Podcast ¦ CX Passport: The One With The 9X ROI – Dave Seaton E221

Key Take Aways

• Journey mapping is a critical tool for demonstrating ROI in customer experience initiatives, with examples showing potential nine-fold returns on investment.

• Creating journey maps from internal assumptions without customer research often leads to failed implementations; real customer research is indispensable.

• Successful journey mapping involves defining clear objectives, analysing the current state, conducting qualitative research, developing personas based on goals and values, and then acting on insights.

• Involvement of cross-functional teams from the outset, especially through observing customer interviews, helps foster emotional engagement and buy-in.

• Personas should reflect customer goals, needs, and values rather than demographic profiles alone, enabling deeper understanding of customer perceptions.

• Emphasising the emotional aspect of customer experiences can be more convincing for stakeholders than charts and data alone.

• Journey maps should be dynamic and multi-dimensional, enabling real-time updates and detailed slicing of customer journeys.

• Artificial intelligence can augment journey mapping by analysing transcripts, validating insights, and identifying overlooked issues.

• Change management and participation throughout the process are essential to translating mapping insights into tangible business improvements.

• Storytelling, such as sharing customer interview clips, enhances stakeholder engagement and shifts sceptics to advocates.

• Organisations in sectors such as financial services can leverage journey mapping to identify friction points, reduce churn, and optimise resource allocation.

• The future of journey mapping involves evolving from static diagrams to integrated, software-linked models that incorporate real-time data and AI insights.

Key Statistics

• In one project with a B2B SaaS company, journey mapping identified a leakage of $1.5 million annually, which was reduced by approximately 66%, leading to an increase of around one million dollars in recurring revenue.

• Research from CXPA (2016), Gartner (2019), TSIA (2022) shows that about half of journey mapping initiatives fail to generate value due to lack of customer research.

• Mapping and acting upon customer insights in a quick timeframe (approximately six weeks) can produce rapid, actionable results, such as introducing a new customer support channel within 30 days.

Key Discussion Points

• The importance of demonstrating the financial impact of journey mapping to gain executive buy-in.

• The disconnect often seen between journey map creation and translating those into actions, highlighting the need for effective implementation strategies.

• The significance of customer research—qualitative and quantitative—in crafting authentic journey maps.

• How involving stakeholders in observing customer interviews can shift perceptions through emotional connections.

• Differences between traditional personas based on demographics and those focused on customer goals, needs, and values.

• The critical role of change management and participation in embedding journey insights into organisational culture.

• The trend towards multi-dimensional, real-time journey models supported by advanced software and AI.

• Challenges of updating static journey maps and the move towards dynamic, integrated mapping solutions.

• The potential for AI to validate human analysis and uncover blind spots in customer insights.

• The importance of storytelling and real customer voice to catalyse stakeholder support.

• Practical examples of journey mapping directly impacting business outcomes, such as onboarding and customer retention.

• The growing need for organisations to adapt journey mapping practices to evolving business environments and customer expectations.

Podcast Description

This podcast explores the strategic role of customer journey mapping in enhancing business performance within the customer experience domain. Featuring insights from CX experts, it discusses how journey maps can be transformed from static diagrams into dynamic, multi-dimensional models that directly influence operational decisions. The show underscores the importance of customer research, stakeholder engagement, and innovative technologies such as AI to generate actionable insights, driving measurable business results. Aimed at senior managers and decision-makers across sectors such as financial services, it offers practical guidance on leveraging journey mapping for sustained competitive advantage.