This online dating thing is new to me. It’s an adventure. I didn’t want to throw in the proverbial towel. I just wanted a refund and I was going to delve back in at some point.

After the married men and cocktail-with-benefit guys had found their hosting soulmates. When a new crop of call me crazy…good guys were more plentiful.

A single man looking for a friend or a date.

I’m not looking to necessarily get remarried.

But I haven’t waited this long to date, not meet a nice guy.

Anyway, I thought when I attempted it again, I would be smarter. Maybe Bumble was looking for premium or extended memberships. A few more dollars to raise the male stakes a little.

Weed out the committed, creepy guys.

I was open-minded.

I was willing to invest more.

But I wanted a refund for the two weeks and nearly $50 I had spent. Especially since I had initially signed up for just one week to test that particular app. And got charged the second week when I shouldn’t have.

I Googled Bumble refunds before I attempted to recover my funds.

They were all negative.

It says they say it in the terms somewhere somehow.

But I felt strongly that Bumble is known more as a dating app and not as a Tinder hookup. I thought they should refund my money especially since I was willing to wait a month or so and give them another chance.

Here’s where they really ticked me off.

They emailed and basically blew me off.

I emailed them back. They said to send proof of payment. I sent proof that I had ordered the app. They said they needed additional proof. I sent a screenshot of my bank account debits. They said they needed my iTunes receipt. I got in touch with Apple to get my iTunes receipt.

After all of that, they said they couldn’t refund me.

It was stated somewhere in their terms.

I’m a marketer, former business columnist, and journalist. I get the terms. I also get negative experiences. Bumble had zero customer service. It’s completely aggravating.

I guess it’s to be expected though because they are in the business of dating.

Less in the business of long-term relationships.

Their customers don’t stay on the online dating app for long (at least many don’t) so why provide excellent customer service when your business model is built upon short-term rather than long-term relationships?

People on dating apps either have success and find a long-term relationship and then no longer use the app. Or they use it for a while to date a few people or the others use it to hook up with people.

The profiles are fleeting.

The irony to me as a marketer?

Bumble is a ‘relationship’ based dating app.

And relationships have never been more important in the business world. Once upon a time, businesses sold products to people. But the internet changed everything. It demanded relationships to be built with customers in order to sell to them. Hence, email subscriptions and corporate-focused content.

The internet is the new corner store. It’s where people go to meet and exchange information. Companies no longer hide behind brands. Consumers have a voice and they share.

I haven’t decided what I’m going to do.

But I am far less likely to give Bumble a second chance.

Because the customer experience equaled my initial online experience.

I can’t just chalk it up to a bad month for men.

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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