Map the User Experience Journey

Understand the user's actions and challenges over time.

A User Experience Journey Map allows a team to gain a common understanding about the use case through the eyes of the user and over time. It helps a team recognize current user challenges and motivations as well as derive insights about the use case and articulate user needs.

GOAL

Map out the user experience in a chronological order

PARTICIPANTS

Designers, Architects

TIME NEEDED

1 - 2 hours

PHASE

Discover

Before You Start

Create a Persona
You should create a ‘persona’, which is an archetype of your users. The persona description includes goals, desires, and tasks of the users. The necessary information comes from end user interviews. Find out more:

Define a Persona

Materials you will need

Templates for Download

Templates for Virtual Collaboration

(Registration to MURAL is required)

Steps

Creating the User Experience Journey Map includes several steps. We recommend completing them in one session.
  • 30 - 60 minutes

Write down the actions step by step in the center lane

What actions does the user take while trying to achieve their goal and/or fulfill their tasks?

  • 10 - 20 minutes

Write down the corresponding mindset in the top lane

What is on the user’s mind during this journey? How do they feel at each step of their journey?

  • 5 - 15 minutes

Write down the corresponding touch points on the bottom lane

What touch points does the user have? What do they engage with while on the journey (tools, devices, conversations, other people, etc.)?

  • 15 - 25 minutes

Mark the pain points and moments of truth

Use different colored board markers or dot stickers to mark the pain points and moments of truth on the journey map.

See Completed Example

A “moment of truth” describes a situation when something could go wrong and/or in which critical decisions have to be made.

“Pain points” are situations that the user finds uncomfortable, frustrating or difficult.

If ideas come up during the exercise, put them to an idea parking lot.

You're done!

You can use the User Experience Journey Map to create Problem Statements and also as a reference throughout the design phase of the project.