Guiding customer adventures

Hey fellow business adventurers! With spring break travels in mind this month, it's the perfect time to explore another journey: the customer's. We've all faced frustrating business experiences — websites that make you want to toss your laptop, chatbots that don’t understand you or in-store interactions that are far from warm and friendly. As business leaders, we typically focus on products (which are important), but we often forget a crucial part: the customer's path to us and their reason to stay.

Imagine your business is an adventure park. Customers are explorers, and you're the guide, ensuring a fantastic experience. Instead of rides, your park has touchpoints — moments of interaction. It's not a straight line, but a path of twists, turns, emotions, and decisions. To guide effectively, you need to understand their adventure inside and out.

That's where “customer journeys” come in — putting yourself in the customers’ shoes and mapping each step. The opportunities for touchpoints come in phases: awareness, interest, consideration, purchase, retention, loyalty and advocacy. Let’s look at some examples:

1. Retail storefront / clothing boutique. Journey: "The fashion enthusiast."

Awareness/interest phase: Eye-catching displays, friendly greetings. Think stylishly dressed mannequins, visually appealing layout, and a warm “hello” from sales person.

Consideration phase: Personalized styling advice, assistance with sizes, comfortable fitting rooms.

Purchase/retention phase: Smooth, efficient checkout, loyalty programs with discounts, early access to new collections in exchange for email.

Loyalty/advocacy phase: “Thank you” emails, social media engagement. Share style tips and personalized recommendations.

2. B2B / software company. Journey: "The data-driven decision-maker."

Awareness phase: Targeted LinkedIn ads, content marketing. Reach potential clients with relevant articles and ads.

Interest/consideration phase: Webinars, downloadable resources. Provide valuable information and demonstrations.

Evaluation/purchase phase: Free trials, personalized demos. Let them try the product and offer tailored presentations.

Adoption/retention phase: Onboarding, customer success support. Make sure they know how to use the software and offer ongoing help.

3. Restaurant / casual dining. Journey: "The foodie explorer."

Awareness/Interest phase: Online reviews and menus, social media engagement. Showcase your delicious food and positive reviews.

Consideration phase: Online reservations, warm welcome at arrival. Make it easy to book a table and greet guests with a smile.

Purchase/satisfaction phase: Attentive service, delicious food, inviting atmosphere. Ensure friendly service and high-quality meals.

Retention/advocacy phase: Post-dining feedback, loyalty programs. Ask for feedback and reward loyal customers.

Hopefully, this can help you identify and refine similar journeys for your own customers. Remember, there can be more than one journey for more than one type of customer. Just think about all the different types of customers you serve and all ways people can get to/find your business. Those are the “journeys” you should start with. Beyond that, consider these key elements:

Emotional understanding: Be sure to address customer pain points, anxieties, frustrations, and delights. Customers decide emotionally. Identify and proactively resolve emotional triggers and train staff to be empathetic.

Personalization and context: Remember to tailor experiences to individual needs. Personalization boosts engagement. Use data to personalize content, track behavior, and implement omnichannel strategies. If you know a customer's preferences, use that information to create a more relevant experience.

Feedback and improvement: Customer journeys are dynamic. Collect feedback, analyze data, and refine your approach. Use surveys, social media, and reviews. Don't be afraid to change your approach based on what you learn.

Cross-department alignment: Your teams should be working together to avoid siloed experiences. A true journey crosses all departments — products, sales, marketing/communications and customer experience. Share data, journey maps and customer feedback, hold joint meetings. A disjointed experience will frustrate customers. Make sure everyone is working together.

By truly understanding and empathizing with your customers — you can craft journeys that are not just transactional, but genuinely meaningful. That’s the real magic. Happy customers, those who have truly enjoyed their journey with you, become your most powerful marketing force. So, embrace the adventure, be the guide your customers need, and watch as your business thrives.

Brandfully yours,

Tracy

Tracy Pratt, a Cedar Rapids marketing professional with expertise in communication, consumer behavior and AI, believes in blending data with storytelling to help businesses build stronger relationships. Message her on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/1tracypratt.