When it comes to getting new customers and sales, it’s not an easy task! That’s because it requires a lot of effort and convincing, especially if you’re a starting small business with little to no social proof.
So, what can you do to make it easier? Well, many successful small business owners create customer journey maps. But what is it exactly, and how can you use it to your advantage? Stay tuned to find out!
What is a Customer Journey Map?
Before we go any further, let’s explain what a customer journey map actually is. To put it simply, a customer journey map is basically a story of your customers and their journey from a stranger to becoming a buyer.
Think of it as your average sales funnel. But instead of four stages (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action), it’s much more detailed. And businesses that have this asset have many great benefits.
3 Key Benefits of Using a Customer Journey Map
So what are the benefits of using a Customer Journey Map? Well, other than having a better understanding of how someone becomes your customer, you get to experience the following benefits:
- Better Collaboration – Since you’ve clearly stated each step a customer goes through, all your team members know exactly what they need to do. Also, they’ll start sharing information, goals, tools, etc.
- Identify Your Marketing and Sales Problems Easily – If you didn’t reach your goals, then an excellent customer journey map helps you pinpoint problems easier. Then you can see the exact step where the problem arises, helping you solve the problem faster.
- Predict Customer Behaviour – With time, you gain a lot of valuable data about your customer. That means as a marketer, you should start understanding how your customer will react to new marketing material, making your marketing easier.
Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Your Own Customer Journey Map
Now that you know what a customer journey map is and why you’d want it, it’s time to take action on building your very own. However, before we go into that, I want to tell you one thing.
That is that there is no definitive way of creating one. That’s because every industry and market is different, meaning that there might be more or fewer steps depending on the products and services you sell.
However, the steps for creating one are identical to each one:
Step #1 – Set Clear Objectives
Before you start creating your map, you need to take some time to understand why are you making one in the first place. What are your goals? Maybe it is to:
- Get a better understanding of your customer?
- Increase your conversion rate?
- Or something else?
Whatever it is, write them down and keep them in mind when taking the following steps.
Step #2 – Create Your Buyer Personas
No customer journey map works well if you don’t know who you’re selling to. So after setting your goals, your next objective is to find out who your ideal customers are. To help you out, here are a few questions you want to get answers to:
- What gender your customer is?
- How old are they?
- What is their occupation?
- What are their dreams?
- What problems do they have?
- What are their fears?
- What keeps them from achieving their goals?
- And so on.
You can find answers to them in multiple ways. For example, you could interview your previous customers, go to the platforms where they hang out like social media channels and forums, and so on.
Step #3 – List Out All Your Touchpoints
Now that you’ve got a clear understanding of your target market, it’s time to start work on your map. For starters, I want you to list your touchpoints. Touchpoints are the places where your customer goes to interact with your company.
These could be your:
- Social Media Profiles
- Support Emails
- Email Marketing
- Your Website
Once you’ve listed all your touchpoints, you’re ready for the next step.
Step #4 – Create your Customer Journey Map
Now all that is left to do is create your customer journey map. Use any platform or method that works for you. For example, you could use workflow software or even a whiteboard.
Whatever way you create your customer journey map, try to be as detailed as possible. That way, it becomes easier to use and identify problems with your sales funnel issues.
Step #5 – Go Through the Customer Journey Map Yourself
Congratulations! You’ve just created your very first customer journey map. But before you go and do other tasks, go through your customer journey yourself.
That’s because it gives you a better understanding of how well you did. Maybe you forgot to add a step? Also, try to be in the shoes of your customer. Think of what your customer would like the experience! If not, write them down, and find a way to improve them.
Step #6 – Revise Your Customer Journey Map Regularly
Creating a customer journey map isn’t a one-time thing. Instead, it’s something that you need regularly revise. With it, you’ll be able to improve your customer’s experience and get more data on them.
All of that will help you grow your business and increase your sales. So do it at least once a month.
Conclusion
And that’s how you create your own customer journey map! It’s a necessary task to do if you want to grow your small business into something more significant. However, if you ever have any problems creating one, then don’t be afraid to ask for help!
I’d love to help you build your customer journey map or anything else you might have a problem with. You can schedule a call here.