STEAL THIS! How to complete a customer journey map with your team
by Carolyn Gawkowski
A customer journey map is a fantastic tool for prioritizing features and product goals through a customer centric lens. And it is an easy and fun team activity.
Interested in hosting your own workshop? Follow these steps below to do it.
Clarify the purpose of the workshop and identify the specific areas of the customer journey that you want to focus on.
Tip: Broaden your journey to include the whole perspective, from the moment someone decides to use your product to after they have done so. For example, you may be interested in analyzing how and why customers order coffee at your cafe. Although you know you may only be able to impact the experience they have inside your place of business, broaden the journey to include why they are there, how they got there, what directed them to your shop, as well as what they did after. By expanding the journey, you increase your understanding of how this experience fits into their day and may give you more opportunities that you didn’t imagine.
Gather customer insights
Use this research plan to collect data and feedback from customers to gain a better understanding of their needs, values and behaviors.
Find a facilitator
Select someone neutral who can lead the workshop and keep the team focused and engaged throughout the process. (You can hire me!)
Assemble a cross-disciplinary team
Gather the stakeholders who are tasked with building or improving your product, even people who are charged with day to day operations. This is an opportunity for the entire team to gain a broader understanding of your customer, and promoted great customer centricity.
Use or create your own customer journey map template
Find or develop your own template to outline the different stages of the customer journey and the touch points that customers interact with along the way.
Map out the customer journey
Take an hour to map out the customer journey using the template. Point out pain points, opportunities for improvement, and areas where the customer experience can be improved. Talk about how to remove obstacles.
Analyze the customer journey
Give your team time to review this customer journey map as a team and identify key insights and opportunities.
Develop a roadmap
Based on the insights gained from the customer journey map workshop, develop an action plan to address areas for improvement and enhance the customer experience.
Follow up
Monitor progress and track the impact of the action plan on the customer experience over time.