Digital news publisher The Local and matchmaking app Once have teamed up for a new partnership to help connect readers of the English-language news platform.
The Local runs news sites for English-speaking people living in European countries.
The digital publisher has local editions in Sweden, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Austria and Italy, which provide the local news for each country in English.
And in a move to offer more value to its readers, The Local has just signed a partnership with Once to promote the dating service to its expat community.
The Local has added a new Dating tab to its site, which takes you to a sign-up page for Once, where users can register to the dating service via Facebook or email.
Although users are encouraged to download the Once iOS and Android app, this sign-up page takes you to a web app for Once, where you can create your profile, update your preferences, view and chat to your matches, and contact your personal matchmaker.
In terms of how the back-end works, Once told GDI that the team built micro-pages to specifically match users who register via The Local.
The company said that users would normally land on a country’s local sign-up page, as the language on Once’s site changes depending on location, but with The Local partnership the company offers sign-up pages in English.
Asked how the partnership with The Local came about, and why Once though it would be a good fit, company spokesperson Emily Ekong said: “The Local, which has pages live in different countries, was looking to offer an additional benefit to the users of their platforms.
“Part of the excitement of moving and working abroad is finding new love. We do believe that working professionals are looking to be able to communicate in a fluent manner. Once will match you up with those who speak English fluently and are either working professionals and/or also expats.
“The target audiences of both platforms align very well. Once is for those who are serious about dating and really looking to find love. The assumption is hereby made that as serious as Once users are about finding love, so are those that use The Local platform. No time-wasters, as everyone is busy enough finding their way in a new/foreign city and has a demanding job.”
In terms of stats, the partnership has so far matched over 5,000 expats, and when asked whether this was part of a new strategy for the French dating brand, Once said it would be open to more partnerships if they aligned with the company’s target audience.
Aside from this collaboration, in 2017, Once also has a campaign planned throughout July in France that will let people “experience the brand offline”, as well as an easyJet partnership that will offer travellers free crowns – Once’s in-app currency – with on-board branding.
Read more about The Local’s Once partnership here.