Create a Customer Journey in 6 steps

Step 1

Start by identifying the key stages a customer might go through in their interaction with your company.
Often these are steps like:

• Discover: The customer discovers the product.
• Research: The customer searches for the offer.
• Purchase: The purchase is made.
• Delivery: The product is delivered.
• After-Sales: The customer uses the product.

Do you want to reach target customers even earlier? Then put the following phases before the ones already mentioned:

• Pre-Awareness: No need and awareness of the problem.
• Awareness: Problem awareness due to triggering events.
• Consideration: There is a will to eliminate the problem or satisfy the need.
• Preference: The customer informs himself in detail about offers and determines his relevant set.

Step 2

What information do you want to be able to assign to the customer? What are the key stages?

• Pain points: What problems does the customer want to be solved?
• Questions: What does the customer want to know at this stage?
• Emotions: What does the customer feel in this situation?
• Weaknesses: What wishes can’t you fulfill at this stage?
• Influences (Influencers): Who or what contributes to influencing the customer’s decision-making process at this stage?

Step 3

Add all the contact points that come to mind from the marketing, sales, and service environment. This will give you a good initial overview. Often, the first contact points where target customers learn about your offer are outside your sphere of influence. Examples are a recommendation from a customer or a product test.

Step 4

Which touchpoints have a high reach with your target audience? Which ones exert a particularly high influence?

These can be editorial articles in print media, blogs, but also discussion groups in social networks such as LinkedIn or Facebook. Comparison portals are also often the first point of contact for a solution. Not to be forgotten, of course, are advertising measures via the various channels.

Step 5

Each touchpoint can have a positive or negative impact on the target customer. Therefore, try to understand the momentum well. Why are certain points not so important? What influences the sudden urgency of the purchase decision? How can you use the momentum correctly?

Create a touchpoint ranking by listing the most important touchpoints by priority and in chronological order. Which touchpoints have the greatest impact?

Step 6

Visualize the Buyer Persona’s route along with the touchpoints with your company. In which form you create the customer journey is your decision. Maybe you draw a kind of map or shoot a video.

Important: Record the visualization of the customer journey with sticky notes. This way, you can map new insights at any time. Because a customer journey never stands still. It evolves so quickly – just like the behavior of your customers.

Conclusion

Creating a customer journey map takes work. But even during the creation process, many valuable ideas emerge that are worth their weight in gold. The result is the basis for more effective marketing.