UScellular, a Lukas Partners client, wants to help people get creative with how they celebrate Valentine’s Day during the COVID-19 pandemic. While many typical options for spending time with a significant other or friends are not available, UScellular has tips on how to plan a romantic date, celebrate with friends or focus on self-care – all from a mobile device.
In 2020 – likely due to the pandemic – dating apps had higher online engagement than in previous years. Match Group, the parent company which controls 60% of the dating app market, reported a 15% increase in new subscribers over the second quarter of 2020 with a record-breaking 3 billion Tinder swipes, or initial interactions with other users, on March 29. From March to May 2020, OkCupid saw a 700% increase in dates, and Bumble experienced a 70% rise in video calls.
As consumers look to their smartphones for Valentine’s Day ideas, here are some tips from UScellular to make the day special no matter how they choose to celebrate:
Explore art, history and culture through a virtual screenshare date. Share a tour of the Museum of Modern Art, Eiffel Tower, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and more on a Zoom date through Google Arts & Culture. With a smartphone or tablet, discover the treasures, stories and knowledge of more than 2,000 cultural institutions from 80 countries.
Get to know each other better. Ask each other questions from Vanity Fair’s Proust Questionnaire, a popularized list of questions asked of big-name celebrities in each issue of Vanity Fair magazine. The New York Times offers 36 Questions on the Way to Love, a free mobile app featuring an interactive series of intimate questions for friends, partners or strangers.
Treat yourself to a self-care night. Shine is a self-care app with daily motivational texts, self-improvement audio and feel good content. If you are single and look to heal your heart, the Mend app offers day-by-day guidance, in-app journaling and audio trainings for mental health and wellness. You can take a moment to breathe deeply and let stress go with Headspace. You can listen to a variety of guided meditations for a night of Zen.
Get creative with a virtual paint night. All you need is acrylic paint, paintbrushes and a 15-by-12-inch canvas to enjoy a Yaymaker virtual paint night. These affordable, virtual classes are presented live through Yaymaker’s streaming platform. Crayola and Google Images also offers free printable coloring pages for adults.
Plan a virtual movie night. In a study by OkCupid, more than 30,000 respondents indicate that watching a movie or TV show together is their ideal virtual date. The Netflix add-on Teleparty (formerly known as Netflix Party) enables synced video viewing and live chats to share each other’s reactions. Hulu (No Ads) and Hulu (No Ads) + Live TV members also can use the Hulu Watch Party feature to access thousands of on-demand movies and shows to watch together.