Comments on: Visualizing the Customer Experience: Customer Journey Map and Continuous Improvement

By: kopstar

kopstar — Thu, 03 Apr 2014 05:19:39 +0000

Very useful for capturing internal customer supplier relationships and can be an add on to a conveional value stream map rather than using a completely new template.

By: Pete Abilla

Pete Abilla — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 12:18:49 +0000

In reply to Scott Evrard.

Hi Scott,

A customer journey map is really focused more on the emotional dimensions of the experience. A value stream map focuses mainly on visualizing the process and attempts to expose the 7 wastes, which are visible.

On the other hand, a customer journey map attempts to highlight the processing that occurs as a customer walks through the process – this processing represents 95% of the the mental processing that is not articulated but these emotional cues influence opinion, judgment, attitudes, and feelings toward the company, product, brand, or service.

I think there’s place for both approaches working side-by-side for sure.

Thanks for your question and comment. I appreciate your time and attention.

Pete

By: Pete Abilla

Pete Abilla — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 12:14:59 +0000

In reply to Meves.

Hi Meves,

I don’t know of any, but they’re easy enough to create in PowerPoint. One of the commenters on this post (Jennifer, see above), mentioned a tool her company develops for customer journey mapping that you might want to take a look at. I haven’t seen it, so I can’t comment on the tool she mentions.

Thanks for leaving a comment.

Pete

By: Scott Evrard

Scott Evrard — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 17:30:57 +0000

Pete – with the customer at the center of the Experience Map and the VSM, is there a way that you have reconciled these as one view or map? Having put some time into setting in place Value Stream Maps and having them become a used and useful tool, I would like to find a way to layer these two approaches without having to have people reference two views of the impact of work on customers. Sounds like a grand unification theory, but I would appreciate your perspective.

Scott

By: Meves

Meves — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 18:45:46 +0000

I would love to create one of these, but I am not a designer.
Are there any web tools like Balsamiq that can help me generate a customer journey map…with ready-widget-libararies?

By: Jennifr

Jennifr — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 14:25:25 +0000

This is a great post thanks! I am a huge advocate for customer journey mapping. Since more than 50% of a customer’s experience involves emotions, it’s important to understand and visualize how customers feel when they interact with your business. Customer journey mapping allows you to do this. But, the real power in customer journey mapping (if done correctly) is that it enables you to synch this qualitative, emotional feedback with quantifiable business and customer data so you can determine the ROI of all your touchpoints. Armed with this info, you can put strategic improvement plans in place, make smart decisions about where to allocate resources, and design an experience that drives value for both the customer and the company. The company I work with, Touchpoint Dashboard, has a mapping tool that helps companies do this. You might benefit from checking it out. Thanks again for the post!

Jennifer K.
TouchpointDashboard.com

By: Pete Abilla

Pete Abilla — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 20:12:07 +0000

In reply to Hari Baran. That's true. This approach should be used in conjunction with quantitative methods and continuous improvement. But, including the emotional aspect of the customer experience makes the story more complete, and can inform our approach - to improve AND perhaps even delight the customer.

By: Hari Baran

Hari Baran — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 18:58:35 +0000

In reply to Pete Abilla.

Hey Pete,

I liked the idea of having the personal touch factor.
My only concern about such an approach would be on the measurability of the experience. Subjective mitigation is hard to measure and get metrics from. Perception of jokes and behaviors are pretty subjective.

Hari

By: Harold Taylor

Harold Taylor — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 17:56:39 +0000

Remember we are dealing with qualitative (preceptions). When the customer is feeling anxious, unhappy or unsure we need to look at the process and determine if the process or apart of the process is somehow contributing to the customers feelings.

By: Pete Abilla

Pete Abilla — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 14:30:57 +0000

In reply to Hari Baran.

Hi Hari,

I think for process steps that are, what can be considered, non-value-add but necessary given the current state of the system, I think this approach still applies. This type of thinking can inform how we approach process steps that fall into this category.

For example, If I have to repeat my name and address to a customer service agent 2x when 1x is ideal given the state of the current call center tools, the agent can provide empathy, a joke, to make things lighthearted. That approach eases the emotion, but the process still has waste.

Thoughts?

Thanks for taking the time to read and comment.

Pete

By: Hari Baran

Hari Baran — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 21:45:17 +0000

Pete,

How about a customer experience which is far from ideal in one of the sequences/steps, but is a necessary evil to improve the overall customer experience?

I am talking about something like non-value adding but needed work. How would you approach this in the map?

Hari

By: James Lawther

James Lawther — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 17:11:27 +0000

Pete,

If I take a purist view, anything a customer doesn’t want or isn’t prepared to pay for is “waste” and should be minimised.

Are you simply saying that when ever a customer is feeling unhappy, anxious, unsure… then that is a sign of “waste”? Which I buy.

In which case having the customer explicitly involved in the mapping process is all important.

After all my wife is frequently frustrated with me, but I am too thick skinned to notice it.

James