If you haven’t planned for a customer experience map yet, you might be missing out on so much. This map draws out insights and expertise on how to play to your strengths. And even to grab the best of opportunities that translate into a bigger impact.

However, do not get totally overwhelmed by the magnanimity of the customer experience mapping. It might look like a daunting task at first, but with the right steps and practices, you are not far from customer excellence. Here we put together a comprehensive explanation to the same covering these:

• What is a Customer Experience Map?
• How to Create a Customer Experience Map?
  1. Plan the Data
  2. Assess the Data
  3. Use the Data
• What does a good Customer Experience Map constitute?

What is a Customer Experience Map?

There is no precise definition of a customer experience map. Basically, it gives an understanding of the route through which a prospect goes through to convert into a loyal customer. This route walks you through varied interactions, assessing channels and touchpoints, and analyzing behavior.

It is often confused with the customer journey map. Although they are not exactly the same, they stand similar. A journey map puts a laser-beam focus on a specific part of the customer’s journey, say, the purchasing part. An experience map is used when you are not completely sure as to where exactly the problem lies.

How to Create a Customer Experience Map?

What do you need to get the mapping started? Here is a step-by-step guide that you will be needing before you step in. All of these involve a substantial amount of tools and time to conduct smoothly. Let’s dig right in:

1. Plan the Data

Get the Prerequisites

It is wiser to track all the inventory of touchpoints in advance. It can be your social media handles, websites, online ads, etc. Getting hold of traditional advertising such as mail, retail stores, radios, TV can be done too. Aside from this, some of the other facets such as marketing campaigns, referrals, newsletters, and affiliates can serve the purpose as well.

Categorize the Phases

• Initial Consideration: This is the first stage. The prospects consider an initial set of brands, based on brand expectations and online reputation. There will be a bunch of competitors offering them the best of prices, variety, and quality.
• Active Evaluation: As the name suggests, the prospects add or subtract brands onto their list. And from there, they actively evaluate the best ones and sift it out.
• Selection/Moment of Purchase: The third stage calls for the moment of purchase. Here, the prospect translates to a customer and he finally decides the best brand, subsequently making a purchase.
• Post-Purchase Experience: This is the final stage. This is accompanied by building customer expectations based on the post-purchase experience. The quality of the product or service decides whether the loop would restart from the first stage or it is a churn away.

2. Assess the Data

Once you are done with the planning, what matters is how well you assess the data. This phase constitutes transferring raw, unused data into more informative insights. It is time to present things in a rather aesthetical manner and dig into data mining.

Of all the information that you have received up till now, you can filter feedback from the data. You can so do in multiple ways. This includes interviews, surveys, testimonials, etc. How people see you in your social media presence, speaks a lot too. Delve into the blog comments and assess how they find your service. Aside from this, web analytics too is a great way to know the engagement of users – their number and time sessions.

Online forums too play a crucial role in discussing and ascertaining your performance with people, live. No matter which data mining method you pick, it all simmers down to establishing insights from your customer’s standpoint. The purpose of every touchpoint should quantify the effectiveness and complement it with suitable, comprehensive data when needed.

3. Use the Data

In the end, you should focus on discovering something new about your customer in each of the stages, as they walk with you. Know, what the context of every stage is. Unravel through the activities that might help in bringing a customer into your brand. And hold on to them right from their first interaction to the last one.

Once you do that, note the touchpoints and ascertain how to convert these insights into opportunities that can bring about a radical change in the customer experience. Finally, team up with the other teams too, so that all of you are on the same page. Garner as much as insights, and this will aid in crafting a flawless experience map.

What does a good Customer Experience Map constitute?

• Customer-centric approach: A good customer experience map stars the customer in its show. Each of their efforts drives into focusing on the customer’s needs and desires. Fulfilling them and centering the outcomes from a clients’ perceptive marks all the difference.
• Well-defined strengths and weaknesses: A map that draws out the pros and cons of the customer experience accounts to be a good one. Also, the one that doesn’t place the shortcomings and weaknesses clearly should be revamped at the earliest.
• Easy to apprehend: Ideally, a good experience map should not look like rocket science. It should be easily relatable and convenient to understand. Basically, there should not be much explanation required to get it together.

That’s a Wrap

In simpler words, your customers begin their journey with you, right from their first interaction. When you imbue value and quality into your customer experience, you tend to convert many prospects into ravings fans. And this eventually translates to more profit and revenue. That is what a customer experience mapping does. It captures a user’s experience by identifying his acts, and perceptions. Viewing a company from a customer’s lens will manifest you with a fresher approach that could have been previously overlooked.

WRITTEN BYSwati Somineni

An implementation engineer with six years of experience is a seasoned professional specialising in implementing and integrating complex systems and technologies for businesses. Possessing a diverse skill set that combines technical expertise, and project management capabilities.

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