My Role
Product Designer
Type
Product concept
Period
2-4 weeks
Instagram connects you to the whole world but falls short two streets away. This concept adds a local layer for finding nearby events and businesses.
A 20-user survey found 86% value local content but fewer than half can find it, so I designed two discovery patterns for passive and active browsing.
"Uncovered a critical gap: 86% of users value local content, but fewer than half can find it. Surveyed 20 users, designed 2 discovery solutions for passive and active browsing modes."
Instagram falls short two streets away
Instagram connects billions of people to the world, but it falls short two streets away. Finding a local art show, a food truck, or a boutique sale means scrolling hashtags and hoping the algorithm surfaces something nearby.
A survey of 20 active Instagram users made the gap concrete:
- 100% use Instagram multiple times a day
- 86% said local content is important or very important to them
- 43% found it genuinely hard to surface local content on the platform
- 90% wanted local events, 57% local businesses, 47% local creators
The demand is clearly there. Instagram has the infrastructure but no dedicated local layer.
A local layer that doesn't fracture the app
The Local Feed turns Instagram into more than a global hub. It gives space to what's happening nearby (events, small businesses, hidden gems) while keeping the app people already know intact.
The design challenge was to add local discovery without fracturing the experience users trust.
Passive and active discovery need different doors
Instead of forcing one mental model, I designed two entry points for two different behaviours.
A "Near You" tab for the casual scroller
A "Near You" tab sits alongside the existing feed tabs ("For You," "Latest"). You can flip to a curated stream of local posts as part of your normal scroll.
This is for passive discovery: people who aren't searching but are open to seeing what's around them.
A "Near You" grid for people with a plan
A dedicated "Near You" section in Explore, with a grid layout for local events, businesses, and creators.
This is for active discovery: people who open Instagram already looking for something to do.
Why Both?
They serve different intents. Home catches the casual scroller inside an existing habit. Explore catches the person who came in with a plan. Together they cover the full range without forcing one interaction model on everyone.
I started with research, not wireframes
I started with research, not wireframes. Only after mapping the gaps did I sketch, roughing out how local content could sit inside Instagram's existing navigation without adding new weight.
The hi-fi work followed Instagram's clean visual language, so local elements read as a natural extension rather than an add-on. I tested every decision against one question: does this feel like Instagram, or does it feel like a different app?
The payoff: community, visibility, return visits
- Stronger community. People find and engage with their neighbourhood without fighting the algorithm.
- Visibility for small businesses. Local creators and shops reach an audience that's physically nearby and actually interested.
- A reason to return. A local layer gives people a reason to open the app beyond their existing follows.
What's Next
Personalisation. A local feed tuned not just by proximity but by preference: your usual coffee shop, upcoming concerts, businesses that match what you already engage with.
Real-time updates. Trending events and time-sensitive promotions, to add urgency and pull people back.
Business analytics. Showing local businesses how their posts perform in the Local Feed specifically, apart from their global reach.
People rarely ask for the feature
The lesson from this project: people rarely ask for the feature. The research showed they were frustrated, but nobody said "I want a local feed." They asked why they couldn't find local content. The feature was my read of that underlying need, which is why it had to feel obvious once it existed.
86% of users valued local content, but fewer than half could actually find it. The gap wasn't a missing feature. It was a missing layer, sitting inside an app they already open every day.