Practicing Journey Mapping
What is journey mapping?
A journey map is a visual representation that follows a customer experience path. Journey mapping is a powerful tool for designers, as it helps gain insights into a user’s perspective. They are often presented chronologically, including various essential aspects: touchpoints, thoughts, and emotions. By creating these maps, designers can better understand their customers, thus allowing them to improve user experience.
The Project
As a designer, journey mapping helps work my UX/UI muscles. This is why I ventured to complete an application of journey mapping for a made-up user persona. The persona in question is Sarah Smith, a 25-year-old female influencer from San Diego, California. She is a social media user, sharing her fitness workouts, tips, and journey with her followers. The journey map for this project will outline the phases of Sarah buying a new fitness smartwatch. The phases are awareness, research, evaluation, purchase, and delivery. I will evaluate Sarah’s touchpoints, thoughts, and emotions throughout each phase.
Dissecting the User Journey
Touchpoints
These moments or interactions within a customer’s journey may influence their decisions or assist them in the end goal. Touchpoints can occur through various channels, such as social media, personal conversations, search engines, or online stores. Understanding touchpoints can be crucial for designers because they can significantly influence a customer’s decisions.
Thoughts
In a user journey map, “thoughts” will show a deeper cognitive aspect of the customer through their experience. These will include inner reflections, comments, and concerns that might change throughout the different stages of the user journey. By understanding these thoughts, designers can gain insights into a user’s mindset and tailor it to their needs and uncertainties.
Emotions
The emotions section will encompass any feelings a user might have during a particular stage in their journey. Understanding these emotions allows designers to create a more efficient experience for the user. By learning what feelings a user has during a certain point in a user journey, businesses and designers will have an insight into what can better satisfy the user. This will help with overall revenue generation and success.
Final Comments
Journey mapping is an effective tool for designers and businesses seeking to improve their user experience. It provides a clear view of a customer’s path, acknowledging various aspects along the way. This project focused on the fictional persona of Sarah Smith and illustrated an example of what journey mapping can look like. By delving into the intricacies of the user journey, designers can establish vast success for any business.
Hi! My name is Kristin Ardese and I am a professional Graphic Designer and Marketing Strategist. I hope that by sharing some of my expertise, I can help offer valuable insights and build an engaging community.
