Grubhub optimizes a high-stakes campaign with real-time human insight

To reduce risk and move quickly, Grubhub turned to UserTesting to generate rapid, real-time insights during the campaign.

The team launched lightweight “think aloud” studies to evaluate first impressions, comprehension, and desirability across three distinct in-app exposure paths. Using UserTesting’s participant network, they recruited frequent delivery users and completed testing within 48 hours.

This approach gave the team immediate visibility into how customers were interpreting the offer and where confusion existed.

Using UserTesting, Grubhub delivered actionable customer insights within 24 hours and reduced the feedback-to-action loop during a major national campaign launch. The research directly informed product updates, social asset creation, and marketing optimization efforts, helping the team refine the customer experience while the campaign was still live.

These insights enabled immediate cross-functional action:

• Product teams clarified offer details and reduced friction within the app experience
• Marketing teams prioritized key areas for quantitative validation and optimization
• Creative teams rapidly iterated on social and campaign assets to address customer skepticism and confusion

By rapidly identifying and resolving comprehension gaps, Grubhub was able to protect conversion during one of the company’s highest-visibility moments of the year, while contributing stronger brand perception and the following business outcomes:

• Large basket (over $50+) order growth: Drives an increasingly meaningful share of overall delivery activity on Grubhub.
• Larger orders from new diners: Signals strong platform engagement as new users opt for higher-value initial experiences.
• Increased Average Order Value (AOV) and Items per Order: Reflects continued momentum toward larger, higher-value transactions.
• Increasing Group Ordering and Multi-Merchant Orders: Reinforces diner interest in more flexible and collaborative ordering options.