Customer journey maps explained.

A woman wearing a blue hijab holds a smartphone while walking in an urban setting, overlaid with floating digital elements showing personalized marketing data.

By enhancing communication between your business and its clients, a customer journey map provides valuable insights into your customers’ decision-making processes. This comprehensive understanding helps you stand out from the competition by mapping the steps customers take before making a purchase.

In this guide:

What is a customer journey map?
How is a customer journey map different from a marketing funnel?
Customer journey map examples
Benefits of customer journey maps
How to create a customer journey map
Doing more with customer journey maps

What is a customer journey map?

A customer journey map is a visual representation of the contact points between a customer and a company throughout their relationship. It outlines the steps customers take at every stage of their interaction, helping businesses:

Predict behavior
Anticipate needs
Direct responses effectively

A well-designed customer journey map lets you walk in your customers’ shoes, highlighting their:

Initial engagement with your brand
Conversion points and purchases
Further interactions with your brand

By viewing your brand from the customer’s perspective, you can identify gaps and opportunities in the customer experience, ultimately enhancing satisfaction and loyalty.

How is a customer journey map different from a marketing funnel?

A chart comparing customer journey maps to marketing funnels.

Although a customer journey map and a marketing funnel share similarities — both visualize the customer’s progression through stages — they differ significantly in purpose and perspective:

Focus:
- The marketing funnel is business-centric, focusing on how to move prospects toward conversion (for example, guiding leads toward sales).
- A customer journey map is customer-centric, highlighting the customer’s emotions, challenges, and actions at each stage of interaction.
Scope:
- Funnels simplify the journey into linear stages such as awareness, consideration, and purchase.
- Journey maps account for non-linear behaviors, including post-purchase interactions like onboarding, loyalty, and advocacy.
Complementary role:
- A funnel helps businesses design campaigns to guide prospects.
- A journey map identifies gaps in the experience that might hinder progress through the funnel.

Example: A financial institution’s funnel might focus on generating loan applications, while its journey map uncovers friction in the online application process, like unclear instructions, that cause drop-offs. By combining both tools, the bank can refine its funnel stages and improve the overall customer experience.

Customer journey map examples.

Journey maps serve as tailored roadmaps for enterprises to understand customer interactions across complex, multi-channel environments. Below are examples for specific industries.

B2B

A man in a dark shirt in an office, overlaid with B2B marketing data and charts.

Example: SaaS/PaaS

Awareness: A Fortune 500 CMO learns about your SaaS platform through a Gartner report and a LinkedIn-sponsored post targeting IT decision-makers.
Consideration: Their team downloads a whitepaper and attends a live webinar demonstrating how your solution integrates with their existing tech stack.
Purchase: The CIO schedules a demo, conducts vendor assessments, and negotiates pricing through procurement.
Support: You provide dedicated enterprise onboarding, quarterly business reviews, and 24/7 technical support to ensure adoption and satisfaction.
Post-purchase: At contract renewal, your account manager presents data-driven ROI insights and offers an enterprise-wide license upgrade.

Pain point: Enterprise clients often face lengthy procurement processes and require proof of ROI.

Solution: Provide ROI calculators, industry case studies, and tailored executive briefings during the Consideration and Purchase stages.

Ecommerce

Example: Enterprise online marketplace

Awareness: A corporate buyer for a global retail chain discovers your B2B marketplace through a LinkedIn campaign promoting bulk ordering discounts.
Consideration: They compare vendors, review product specifications, and engage with a dedicated sales rep for a personalized quote.
Purchase: They place a bulk order using a streamlined, enterprise-friendly checkout system with invoicing options.
Post-purchase: Your team provides real-time shipping updates, integrates delivery tracking into their procurement system, and follows up with a feedback survey.

Pain point: Enterprise buyers demand seamless integrations with their internal systems and transparency in shipping logistics.

Solution: Offer API integrations for procurement platforms and live order-tracking tools for enterprise accounts.

B2C

A woman in a bright yellow sweater, overlaid with B2C marketing events and an example of a display ad.

Example: Global retailer omnichannel customer journey map

Awareness: Customers learn about your brand through national TV campaigns, premium outdoor advertisements, and programmatic display ads targeting broad demographics.
Consideration: They explore your products online, use an AR app to visualize items in their homes, and book an in-store consultation.
Purchase: Customers complete their purchase at a flagship store or via the mobile app, using personalized discounts from their loyalty account.
Post-purchase: They receive tailored thank-you emails, access to exclusive product launches, and post-purchase support via live chat or AI-driven assistants.

Pain point: Inconsistencies between online and in-store experiences.

Solution: Implement a unified customer data platform to synchronize inventory, pricing, and loyalty programs across all channels.

Financial services

A man with a beard in an urban setting, looking at a tablet. Overlaid with push, text, and email notifications.

Example: Retail bank

Awareness: Customers discover your financial services through targeted display ads, educational webinars, and sponsorships of large-scale events like economic forums.
Consideration: They visit your website to explore products, such as savings accounts or investment options, read educational content, and use online calculators to evaluate their needs. Some customers may also schedule a virtual consultation or visit a local branch for personalized advice.
Purchase: Customers open accounts, apply for loans, or sign up for investment products either through your mobile app, website, or at a physical branch, taking advantage of tailored offers or promotional rates.
Post-purchase: Customers receive a welcome email detailing the benefits of their chosen product, set up mobile app notifications for account activity, and access ongoing financial education resources. Personalized follow-ups from their assigned relationship manager ensure long-term satisfaction.

Pain point: Customers may experience friction between online and in-person interactions or feel overwhelmed by complex product offerings.

Solution: Simplify the product discovery process with AI-driven recommendations and ensure consistent experiences by integrating customer data across digital platforms and branches.

Education sector

A woman in a jacket and a yellow beanie while using a smartphone. Overlaid with a social media post and an email from a university.

Example: University

Awareness: Prospective students discover your institution through targeted social media ads, attendance at education fairs, and recommendations from alumni. They may also come across your website while exploring programs via search engines.
Consideration: Students visit your website to explore degree programs, download brochures, and attend virtual open days or webinars. Some engage with faculty through Q&A sessions or connect with current students on social media for insights.
Purchase (enrollment): Students apply online, upload required documents, and pay application fees. They receive timely email updates about their application status and financial aid options.
Post-purchase (engagement): Once admitted, students are onboarded through an interactive orientation program. They gain access to your student portal for course registrations, academic resources, and advisor support.

Pain point: Students may feel overwhelmed by the application process or lack clarity about program offerings.

Solution: Use personalized email workflows, chatbots for real-time support, and virtual tours to simplify decision-making and enhance the application experience.

Benefits of customer journey maps.

Enabling omnichannel marketing and improving customer experience.

Customer journey maps provide a unified view of how customers engage across multiple channels while identifying friction points that hinder their experience. By addressing these gaps and aligning touchpoints, enterprises create omnichannel marketing strategies that ensure consistent messaging and interactions.

Example: A fashion retailer identifies that Gen Z customers begin with Instagram ads, browse products on a mobile app, and complete purchases in-store. By synchronizing inventory, pricing, and promotions across channels, the retailer reduces friction and increases conversion rates.

Offering a better understanding of your audience.

Journey maps provide deep insights into customer motivations, needs, and pain points, enabling enterprises to tailor their messaging and interactions for maximum relevance. This approach builds trust and fosters long-term satisfaction.

Example: A university discovers that prospective students are confused by the financial aid process. Through journey mapping, they introduce a step-by-step guide and live chat support, increasing application submissions by 20% and building confidence among applicants.

Encouraging a customer-centered culture.

Journey maps align teams across departments, fostering a shared focus on delivering exceptional customer experiences. Acting as a central reference point, they drive collaboration and better decision-making.

Example: A SaaS provider identifies onboarding challenges for enterprise clients. By uniting sales, customer success, and product teams, the company introduces personalized tutorials and live support, increasing retention by 25%.

Optimizing onboarding, upselling, and marketing initiatives.

Customer journey maps highlight critical post-purchase stages, ensuring enterprises can optimize onboarding, upselling, and marketing efforts. They uncover opportunities to refine campaigns and align them more closely with customer needs.

Example: A streaming service identifies new users’ challenges in navigating its extensive content library. By introducing a guided onboarding process and personalized recommendations, the app increases retention by 15% and upsells premium features, such as an ad-free experience and higher video quality.

Example: A B2B tech company discovers a lack of detailed information for prospects in the consideration stage. By creating product comparison guides and distributing them via email, they boost demo requests by 40%.

Boosting conversion rates.

Journey maps pinpoint barriers that delay or prevent conversions, enabling enterprises to proactively address customer pain points and accelerate decision-making.

Example: An ecommerce company finds that high shipping costs contribute to cart abandonment. By introducing free shipping thresholds and highlighting this benefit early in the checkout process, they reduce cart abandonment by 20%.

How to create a customer journey map.

Creating a customer journey map involves a step-by-step approach to understanding your customers’ experiences and identifying opportunities for improvement. This guide integrates such key components as the buying process, user actions, emotions, pain points, and solutions.

Step 1: Set clear goals.

Start by defining the purpose of your journey map and ensuring it aligns with your overarching business objectives. Involve cross-functional teams like marketing, sales, and product design to gather diverse perspectives and create a comprehensive view.

Example: A retailer aiming to reduce cart abandonment identifies the goal of uncovering friction points in the checkout process.
Key question: What specific outcomes are you aiming to achieve with this journey map?

Step 2: Create customer personas.

Segment your audience into detailed personas based on demographics, behaviors, motivations, and pain points. Use a mix of data sources, including customer surveys, analytics, and feedback, to ensure these personas reflect real customer experiences.

Example: An ecommerce brand creates personas for frequent shoppers, first-time buyers, and budget-conscious customers.
Key question: What are the main goals, challenges, and preferences of each customer persona?

Step 3: Identify touchpoints.

Map out all the touchpoints where customers interact with your brand, whether online, offline, or through third-party platforms. These touchpoints span the entire journey, from awareness to post-purchase engagement.

Example: A financial services company identifies key touchpoints like website calculators, branch visits, and customer support chats.
Key question: Where do customers engage with your brand at each stage of their journey?

Step 4: Analyze pain points and emotions.

Assess each touchpoint for potential friction or moments of delight. Consider the emotions customers may feel — such as confusion, frustration, or excitement — at various stages of their journey.

Example: A SaaS provider finds that clients struggle with onboarding, leading to dissatisfaction early in the customer lifecycle.
Key question: What challenges or emotions might hinder progress at each stage?

Step 5: Plot the journey.

Visualize the steps, actions, emotions, and touchpoints for your target personas. Use tools like flowcharts, journey mapping software, or even a simple whiteboard to make the journey accessible to your team.

Example: A university maps the journey of international students, detailing every stage from discovery to enrollment.
Key question: What steps do customers take, and how do they feel at each stage?

Step 6: Validate and refine.

Put yourself in your customers’ shoes by simulating the journey step by step or testing it with real customers. Gather feedback to uncover blind spots, validate assumptions, and make iterative improvements.

Example: A retail brand discovers through testing that their mobile app’s navigation confuses users, leading to a 15% drop in conversions.
Key question: What adjustments can improve the journey and align it with customer expectations?

Doing more with customer journey maps.

Adobe Journey Optimizer offers real-time insights into customer behavior and integrates these insights with unified customer profiles. Tools like Adobe Customer Journey Analytics provide a comprehensive view of customer actions, empowering teams to make informed decisions.

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