What is customer journey?

Customer journey, sales funnel, marketing funnel. Are these just buzz-words or something you should know about and map out?

The differences you should know

It can be difficult to understand the difference between these different terms. The vast majority view a sales funnel or marketing funnel as four simple steps: familiarity, interest, assessment, action. And this one is quite comprehensive on the overall steps from a sales perspective, but is still deficient in several ways. First, it doesn't look at what happens after someone becomes a customer (and for the vast majority of businesses, it's cheaper to work with existing customers, than to acquire new ones). And secondly, it does not help to map the customer's perspective on the whole. What exactly do customers go through when buying from you?

Do you really know what your customers experience when they become a customer?

Looking at the sales funnel from a customer perspective, we talk about the customer journey. Mapping the customer journey is about understanding the customer's experience in all the steps towards becoming a customer - from the first time they hear about the brand, to purchase, to further follow-up after the purchase.

The goal of understanding the customer journey is to facilitate a better experience, reduce friction, provide more relevant information at the right time, and ensure that more people continue on in the sales race. Plus staying as satisfied, loyal customers!

To do this, you also need to identify who your customers really are and what their needs are. A great way to do this is via creating so-called buyer personas, which we'll get into more immediately in an example.

What does a “bad” versus a good customer journey look like?

We use a fictional example in the e-commerce segment. Ola Normann has an online store, Grønn&Skøgn, which sells flowers and garden supplies.

When visiting the online store, it quickly becomes apparent that the overall experience is far from optimal. Product categories are incomprehensible, information about delivery and shipping is almost invisible, and the ordering process itself appears confusing. On the front page you can still find the “spring campaign” despite the fact that we are well out in the summer months, and the newsletters mostly revolve around items they want to empty the stock of. That in turn leads many to opt out of the list.

If you need help, the customer service number is almost impossible to find. And even if one is lucky and gets through, it turns out that the return process requires both patience and a good portion of effort. Should someone add a product to the cart without completing the purchase, no reminder pops up — potential customers slip right out of the system.

Social media also does not provide much drah help, as they are mostly updated sporadically. The lack of inspirational photos and videos showing the items in different environments leaves many people unsure of what they actually end up with. The combination of a little-implemented online store solution and weak follow-through therefore leaves customers with the impression of a business that does not take care of their buying experience.

The result: Customers experience friction and uncertainty. Many people fall off in the buying process, and those who buy do not necessarily become returning customers because they do not experience being looked after or appreciated in the aftermath. They also get bad reviews online.

Analysis of personas and customer journey - drive!

Ola Normann is then helped to look more closely at the customer journey and buyer personas. A buyer personas is a fictional example of a customer that allows one to get closer to who the customer really is and what their needs are. In this case, they have used analysis tools and buyer histories to reveal that the customer group on flowers and pots is mostly middle-aged women, while men 30-60 often account for purchases of garden equipment.

Introducing Tove (51). Tove has 2 grown children and a husband, loves working in the garden, and is keen on the high quality of pots and equipment and finds it both exciting and meaningful to work with flowers and plants. In the evenings, she often scrolls on Facebook and Instagram, and follows several accounts that give her inspiration for her home and garden. When she needs new pots or equipment, she usually goes to Google and searches for products, and finds it easy to have those product ads that pop up at the very top. She is not the most technically proficient, and can easily this by the glass if the online store is not intuitive and easy to use. ‍For garden equipment, they further create a buyer personas at Hans (46).

By looking at the entire customer journey from Heges and Hans' perspective, it quickly became apparent that a few simple steps could make online shopping more seamless.
The online store got easy navigation and clear product categories, shipping and delivery terms are visible both on the front page and in the shopping cart, and a new contact page makes it easy to get in touch by phone, email or chat.

Newsletters are now segmented eIf the customer is most interested in garden equipment or flowers/plants, reminders are sent about forgotten shopping carts — often supplemented by a small offer. The return process is simplified through a separate portal.

To inspire customers, social media is actively used to share photos and video of the products in use, and an “always on” layout on Meta ensures that they are always visible to potential customers. They also run shopping ads in Google, so that the online store pops up when someone searches for “flower pot” or “lawn mower.”

The result: They gain new customers more easily, and create better relationships with existing customers. They increase sales and experience more traffic and engagement. In addition, they find that the feedback is better and that people praise further to acquaintances and on online reviews.

An extreme example, you might think?

Well, maybe it is. However, we often find that even well-established online stores may need fresh eyes on their online store, and that there are often opportunities for marketing initiatives with high conversion rates that companies do not take advantage of.

In short: the best way to sell is to put the customer first!

Need help mapping your customer journey?

Get in touch with us and we'll talk about how we can help!