Experience map

An experience map, also known as a Customer Journey map (CJM), is the path a customer takes while interacting with a business. It highlights all the customer touch points before a customer converts or takes action.
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What is an experience map?

An experience map, also known as a Customer Journey map (CJM), is the path a customer takes while interacting with a business. It highlights all the customer touch points before a customer converts or takes action. It’s a powerful tool to understand important parameters like customer motivation, their needs, preferences, and concerns.

negative customer experience map
Here is an example of a voice call post-analysis, with a number of negative interactions throughout the call, including negative sentiment and a supervisor escalation. These contribute to a negative overall customer journey.

What are the different types of customer experience maps?

In contact centers, different types of customer experience mapping journeys are mentioned. These can be broadly classified into three main types:

  • Linear experience map: This experience map template displays the customer journey at every step while interacting with any brand.
  • Matrix-type experience map: Instead of a linear timeline, this map charts a customer’s journey on a matrix to document the fine details of every step. This customer experience roadmap allows organizations to quickly record important factors at each stage of the journey.
  • Card-type experience map: Similar to matrix map, card-type maps group multiple steps into individual visual cards with relevant notes.

How to create an experience map?

The process of creating an experience map involves:

  • Creating a customer persona: The process starts with defining and categorizing your customer information into demographics, preferences, personality, and other factors that enable decision-making.
  • Outlining phase: The experience maps are organized as per customer stages or phases, that help visualize a customer’s goal. It addresses important questions like when, where and how a customer discovers any product, conducts research, and interacts with competitors. 
  • Outlining customer interaction: This process involves illustrating touchpoints a customer uses to interact with an organization as each of these affects overall user experience.
  • Actual research: To ensure the map is accurate, the organization will need to recruit actual customers and observe their behavior in a curated environment. Only when this data is recorded and matched, the efficiency of the map.
  • Identifying and resolving issues: Viewing a customer’s journey end-to-end can provide a larger understanding of the market scenario and in identifying any points of friction that need fixing.