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<\/img><\/a><\/p>\nCustomer Journeys Are Unavoidable<\/b><\/h2>\n
Even if you aren\u2019t 100 per cent sure what every customer\u2019s journey is\u2014and no company can truly track each customer\u2019s every move\u2014the fact remains that they are all going on one. When a customer sees a product and buys it within a single interaction, they\u2019ve still gone on a journey, albeit a short one. While this does happen, most customers\u2019 journeys aren\u2019t quite as simple.<\/p>\n
They may be exposed to the brand and product multiple times through a variety of different platforms: billboards, ads, radio commercials, email campaigns, and word-of-mouth, to name a few. To see this in action from an online perspective, the <\/a>Think With Google blog<\/a> has a great tool that allows you to see the average customer journey across different business sizes and industries in specific countries.<\/p>\n A customer may fill their shopping cart on your e-commerce site, and then abandon it for a week before coming back to complete the transaction. Everything\u2014from what brings them to your site in the first place, to what causes them to leave, to what brings them back, and what eventually drives their purchase decision\u2014is part of the customer journey.<\/p>\n To start mapping out customer journeys, create personas of your target customers and those who buy your products and services. It won\u2019t help you to create \u201cideal\u201d personas that aren\u2019t actually buying from you.<\/p>\n Personas can help you see the buyer\u2019s journey from your customer\u2019s perspective. This can affect how you build your internal campaigns and processes. Shape personas by identifying a persona\u2019s name, gender, age, occupation, lifestyle, and why they would purchase a product or service like yours. Outlining the problem they want to solve will help you.<\/p>\n Once you’ve created a persona, you can then identify possible interactions each persona could have with your company, including any hiccups or positive experiences they may have throughout the journey. This process is called <\/a>customer journey mapping<\/a>.<\/p>\n As you create your customer journey map, it is crucial to consider the customer\u2019s emotions as they progress. Their experiences (and how they feel about them) automatically translate into brand sentiment. For instance, if a person is in the research stage, but finds your website difficult to navigate, that may make the overall path to purchasing longer (or, in the worst case scenario, may cause it to end).<\/p>\n On the other hand, when they find that your prices and product descriptions are better than competitors, and that you also offer free shipping, their brand sentiment is going to be positive. This goes right along with a positive customer journey that will be more likely to lead to a purchase.<\/p>\n EffectiveUI has a great example<\/a> of mapping brand sentiment and emotions onto a customer journey map. Ideally, every step of the journey needs to include:<\/p>\n In the examples above, you\u2019ll notice that customers are \u201ctouching\u201d your brand in multiple instances. From exposure to and engagement with paid search ads during organic searching, to blog content they read from following a link on social media, the customer journey involves multiple departments.<\/p>\n In order to make a customer journey effective, it\u2019s important to create a connected strategy that works with marketing, sales, and other departments. Strive to solve any potential journey roadblocks and foster the positive aspects of customer engagement that increase brand sentiment.<\/p>\nMap Out a Persona<\/b><\/h2>\n
Customer\u2019s Brand Sentiment Progresses The Journey<\/b><\/h2>\n
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Customers Touch Multiple Parts of Every Brand<\/b><\/h2>\n
<\/img><\/a><\/p>\nShare “What is a Customer Journey?” On Your Site<\/h3>\n