What Consumers are Craving This Year: Personalization + Intentional Connection | Michael Kaye of OkCupid and ARCHER

This week, Erica and Cassie chat with Michael Kaye, Director of Brand and Communications at Match Group's ARCHER and OkCupid. In this episode, Michael outlines how each brand is breathing new life into the online dating space and standing out to younger Millennial and Gen Z daters by staying timely and culturally relevant. We also talk through the fact that today’s consumers are CRAVING personalization and real life connection with the brands they know and love (yes, including and especially dating apps!), and Michael shares 5 strategy essentials to keep in mind during your brand's first 100 days - a callback to his experience launching ARCHER.
Here's a peek at what we cover in this episode:
[00:03:41] - Michael shares a peek into his background in brand and communications, spending 5 years agency side before a cold message from OkCupid's former CMO led to his involvement with the company.
[00:06:45] - Michael explains how OkCupid and ARCHER are breathing new life into the online dating space and standing out to younger Millennial and Gen Z daters by staying timely and culturally relevant in a crowded market. He also reveals how listening to the dating community's pain points and gathering data helps his team at Match Group create marketing campaigns, and how he's seen consumer behavior highly favor personalization and real life connection.
[00:13:18] - Michael gives us a glimpse at some of the fun campaigns he's been a part of at Match Group, and explains how brands can tap into timely holidays to execute creative partnerships. We also chat through how to make sure a partnership and/or collaboration feels seamless and intentional.
[00:20:39] - Michael shares a few tips from an article he wrote for PR Week: 5 strategy essentials to keep in mind during your brand's first 100 days, including the advice to meet your consumer where they are...literally. He then touches on his nonprofit work and how he's continually inspired by the classes he teaches at NYU and UMass Amherst.
Grab a drink and listen in to this week's Marketing Happy Hour conversation!
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Other episodes you'll enjoy if you enjoyed Michael's episode:
How to Make Meaningful IRL Connections with Your Consumer | Aly Tatnall of Coffee 'n Clothes
Brand Communications 101 | Kate Haldy of Anthropologie
Leaning In to Your Brand's Community | Kennedy Crichlow + Mary Ralph Lawson Bradley of Daily Drills
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Check out OkCupid: Instagram | TikTok
Check out Archer: Instagram | TikTok
Connect with Michael: Instagram | LinkedIn
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