Customer journey analysis is an important part of digital marketing. It helps companies to better understand the behavior and needs of their customers. By analysing the various touchpoints that a customer goes through on the way to making a purchase, companies can optimize their marketing strategies and improve the customer experience.

Definition of the customer journey

The customer journey describes the entire research and selection process that a customer goes through until conversion. This process can comprise various phases, each of which includes different touchpoints and interactions. According to the AIDA model, a distinction is made between attention, interest, desire and action. A breakdown into the following phases is also popular:

1. awareness

In the awareness phase, the customer becomes aware of a product or brand for the first time. This can happen through various marketing measures such as advertising, social media or content marketing.

2. interest

In this phase, the customer shows interest in the product or brand and begins to search for more information. This can be done by reading blog articles, watching videos or visiting the website.

3. consideration

The customer considers the purchase and compares different options. They read reviews, check prices and look for recommendations.

4. purchase

In the purchase phase, the customer decides to buy a product or service. This includes the actual ordering process and the transaction.

5. after the purchase (post-purchase)

Ideally, the customer remains connected to the brand after the purchase. This can be done through customer service, email marketing or loyalty programs.

Importance of the customer journey analysis

Analyzing the customer journey offers numerous advantages:

  • Better understanding of customer behavior: It helps you understand how customers interact with your brand and which touchpoints are most important.
  • Optimization of marketing strategies: By identifying the most effective touchpoints, you can improve your marketing measures in a targeted manner.
  • Improving the customer experience: An optimized customer journey leads to better customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Methods for customer journey analysis

1. web analysis

In purely digital business models, web analytics plays a central role in customer journey analysis. However, in order to be able to record longer customer journeys, the consent of the data subjects and the longer duration of cookies are required. Two reports are particularly revealing:

  1. Contact combinations: Shows the frequency of contact chains (touchpoints) according to their number as well as the sequences at the level of the medium.
  2. Advertising impact: At the level of medium, campaign or keyword, orders are assigned to the “stimulation”, “interest”, “action” and “direct purchase” phases. “Stimulation” means that the measure was the first contact point in a chain of contacts. In the case of “interest”, the contact was between the first and last contact point. An order is assigned to “Action” if it was at the end of a chain or “Direct purchase” if only one contact or visit was assigned.

2. customer surveys

Direct customer surveys allow you to collect valuable qualitative data about your customers’ experiences and expectations. This also includes the question of how the customer became aware of the company or website. This can provide further insights compared to web analytics.

3. customer journey mapping

Create visual representations of the customer journey to identify and analyze the various touchpoints and phases. This helps you to identify weak points and optimization potential.

Optimization of the customer journey

You can use various strategies to optimize the customer journey:

1. personalization

Provide personalized content and offers based on the individual needs and interests of your customers. This can be achieved through the use of data and AI technologies.

2. consistent communication

Make sure your communication is consistent and seamless across all channels. This includes website, email, social media and customer service.

3. improvement of user-friendliness

Optimize your website and other digital touchpoints to provide a user-friendly and smooth experience. This includes fast loading, easy navigation and mobile optimization.

4. effective customer service

Provide excellent customer service that responds quickly and helpfully to inquiries and problems. This strengthens trust and increases customer satisfaction.

Conclusion

Customer journey analysis is an important tool in digital marketing that helps you to better understand the behavior and needs of your customers. At the very least, it should include an analysis of whether and how many longer contact chains exist or whether visitors largely make a direct decision. This should be the starting point for measures to increase the conversion rate and effectiveness of your marketing measures.