@hunter_trujillo
You are right in that the app is certainly aimed at heterosexual users. There are two reasons for this. First is that we had to start somewhere with our concept (which is far from being limited to "two apps" idea). It's the same reason we only have iOS version right now.
Second, we are based in Russia. As you may know, the regrettable state of things is that same-sex relationships are heavily stigmatized here, and what's more important, public "gay propaganda" is straight up illegal and punishable by law. So creating an LGBT app is nigh impossible at the moment.
So as you can see, our app being limited to heterosexuals is not in any way a statement or a vehicle for someone's personal agenda.
@hunter_trujillo, speak for yourself buddy. @masha_voronkova no one has forced you to release this in the first place, I presume? your *second* excuse is textbook definition of complicity, if not cowardice. no thanks for creating something that inherently - regardless of intent - discriminates and stigmatises a whole subset of society. there's no such thing as 'good enough' when it comes to matters of friendship and love.
@jorgealeds while it would be admirable for @masha_voronkova + co to make a stand against the anti-LGBT environment in Russia, it would also be putting themselves in serious danger. Russia is not a free democracy, so it is unfair to call them cowardly for the realities that they have to live in.
@jorgealeds mm.. so what's wrong with products aimed at heterosexuals only? Saying that a heterosexual app "discriminates and stigmatizes a whole subset of society" is basically saying that Grindr discriminates heterosexuals or lesbian women by creating a gay guys-only app or that FetLife discriminates people that don't fetishize about BDSM. Since when is wrong to have products that are focused on heterosexuals only?
And, no, I'm not homophobic or have any pro-heterosexual tendencies. I just believe in equality both ways and think that there's a place for products for all audiences.
The thing we always missed in online dating was the actual excitement. Meeting someone by pure chance, being embarrassed and having these awkward pauses, feeling a bit of growing interest and a great deal of confusion. We wanted to fix the situation. And here we are, with two apps — OH BOY for girls and OH GIRL for guys — that are the two halves of a single online service. What happens is you open the app and meet a random person of the opposite sex in a private chat. (Yes, the app is currently aimed strictly at the hetero crowd and only supports iOS… but everything needs to start somewhere.)
This is not the kind of dating app where you skim endlessly in search for "the right one". The app announces in advance the date and time of an online event, which has everyone going online at the same time — just like a party.
The app's interface is based around GIFs, and we've also crafted a beautiful GIF-based vocabulary for our chat, to make communication light-hearted and emotional.
At this point, we've already held several OH Parties with participants from Boston, New York, Washington DC, Moscow and St. Petersburg. Having received ample feedback, we double-checked our assumptions, fixed some snags, and overall just realized that people love the experience.
FEATURES:
– Vivid visual experience.
– One chat with one person at a time — just as if you met in real life; here and now.
– No need to spend hours tweaking your account and swiping away.
– Text messages, GIFs and special cards to express yourself more easily.
– No chat history is stored by our servers.
GLITCHE COLLABORATION
For our big ProductHunt reveal, we've collaborated with the Glitche app and made a special GIF pack for you — it both looks really cool and also fits perfectly with the visual language we've created for Oh Boy / Oh Girl.
Glitche is a next-generation visual editor, with unique real-time, photo and video filters. Glitche filters are utilized in fashion industry, advertising, and music video production. Some of the Glitche users are: Gorillaz, Travis Scott, Nick Knight (who worked with Kanye and Björk), Kylie Jenner, The Golden Filter, Trouble Andrew (Gucci), and Paramount Pictures.
Feel free to contact us at: hello@ohapp.me
This looks really quite nice. I hate the trend of boilerplate "viral" apps without any substance, mission, or purpose. I adore the visuals. Kudos!
edit; would love to be involved in this project somehow... are you looking for a dev or designer?
edit 2; what are your plans for expanding this to be inclusive to the LBGT+ community?
@andrewfturnerjr@andrewfturnerjr Thank you! It really warms our hearts to hear that.
As to your questions:
1. As you see, our apps are currently aimed at heterosexuals. Firstly, we had to start somewhere (the same reason we only support iOS for now). But the more important consideration is the regrettable situation in Russia, where we are based. Sadly, in recent years, same-sex relationships are discouraged and all but illegal, and public "propaganda" of homosexuality is straight up illegal. This means that creating an LGBT-oriented app is nigh impossible.
2. Thank you for your interest! Make sure to drop us an email at hello@ohapp.me
I really like the visual style and the quirky tone. 👌
It has a bit of an 80's vibe which is pretty popular right now. I'm a Pixel user so can't play with it for now, but it's refreshing to see a new approach to dating apps. Also really like the fact that there is no sign-up or personal information required to use it.
Curious to see where this goes and how you guys will monetize it!
@anthilemoon Thank you! We so happy you liked the idea! To answer your question about monetization:
1. We'd like to monetize by organizing special themed parties in-app, with a small admission fee. We've already tested these at the MVP stage, and are now waiting to see how they fare with the growth of our audience.
2. Advanced profiles with expanded functionality, such as: personal chat history, notifications about friends at a party, exclusive GIF sets, and video chat.
3. Special projects. Themed parties mean that we can create sponsored events — we already have some experience working with big brands on similar sponsored events (in the Russian part of the Internet), and such projects have shown very good results. We will keep moving towards making it work, and we think that brands will be very interested, too.
@denis_faiber This sounds great. Very different approach to what I've recently seen in the dating space, and lots of opportunities to make the experience feel local and intimate. I'll give it a try when the Android version comes out. :)
A great killer to boring Pure & Tinder like apps. Loved the emotional approach to dating which makes online dating so true with a possible continuation on real event/party ;)
Looks really interesting, loving the "mood gif as a background" idea, overall looks like a really well done and thought out product. What's the split so far between OH BOY and OH GIRL download rates? (Interesting to be able to track down your gender's user just by looking at these number)
Do you plan on creating live events? Looks like a perfect product for some street marketing / even marketing, what's the plan for world domination?
Cheers
@widawskij
1. Great question! When promoting our app, we target "boys" and "girls" separately, and our overall goal while doing that is indeed to keep their numbers more or less even.
2. That is exactly what we're thinking about. Live events, not world domination. Although...
Wow, I was just re-watched Scott Pilgrim Vs The World yesterday for the 5th time and now you guys released this app today. Is fate trying to tell me something or whatever 🤔
@sarim_haq We have to admit that Scott Pilgrim was a big inspiration for us, to see all that crazy mish-mash of authentic, familiar visual icons and real life, something that we didn't think was possible on the big screen yet felt so right. So yeah, seems like the fate does want to tell you something )
@masha_voronkova One of my personal favorite films that I've worked on. Did the VFX and it was a super fun project to have been on. Now I build apps too. 😄 Good job on the apps. Interesting idea. 👍
@helloduane Whoa, that was deep ) Seriously, thank you. Although we personally think that observation is very astute, we're afraid we can't use it in promotional materials ))
Since you probably don't know your core demographic yet, I recommend removing "for girls" and "for boys" from each app. Could be that the gay and lesbian community become your core users and your platform shuts them out on the onset. The concept is cool in both design and how you factor out gender by app. It's definitely a new idea.
@rueter Hi! The point is, each half of the app works with users who run another half. So if you download the app "for boys" (OH GIRL), it only matches you with users who've downloaded the app marked "for girls" (OH BOY). As of this moment, there are no options for choosing sexual preferences other than heterosexual in our app. It is presumed that female users will use the OH BOY app, and vice versa.
@thewrongjoshua Hey, Joshua! Thanks for the comment =)
In fact, that’s the whole point of our app - you don’t necessarily have to meet or date people there, sometimes you can simply kill your time and chat to someone new, discussing films, coffee, space travel, new Twin Peaks season or Guardians of the Galaxy. Just like if you popped by a friends party, you know
@nickadamsjudge Thank you!
We're not planning on developing a browser-based version. As for the Android version: as soon as we get enough feedback from the iOS beta, and know that what we've made really works, we'll definitely get right on to it.
The app looks nice and quirky. I like the lean towards messy aesthetics and animation. Do you plan on doing some equally offbeat promotions? Who do you think will be your early adopters?
@olia_levina To be honest, we envisaged the app as aimed primarily at people like us — guys and girls who grew up intimately close with the internet culture, in the middle of the environment created by the web. But of course, it's not only us who isn't content with present popular dating apps, with their aesthetics, interface, or policies.
So in answer to your other question, we have a strategy that involves promotion via themed parties (not only in-app, but also in real life) which are aimed at people with specific interests and hobbies — things that already form a genuine connection. Geeks, hobbyists, fans, enthusiasts. Our plan is to have these parties more and more often, gradually widening our audience reach.
@josh_khoury We've released a beta for iOS now, and as soon as we know what we've made works, and process enough feedback, we'll start on developing the Android version right away.
When I read "Visually driven dating experience" the cynic in me said "You mean real life?"
That said I love the quirky visuals you have going on! Will give it a shot
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