Match Group’s BLK Sets Out to Reclaim “Once You Go BLK”

BLK, the largest dating app made for Black singles, launched a new advertising campaign, Once You Go BLK, to reclaim and reappropriate the antiquated phrase “Once you go Black, you don’t go back”. Instead of “praising” outdated stereotypes of Black people, this initiative embraces the glory of being young, Black, and forging one’s path in life. In order to bring this campaign to life, BLK also partnered with its local network of Black business owners and creatives.

With over 4 million downloads to-date, the dating app aims to reframe what it means to “go BLK” through empowering messaging about the positive outcomes and implications of being part of both the Black and BLK communities.

This campaign includes original content and video testimonials with BLK users, tailored to acknowledge how real people date, across the Black cultural spectrum. In organizing and executing Once You Go BLK, Austin, TX-local Black business owners and creatives brought their talents to the strategy and set, such as T&J Hair Designs for hair, honeybeebeats for makeup, a Paola Mathè headscarf design, and Darian Younce as the set stylist.

“Once You Go BLK embraces the culture of the Black community, while also shedding light on important community topics from state violence to supporting Black-owned businesses,” said Jonathan Kirkland, Head of Marketing & Brand for BLK, “Our ambition for this campaign is to foster more solidarity, from a cultural level, with our users while taking the power away from an ugly adage used against us.”

This follows the company’s #BLKVoices initiative, which created a designated space for users to express their views on social and cultural topics, launched during the Black Lives Matter protests that began in June 2020. Once You Go BLK has begun this campaign on Instagram, and will roll out additional video assets, influencer amplification, corporate partnerships, with these themes remaining prominent in all ongoing messaging for future marketing activations throughout 2021.

ABOUT BLK:

BLK was introduced in August 2017 and is currently the leading dating and lifestyle app for Black singles. With a goal of helping users find love at its core, BLK has built a community and space where Black love in all its forms and expressions can happen every day. BLK’s mission is simple: bring Black people together to spark meaningful connections.