PM Interview Question: How would you improve Youtube to drive engagement?

CIRCLES Framework Breakdown

1. C – Comprehend the Situation
2. I – Identify the Customer
3. R – Report the Customer’s Needs
4. C – Cut, through prioritization
5. L – List Solutions
6. E – Evaluate trade-offs
7. S – Summarize your recommendation

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1. Comprehend the Situation

YouTube is one of the largest video-sharing platforms globally, with billions of users. The platform drives engagement through various features such as video recommendations, comments, likes, and shares. The goal is to increase user engagement, which could mean more watch time, more interaction with content (likes, comments, shares), or increased content creation.

2. Identify the Customer

There are several user segments to consider:

• Content Consumers: Regular viewers who primarily watch videos.
• Content Creators: Users who upload and create content.
• Advertisers: Brands and businesses that advertise on YouTube.
• YouTube Premium Users: Users who pay for an ad-free experience.

3. Report the Customer’s Needs

For this analysis, let’s focus on Content Consumers because increasing their engagement directly affects the platform’s overall success. Here are the key needs:

• Discoverability: Ability to find content they’re interested in easily.
• Interactivity: Engaging with content through likes, comments, and shares.
• Personalization: Receiving recommendations that match their tastes.
• Community Building: Connecting with others who share similar interests.

4. Cut, through Prioritization

While all use cases are important, Discoverability stands out as the most crucial aspect to focus on. If users cannot easily find content that resonates with them, they are less likely to engage deeply with the platform.

Why prioritize Discoverability?

• Impact on Engagement: Better discoverability can lead to more watch time, more interaction, and higher satisfaction, which are key metrics for engagement.
• Content Overload: With millions of videos uploaded daily, users often feel overwhelmed. Improving discoverability addresses this directly.

5. List Solutions

Several approaches could enhance Discoverability:

1. Enhanced Search Functionality: Implementing a more intuitive and AI-driven search feature that understands nuanced queries.
2. Contextual Recommendations: Improving the recommendation engine to suggest videos based on the user’s current context or mood.
3. Interest-Based Navigation: Allow users to explore content through dynamically generated categories based on their interests and past behavior.
4. Short Video Summaries: Providing short summaries or clips of videos to help users decide if they want to watch the full video.

6. Evaluate Trade-offs

• Enhanced Search Functionality: While it’s effective, it requires significant AI advancements and could be complex to implement.
• Contextual Recommendations: This is powerful but could be seen as intrusive if not done carefully.
• Interest-Based Navigation: Easier to implement and can be highly engaging, but might require a redesign of the UI.
• Short Video Summaries: This is a low-cost solution but could reduce full video watch times if not executed well.

7. Summarize Your Recommendation

Recommended Solution: Interest-Based Navigation

Why this solution?

• User-Centric: It aligns with how users naturally want to explore content—by their interests.
• Scalable: It can easily be expanded as user interests evolve and new content categories emerge.
• Low Implementation Cost: Compared to advanced AI-driven solutions, this is simpler to roll out.

Specific Implementation:

• Introduce a new “Explore by Interests” tab where users can see dynamically generated categories based on their watch history, liked videos, and search history.
• These categories could include tags like “Fitness Trends,” “Vegan Cooking,” or “DIY Projects,” which update in real-time as user preferences evolve.
• Each category leads to a curated list of videos, playlists, and creators.

Outcome Expectation:

• Increased Watch Time: Users are more likely to engage with content that closely matches their interests.
• Enhanced User Satisfaction: Users feel that the platform is tailored to their needs.
• Improved Content Discovery: Creators benefit from their content being surfaced more effectively to interested viewers.

By focusing on interest-based navigation, YouTube can create a more personalized, engaging, and user-friendly experience, driving higher engagement across the platform.