Understanding Your Clients' Journey

Have you ever stopped to think about what it's really like for your clients to interact with your organisation?

In this article I discuss how creating journey maps can provide invaluable insights.

A journey map traces all the steps a client goes through when accessing your services. It's created by speaking to both satisfied and dissatisfied clients to get their honest perspectives. Organisations are often oblivious to things that don't necessarily work for their clients. Journey mapping reveals opportunities to improve the client experience that leaders may have never considered.

Getting the Client Perspective

To create an accurate journey map, it's crucial to hear directly from clients. Ask open questions like "take me through all the steps" rather than leading ones. Build rapport so clients feel comfortable sharing both positive and negative experiences. Their stories will highlight pain points, emotional responses and "moments that matter" at each stage.

Seeing the Big Picture

With this rich client data, the journey map provides a "bird's eye view" of the entire client experience. Leaders can spot inefficiencies, inconsistencies and opportunities from this strategic perspective in a way that isn't possible when "on the dance floor" dealing with day-to-day issues. Journey mapping also pulls together various data sources into one place to identify patterns and priorities.

Prioritising Improvements

The journey map helps determine where to focus efforts for maximum impact. For example, a blood donation service found reinforcing the original motivations post-donation, boosted repeat donations. By understanding the emotional journey, organisations can enhance experiences at critical moments.

Don't Let the Map Collect Dust

While creating a high-quality journey map is valuable, leaders must use it to drive real change. Regularly updating the map as solutions are tested keeps it a living document that continues benefiting clients and the organisation. Journey mapping is a versatile tool when approached as an ongoing process rather than a one-off project.

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