Zepto · Product sense · Mid · 45 to 60 minutes

What should Zepto fix before first order?

Zepto is an Indian quick commerce app that delivers groceries and household essentials from nearby dark stores in minutes. Answer this product management case and get it graded line by line against a weighted rubric.

product sense
prioritization
user empathy
metrics
tradeoff analysis

The situation

You are a PM on Zepto's consumer app. The Head of Product asks you to propose the next set of in-app improvements to help more users place a successful first grocery order and come back, while preserving Zepto's core promise of very fast delivery. Competition from Blinkit and Instamart is intense, and users often open quick commerce apps with an urgent need, little patience, and low tolerance for surprises like missing items, payment friction, or unclear delivery status. Different teams are pushing different ideas: shorten onboarding, improve discovery and search, show inventory more clearly, simplify checkout, invest in tracking and support, or deepen loyalty benefits. Each idea sounds reasonable, but adding too much can also slow the experience or create operational complexity. Assume you have one quarter and one consumer product squad to improve the app experience in existing cities. What should Zepto prioritize, why, and how would you know it worked?

What to produce

Write a 1 to 2 page product strategy memo.

Your answer must

State the primary user problem and the target user segment for this decision.
Map the core journey from app open to delivered order, and identify the top 3 friction points you would address.
Recommend up to 3 prioritized in-app changes for the next quarter, with rationale and sequencing.
Explain the trade-offs your plan makes across speed, trust, personalization, and margin, including at least one thing you would not do now.
Define success metrics, including leading and lagging indicators, and propose a simple experiment or rollout plan.
Call out major risks or dependencies, such as inventory accuracy, support load, or payment reliability.

Constraints

Focus on the in-app experience, not dark store placement, rider staffing, or changing the delivery SLA.
You cannot redesign every step at once, so the plan must fit one quarter and one squad.
Do not rely on blanket discounts or free delivery as the main answer.

Format

Use clear headings and bullets, and include a simple prioritization table or funnel if helpful.

How Zepto actually played it

Breaks down Zepto in-app features that support product-led growth, from simplified onboarding to ordering and tracking.

Reduce onboarding steps for urgent use cases
Features should support speed and trust
Product-led growth needs a clear first value

Built from Zepto: Improving Grocery Delivery with Unparalleled Customer Convenience by Prod Lab.