customer journey mapping - a how to

Customer Journey Mapping

By Catherine Elder

December 2014

© 2014 Catherine Elder 1

Why do you want to map your

customer’s journey?

To understand

◦ when a prospect becomes a

customer – for your sales and

marketing teams?

◦ the customer’s experience and how

to improve it?


FROM PROSPECT TO CUSTOMER


Stages to becoming a

customer Customer perspective

◦ Discover need, need recognition - awareness

◦ Consideration/interest – explore options, research

◦ Evaluation - comparisons

◦ Purchase - action (This is it – now they have changed their status)

◦ Post-purchase behaviour Customer service and product performance lead to

Loyalty – advocacy and referrals

Re-peat customer

Marketers’ perspective

◦ Prospects (target advertising and marketing automation)

◦ Lead capturing – engage (marketing qualified lead)

◦ Nurture leads – engage (sales qualified lead)

◦ Conversion – Purchase (This is it – now how do you treat them?)

◦ Retention and loyalty

◦ Upsell, cross sell, repeat purchase


Purchaser’s requirements

Defined a need

◦ Attributes of that need for consideration &

evaluation:

Cost

Quality

Size, speed, design, use

Access

Service

Value

Purchase is made when…


What are the attributes that drive the purchasing decision

for your product/service?

Document your customer touch

points and frames of reference

Corporate

website

News

sites

microsit

e

Owned

Social

Presence

APP

External

Social

mentions

Phone -

Reception

Brick & mortar –

offices,

storefronts

Sales – phone,

email

Owned

Events

Events -

attende

d


Marketing

automation

Ads

Note devices used:

smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops

Product lifecycle


Idea

generation DevelopmentIntroduction

to marketGrowth Maturity Decline

Research,

plan,

analyze,

design

Create,

implement,

maintenanc

e

Promotion Improvements Adjustments

, support

Analyze –

improve or new

developments

Do you know where your products/services are within their lifecycle?

Are you actioning according to their stage and analyzed feedback/data?

Conduct a product/service

audit List products/services

Assess their stage in product lifecycle

Define their target markets

Describe their value

Determine any packaging, grouping

Create messaging


Product Lifecycle

stage

Target

market

Value Packaging Message

Product 1 Growth Senior

Executives

, Global

Saves time Works well

with

product 5

Save X

hours …

Customer purchase decision flow


Identif

y needConduct

research

• Friends

• Colleagues

• Authority/Subject matter experts

Evaluat

e Purchas

e

Assess

Ask

Tell

How does your

product compare

to competition?

Create personas

Analyze customer data

◦ Demographics

◦ Surveys, interviews, focus groups

Analyze prospect data

◦ Form completes

◦ Abandonment rates and locations

Conduct a competitive analysis

Develop 3-5 main personas

View my presentation on: Creating Personas


http://www.slideshare.net/cathcontact/slideshelf

Mapping

For each persona map which touch

points they would access based on

defined scenarios for specific

product/service purchases


Customer mapping example

Persona A◦ Completed form on website for X

collateral

◦ Signed up for newsletter on X topic Added to nurture stream on X topic

◦ Follows us on social media for X topic

◦ Met at an event

◦ Sales arranged a meeting/demo

◦ Proposal or collateral sent

◦ Follow up call

◦ Purchase decision© 2014 Catherine Elder 12

Customer mapping example


Customer touch pointsStages

Awareness

Consideration

Evaluation

Purchase

Post –

Purchase

behaviour

Website Social Phone Event Email Ads - ctaFace to

face

• Touch points can be accessed several times within a stage

• Touch points should be detailed, e.g. website can consist of several

forms for different collateral; email can include nurture streams

• Indicate when the customer does something (green) and when you

push communications to them (orange)

• Note – there are hundreds of ways to depict interactions

Marketing – lead scoring

Ongoing relationship

Sale

Opportunity confirmed

Qualified sales lead

Qualified marketing lead

Prospect


Time frame Activity Rating Weight Score

October Download form complete 5 .2 1

October Sign up for newsletter 6 .3 1.8

November 2nd Download form complete 5 .4 2

November Registered for webinar 6 .4 2.4

December Attended live event 7 .5 3.5

Customer engagement level

Assess their level of engagement


Timeframe Activity Engagement level

October Download form

complete

Interest in topic A

October Sign up for newsletter Desires to stay connected – monitor

their open rates

November 2nd Download form

complete

More interest in topic A – could add

this customer to nurture stream on

topic A

November Registered webinar General interest – survey to see

where they are in buying cycle

December Attend event High engagement as time

commitment – meet and assess

buying cycle stage and processSend all prospects with an interest in topic A exciting new collateral

on topic A as download and follow up with sales call.

Continually analyze &

measure Assess product life cycle

Assess customer engagement levels

Audit all content and touch points

Analyze all data

Make recommendations and act on

them


IMPROVING THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE


Customer stage after

purchase Post-purchase behaviour

◦ Customer service and product

performance lead to

Loyalty – advocacy and referrals

Re-peat customer


Customer requirements

Is the product performing to promise?

Are service requirements being met?

Does customer feel valued?

Is customer aware of additional

products/ services and cost

savings/offers?

Customer satisfaction is reached

when…


What are the attributes and commitments you’ve made

to customer service?

Additional points of

contact once

purchase made

Document your customer touch

points and frames of reference

Custome

r Portal

Corporate

website

News

sites

microsit

e

sites

tools

Owned

Social

Presence

APP

External

Social

mentions

Phone -

Reception

Call center

Brick & mortar –

offices,

storefronts

Sales – phone,

email

Consultants –

client/ customer

facing staff

Owned

Events

Events -

attende

d


Marketing

automation

Ads

Note devices used:

smart phones, tablets,

laptops, desktops

Customer service

Identify all roles and individual employees that interact with customers – do they have scripts for responses to common questions

What is the service level agreement –e.g. response within 24 business hours

How do your customers get answers and assistance?

What do they think of your customer service (survey and polls)?


Customer lifecycle and

engagement Are your customers engaged?

Are you moving them into loyalty and

advocate behaviour?

Would your customers

◦ Give you a testimonial and approve a

case study?

◦ Give you a reference?

◦ Refer anyone to you?


Map your customer journey


What

customer

s do

What

customer

s get

How

customers

feel about

experience

& product/

service

Duration

&

frequenc

y

Where –

channel

& device

What level

of interest

&

engageme

nt

Lifecycle stage

Time frame

customer journey mapping - a how to

Marketing

catherine elder3stages

catherine elderdecember

catherine elder10

catherine elder5what

catherine elder1why

catherine elder2from

customer touch points

x collateralsigned