The dating app recruitment process described herein was part of a multipronged recruitment approach of a pilot RCT to test the feasibility and acceptability of a mobile app intervention for improving HIV care and treatment among Black MSM couples living with HIV. We targeted recruitment efforts on dating and social networking apps frequented by Black MSM: Jack’d, Adam4Adam (A4A), and Growlr [19,28-31]. Qualitative data particular to each app are described below to highlight the unique success and challenges experienced using this underutilized recruitment approach. To maximize engagement with Black MSM, we hired a Black, cisgender, same-gender-loving–identified man as the study recruiter who performed all recruitment activities and documented the recruitment process. Recruitment occurred between May 2020 and March 2021. Black MSM couples were eligible if one or both partners are Black, MSM, and living with HIV, if both partners were 18 years or older, and have been together for at least 2 months in what they both consider a primary relationship (ie, one in which both partners reported feeling most committed to over any other partner or relationship).

Owing to differences in user engagement requirements by app, we used different engagement approaches by app. On Jack'd, recruitment was conducted through their in-app advertisements. Interested candidates who clicked on the advertisement were directed to a Qualtrics prescreener questionnaire that obtained basic qualifying information (eg, current place of resident, race, relationship and HIV status, and length of time on antiretroviral medications for HIV). Study staff then contacted eligible candidates via SMS text message using the telephone number provided.

Recruitment on A4A was carried out by sending private SMS text messages to potential participants using the in-app messaging feature. The recruiter identified potential participants using the app’s search filters which allowed users to filter through other users’ profiles on the basis of set criteria such as their race, HIV status, and relationship status. The study recruiter identified users whose race or ethnicity was set to Black, African American, or mixed. We included “mixed” race because many Black MSM may identify as mixed race given the diversity among Black communities. We also found that some users identify their race as mixed to avoid being filtered out by users who filter out Black-identified users within the app. The study recruiter identified users whose HIV status was set to HIV-positive, undetectable, or unanswered. Users who left their HIV status unanswered were considered for the study as it would encompass anyone who has never been tested or chose not to disclose their serostatus on the internet. Finally, the study recruiter identified users whose relationship status was set to dating, partnered, open relationship, polyamorous, or married.

Once potential participants were identified, the study recruiter privately messaged each individually. A4A has a message delivery report in its platform, which allowed recruiters to know if a message has been read or not. Users who read but did not respond within 48 hours of the first message being sent were sent a follow-up message asking if they were still considering participation in the study or were no longer interested. The messages that remained unread would require no follow-up as those users were likely inactive. Users who communicated interest then were asked to complete a phone screener with a study staff to determine eligibility.

Recruitment on Growlr was carried out by sending private messages to potential participants using the in-app messaging feature and in-app advertisements contained the weblink to a Qualtrics prescreener. A Growlr paid service, the “SHOUT!” feature, allowed the recruiter to send the study information to multiple people in a specified vicinity.

A total of 10 couples (N=20) recruited via apps were enrolled in the trial, including 7 same-race Black couples and 3 interracial couples.

This study received ethics approval from the institutional review board of University of California, San Francisco (IRB#15-18042). All participants provided informed consent to participate in the study.

Individual- and couple-level characteristics of the couples recruited via apps are reported in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. The following outlines findings resulting from the process of recruiting participants via each app.

Similar to A4A and Jack’d, Growlr recruitment procedures involved both active and passive approaches. The study recruiter identified potential participants through the app’s search filters and messaged eligible users privately; in-app advertisements with the study information also contained a weblink to the prescreener. A Growlr paid feature “SHOUT!” was used to send the study information to multiple users in a specified region. We paid for “SHOUT!” broadcasts in 4 separate cities (eg, Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; and Cleveland, Ohio). Users within a 25-30–mile radius were able to see these advertisements and resulted in 2955 total views.

Similar to A4A, the recruiter experienced verbal abuse and harassment. Growlr removed the study flyer from the recruiter’s profile, with a message indicating that it violated company guidelines against in-platform solicitation. However, after a new flyer was posted that excluded any mention of the study participants being paid, it was nevertheless removed again, and Growlr’s customer service did not respond to our inquiries about the second flyer removal. Owing to the technical bugs and low success rate (no eligible couples were found), the recruiter discontinued efforts on the platform after 2 weeks.

HIV incidence among Black MSM in the United States continues to be disproportionately high [3,4] with one-third to half of Black HIV-positive MSM to be in a primary relationship [13,14,32]. Nonetheless, societal stigma, distrust of research and medical institutions, and other systemic barriers negatively impact HIV prevention and treatment for this underserved community [24,25]. As such, novel approaches to recruiting Black MSM couples are needed.

There are relatively few dyadic HIV research studies with Black MSM couples (eg, time and staffing). Little information exists detailing the successful strategies for web-based recruitment of Black MSM couples into HIV research. While dating and social networking apps have been commonly used to recruit single MSM for research studies [19], no research has used dating apps to explicitly recruit couples of MSM. This study demonstrated the feasibility of dating and social networking apps for recruiting Black MSM couples as part of a pilot RCT of a couples-focused app for improving HIV care engagement. Recruiting MSM couples through dating and social networking apps is a necessary recruitment strategy given the prevalence of sexual agreements among MSM couples [27].

Consistent with previous research, this sample of couples contained predominately same-race Black partnerships [32]. The search and filter functions in the apps, such as filtering users on the basis of their reported relationship status, helped to identify potential participants per the eligibility criteria. A4A and Growlr offered the functionality to filter through user-identified race or ethnicity categories, which reduced the time needed to search for eligible users. Paid advertising campaigns through Jack’d and Growlr were an opportunity to recruit passively, instead of actively searching through users and initiating conversations to determine eligibility and interest.

Although the strategy of privately messaging potential participants on A4A was a successful recruitment strategy, it was not without challenges. Our Black, same-gender-loving–identified recruiter reported multiple episodes of harassment of various types (eg, sexual, racial, and political). Additionally, app-specific guidelines for study advertisements varied (eg, character limits and other rules). Regular check-ins between the principal investigator and recruiters and careful attention to the guidelines for each app are necessary.

Our study recruited for a one-time interview, and we do not know how these findings generalize to other, longer-term research requirements. Further, biases in the sample skew toward nonmonogamous couples owing to the generally sexual purposes of MSM using the apps. Finally, given the evolving nature of the software, some of the app features reported during the time of publication may or may not reflect what is currently available.

Apps designed for MSM have become increasingly popular and users on those platforms may visit them frequently (eg, daily) [33]. Research has recruited single MSM [19,34-36] and Black MSM [37-39] via apps. Given high HIV transmission rates between MSM primary partners [8-11], recent studies have also recruited MSM couples through a combination of web-based engagement (eg, Facebook and gay websites) and apps [10,40-44], but not exclusively on apps. No research documents the utility of app-based recruitment for Black MSM couples [45,46]. Given the disproportionate rates of HIV [6,7,47] and the importance of coordinating HIV prevention, care, and treatment [45,48,49] within this community, there is urgency to finding novel approaches to recruiting Black MSM couples for HIV prevention studies.

Dyadic HIV research with Black MSM couples is important but knowledge gaps remain. Challenges to research with this population include participant recruitment, which can be resource intensive, underscoring the need for recruitment strategies that have been demonstrated to be feasible and acceptable. We discuss our strategies for engaging Black MSM couples via social networking apps, and associated technical challenges, including issues with harassment directed at our recruiter. We have identified a way forward with using social networking apps to engage Black sexual-minority couples to inform future research.