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<Img
img="/uploads/developing_a_customer_journey_map_b8fe85c84e.png"
alt="Developing a Customer Journey Map with Unspecified Needs"
/>

Marketers create customer journey maps (CJMs) to understand how consumers behave from the moment they first realize the need for a product to the point of purchase. But what if the product can solve problems that potential customers haven't even thought about yet?

## Why customer needs are essential for creating a CJM

Chances are, everyone has encountered a situation where a company offered exactly what they were thinking: "This is just what I need!" even if they didn't realize it before. Those distant from marketing may dismiss it as mere coincidence. Experienced marketers, however, recognize it as a powerful [**sales funnel**](https://altcraft.com/glossary/sales-funnel-what-it-is-its-types): identifying customer pain points at the right time and place based on their goals, motivations, emotions, and past experiences.

A customer journey map (CJM) helps marketers identify the problems customers face and develop corresponding offers and solutions.

Here's an example of a CJM for a fitness club client without an explicit need at the beginning of the customer journey:

<Img
img="/uploads/example_of_a_cjm_e0716dc898.png"
alt="Example of a CJM for a fitness club client"
/>

The most important thing here is for the customer journey map to always remain customer-centric. It's necessary to gather essential data about customers to understand their needs, preferences, disappointments, and reasons for problems.

To ensure that you truly need all the information you receive, pay attention to how you formulate questions. For example, if you provide email marketing services, you can ask questions like:

- "How did you realize you needed email campaigns?" 

- "What goals did you want to achieve with them?" 

- "Were you able to achieve these goals?" 

- "What difficulties hindered you in solving the problems?"

## What to do if customer needs are undefined

If you're unsure about what customers want, analyze other data and focus on overcoming small challenges they may potentially encounter on the path to purchase and, consequently, on the path to becoming loyal brand customers.

Let's consider which parts of the CJM need special attention when working with such customers and how to organize this process.

### Creating customer personas

A customer persona is how you envision the ideal customer: their characteristics, preferences, and so on. The number of such personas depends on the brand's specifics. To understand who your ideal buyer is, use qualitative and quantitative research, surveys, and other audience analysis methods.

Start by dividing your audience into [**primary segments**](https://altcraft.com/blog/how-and-why-to-segment-target-audience) and formulate hypotheses about the characteristic features of your customers. Then, confirm these hypotheses by thoroughly surveying representatives of various segments. This way, you'll have up-to-date information about customers' goals and motivations, understanding what your customers think and feel at each stage of the journey.

Save this information in the customer persona profile and attach a photo (you can generate them based on typical customer characteristics using artificial intelligence). It's best if you create separate customer journey maps for each persona.

For example, it might look like this:

<Img
img="/uploads/example_of_customer_profile_e5c18fbc4b.png"
alt="Example of customer persona profile"
/>

This approach requires a lot of effort, but it will be much more effective than just creating customer journey maps based on your assumptions.

## Describe communication channels

When you know who your customers are, you can easily select the appropriate communication channels to start sending them information about products or services right from the start through the right channel. For example, Generation Z representatives respond better to product promotion on social media and listen to the opinions of bloggers and celebrities they follow. Conversely, older generations gather information about products and services from all over the internet: they watch reviews, read [**customer feedback**](https://altcraft.com/blog/how-to-use-customer-feedback-to-increase-sales), etc.
Once you've chosen the primary communication channels, consider how you'll convey information to the user: through videos, email newsletters, contextual marketing, blog articles, and more.

Here's an example of communication channels for CJM:

<Img
img="/uploads/examples_of_communication_channels_83eefcf79d.png"
alt="CJM: examples of communication channels"
/>

### Describe the stages of the customer journey

The number of stages may vary, but typically six steps are identified in the customer journey towards becoming a brand advocate:

1. Need;
2. Interest;
3. Research;
4. First purchase;
5. Loyal customer;
6. Brand advocate.

Record the goals and expectations of customers at each stage of the journey - this will help address minor challenges at any of the steps.

For example, here are the goals and expectations of a fitness club's customers at different stages of the customer journey:

<Img
img="/uploads/examples_of_goals_0622aa8d56.png"
alt="Examples of goals at CJM stages"
/>

### Identify barriers along the customer journey and find ways to overcome them

Barriers hinder people from making a purchase: high prices, poor customer service, negative reviews, etc. These difficulties may not always be obvious: for example, inconvenient parking or an unpleasant customer service representative. Such details are often extremely difficult to predict, so it's important to learn about them directly from your actual customers.

For each stage of the journey, find several ways for customers to overcome obstacles and become loyal patrons.

In the example below are potential barriers along the fitness club's customer journey:

<Img
img="/uploads/barriers_71489b5bb4.png"
alt="Barriers within a customer journey map: examples"
/>

### Create marketing driving forces

Driving forces help people move to the next stage of the customer journey map: discounts, customer reviews, bonuses, and so on. They can vary depending on the customers' goals at each stage: for example, if someone wants to save money, the main driving force will be cost. And if someone wants to join a community, then exclusive club events for members will work in the right direction. To understand what's important to customers, send email surveys, SMS, [**push notifications**](https://altcraft.com/blog/mobile-marketing-101-push-notifications), use social media, and other tools to gather customer feedback.

Here are possible driving forces for a fitness club customer:

<Img
img="/uploads/driving_forces_within_a_cjm_3d50d5e88b.png"
alt="Marketing driving forces within a CJM"
/>

## Conclusion

If a potential customer hasn't yet realized whether they need the product, start creating a customer journey map by identifying the customer persona.

Analyze your audience, determine who your customers are, and which communication channels are best to use to attract them. Use these channels to send information that will help future customers solve their problems.

For each stage of the customer journey map, think about:

- the obstacles customers may encounter; 

- ways to overcome these problems; 

- possible driving forces that will move customers to the next level of the customer journey map.

When all communication components with potential customers are added to the map, you'll see the weak points in the customer's journey. CJM will show you what you're doing right and what can be improved to help customers realize their needs, make informed decisions, and take action.

Source: [**Only Influencers**](https://onlyinfluencers.com/email-marketing-blog-posts/best-practice-email-strategy/entry/how-to-build-a-customer-journey-map-if-customer-needs-are-not-identified)

Create a customer journey map to guide uncertain customers, addressing obstacles and employing driving forces to advance them through each stage.

medium_developing-a-customer-journey-map.png

small_developing-a-customer-journey-map.png

thumbnail_developing-a-customer-journey-map.png

developing-a-customer-journey-map.png

In this article we will talk about the customer journey map and how to build it if the needs are unknown.

CJM with Undefined Needs: How to Build It & Examples

Developing a Customer Journey Map with Unspecified Needs

<Img 
img="/uploads/kak_povysit_effectivnost_klientskogo_puti_79f13d5884.png"
alt="How to Increase Efficiency at All Stages of Customer Journey Map"
/>

Collecting information about customers without a purpose is inefficient, as it will not bring benefits. While 1st, 2nd and even 3rd party data can improve customer experience when used with the right tools and strategy.

Users dictate conditions for companies. For example, when, where and how to communicate. Brands have to anticipate the behavior of customers, search for them on convenient platforms and accompany them to the completion of a targeted action. Therefore, businesses are constantly monitoring changes in consumer preferences and new communication channels, as well as thinking through new ways to conversion.

Personalized and omnichannel marketing is a way to catch customers at the right time in the right place. Information about consumer behavior will be useful at any stage of the customer journey, reducing the time and cost spent on attracting and retaining customers.The combined use of a [**data driven approach**](data-driven-marketing) and AI gives you an additional advantage over your competitors.

How to optimize the customer journey map using customer data? Direct information to predict and develop an effective growth strategy aimed at attracting the right people. Track unique customer desires and preferences in real time. Each of your communication channels should become a tool to “personalized” marketing.

Take a look at customer data marketing services. With them, all the collected information will be integrated into the management decision-making mechanism and included in the forecasting process. In addition, information will be selected from the standpoint of the applicability of a specific user experience at different stages of the sales funnel.

As a result, the company's customers will receive a positive experience of interacting with the brand and will trust it. The company minimizes costs and maximizes profits. Let's take a closer look at how you can improve the efficiency of each stage of the customer journey with the help of data.

## Ways to improve the efficiency of interaction with customers at different stages

### Stage 1. Introduction to the company

Imagine that there are people who have never heard of your company. At the stage of getting to know customers, your task is to work on brand awareness and increase interest in your company. Most often, acquaintance with the brand occurs through contextual advertising. Focus on the value of the product and study the needs of the audience.

You can increase the effectiveness of your advertising by using the collected customer data. Working out the pain points and needs of your audience, as well as customer segmentation, will save the advertising budget.

How to effectively use the data at the stage of acquaintance:

- **Focus on attracting high-value customers.** Paid media campaigns should be based on ideal prospects. Create segments using first-party data, develop lookalike audiences and automate work with them. Make it possible to purchase through paid media.
- **Reduce the cost of paid advertising services to attract customers.** Remove already converted customers from paid media campaigns using the dynamic suppression lists. The easiest way to do this is to use CDPs. You can upload such a suppression list to a service and thus be sure that already converted customers do not fall into acquisition campaigns.

### Stage 2. Comparison of competitors and similar products

When potential customers become familiar with your brand and product line, they begin to analyze and compare products that interest them. Customers will compare specifications, price, additional services and costs.

The task of the company at this stage is to warm up the interest of customers in their company and product. Make sure users have enough information to understand that your product is the best.

How you can use customer information at this stage:

- **Focus on reducing** [**cart abandonment**](how-to-reduce-cart-abandonment-rate). Set up a push or email campaign for those customers who have added a product to the cart but have not placed an order for some time. Using customer data, you can identify the most active shoppers from all abandoned carts.
 
<Img 
img="/uploads/image5_0b2464bb66.png"
alt="Abandoned Cart Email from Gerry’s"
scr="Abandoned Cart Email from Gerry’s"
/>

- **Convert the trial period to a paid subscription.** To do this, you should optimize your omnichannel customer journey setup through testing. Once you have the test results, create effective routes and run workflows based on user data.

### Stage 3. Decision making

How to hurry the client to complete the transaction and at the same time maintain his high motivation for further orders? In the minds of buyers, the value of the purchase will remain high if you use social proof (reviews and recommendations) and material incentives (promotional codes, discounts and bonuses). To make CLTV long, run engagement and retention events, work on loyalty throughout the customer’s journey map.

How user data will help:

- **Improve cross-channel interaction.** Try to interest buyers with new resources based on an analysis of their behavior in the past. Multi-channel clients bring more value to the company than single-channel clients. Work with clients both online and offline, and build a trusting relationship with the brand from the first touch point.
- **Support cross and upsell.** Existing customers can be motivated to purchase new products. To do this, separate customers who have only shopped in one category. Offer them products from related categories. This way you can increase your average order value and customer lifetime value.

<Img 
img="/uploads/image1_894964d7ad.png"
alt="Cross-selling"
src="Cross-selling from MAC"
/>

- **Optimize shopping frequency.** The purchase of many products can be planned. Schedule predictable repeat purchase windows. Customers often subscribe to constantly used products, which can be automated.

- **Shorten the time period until the second purchase.** Personalized marketing aims to keep the customer engaged after the first purchase. Set up automatic messages to periodically remind the buyer about the brand and about new products. This improves CLTV, orders, and conversions.

### Stage 4. Prevention of customer churn

Each new customer is valuable to the company, especially if it stays for a long time. How to motivate buyers to do this?

Collect customer reviews about purchased products or services, engage customers in a dialogue. Become partners with them, encourage repeat purchases and maintain high loyalty. This is how you prevent customer churn.

<Img 
img="/uploads/image2_77bd67a298.png"
alt="How to Increase Efficiency at All Stages of Customer Journey Map"
src="Feedback form from Chapelle Jewellery"
/>

A time-tested strategy is to work with [**referral links**](affiliate-marketing-for-beginners) in bonus programs and loyalty programs. The method works great for retaining customers and expanding the audience.

How to make the most of consumer data in the retention phase:

- **Launch a** [**loyalty program**](customer-loyalty-program). Motivate users to participate in it. Focus on those potential prospects who match the profile of existing customers. These people are exactly your target audience, they become loyal supporters and distributors of the brand, especially if you offer them bonuses for attracting new partners.

<Img 
img="/uploads/image4_48eff70331.png"
alt="Loyalty program"
src="Loyalty program from Happy Socks"
/>

- **Consider discounts.** Repeat purchases are well stimulated by special offers, bonuses and discounts. To find the most effective option, use multi-channel tests. With the help of them, you will find out exactly what bonuses to offer customers in a specific communication channel to increase the conversion rate.
- **Set your priorities.** An analysis of the behavior of current consumers will allow you to notice a possible churn of customers in time. Activate advertising campaigns to retain customers. First of all, restore communication with those who are at risk.

### Stage 5. Reactivation and return of clients

It happens that customers have lost confidence in the brand and left for competitors. In this case, your task is to bring them back. Customer lifetime value is at the heart of strategies to reactivate subscribers and reacquire lost customers. At the same time, it is important to use different communication channels when working with such clients.

How to use customer data in the return phase:

- **Target customers with high CLTV.** The most valuable customers are determined by their purchase history and projected lifetime value. First of all, you need to aim at their return, motivate the return with special offers.
- **Use personalization.** One customer will return after receiving the first email with a [**promotional code**](how-to-use-promo-codes-for-business). The other will return only after a series of reactivation emails. Some won't come back at all. Consider the behavior and personal preferences of each customer and create omnichannel customer journeys. When it comes to reactivation, the time that has passed since the last interaction with the brand is of great importance. 

## Setting steps of the customer journey

It is important to plan settings, but the reality is that it can't be done without technical tools. Modern marketing technologies allow you to combine disparate information about users into a single resource, launch automated trigger campaigns to attract, retain or return customers, as well as generate an attractive user experience.

What capabilities should be in your technical toolkit:
- **360° customer view.** With such a profile, the analytics will be accurate, and the customer journey map will be targeted.
- [**Audience segmentation**](how-and-why-to-segment-target-audience). It is important in order to provide consumers with personalized content.
- **Advanced customer journey configuration.** This way, you can make interaction with customers comfortable at all stages. 
- **Engineering real-time experiences for your customers**, no matter where or when they engage with your brand.

In this post, we will tell you how to use data correctly to improve the customer experience at different stages of the journey to conversion.

medium_kak_povysit_effectivnost_klientskogo_puti.png

small_kak_povysit_effectivnost_klientskogo_puti.png

thumbnail_kak_povysit_effectivnost_klientskogo_puti.png

kak_povysit_effectivnost_klientskogo_puti.png

Let's find out how you can increase efficiency at each stage of the customer journey with the help of data.

How to Increase Efficiency at All Stages of Customer Journey

How to Optimize All Stages of the Customer Journey

![автоматизация_cj_en.jpg](/uploads/avtomatizacziya_cj_en_a539794cfa.jpg)

The second part of the article [**"How to better understand the customer"**](stroim-customer-journey-map). In the first part, we talked about the customer journey map (CJM): why you need it, what sources you should take information from, and what data you need to put on the map. In the end, we built the CJM based on our own checklist for illustration purposes. Today we are telling you how you can use scenarios in the marketing automation platform to build a customer journey.

Scenarios are a special tool for automating marketing processes and creating a digital customer journey. The Artkraft Marketing platform has different conditions for running customer journey scenarios:

-   When a specific event occurs like an abandoned cart, an abandoned product view, a registered goal on the site, and others.
-   According to the specified schedule for the selected audience.

We share with you a couple of customer journey map examples that will help you increase sales, attract and retain customers.

## Welcome scenarios

Welcome emails are primarily required for double opt-in confirmation of subscription by the user. Welcome scenarios help increase customer engagement from the moment of registration. Using these scenarios, we gently and unobtrusively form brand loyalty and accompany a customer on the way to purchase. Thus, the company manages to grow a regular customer.

Features of the welcome workflow:

-   Automates the email subscription confirmation process.
-   Assigns welcome bonuses and promo codes.
-   Sends requests to the sales department for inactive users.
-   Reminds you to register via SMS, push, or custom channels like social networks or messengers.

![EN_welcome_цепочка.png](/uploads/EN_welcome_czepochka_dd7a15ebce.png)

## “First purchase” scenarios

The customer is introduced to the product through the automated “First purchase” scenario. The customer journey helps them understand the benefits and value of the brand. You engage them from the first letter and lead them smoothly to the conclusion of the transaction.

Features of the "First purchase" workflow:

-   Runs the scenario after the target action is completed.
-   Reactivates the customers who did not show interest in the email or opened a website but did not make a purchase.
-   Assigns promo codes for a private sale or promo goods.

![EN_первая_покупка.png](/uploads/EN_pervaya_pokupka_5aa07da7e4.png)

## “Customer loyalty management” scenarios

A type of scenario aimed at increasing customer engagement and loyalty. In the Altcraft Marketing platform, you can check loyalty using order data, average receipt, or the number of accumulated points.

![EN_лояльность.png](/uploads/EN_loyalnost_634457b353.png)

## “Customer reactivation” scenarios

You can set up regular customer activity checks in the platform. If activity drops, an automatic reactivation scenario is triggered.

![EN_реактивация.png](/uploads/EN_reaktivacziya_94ae7fadc2.png)

## “Payment reminder” scenarios

The reminder model is suitable for financial organizations, banks, streaming services, insurance companies, and online universities. Using this scenario, it is convenient to remind customers of the loan repayment date, service or subscription renewal.

The dynamic segment in the platform selects only current data at the running the script. Then a series of payment reminder emails are sent to customers. After each notification, the platform checks whether funds have been received on the account.

![EN_Напоминание_об_оплате.png](/uploads/EN_Napominanie_ob_oplate_b4a88cedc3.png)

## Cross-sell scenarios

Cross-selling is a method of increasing the average receipt by selling related products or services. The customer journey of this type is effective for all areas of business. Let's take an example: the email workflow used by banks.

![EN_cross-sell.png](/uploads/EN_cross_sell_287e202c50.png)

## Upsell scenarios

This automatic scenario helps to increase the average bill. A series of upselling emails help you build stronger and more lasting customer relationships. Use the right approach in upselling. Make sure the user is happy with the brand, focus on customer benefits, and be discreet.

![EN_допродажа.png](/uploads/EN_doprodazha_9503f36d02.png)


For your convenience, we have compiled all the customer journey scenarios into a single file. You can download it [**here**](https://altkraft.com/blog/en/8_main_mailing_scenarios.pdf).

## Conclusion

An automated customer journey is an automated workflow of emails that can make a marketer's life easier. You can use them to manage customer loyalty, increase their engagement, and build long-term relationships. In this article, we have collected the most basic scenarios that will help you achieve your goals. They are easy to implement, but if you feel hesitant about a particular step, please contact us. Together, we will figure out which customer journey you need.


How can a well-built Customer Journey boost your sales, attract and retain customers. Read in our article.

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small_автоматизация_cj_en.jpg

thumbnail_автоматизация_cj_en.jpg

автоматизация_cj_en.jpg

The second part of the article ”How to better understand the customer”. We figure out how and why you need to automate the customer journey on the example of 8 main mailing scenarios.

Customer Journey — What It Is, How to Build and Automate

How to Better Understand the Customer, Part 2. Customer Journey Automation

![CJM.jpg](/uploads/CJM_fe16dcd093.jpg)

A customer journey map (CJM) contains detailed information about all customer actions: from the first thought of buying something to purchasing it. While our team is preparing a detailed guide on creating and automating a customer journey map, we are sharing with you the tools for its design.

### Customer journey mapping tools

[**Google Sheets**](https://www.google.ru/sheets/about/)

A simple but convenient tool for visualizing the customer journey. You write out the stages at the top, vertically — the characteristics of the buyer. On the plus side of Google Sheets, every team member can access and update them quickly. This product is free and it is also a big plus.

![google_sheets (1).png](/uploads/google_sheets_1_2aa101b637.png)

[**Figma**](https://www.figma.com/) or [**Sketch**](https://www.sketch.com/)

If you need to show all the details and visualize the customer journey, these tools are for you. With their help, you can create a bright and colorful CJM. Such a map will look impressive in presentations. But there is a disadvantage — you can't quickly update the map without a designer.

<Img
img="/uploads/Sketch_1_6427133448.png"
alt="Sketch"
src="A customer journey map template. Source: www.behance.net"
/>

[**Сanvanizer**](https://canvanizer.com/)

A free tool to create CJM templates. A simple and uncomplicated service will help you quickly illustrate the customer journey.

<Img
img="/uploads/Sanvanizer_1_8f9c98cda1.jpg"
alt="Сanvanizer"
src="A customer journey map template. Source: canvanizer.com"
/>

[**Miro**](https://miro.com/)

Free access for one team member. Simple interface and management of a customer journey map. There are ready-made CJM templates.

<Img
img="/uploads/miro_1_07298a8383.png"
alt="miro"
src="A customer journey map template. Source: miro.com"
/>

[**Touchpoint Dashboard**](https://www.touchpointdashboard.com/)

A completely paid service with advanced features. The number of participants is unlimited. You can add images, metrics, and other useful elements to your map.

<Img
img="/uploads/Touchpoint_Dashboard_1_ae5b1bf20a.png"
alt="Touchpoint_Dashboard"
src="A customer journey map template. Source: touchpointdashboard.com"
/>

The Altcraft Marketing platform can automate a customer journey map. The next article will show you how to do this.

Let's talk about the available tools you can use to create an effective customer journey map. Read in our article.

large_CJM.jpg

medium_CJM.jpg

small_CJM.jpg

thumbnail_CJM.jpg

CJM.jpg

While our team is preparing a detailed guide on creating and automating a customer journey map, we are sharing with you the tools for its design.

What Are the Tools to Visualize a Customer Journey Map

Customer Journey Map Visualization Tools

![banner_cjm_part_1.jpg](/uploads/banner_cjm_part_1_173bf40627.jpg)

Big Data makes it possible to track the customer journey from the moment of becoming familiar with the brand to the first purchase, re-selling and up-selling. This is a customer journey map (CJM), a global and strategic tool that helps you understand:

- How a company can enter a new market segment.
- How to increase an average receipt.
- How to attract new customers and retain old ones.
- How to increase conversion.

Well, what is the purpose of a map? The CJM format is convenient to study the behavior of your customers, research the audience of competitors, identify all points encouraging business growth, find and eliminate weaknesses in your marketing strategy. A customer journey map is suitable for companies that have already got their audience, constant traffic and information about their customers. Launching startups, you can use a customer journey map, but taking into account it will be based on hypotheses and on the analysis of the competitors’ audience. The CJM will be complemented with new data as the product develops.

The benefits of customer journey mapping:

- It helps to get interaction between the customer and the company and highlight all the stages that they go through. You can also use it to track changes in the customer journey after a product or service update.
- It allows the company staff to see the product through the eyes of customers.
- It clearly shows the strengths and weaknesses of the marketing strategy.

## Getting ready for customer journey mapping

Before customer journey mapping, we define the goals and structure of the map. We need to set all the steps, stages and episodes that make up the customer journey. For this, we study three categories of people:

- **Product users.** We find out what influenced their choice and fix the problems they experience while interacting with the product.
- **Closed lost customers.** We find out why they decided to left.
- **Customers of competitors.** We figure out why the user chose another product and whether he knows about your brand, analyze the best and worst experience of competitors.

We pay special attention to the last two categories. The reasons why potential buyers left the brand or switched to competitors will be points encouraging business growth.

Before moving on to the study, let’s draw up a small plan that will help compile the necessary information.

### 1. Determining the customer decision-making logic

Here it is important to find answers to the following questions:

- How do they find out about the company?
- What services do they use to search for product information?
- How do they compare discovered offers?
- What factors besides price influence decision making?

### 2. Evaluating the customer's transition from one stage to another

It is important to estimate how long each stage of the customer journey takes. In other words, we evaluate how many minutes pass from the moment a customer has a goal to buy a product until the search for a suitable option and purchase. The stages that can be distinguished here:

- Showing up of the goal.
- Searching for suitable offers.
- Comparing with competitors.
- Contacting company manager.
- Making a purchase.
- Using of the product.
- Giving feedback.
- Re-selling or up-selling.
 

### 3. Identification of barriers arising during the customer journey

We collect data on what makes the customer feel negative emotions, what causes the difficulties and whether all this can influence the final decision. Possible barriers:

- Not user-friendly website interface.
- Problems with placing an order.
- Inappropriate payment terms.
- Long order delivery.
- Waiting when choosing a product.
- Poor communication with company managers.
- Lack of a product and its analogues.

Collecting information, refer to different sources. This way you will receive only reliable data about your customers and will be able to detail the buyer journey map as much as possible. Below we have got a list of the most important ones for you:

*Customers*

Don't be afraid to ask your customers questions. Using a consumer survey, you can find out first-hand what they like or dislike about your product. Ask what factors customers use to choose a particular product and what might turn them off. Surveys can be conducted via offline and online channels.

*Web analytics*

Using web analytics tools, you can track the customer actions on the site, find out more information about them or, for example, find out at what stage they stopped their journey.

*Social media*

Analyze the actions of subscribers in your social networks: what posts they most often like, what comments they write, and who they subscribe to besides you. Conduct polls in official communities or communicate with customers directly.

*Сompany staff*

Contact sales managers and customer support. As a rule, these specialists often interact with buyers and have information about them.

*Go through customer journey yourself*

Go through customer journey yourself and fix your goals, impressions, and barriers along the way. Thus, you will see the product through the eyes of the customer and understand the internal processes of the company.

## Customer journey mapping

The customer journey map allows you to synchronize the actions of all customers and see the complete picture. Most often, they go the same way with a difference of several stages. It is best to put all clients or individual segments on the map.

The buyer journey map consists of three conventional zones:

- Customer zone. All available information about the customer is recorded here.
- Interaction zone. The intersection of customer and company zones.
- Company zone. The tools you use to interact with the customer.

Let's take an example of how to create a customer journey map correctly.
 
![Customer_Journey_Map_for_the_bank.png](/uploads/Customer_Journey_Map_for_the_bank_bcbfb33656.png)

You can find the full version of the customer journey map example [**here**](https://www.figma.com/file/Wyw3RSGhkysG1Z0JYx596S/CJM).

Bank X wants to attract customers and increase conversion. For this, it was decided to build a customer journey map to identify strengths and weaknesses in the marketing strategy. Analyzing the audience, 5 groups were identified. We will consider only one.

Group A consists of young families with one child. They live in a one-room apartment they inherited from their parents. They decided to buy a bigger apartment, as they are planning a second child. To take a real estate mortgage, they are looking for a suitable bank. The family income is 90.2 thousand rubles.

**Customer zone: customer goals and actions**

Map the goals and actions the customer wants to achieve. This data will help you better understand customer behavior at certain times.

Group A's goal is to improve living conditions. They need to choose an apartment and a bank that provides favorable mortgage terms.

**Customer zone: time metrics**

This section of the map shows the time the client spends completing each stage in the journey. You can use them to identify difficulties and try to simplify the journey.

In our example, the young family spends the most time searching for their dream apartment — from 1 to 3 months. The bank will not speed up this stage, but it can prepare the ground for further interaction. For example, it can place information about mortgage loans on the websites of the partners, run contextual or targeted advertising.

**Interaction zone: interaction points between the customer and the company**

Identify all interaction points between the customer and the company. Mark the ones where the customer most often comes into contact with the product. Depending on the interaction channel, the points can be offline or online. For example, a customer can view a product catalog from a computer, place an order through a mobile app, arrange delivery by phone, and leave feedback in the company's official social networks. Note even the interaction that did not take place or failed for some reason. Don't lose sight of your customers' actions. It is important to consider all options and put them on the customer journey map.

Our young family paid attention to the bank X thanks to targeted advertising in social networks. The main interaction point was the official website. At the same time, they receive additional information by phone and conclude the contract at the bank's branch.

**Interaction zone: critical points and barriers on the customer journey**

Fix all barriers that prevent the user from moving from one stage to another. The barriers can be errors on the site, a malfunction in the mobile app, or getting the mailing list in spam. The difficulty can be not only technical: it may be an incorrect behavior of staff or the loss of customer interest in the product. Your main task is to find these barriers and develop methods to overcome them. The points where customers experience the most difficulties — critical. The main thing is to react in time and take measures to resolve the situation.

The main barriers of our clients are incomplete information on the bank's website and competitors with more favorable conditions. Because of the first critical point, they have to call the bank, find out all the conditions and listen to information about additional services that they are not interested in. Because of the second one, they have to choose from several offers.

<Note>
Important: several barriers should not accumulate at one interaction point. Otherwise, you risk losing the client forever.
</Note>

**Company zone: company actions**

This section of the map shows all the actions of the company in relation to the buyer. Many things you and your customer see differently, and that's okay. Considering both points of view, you can see where the difficulties arise and what contributes to this.

Here, for example, indicate what tools for attraction you use, how you behave in specific situations with clients.

In our case, the bank uses its website, contextual and targeted advertising, email, push and SMS as attraction tools. You can find more details on our [**map**](https://www.figma.com/file/Wyw3RSGhkysG1Z0JYx596S/CJM). 

**Company zone: opportunities or working on difficulties**

Now you will hear the obvious thing, but if you want the customer journey to be as comfortable as possible, you need to get rid of the critical points and difficulties that we discussed above. Identify what is causing the barriers and work with the team to resolve them: fix technical problems, improve the site usability, and improve the product and service.

<Note>
Important: if you need too many resources and financial expenses to resolve certain difficulties, then simplify the customer journey map by trying to exclude interaction points.
</Note>

For example, to solve critical points, the bank will add more information about mortgage loans to the site and create a chat with an online consultant, so that customers do not have to find out additional questions by phone.

## Conclusions

The customer journey map is not easy, but it's an extremely effective thing. We have collected all the steps to build a single checklist: peek, use, make up!

- Study product users, closed lost customers, and customers of competitors. Analyze the goals, problems, hobbies and behavior of your target audience.

<Note>
Customer journey analytics is very important. Use surveys, web analytics, and social media to analyze your customers. Request customer information from sales managers and customer support, or go through the customer journey yourself.
</Note>

- Divide the customer journey map into three zones: customer, company, and interaction.
- Put goals, actions, and time metrics in the customer zone.
- Mark the points and channels of interaction between the customer and the company, critical points and barriers in the interaction zone.
- Fix company actions and work on difficulties in the company zone.
- For convenience, use special customer journey mapping tools for visualization, which we talk about [**here**](customer-journey-map-visualization-tools).

Filling out the map, pay special attention to barriers and critical points. This will help you see the weak points in your communication strategy.

While you are mapping the customer journey, we are preparing the second part which will tell you how to automate the customer journey.

Customer Journey Map — what it is, how to build and an example of a journey map. Follow the link to read the complete guide.

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How to get to know your customer better using the customer journey map? We're sharing the secrets of mapping a customer journey in the first part.

Customer Data Platform

Omnichannel Marketing

Loyalty programs

Drag-and-drop email designer

Personalized mailings

MVT and A/B testing

Real-time analytics

Integration and WebHooks

Forms and Surveys

Messaging apps

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