They say you have to kiss a few frogs before you meet a prince, and when it comes to online dating that couldn’t be more true.
Women looking for love on matchmaking websites and dating apps often find themselves at the receiving end of unwanted advances and crude messages.
Now Tinder, one of the most popular apps, is tackling the problem by introducing a new feature that will allow their female users to send tongue-in-cheek animations and graphics to disrespectful men.
The women at Tinder have created animations to send to men behaving badly (stock image)
Female Tinder users who receive unwanted messages (left) will be able to make their feelings known with a series of lighthearted graphics. One sees a martini glass being thrown (right)
The creators of the ‘reactions’ feature, which will only be available to women, hope it will make men realise that they need to be respectful if they want to win over their matches.
With the intention of the reactions being ‘easy and fun’, the selection includes a martini being thrown at the screen, a ‘ugh’ button and a sarcastic eyeroll.
To send a reaction users need to tap on the smiley icon. They will then be able to choose from a variety of emojis and animations to send to their match.
Tinder has also updated the app to make it easier to report other users and to unmatch.
Need to try harder: The reactions, which also include ‘ugh’ and ‘really’ notifications will give women the opportunity to be bolder in turning away matches who fail to impress
To design the reactions feature, the tech company enlisted the help of Comedian Whitney Cummings, 35, who describes herself as a ‘d******g expert’.
She said: ‘I teamed up with the awesome, smart, bold women of Tinder to develop a new product that helps you tell guys how you really feel.’
A statement from Tinder read: ‘In a perfect world, everyone would always treat each other with respect—whether it’s from behind a phone screen or in real life.
‘Unfortunately, it’s not a perfect world and most women have encountered douchey behavior at some point.
‘So the women of Tinder are on a mission to make calling it out easy and fun while letting the nice guys know they aren’t finishing last.’
Not impressed: Other features include an eyeroll, left, and a red ‘ugh’ button