What You Need to Know About the Evolution of the Customer Journey

Throughout the years, the concept of the customer journey has been evolving. As new technologies emerge and change the way marketing is done, the way marketers view the customer journey is also changing.

New stages in the journey are arising. New concepts are introduced. But regardless of the differences in definition, the perspective of the customer journey remains linear and sequential. This means that customers follow a path. Starting from awareness, each stage leads then to another until customers finally reach the advocacy stage.

However, digital technologies such as social media, email marketing software and mobile ads have caused disruption of the traditional customer journey. Nowadays, the customer journey has become fragmented. Multi-channel marketing has allowed businesses to bombard customers with different messages and ads through multiple platforms. Customers can directly communicate with businesses through many channels like social media and even engage through various means such as online contests, reviews, survey emails and more.

This evolution has given rise to confusion as many marketers begin to interchange customer journey with customer touchpoints and customer experiences. How are these three concepts different? And what makes them related to each other?

Customer Journey vs. Touchpoints vs. Customer Experience

The customer journey refers to the steps your customers go through as they engage with your business. It involves every interaction customers make with you from the moment they first learned about you to their first purchase and referrals.

Often, it is illustrated with a map so that marketers can easily visualize the journey. While different marketers have different ways of mapping this out, the common stages in a customer journey are awareness, consideration, decision, action, loyalty, and advocacy.

Touchpoint, on the other hand, is the points of customer contact or moments of interaction with your business, from the start to the end of the customer journey. Hence, a journey is consisting of one or more touchpoints.

It’s important to note that touchpoints are not channels but an interaction that helps move customers through the journey by changing the way they think or feel about your business. It can be an online review, a mobile ad, or an email sent through your email marketing software.

The product of all interactions between customers and your business throughout the relationship is called customer experience. Customer experience is more focused on emotion. A positive customer experience means that expectations are met, frictions are managed, and interactions are smooth. Providing an excellent customer experience could result in repeat purchases or customer loyalty, which we all know are two of the most important parts of the customer journey.

Despite being weaved together, these three concepts – customer journey, touchpoints, and customer experience – are different from each other. Knowing their differences can guide you in planning effective digital marketing campaigns whether through social media channels, email marketing software, or mobile.

Meeting Customers Where They Are in Their Customer Journey

Now that the concept of customer journey is clear to you. It’s important to know how to use it to meet customers at the right place and at the right time.

Know your customers and their demands. When you understand the problems, pain points and needs of customers, you can easily map out a journey specifically tailored for them. Likewise, you can design messages, content, and strategies that are targeted and personalized.

Identify the touchpoints for each stage of the customer journey. With appropriate touchpoints, you can lead customers to the right path in the journey. For instance, social media engagement can be an effective touchpoint before purchase while personalized emails sent through email marketing software can be used after purchase.

Produce content for each stage of the customer journey. After identifying the moments in which customers engage with your business, produce content designed to deliver targeted messages to customers to provide them what they need. It can be promotional emails, blog posts, display ads or more.

Every customer is different, which is why you need to understand your customers on a deeper level and reconceive the journey from end to end. Do omnichannel marketing by combining social media advertising on Facebook or LinkedIn, marketing automation using an email marketing software, and other digital marketing strategies. Be sure that your touchpoints, customer experience, and customer journey are well weaved together to achieve success.

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