Journey mapping is a process that provides a holistic view of the customer experience by uncovering moments of both frustration and delight throughout a series of interactions. Done successfully, it reveals opportunities to address customers’ pain points, alleviate fragmentation, and, ultimately, create a better experience for your users.
What is the customer journey?
The customer journey refers to the sequence of interactions and touchpoints that a customer experiences while engaging with a brand, product, or service. It encompasses every stage of the customer lifecycle, from initial awareness and consideration to purchase, retention, and advocacy. Understanding the customer journey is crucial for businesses as it allows them to map out the various touchpoints and experiences that customers encounter, identify pain points and opportunities for improvement, and ultimately optimize the overall customer experience.
What is a Journey Mapping?
Journey mapping consists of visualizing the customer journey, from the moment they first become aware of your product or service to the moment they become a loyal customer. It helps you understand the customer's needs, pain points, and expectations at every stage of the journey.
In its more literal form a journey map is a visual representation of the customer journey, typically represented as a timeline with different touch points along the way. The touchpoints can be anything from website visits to customer service interactions. The map also includes the customer's thoughts, feelings, and emotions at each touchpoint.
It is just as important for small and medium-sized enterprises as it is for larger companies. Customer expectations are changing for all businesses, regardless of size – customers demand an omnichannel approach to customer service, marketing and sales.

Types of Customer Journey Maps
Current State Journey Map
- A current state journey map visualizes the customer's current experience with a product, service, or brand. It highlights existing touchpoints, pain points, and opportunities for improvement based on real customer data and feedback.
- When to Use: Current state journey maps are used to understand the existing customer experience, identify pain points and bottlenecks in the journey, and prioritize areas for optimization and enhancement. They are valuable for diagnosing issues and creating a baseline for improvement efforts.
Future State Journey Map
- A future state journey map outlines the desired or ideal customer experience that a business aims to deliver in the future. It identifies opportunities for innovation, new touchpoints, and enhanced interactions to create a more seamless and engaging customer journey.
- When to Use: Future state journey maps are used to envision and design improved customer experiences, set strategic goals and priorities for CX initiatives, and align cross-functional teams around a shared vision. They help businesses plan and prioritize initiatives to achieve their long-term CX objectives.
Day-in-the-Life Journey Map
- A day-in-the-life journey map follows a specific customer persona or user segment through a typical day or series of interactions. It maps out the customer's activities, emotions, and pain points as they engage with various touchpoints and channels throughout their day.
- When to Use: Day-in-the-life journey maps are used to gain a deep understanding of the customer's holistic experience, including their needs, behaviors, and motivations beyond specific interactions with the brand. They help businesses empathize with customers and uncover opportunities to provide value and support throughout their journey.
Service Blueprint
- A service blueprint expands on the customer journey map by incorporating internal processes, systems, and touchpoints that support the delivery of products or services. It visualizes the end-to-end service ecosystem, including front-stage and backstage activities, interactions, and dependencies.
- When to Use: Service blueprints are used to understand the operational aspects of service delivery, identify pain points and inefficiencies in internal processes, and optimize the end-to-end service experience. They help businesses align internal operations with customer needs and streamline service delivery to improve overall customer satisfaction.
Why Use a Journey Map?
Journey mapping is a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes and can help you:
- Understand the customer's perspective
- Identify opportunities to improve the customer experience
- Make better decisions about product development and marketing
- Increase customer satisfaction and loyalty
Tacpoint, a digital product agency with 20+ years of experience, can help you build and design engaging B2B enterprise digital products.
Further Readings
- Journey Mapping: How to Create a Good One Part 2
- User Experience Analytics: What is it? And Why do you need it? Part 1
- UX analysis method- how to conduct UX analysis? Part 2
- The Benefits of Usability Testing for the UX Team