QuackQuack studied new dating trends by surveying 10,000 GenZ daters from Tier 1, 2, and 3 cities through an online poll. Participants ranged between 18 and 26 and were primarily students, researchers, and professionals working in fields such as IT, healthcare, sales and marketing, and finance; additionally, there were social media content creators and a small portion of startup founders.
Textual tension
More than 36% of these poll participants from Tier 1, 2, and 3 cities mentioned that with heavy reliance on digital communication, ‘textual tension’ is one important parameter in online dating. They explained thThe online dating world is anything but standing still; it is constantly growing, shifting, and bringing big changes in the world of romance. GenZ, among its wide pool of users, is, more often than not, the harbinger of these changes. They are bringing to the table a fresh perspective and a plate full of new digital dating habits that might just be what ends years of unhealthy dating trends among its predecessors. From slow rolling to ghostbusting, India’s leading dating app, QuackQuack, reveals new dating habits among its GenZ community. Founder and CEO Ravi Mittal commented, “Dating apps are more than just a tool to find love for our GenZ users; they also consider it a safe space to explore and express themselves. We have a huge crowd of both Millennials and GenZ; from constant monitoring, we noticed that the younger generation is more focused on mental health and has a strong sense of community, which drives them, individually and together, to adopt dating habits that will break the yesteryear and toxic traditional norms, and make way for a more healthy dating life for the generation to come.”
at the trend is about building chemistry through text messages and understanding textual compatibility before physical or emotional compatibility to move forward in an online relationship. Maitrayee (24), a social media influencer, said, “In today’s dating era, the first step is to understand whether you vibe on text. If that is under control, you move on to the next step- taking the match seriously and considering emotional compatibility. Till then, it’s just a match, and everything hinges on the textual tension. I first test for that to make sure that the rhythm of our conversation is in sync, and it feels natural and fun, and then only consider the match as a potential partner.”
Slow rolling
GenZ is all about counter-movements, and this time, they are countering the “instant gratification practice.” Slow-rolling is, in essence, a counter-trend, as explained by 31% of Genz daters between 20 and 25. It follows the slow path- getting to know each other slowly, taking the time to match, and even taking a significant amount of time to find the perfect app and curate their profile. They are young, and they are in no rush to settle down. Amrit (25), from Delhi, said, “Slow-rolling essentially voices that love is not the goal; it’s an experience. Instead of matching and jumping into a serious conversation, or even a casual flirtationship, this trend focuses on investing time in a conversation that will lead to emotional growth and, importantly, relax you after a long stressful day- and this is not all happening in one day. That would be intense. It has to happen over the course of several days. Because slow and steady wins the race or has the best experience of the race.”
Ghost-busters
Ghosting has broken a lot of hearts but GenZ said enough is enough. Instead of letting the experience ruin their dating experience, the GenZ men and women have taken matters into their own hands and resorted to “ghost-busting.” It’s the perfect way to take control of the situation instead of feeling helpless. When somebody suddenly ceases contact, or in common terms, ghosts, 25% of women and 21% of men between 18 and 26 now send a “friendly closure message” to let them off the hook and write the ending to their short-lived love stories. Jyoti (23), said, “It’s non-confrontational, with no complications and no blame game. We just acknowledge that the communication has ended and will remain so, leaving no room for zombie-ing, and wish the ghosts good luck in their future endeavors. It’s the perfect closure that ghosting experience has so far denied.”