Match.com Strays From Goodby

A rapport with uDate.com and a sharp take on Web dating earned Bartle Bogle Hegarty a meeting with sister site Match.com two months ago. From that came spots that air Wednesday on CBS’ Cupid.

Match’s connection with BBH follows the brief tenure of Omnicom’s Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, which landed the estimated $20 million account in November. Goodby “never got under official contract,” said Melanie Angermann, client vp of marketing, adding, “We’re not working with them right now.”

Goodby did not return calls.

Angermann praised BBH’s work—”They nailed it”—adding, “There are plans for entering into a more formal relationship” with the New York shop.

Richardson, Texas-based Match’s parent, InterActiveCorp, bought uDate in April. BBH landed uDate’s estimated $10 million business in November.

BBH’s three spots tout a contest held by Match and Cupid, which follows a former copywriter’s search for a mate. Each ad depicts two men or women, as seen in Match profiles. Their headshots turn into characters who trade barbs and small talk.

In one, an Asian woman mocks a blonde she calls “shy girl.” But the blonde gets back at “Dreamer” and her photo, which shows a palm tree, with the retort, “You’re insane, and I hope you never leave that little island you’re stuck on.” A voiceover says, “The competition’s heating up. Go to Match.com now for a chance to date one of the Cupid finalists.”

The strategy was to replicate reality TV’s “backbiting kind of attitude,” said ecd Kevin McKeon.