In order to effectively sell your product or service, you have to understand your target market’s experience from their point of view. This is where a customer journey map can help. This is an important part of acquiring new customers. What is customer mapping, exactly? How can you go about creating this map? What information will it tell you? Let’s dive in!

Wait, What is a Customer Journey Map?

A customer journey map is a visual representation of how your customers and potential customers interact with your brand. It shows all of the stops people make along the way as they move toward the “destination.” The destination is the goal you want them to achieve — for instance, purchasing a product. The map can be a diagram (or several diagrams), a flow chart, and even a literal map.

The Benefits of Customer Journey Mapping

“We don’t need a map. We already know what the customers go through,” you might be saying. Well, you might be surprised!

Think about it. Most of the time, someone doesn’t first hear about your brand and then take action — especially if that action involves spending money.

Psst! You might like my blog on how to increase sales.

It’s a relationship that you have to nurture over time. In fact, in marketing, there’s something called the “rule of seven.” This says that people need to hear from your brand an average of seven times before they’ll make a move.

So, one of the biggest benefits of customer journey mapping is that it tells you what the entirety of your relationship with your leads looks like. If you know what all of these steps are, then you can better cater to customers as they move through the map, giving them exactly what they need at the right time.

For example, when someone first hears about your brand, it’s probably too early to start talking about your prices. Rather, you need to be expressing the value of what you offer and how it solves a problem they’re having.

Let’s expand on this!

How to Create a Customer Journey Map

There are probably infinite ways to create a map. For the sake of this blog, I’m going to keep it simple. Here are the basic steps you can take to get started.

1. Identify the Buyer Persona

Who’s your ideal customer? The first step in creating a customer journey map is to identify who that map is going to reflect. You might very well have different types of customers. In that case, this might necessitate different maps! But start with one.

Once you’ve identified who that target customer is, start to build out a profile. Think of questions like:

• How old are they?
• Do they live in a specific region?
• What are their hobbies?
• What do they struggle with?
• What do they want/need?

Not everyone is your ideal customer, so get specific.

2. Identify All of the Touchpoints

When I say “touchpoint,” I’m referring to all of the points at which a customer interacts with your brand. One way to make this easier to grasp is to identify the very first and last touchpoints first, and then fill in everything in between.

For instance, maybe up until now, your brand has only sold in the US. But you’re now moving into Canada, too. So, you run a Facebook ad to target people in that country. This is the first touchpoint. And maybe, your ultimate goal is to get them to purchase a specific product. That’s the last touchpoint.

Now, what’s everything that has to happen in between in order to get them to your ideal destination? Additional touchpoints might include:

• Downloading your free guide.
• Following you on Instagram.
• Reaching out to your live support.

3. Identify the Needs at Each Touchpoint

Now that you know what all of the touchpoints are, you need to figure out how you’re going to provide value at every single one of them. For example, let’s say that at one touchpoint, you’re asking them to sign up for your email list. How will you incentivize them to do that? Maybe if they do, they’ll receive 15% off their first purchase with you.

Keep in mind that toward the beginning of the map, the value you provide should be more informational in nature. This time is about brand awareness and explaining why people should care about you. Toward the end of the map, the value should be more transactional. You’re gearing them up to take action!

As part of this step, you should also be mindful of what you’re asking your customers to do. The newer they are to the journey, the less you should ask of them. Toward the end is when you can expect them to invest a little more of their time and energy.

4. Track and Evolve

Once you have a complete map, you need to follow along with your customers as they move through it. Did you miss a necessary touchpoint? Add it in. Did you include one that’s not needed? Remove it. Have you found that at a certain touchpoint, the value you’re delivering doesn’t meet the customers’ needs at that point in time? Switch it up!

Finishing the map isn’t the end of your work. In fact, you might find that you need to consistently evolve it over time, and that’s perfectly okay.

Your customer journey map is a collaborative effort. Make sure that your brand, sales, and marketing teams all have a chance to see it and provide input. After all, they all have unique insight into your target market.

Want even more help growing your brand? Head to my YouTube channel next!