It is easy to confuse customer journey map and experience map because they are interrelated concepts. There are two terms that can be used to describe these concepts. It is essential to research the subject of customer journey map vs experience map in depth.
UX mapping is a common feature of most design agencies. It allows us to create user-centered solutions that are effective for the projects we work on. Customer experience is as important as customer experience.Journey maps let you walk in the shoes of your customers. While both are based on customer emotions, they serve different purposes.
Imagine this scenario: A large mechanic company wants an evaluation of the efficiency of their MOT services, starting with when customers book an appointment and ending with when they bring their vehicle to the shop.From bringing the vehicle in to completing it, to delivering it back. The best way to do this is to create a Customer Journey Map. Assessing the touch points that could be improved.Customers can be made to feel more comfortable by the organization. The Customer Journey Map was used to serve. This scenario is to identify the pain points of MOT customers. However, it doesn’t really benefit any other organisation transaction.
Take this example: A member-only Golf Club has seen a decrease in overall membership. However, the rate at which new members join has remained the same.This suggests that there has been member disengagement at one point or another in the golf club’s membership journey. The Golf Club is not sure at what point existing members are leaving the club and what their status is.They are prompted to do so. They use the Customer Experience Map to assess all member experiences. This provides them with deep and broad insight.It provides insight into all touch points of their members and informs them about a multitude of changes that could be made to improve their communications and membership process to maintain member loyalty.
This article will compare and analyze two types of maps to help you better understand which one suits your needs.
Before we can understand the differences between a customer experience map and a customer journey map, it is important to first understand their purpose and how they can be of benefit from using these tools.
Table of Contents
What is a customer journey map?
The customer journey map (CJM), a tool that allows you to visualize the user’s path and customer interaction with your product, is called a customer journey map. It’s a story about communication between customers.The company and the user that considers the customer’s emotions, thoughts, and motivations. The buyer sees the map from their perspective.
What customer journey map consists?
- Timeline graph
- The stages of the customer’s interaction (for example, discovery and evaluation, conversion, post sale engagement, etc.
- Each stage focuses on the customer’s goals and the actions they take.
- When a customer completes a certain action, what thoughts and emotions do they have?
What information can it provide?
A customer journey map can be used to show you exactly how a customer got to your product. It also shows which messages they received.These data can be used to help inform future marketing decisions. A customer journey map is another benefit. The best part about this is that you can see how customers are moving through the sales funnel for each product/service. This gives you valuable insight into where they are going.Inefficiencies are found at every stage of the purchasing cycle. This allows the company make small adjustments and tweaks based on actual evidence to maximize efficiency.Each of these stages is what the customer will experience.
What is the best time to use it?
Customer journey mapping is a great tool to use whenever you want the customer to experience your products and services. These can be used to achieve a specific goal or solve a particular problem. The journey maps are useful when you need to pinpoint a customer or persona, and gain a better understanding about a particular aspect of your business. Simply put, A customer journey map can be very useful if you already know where you want your focus to be.
The main features of a customer journey map
- Linear timeline. CJMs display user’s actions chronologically.
- The customer’s point of view is used to present information. The customer journey map is less about the product’s functionality and more about the customer’s thoughts,Feelings and emotions that are associated with your brand/product.
- One CJM represents the journey of one buyer. The above customer journey map illustration will show you the description of a buyer personality.Before interacting with the product, and after completing the goal. CJMs are one type of customer.
- One map shows the customer’s journey with one product or service. Customer journey maps can be very specific because they depict the buying path of one customer or product.
What is a customer experience map?
A customer experience map depicts the journey they take when using a product or service.
Experience mapping is similar to the customer journey map. It shows the user’s journey from product discovery to evaluation and purchase until they become a customer. The experience map is not just about your customers. It also includes information about your competitors and how they are doing it in this context Reviews, referrals, support and so forth.
The experience map, as you can see, visualizes stages, timelines, emotions and feelings. However, it does not focus on a specific customer type. UX map depicts the customer experience. It also shows the customer journey with multiple touch points that aren’t tied to any one product or service (the customer searches for a house using the Internet, an agency, or by asking family and friends for their advice).
What information can it provide?
The Customer Experience Map depicts the entire experience from beginning to end for a customer, regardless of their location and specific product/department. These maps focus more on human behavior in general. They allow you to learn more about customers’ thoughts and experiences at all times.The buying cycle is at its final stage. This analysis is more than a simple journey map. It could also include a map of the journey, but it also considers experiences customer may have other needs than the one-product journey.
What is the best time to use it?
Contrary to journey mapping, a customer-experience map is more useful if you don’t know where the problem is. If you know something, then it is likely that something is happening. In short, if you approach the exercise honestly and openly, you will hopefully be able to pinpoint the customer’s pain points.They might not have been aware of their existence. It’s important to remember that this is a customer experience mapping. This means it must be from the perspective of the customer, you and your business’s. Avoid the common mistake of imagining what the experience should look like. Rather, it is the customer’s eyes, all warts and all.
The main features of a customer experience mapping
- It provides a generalized view of the customer experience. UX ma does not depend on a particular customer type.
- A map shows the customer’s entire journey. Experience maps can be used to show the entire customer journey and are not tied into a particular product or service.
- It is arranged chronologically.
- It shows the stages of a customer’s journey, including actions, thoughts and emotions.
What is the difference between customer journey map and experience mapping?
You can understand the confusion caused by the map types discussed in the article. There are differences between these tools.
This section will highlight the key differences between customer journey maps and experience maps.
Multi-channel vs single channel. The Experience Map depicts the entire customer experience at the brand across multiple channels. CJM focuses only on the experience the customer has when they interact with a specific product/service. CJM illustrates the experience map of every customer when they interact with your brand. It is
better to get into the details than to understand the big picture. CJM is best for people who are able to identify their problem and need to find a solution. These are wonderful for people who don’t know the root cause of the problem.
Customer Journey Maps are specific to a persona
Also known as customer journey maps, a journey map can also be called a customer journey plan. These maps show the timeframe of a particular customer or persona who is using a product. The customer experience is divided into stages along the horizontal axis and customers states down the vertical. You’ll see common states like Thinking, Feeling, and Others.
Personas are a way for UX designers to effectively represent specific customer/user segments. Personas can be used as stand-ins for target segments based on research.
Experience Maps are Generalized
An Experience Map is a similar tool, but it’s more generalized. It maps the product experience in stages along one axis, and states along the other.Each customer type represents a particular persona. This diagram shows the typical customer experience. Similar to Customer Journey Mapping it is also quite common to find Thinking and Feeling states.
You’ll see two additional categories at the bottom axis of both mapping artifacts. “Pain points” summarizes the most undesirable user.Each stage’s experiences are recorded and “Opportunities”, which contain actionable suggestions for product improvements.
Final thoughts
We won’t tell you the shocking truth, but there isn’t one right answer for every situation. You need to decide if you want to understand the current state and/or fix a particular issue in order to improve your customer experience.
A customer journey map is a part of experience mapping. However, both can be used together. It all depends on what the project needs are.
