Facebook product sense: a feature that makes local communities more active

You are a product manager at Facebook. Design a product that raises engagement within a local community. Explain which community members you would focus on, what problem you would solve for them, what you would build, and how you would measure success. ```hint Find the bottleneck Engagement in a local community happens at different moments: discovering it, joining, talking online and meeting in person. Decide which moment is the bottleneck for the people you choose to serve. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - What counts as a local community: a neighborhood or town, or any group of nearby people who share an interest, such as a running club or the parents at one school? - Should the product build on existing surfaces such as Groups, Events and Messenger, or can it be a standalone experience? - Does "engagement" mean interaction between members, turnout at real-world gatherings, time spent on Facebook, or a mix, and is monetization part of the goal? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A definition of engagement for a local community that favors meaningful interaction and offline participation over passive scrolling. - Segmentation by member role (organizers, regulars, occasional members, newcomers) and by community type, with one segment chosen and justified. - Pain points for that segment, grounded in what Facebook already offers and where it falls short. - Several solutions compared on impact, reach and effort, with one specified as a first release. - Success metrics with guardrails for notification fatigue, safety at in-person events and privacy of location data. ### Follow-up Questions - Your feature doubles the number of events created, but average attendance per event falls. What happened, and what would you do? - How would the design change for a small rural town compared with a dense city neighborhood? - How would you keep suggestions of nearby people or venues from creating safety or privacy problems?