Case Study: The Philadelphia Inquirer achieves a 68% increase in mobile checkout rates with UserTesting

How The Philadelphia Inquirer expedited their transition to digital, and increased mobile checkout rates by 68%

The Philadelphia Inquirer is a long‑running, nonprofit metropolitan news publisher that needed to rapidly accelerate its shift to a digital‑first, subscription‑based model as local subscription rates declined. To avoid becoming a “news desert,” the Product Design Team set out to redesign the end‑to‑end subscription flow to drive new signups and reduce abandonment.

Using UserTesting, the team ran exploratory research, built wireframes and an HTML prototype, and leveraged the Contributor Network to pinpoint friction points — from accessibility and confusing inputs to third‑party checkout issues. Those insights guided prioritized design and vendor changes, producing a 24% rise in overall checkout completion and a 68% increase in mobile checkout rates, plus valuable learnings shared across departments.

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Matt Boogie

Chief Technology Officer