• by Colin Kirkland , October 4, 2024

Capitalizing on younger users' budding interest in Facebook Marketplace, Meta is now looking to persuade a new generation of young adults to engage with its original social media app, announcing several updates that prioritize local communities.

The updates include a “Local” tab, which highlights local content on the app -- nearby activities, neighborhood hotspots, meet-ups, people, businesses, items for sale -- across Marketplace, Groups, and Events. The Local section, now testing in select U.S. cities, is designed to help users connect with more people in their region.

In a blog post, the company stresses the importance of helping “young adults” with this feature, such as those who may have just moved to a new neighborhood and are looking to find a job, friends, events and furniture.

In addition to Local, Meta is also testing an Explore tab on Facebook, which uses a “variety of signals” that power the platform’s algorithm in order to deliver multifaceted content meant to reflect users’ individual interests. For example, time management hacks, tips for traveling abroad for the first time, DIY tricks for repurposing furniture, or running groups for marathon training.

In Messenger, Meta is introducing a new Communities feature that allows small- to medium-sized communities to connect over shared interests by creating multiple topic-based chats in order to run multiple conversations within a larger Messenger group without needing to create an official Facebook Group.

Facebook gives the example of college students making use of Messenger Communities to discuss class information, run club recruitment, and share campus events – marking another clear example of the tech giant's desire to attract Gen Z users with its new tools.

As for Facebook Groups, the company has begun testing a customizable Group AI that invites members to open a chat with the group's chatbot, which will then answer questions and link to relevant group posts in a move to streamline efficiency within a group.

According to Facebook, every month 1.8 billion people use Groups -- which has 25 million monthly active public groups across the globe.

In attempts to boost the prominence of event sharing, Facebook will now provide personalized event recommendations via weekly in-app notifications, with the added ability for users to be able to send event invites to their connections on Instagram, SMS, and email.

Again, despite its popularity among older generations, Facebook is clear about its recent decision to target younger users. In May, Facebook head Tom Alison said that while “Facebook is still for everyone,” the company has “made significant changes with young adults in mind.”

Which may be working. Meta says that right now there are over 40 million young adults on Facebook in the U.S. and Canada, which is “the highest it has been in more than 3 years.”