How would you mark Facebook Marketplace items as sold?
You're the product manager for Facebook Marketplace. Since many sellers don't mark items as sold, what existing functionality and metrics could you use to determine whether an item has likely sold?
Describe the Product
To start off in the right direction, you need to explain your understanding of the product – what does it do, who uses it, and how.
Facebook is a social media platform that mainly focuses on letting users share parts of their life using images, texts, videos, stay connected with friends and family, and to discover, share and express what’s matter to them. Facebook’s mission is to: enable people to build communities and bring people together. It has multiple elements like the messenger, marketplace, groups, games, jobs but for today's discussion, we will focus only on Facebook Marketplace.
Facebook Marketplace is a feature on the Facebook platform that allows users to buy and sell items with people in their local community. This feature was launched in 2016 and has since grown in popularity as a way for people to easily buy and sell items without having to navigate through other online marketplaces such as Craigslist or eBay.
One of the key benefits of using Facebook Marketplace is that it is integrated directly into the Facebook app, making it easily accessible to the over 2 billion monthly active users on the platform. Additionally, because it is connected to users' Facebook profiles, buyers and sellers can easily see who they are dealing with and build trust before making a transaction.
To access Facebook Marketplace, users can simply tap on the shop icon on the sidemenu or navigation of their Facebook app, which will take them to the Marketplace homepage. From there, they can browse and search for items that are being sold in their local area. Users can also filter their search results by category, location, and price.
When a user finds an item they are interested in, they can tap on the listing to view more details and photos of the item. They can then message the seller to ask any questions or to arrange a meeting to purchase the item. Facebook Marketplace also has built-in features that allow users to make transactions directly within the app, such as the ability to make payments through Facebook Pay.
One of the unique aspects of Facebook Marketplace is that it is not just limited to physical items. Users can also buy and sell services such as home repairs, pet-sitting, and tutoring. This allows for a more diverse range of offerings and opportunities for users.
Facebook Marketplace has also expanded globally, allowing users in different countries to access it and buy and sell items with people in their local area. It has also added a feature for business to create pages and post items for sale, which makes it easier for small businesses to reach more customers.
Overall, Facebook Marketplace is a convenient and easy-to-use platform that allows users to buy and sell items within their local community. With its integration into the Facebook app and its ability to connect buyers and sellers directly, it has become a popular alternative to other online marketplaces.
Ask clarifying questions to narrow the scope.
Q) I am considering Facebook Marketplace as generally a B2C space with not a lot of commercial listings.
Yes
Q) Does Facebook provide a built-in system for processing payments and facilitating product delivery within the Marketplace?
No
Define the Goal you want to achieve.
The Facebook Marketplace aims to provide a platform where individuals and businesses can safely and easily buy and sell goods among Facebook users. However, it does not handle the logistics of product delivery or the exchange of funds.
Problem:
Sellers often fail to update the status of their items as "sold" even after they have been purchased. This is due to the fact that transactions occur between private parties, without the involvement of Facebook, making it difficult to determine which items have been sold.
This results in an accumulation of irrelevant items on the marketplace, which can negatively impact the browsing experience for buyers searching for specific items. This can lead to low response rates, disappointment, and a decrease in trust in the Marketplace.
The objective is to reliably identify items that have been sold but have not been marked as such by the seller.
Goal:
To lower the percentage of "zombie items" on the marketplace. These items are characterized by a lack of activity, such as no views or sales, over a certain period of time. Additionally, zombie items can also be defined as those items for which sellers do not respond.
List the User Segments and choose one segment to focus on.
Users of the marketplace can be grouped into two main categories:
Buyers
Sellers (For our goal lets focus on seller).
These can be further categorised depending on their behaviour and type:New or first-time sellers
Infrequent sellers
Frequent sellers
Formalized businesses, which can also be classified as new, infrequent, or frequent sellers
Criminals or fraudsters.
User Journey (Seller):
The seller creates a listing for an item or stock on the Facebook Marketplace by providing a description, photos, and other relevant details.
The seller has the option to boost, edit, or remove the listing.
If a buyer expresses interest in the item, the seller will be added to a group conversation with the buyer to provide more information about the product.
The seller and buyer can communicate and collaborate to complete the transaction, including delivery and payment.
The seller has the option to mark the item as "sold" when the transaction is complete.
The seller also has the option to mark the item as "pending" if it is temporarily out of stock.
Reasons for the Problem:
There are several potential reasons why sellers do not mark their items as sold:
They may be unaware that this option exists.
They may not understand the benefits of marking the item as sold.
They may not be active on the platform at the time of the sale.
They may only use the Marketplace or Facebook to sell a single item.
They may prefer to communicate with buyers via email.
They may intentionally choose not to mark the item as sold in order to harm buyers, the Marketplace, or Facebook.
Solutions:
There are a few approaches that can be taken to address this issue: