Discover the path to Third-Party Delivery excellence with our report.
Looking to improve your delivery performance? The 2024 Third-Party Delivery Report breaks down how three leading delivery services stack up, giving restaurants and convenience stores the insights they need to level up.
THE REPORT MEASURES FOUR KEY ASPECTS ACROSS THREE LEADING SERVICE PROVIDERS.
Research Methodology: How we collected data?
With the help of our extensive mystery shopper network, we performed 600 mystery shop orders across the U.S. Shoppers placed orders using third-party delivery services—no paid tiers or priority delivery were allowed!
Mystery Shop Allocation
Each delivery partner was allocated 200 shops, split evenly between convenience stores and quick-serve/fast-casual restaurants. Convenience store orders included a made-to-order item and a pre-packed snack or drink.
Timing
The shopping period spanned from April to June 2024, with orders placed between 5:00 am and 11:00 pm EST.
Metrics Measured
The study evaluated four key factors that influence consumer choice: Speed of Service, Order Accuracy, Fees, and Overall Experience.
Empowering your delivery choices.
This report underscores the importance of choosing the right delivery partner and optimizing operations to enhance customer experience. Four key aspects that we measured in the report:
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Speed of Service
Speed Matters. It's a top priority for third-party delivery services. To gauge performance, our shoppers tracked the promised delivery time, the estimated time given after placing the order, and the actual delivery time.
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Order Accuracy
In a recent survey, North American consumers ranked order accuracy as the top factor. In our study, which included both pre-packaged and made-to-order items from convenience stores, monitoring this aspect was crucial. While order accuracy primarily depends on the food establishment, food temperature management is within the driver’s control.
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Delivery & Service Fees
Curious about what drives delivery and service fees? It's all about the timing of the order and the distance between the restaurant and the delivery location. Our study reveals which delivery services charge the most. Plus, we compare how main item prices stack up between independent and chain restaurants.
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Overall Experience
To wrap things up, we took a closer look at how satisfied consumers were with their full delivery experience — looking at delivery speed, food temperature, fees, and more. We also broke down how satisfaction varied between restaurant and convenience store orders.
The key takeaways.
This study equips restaurants and c-stores with essential insights to make strategic, data-driven choices in selecting the perfect delivery partner, all while enhancing the customer experience.
Performance comparison between QSR chains and C-stores
Restaurants clearly trumped c-stores in head-to-head comparisons, showing that c-stores have some catching up to do. Another interesting finding? Delivery partners picking up meals from c-stores often struggled to distinguish between pre-packaged snacks and made-to-order meals, highlighting a key area for improvement.
Impact of multiple deliveries on customer satisfaction
One major factor affecting several key metrics was drivers making additional deliveries before reaching the final destination. Customer satisfaction and order accuracy were lowest in the afternoon, between 1:31 pm and 4:00 pm.
All three service providers carved out their niche
Overall, DoorDash led in overall satisfaction, delivery speed, and accuracy. Uber Eats followed closely, excelling in ensuring food arrived at the correct temperatures. Although Grubhub ranked third, it distinguished itself by consistently delivering faster than both the estimated and promoted (advertised) times.