Stealth marketing at its finest.
Of course, it helps when your app effortlessly sparks controversy on its own.
That’s the story of Tea for Dating, which has been maintaining the number one spot on the App Store since starting its multi account UGC campaign.
They’re running about 15 accounts and have managed to rack up 110 million views in just a few weeks.
The entire strategy revolves around inventing twisted stories of breakups, cheating, and dating felons.
twisted stories
A selection of the most viral ones:
| Views | Story |
| 7600000 | an hour til he realizes i canceled our lease, took my name off the account, took my kid, left him with the dog he never wanted and filed a lawsuit. why? found his second phone with 50+ girls he was cheating on me with. girls had nicknames. some even had rings ???????? |
| 6100000 | He thought I didn’t notice. But I knew. For weeks. I knew about the hidden chats. About the 6 girls saved as “Team Lead,” “Yoga,” “Dentist,” “Client,” “Bank.” While he was out “working late” I was taking screenshots. Called my lawyer. Moved all my savings. And packed just one bag. He’ll be here in 30 minutes. He’ll walk into silence. No note. No keys. Just an empty closet and a locked phone |
| 3900000 | He doesn’t know this is our last evening But I know about his mistress Still, I stay silent for the kids I’ve already planned my way out I smile so they remember love, not pain In my mind, I’ve already said goodbye Tomorrow, we’ll be gone |
| 3600000 | 45 minutes til he gets home to an empty apartment, no lease, no me, no kid — just the dog he begged me to return. I’m gone. And so is his second phone… the one with 50+ saved numbers, fake names, and voice notes he thought I’d never hear. Lawsuit’s in. Let the fun begin ???????? |
| 2200000 | He thought I had no clue But I knew the hotel, the calls, the lies While he played games, I played smarter Moved the money Took the house Today, I smiled like everything’s fine Tomorrow, he gets served This isn’t revenge It’s my rebirth ???????????????????????? |
Those most likely don’t include the app name or the app displayed on a phone.
Although extremely viral, the conversion rate must be considered with caution here. Some CTAs appear in the comments and captions.
Interestingly, within these stories, one specific format stands out: a 6- to 8-second video where the camera slowly rotates to reveal the guy smiling, unaware that the bomb is about to drop.
There is no real limit to those stories. This account posted three viral videos about her boyfriend being in the hospital.
This well-crafted scenario adds an unexpected twist that pushes the video to new levels of views and engagement.
In theory, it is also easily repeatable. The main account that posts only such stories has earned over 40 million views on TikTok in just two and a half months.
Meltdowns
Another notable “trick” they repeatedly pull is having those girls cry heavily on camera.
What better stop-scrolling hook than a well-acted meltdown?
It works like a charm. On half the profiles, the top video is a fake meltdown video.
Criminal Record Database
Now we get to the high-converting area. This is such a naturally good hook.
This video, and others like it, pushed tens of thousands of users to the app and explain how they landed at #1.
It shows both the app, which has some notable UI, and a well-positioned comment with 166K likes.
Direct Hook App Mention
Another one that should theoretically convert well is the direct app mention in the long hook, like this one.
127 out of 648 are mentioning “Tea” and 64 “Tea App” inside the text hook.
Cloning Competitors’ Formats
This is a format from CheaterBuster, which we covered in our in-depth study here. It got 1.2 million views on her account and is her most successful video.
It’s clear that these apps compete in similar side niches: Tea, CheaterBuster, and Cheateye.
Tea’s moat is that it managed to be in the App Store, which gives it higher credibility and helps it rank #1 here.
We pulled their hooks and data
A lot of the hooks repeat if you look closely.
Things like “He thought I had no idea” or similar versions come up again and again.
We also like ones like “Daily reminder:…” or “45 minutes til…” that build urgency.
“Caught my man…” shows up a lot too.
You can check out all the hooks and other patterns here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1W-mqxW2UYCToeDEaiakDh68gsXS4wy4DSJioopprnXo/edit?usp=sharing
Comment Analysis
These videos get tons of “support” comments and conversations, which shows they know how to tell stories that hit.
A lot of people also talk about the “dog” she left in a few of the videos. It’s another detail that grabs attention.
Just like the dog example, there are other moments built to spark one big controversial reaction.
Comments like “13 MONTHS FOR TRAFFICKING MINORS???? THE LEGAL SYSTEM IS SO BROKEN” and “13 MONTHS IS ALL HE GOT?????” have a combined 250K likes.
You can read all the comments here.
Now competitors
Since then removed, this new competitor rose rapidly by riding the trend of Tea. You could also imagine new apps breaking out each feature individually, like the criminal record check.
Getting views in this category is pretty easy because emotional videos about dating or cheating stories tend to go viral on most platforms.
While that doesn’t always lead to downloads, it definitely does for Tea.
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