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“The world has always been full of stories. Appearing at the dawn of communication, they found expression on cave walls and in campfire legends. Much has changed since then, but their purpose remains the same: to preserve and transmit human experience, knowledge and traditions"

These words, which remind us of the role of storytelling and legends in the art of customer acquisition, were published by Universal Mind interactive designer Francisco Inhoste ( Francisco Inhauste) in 2010 year.

However, a story is not only a way to interest the buyer, but also a powerful tool for getting to know him.

Most companies do a great job of this and have a fairly accurate picture of their customer, but often the data they have doesn't give any idea of ​​the difficulties that are encountered on the conversion path. In this regard, it would be good to have some kind of instruction, or a short story about all the movements of clients. In business, such a tool already exists - it is called the Customer journey map.

What is a Customer Journey Map?

Or the so-called "Consumer Journey Map" (CJM), is a story of customer experience (customer's experience), starting with the first contact, through the process of involvement, and ending with a long-term relationship with the company.

This map can illuminate one side of the client's "journey" or give general idea about all stages. Often, it displays key interaction points that tell how the buyer feels, what he wants and the questions that arise in connection with this.

In other words, CJM makes it possible to characterize in detail target audience, to understand what she is striving for and what her expectations from the company are.

In principle, such a map can look like anything, but usually it is a graphic file, as in the example below. Whatever her appearance, the goal is always the same - to tell the company about its customers as best as possible.

Obviously, this tool has already come to the taste of marketers, however, other specialists, especially in the field of digital technologies, can easily adapt it to their tasks.

Why do you need a Customer Journey Map?

To begin with, CJM is a powerful tool for visualizing the customer's interaction with a product or service. If you are a designer, the map will help you understand the user context: what situation the person who contacted you is in and what goals he sets for himself. If you are a copywriter, you can anticipate your readers' questions and feelings. If you are a manager or business owner, CJM will give you insight into how your customers move through the conversion funnel and offer new opportunities to attract and convert them.

For a user experience designer, a “journey map” will help identify all the gaps in the organization of the conversion process and point out its painful points, such as:

1. An inconsistency between devices that is revealed when a customer uses multiple devices.
2. Mismatch between company departments, which can irritate users.
3. Mismatch between communication channels (for example, the experience of interaction in social media is worse than on the site).

However, the most important property of CJM is the ability to focus all the attention of the company on the client himself, describing his behavior as accurately as possible and intuitively decomposing his desires.

This approach greatly motivates employees working in an organization to pay more attention to the feelings, questions and needs of customers, which is especially important in the field of Internet products and services.

Even the very process of creating a "customer map" already increases the company's customer focus.

So, you have already seen that CJM has many advantages and can be an extremely useful tool. Where to start?

How to collect information for a consumer journey map?

The process of creating a map should always start with getting to know your customers.

Most companies have already taken care of this issue, and it is likely that the next study will seem like a waste of time to them. However, by looking at the available data, it may turn out that this information is not enough or it is lost somewhere in the depths of your desk.

Either way, the previous work on the subject is a great start, and as a start, you can really learn everything you already know about customers and clarify the relevance of the data you have. This will save your strength and calm those who are especially stubborn in their resistance to new research :)

So, there are two types of data collection: analytical work and conversation.

Analytical research

In this information age, we have a wide variety of sources of customer information, and one of the most obvious is web analytics, which allows us to see who exactly makes up the company's main audience and what customers would like to receive. Also, thanks to this tool, you can identify problem areas that users stumble over when interacting with the company.

However, one must be careful here: these data can be misinterpreted. For example, a high number of clicks or a long time spent on a page does not always mean that your customer is happy. This may well mean that he is confused or confused by the structure or design of your landing page.

Social media is another useful source of customer knowledge. For example, the SocialMention service collects opinions and perceptions about a brand, whether they are positive or not.

A simple web search can also provide some important insights about current trends and help you understand how your company is meeting user expectations.

Finally, consider running a survey - the results will create an even more detailed customer profile with specific questions, thoughts, and desires.

free conversation

Despite the fact that analytical studies are of great importance and weight, nevertheless, they are not enough to recreate the full picture. In order to compile a holistic story of the customer's "journey" through your company, you need to turn to the study of user experience ( UX, user experience), which can be gleaned from communicating with clients through interviews or social media.

Users often leave comments on the pages of companies themselves - you just have to get to know them regularly in order to take them into account when forming the final CJM.

You can also talk to the first line staff ( front-line), for example, with the help desk or sales managers: their daily and direct interaction with customers is a storehouse of knowledge about the needs of your target audience.

It is known that any research is always limited by time and budget. Moreover, if the company has several target groups, creating a detailed user map for each of them is rather burdensome. In this case, you need to choose one, the main one, and focus on it.

The rest of the groups can be mapped based on reasoned assumptions and hypotheses derived from discussions with front-line colleagues and other interested employees. Despite the inaccuracy and approximate nature of this approach, it is still better than nothing.

Before drawing conclusions, check which information is based on real facts and which is not: making decisions based on guesswork alone can be dangerous. Management, once seeing the results of your work, will allocate more funds to collect additional data.

We figured out the research - it's time to map.

Making your custom card

As already mentioned, there is no right or wrong format for a CJM presentation: most often, it is depicted as a user experience timeline. However, you can arrange it as separate slides or even make a video. the main objective — the best way tell the customer's story.

Delegate the task of creating a map to designers: with the help of graphic tools, they will create a map that clearly and concisely focuses on key points.

Whatever the form, CJM should contain both statistical data and the opinions of clients and colleagues: this will help create the most complete image and convey the right direction.

Don't complicate. The more complex your map, the easier it will be for you to get lost in the many user behaviors. The illustration is not at all necessary in order to tell about every aspect of the client's life, its purpose is to convey information as concisely and concisely as possible.

In our blog, we have already said more than once, but we recall: (CJM, customer journey map) is marketing tool, which is used to visualize the needs and pain points of the client, thanks to which you can see how people interact with your company.

As a rule, the map includes three zones: a "magnifying glass" (lens, zone A), which provides focus on the target; an area describing the user's experience (area depicting the user's experience, zone B) and collecting data and analyzing the results (insights, zone C).

To understand all the pros and cons of this tool, marketers conducted a study involving 48 UX specialists and found out how various companies use the journey map.

During the study, participants were asked to answer several questions:

• What elements do you include in the map?
• Cons of using a card?
• How useful is a map for a marketer?
• In what cases does this tool not work?
• When is mapping most effective?

One of the most interesting conclusions was that the effectiveness of the map decreases significantly if you simplify or do not take into account the insight zone, which is just responsible for new opportunities. Many respondents also noted that the effectiveness of the tool is affected by the support from managers and the smooth follow-up of other departments.

Three zones of the customer journey map: magnifying glass (zone A), UX (zone B) and insights (zone C). Although the last zone is closely related to new features, it is rarely included in the journey map.

The possibility of a common vision of the problem and team building were mentioned as the advantages of using the map. Among the challenges is the lack of a clear understanding of the user experience prior to mapping. Let's analyze the pros and cons of this tool in more detail.

Question 1: What elements do you typically include in a customer journey map?

According to the study, the majority of specialists include elements from zone A and zone B in the map. Almost 80% of them use prototypes (personas) and scenarios (scenarios). Most often, the map also includes actions (actions), thoughts (thoughts) and emotions (emotions). However, most do not pay enough attention to zone C and do not include its elements in the map. Meanwhile, insights are essential if you want to turn a card from theoretical tool visualizations into a UX optimization plan. If you do not use metrics and do not own the data, this is a disadvantage that can (and should) be eliminated. But if you already have information, but you do not use it, this is an unforgivable mistake.

What elements do you typically include in a customer journey map? User actions (user actions), user prototypes (personas), and scenarios (scenarios) are elements of zone A, as well as thoughts and feelings (elements of zone B) most often included in maps. Recommendations and metrics are the most unpopular elements.

Question 2: Cons and difficulties of using the card?

The answers to this question were divided into three groups. More than half of UX professionals (52%) cited the complexity of the map development process as a disadvantage. In addition, it is also considered a challenge to visualize all the necessary aspects of the experience without distortion, and to obtain support from managers.

1. Understanding the process and describing the project (52%)

The most common disadvantages of CJM were the complexity of the process of creating a map and determining the scope of the project. Respondents noted that it is not always easy to highlight the aspects of UX that are most important for marketers, to standardize the methods and process of creating a map. “Fuzzy understanding means that the final product may answer the wrong question,” said one of the participants in the study.

2. Reflection of realities without distortion (15%)

Another challenge is related to the data collection process: it is important not just to assume the goals and needs of users, but to deduce this understanding based on specific data. Distortions can also arise under the influence of interested parties.

3. Collaboration (15%)

The process of creating a map often requires the participation of specialists from different departments. For 15% of respondents, working together was not the easiest task.

Question 3: How useful is the map for a marketer?

Here the responses are divided into several main groups. More than a third of those surveyed noted that mapping helps bring different departments together.

1. Emergence of common goals and vision (32%)

32% of participants believe that the process of creating a journey map helps to develop a common vision of the needs of the audience and its pain points (and therefore - common goals). “Achieving consensus and common understanding are two huge pluses that this marketing tool brings. With its application, it is much easier to work on meeting the needs of the client in the future, ”said one of the respondents.

2. Revealing hidden problems (24%)

The map development process allows you to identify those problems and difficulties that you did not think about before (and sometimes you did not even know about their existence). This information encourages new ideas to help improve the user experience.

3. Facilitates collaboration (18%)

As already mentioned, employees of various departments of the company are often involved in the process of creating a map. CJM acts as an invisible thread that connects (and equalizes) all working groups. It's not easy to create a team that is cohesive, and the process of developing a map just helps to overcome the metaphorical (and real) barriers between departments.

4. Promotes customer focus (18%)

Creating a map leads to the fact that all involved professionals focus their attention on customers and their needs. “Maps help the team to understand what and how users feel and what they need most,” participants noted.

5. "Humanization" of business (12%)

One of the less obvious benefits noted by the respondents was the following: the development of a map helps specialists to see the consequences of their daily work. Some participants admitted that by visualizing the customer journey, they felt a personal connection with each user and could see how their efforts affect customer behavior.

Question 4: When does this tool not work?

Equally important for the researchers was the question of when the creation of the map did not solve the alleged problems. Respondents shared their stories and it turned out that the reasons for failures can be a fuzzy formulation of the goal, unreliable data, and more.

1. Lack of a clear goal (36%)

Any marketing tool runs the risk of being useless if you do not set a clear goal. Maps that are too generic without borders rarely lead to positive UX changes in the future.

2. Lack of reliable data (25%)

As mentioned earlier, collecting reliable data for a map can be one of the first and foremost challenges. Visualization based on prejudices and assumptions that are then not supported by research is a waste of time.

3. Popularization of results (21%)

To convey the results of the study to all employees is also one of the stages of creating a map. The key success factor is not only conscientious work in the process of its creation, but also the popularization of the results. Beautiful visualization, which no one uses, is unlikely to bring any changes to the company.

4. Lack of trust and engagement of team members (11%)

CJM is designed to expose the shortcomings of working with clients, which is not always pleasant for some team members who may be afraid of such revelations. In addition, many take seriously only those initiatives that do not come from a group of enthusiasts, but from top management.

Question 5: When is mapping most effective?

It can be assumed that the answers to this question will be the opposite of the previous one. For example, respondents noted that maps are effective if they have a clear purpose and scenario, and are also used to improve UX after analyzing the results. However, marketers have identified several other key success factors for CJM.

1. Teamwork (37%)

Almost 40% of the participants were convinced that the maps should be created in a team that further attracts everyone interested employees to analyze and make specific decisions. According to one respondent, the map will be successful only if every employee from the sales department to the design department contributes and therefore feels a sense of belonging to a big and important cause. Pride in the work done makes sharing the results of work, which also contributes to success.

2. Specific solutions (27%)

About a third of respondents noted an important point: no matter how hard you try to make the map credible and understandable, all efforts will be in vain if the results of the study did not actually affect your work and design decisions. The map will only be successful if the analysis is followed by concrete actions.

3. Focus on goals and objectives (13%)

As already noted, the goals and objectives should be clearly defined (and do not make them too confusing and complex), even better - if they are spelled out in one of the main scenarios.

4. When a card brings results (13%)

Some participants noted that CJMs are only effective if they can deliver measurable results that help improve customer experience and increase ROI.

Conclusion

When mapping, don't ignore Zone C just because most marketers forget about it. Remember that your main goal is not to create a beautiful visualization (although if it works, it’s already good), but to improve the UX based on data.

Cards with high potential have a number of similar features:

• Focus. Decide on business goals before you start developing CJM. Draw boundaries and follow scripts clearly.
• Popularization. Don't stop there - after creating the map, share the results of your work with all employees in order to generate new ideas, expand the vision of the problem and decide on further actions.
• Reliability. The map should not be based on assumptions, but on data. Be prepared to explain what your conclusions are based on and prove their validity.

With the use of big data in marketing, the understanding of the client has changed - it has become possible to determine his habits, preferences, motives even before making a purchase. Information about who, how and why buys helps to find weaknesses in the work. Data suggests how to improve the product and service quality to bring the greatest benefit to both the customer and the company. Marketing uses visualization tools such as the Customer Journey Map to organize customer data.

Customer Journey Map - what is it

Literally, the Customer Journey Map (CJM) is translated as “customer journey map”. This is his visualized experience, the history of communication with the company, taking into account thoughts, emotions, goals, motives. The map is compiled on behalf of the buyer and looks like a graph with points and channels of his interaction with the product.

CJM reflects the customer's path to the product, identifies problem areas and suggests how to increase sales and increase customer loyalty.

With the help of the card, the main fears and expectations of customers are manifested. This is the main difference between CJM and a sales funnel, in which the company draws a linear movement of the consumer to the product without detours.

To map, you need to track the behavior of the client at all points of intersection with the company. For a good analysis, you need to collect enough information about the buyer and the product itself, and then fix it correctly on the map. Here are five basic steps to creating a Customer Journey Map.

Gather Information

To begin with, you should study the audience and think over the characters.

A character is a collective image of a buyer, created on the basis of audience data. He must have real personal qualities and clear goals.

Highlight customer behavior patterns and formulate their main characteristics from gender and age to place of work and interests. Based on patterns, collect several portraits of buyers.

Each customer has their own path to the product, so it is better to create a “journey map” for several characters. Characters from different segments of the audience will react differently to prices, they will have different expectations and impressions. This has already been discussed on the blog.

For detailed description The path requires information about the actions of the buyer - his problems, doubts and search for options, triggers and distractions. For example, how a client learns about a company, with whom he compares prices, why he gets upset and at what point he is completely satisfied.

Collect information from different sources:

• Study. It can be web analytics, questionnaires or a full-fledged social survey. You can conduct interviews or chat with clients on social networks.
• Accumulated knowledge. Sales and support managers often interact with customers. They know the problems and understand the buyer's thoughts. Ask them to talk about clients or complete the map together.
• Own experience. An easy way to understand a customer is to become one. Try to test the product yourself, capturing ideas as you go, or use "mystery shoppers" to do this.

Also, at this stage, start collecting inside information - product features, company business goals, and possible market challenges.

polina kabirova

Mark points and channels of interaction

Depending on the interaction channel, the points of contact are online and offline. The buyer enters the site from a computer or mobile device, orders a product by phone or at the company's office, talks to a courier or fills out a form on the site. All options are mapped.

Informal interaction - the buyer turned out to be an acquaintance of the manager or solved his problem in social networks - is also recorded on the map.

It is important to note the actions of the buyer, and not just the channels that are just tools to achieve the goal. Remember that the lack of interaction is also considered a point - this is also a potential scenario.

Mark critical points and barriers

Barriers prevent the client from moving from one point to another. It can be either errors on the site or spam letters, or doubt or loss of interest from the buyer.

It is necessary to find barriers and ways to overcome them. The points where the barriers are the most are critical. In them, the buyer experiences negative emotions associated with the product or company. For example, a customer is annoyed or disappointed with the quality of service. As a result, his loyalty is reduced, and he can turn to competitors.

Make sure that several barriers do not meet at one point on the map - in such a situation, the buyer may change his mind and leave.

Remove barriers

The ultimate goal of the card is to create a positive consumer experience, a continuous and successful interaction between the buyer and the product. There should be few barriers, and the consumer's movement on the map should be comfortable.

At critical points, ways to optimize the product and the company's work are determined. Everything is suitable here - from brainstorming to attracting external consultants.

To remove barriers, it is usually necessary to improve the quality of service or upgrade the product. You may need to simplify the map and remove some touchpoints or completely redesign the buyer journey.

Don't forget to evaluate the cost of lowering barriers.

Identify specific actions to improve performance and calculate how much additional investment they will require. For example, while doing CJM, you found that customers often don't make a purchase because they can't find the "buy" button on the site. To eliminate this barrier, you can redesign the site. What resources do you have for this? How much will a redesign cost with external specialists? Perhaps there are other ways to remove such a barrier.

Repeat all over again

The result of working with the buyer's "journey map" should be concrete actions to overcome barriers. But it is important to remember that the map does not provide ready-made solutions, although it clearly shows the sources of problems. Even if the map is drawn correctly and logical steps are taken to improve performance, there is no guarantee that it will work. Therefore, it is useful to build CJM regularly.

If the customer journey has changed after optimization, create a new map. Keep track of customer interaction points with the company and avoid new barriers.

Constantly return to the client and check what else is preventing him from achieving his goal and making a purchase. Gradually getting to know the client better, you can find the best ways to interact with him.

CJM Tools

• The easiest way to make a map in the form of a table in Google Sheets. Write down the stages of the journey horizontally: how the company interacts with the buyer and helps him move forward. On the vertical, write specific characteristics of the buyer: goals, motives, points and channels of interaction, emotions, barriers. The advantage of the table is that it is easy to update, and all team members have access.
• If you need details and visualization, involve designers and draw in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. Such maps look good on presentations and work for one-time optimizations, but without a specialist they are difficult to edit.
• In paid services, for example,
• Mark points and channels of interaction. Write what actions the buyer gradually leads him to the product and what channels help him in this.
• Designate critical points and barriers. Highlight the moments when the buyer stops on his way to the product: he doubts for a long time or makes a choice in favor of competitors.
• Eliminate barriers. Based on the collected data, make the customer journey faster and more comfortable.
• Repeat first. With new CJMs, track changes in the shopping experience and continuously improve the customer experience.

Thoughtful marketing brings visitors, but will all of them become your buyers? Why are they leaving? Why do they not bring their reasonable curiosity to the purchase of services? Naturally, there is a desire to help an interested audience make a choice in your favor, and offer a pre-designed route or, as they say, a “client journey map”.

To do this, you need to formulate a certain scenario that best leads to the sale of the company's services, as well as identify possible points of intersection (points of contact) between the consumer and your company. The graphic display of this scenario will give a visual representation of the customer's journey from need to purchase. This technique came to us from the organization of transport communication, when a person needs to get from point "A" to point "B".

What is a customer journey map

A customer journey map is a story about a customer's experience with your company: from the first contact through the process of participating in your marketing program to closing the deal and building a long-term relationship. The interaction visualization is described step by step, according to the company.

Customer journey may take various forms, but the goals for creating the map remain the same - to give a clear picture of the behavior of the buyer, bringing the company profit. The customer journey map should make it easier to understand what sales scenario is happening and where the touchpoints are increasing. It helps to understand the motives of the buyer: at each stage of the transaction, the desires of customers and the company's capabilities are considered.

For ease of perception of the "Customer Journey Map" methodology, let's consider the transaction process using the example of hotel services. Below is a typical behavior for a new visitor to a hotel site. Although it must be admitted, there is no unambiguous standard for creating a travel map. It can be a concise description of the procedures at each stage of the sales funnel, or a colorful infographic that takes into account motives, emotions, sales channels, timeframes, and the company's responsible persons for each touch point.
For the consumer, the transaction begins with the search for options and their comparison. If the expectations correspond to internal motives, a detailed study of the proposal takes place and a decision is made on the possibility of using the services of the hotel. The process of perception of the service does not end there, and the client forms an attitude towards the company in terms of the level and quality of service.

For each stage of the sales funnel, the hotel has predetermined tasks that are implemented by marketing, booking services and directly by the hotel staff serving the guest. IN hotel business it is customary to use service standards, where the responsibilities and procedures for each service of the hotel are prescribed in the most careful way.

The customer journey map is a method of analyzing the interaction between the consumer and the company, which allows you to identify problems and understand at which stage of the sales funnel the customer is lost.

Key Factors for Creating an Effective Customer Journey Map

1. Emphasis on what allows you to form a client from a visitor

Building a customer journey map should be based on the real experience of interaction between the consumer and your company throughout the entire sales cycle. Instead of thinking about how you will sell, pay attention to what the client is doing. It is important to understand how customers think and feel when they interact with your brand. Essentially, a journey map should be based on actual understanding of customer behavior, thoughts and feelings at each stage of the sales funnel and at each touch point.

You need to formulate reasonable hypotheses about how the client will behave in this or that case. This should be the basis for possible solutions developing relationships with the client that stimulate positive emotions. The more different clients, the more diverse the palette of travel cards will be.

1. Need to grab the customer's attention

The customer's attention to your service may be spontaneous. It's easy to lose him. Therefore, the customer journey map should be based on specific goals and include actions to retain the visitor. A successful transaction will depend on the client's emotions, both positive and negative, based on his subjective experience. Therefore, investment in building relationships with the buyer should begin at the very first stage of the sales cycle, and accompany it as needed.