Netflix Invite-a-Friend Program to Acquire New Paying Subscribers

Design a referral program that helps Netflix grow by getting its current members to bring in people who do not subscribe yet. ```hint Who is one step away Before designing rewards, think about which non-members already have some contact with Netflix, and what would make a member bother to send them an invite. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Does growth mean new paid memberships only, or should returning former members and paid extra-member slots on existing accounts also count? - Can the incentive be a free or discounted month, or should rewards avoid touching price? - Should the program cover every market and plan, including the ad-supported plan, or launch in a few markets first? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A precise growth goal, plus a chosen referrer segment and invitee segment, justified by how people already share Netflix - Incentives for both sides, and whether their cost is covered by referred members who would not have joined anyway - The full loop: where invites start in the product, what the invitee sees, how a sign-up is attributed and when a reward is granted - Abuse controls for self-referral and repeated free-month claims that do not punish honest members - A north-star metric measured against a holdout, with guardrails on referred-member churn and reward cost ### Follow-up Questions - How would you estimate how many referred members would have signed up without the program? - Referred members cancel more often once their offer ends. What would you change? - How would the design differ in markets where price, rather than awareness, is what keeps people from subscribing?