Creating your Ecommerce Customer Journey Canvas

Now that we’ve walked through each stage, it’s your turn to apply it to your business. We’re going to create a visual board of your customer’s journey. Grab some post-it notes and get ready to stick them on the (virtual) wall—this hands-on approach is great for sparking creativity.

Step 1 - Setup

We’re going to use a whiteboard to track the customer journey. Get into this template (you may need to set up a free account with Canva if you don’t already have one).

If you don’t feel like creating a free Canva account, you can just simply download a PDF of the canvas below.

The customer experience mapping worksheet

Step 2 - Challenges

Once you’ve set up your board, it’s time to go stage by stage and add any customer issues or concerns you can foresee. We’d recommend going in the order they’re listed to better get into your customers state of mind. You might also want to go through any customer support tickets to see signs of frustration a user has and where in their journey they are.

In the templates you will see on the first page we have written out some examples for you - hopefully they inspire other areas for you to fill out on the 2nd page.

• Checking you out: Think about what might worry your customers at this stage. Are they concerned about shipping times? Warranties? Add each concern on a sticky note.

• Purchase: Capture what your customers might feel during the purchase. Are they relieved? Excited? Maybe cautiously optimistic? Note it all down.

• Second thoughts: Predict any issues your customers might have post-purchase. Are they feeling buyer’s remorse? Nervous about delivery times? Worried they overpaid? Jot these down too.

• Unboxing: What could be annoying for your customer during unpacking? Do they need a manual? Instructions?

• Relationship: How does your customer want to be treated? What do they want to accomplish when they reach out to you? How important will this be for them?

• Value: Your customers, at the end of the day, bought your product because they thought it would either solve a problem, or fill a want or need. What might your feels feel if they don’t experience this benefit?

• Loyal fans: As a loyal customer to the brands we love, of course we expect a little bit more from them, no? Put ourself in your best customers’ shoes - what could turn them off from being so loyal?

Step 3 - Opportunities

Now that you’ve listed out a complete list of challenges your customers might face, here comes the valuable part. Listing out all the ways we can not only combat these issues, but to get ahead of them so they never become challenges in the first place.

We have a few ideas listed in our template but we don’t want to give all our value away for free. Sign up for our newsletter and we will send you opportunities and ideas once a week straight to your inbox.

• Checking you out: The name of the game here is to win their trust. This is your first impression - for the majority of those that land on your store, this is your first and LAST shot at converting them.

• Purchase: Make this super easy. If you’re using Shopify, this is already pretty streamlined and efficient right out of the box, so there might not be much to do here. However, you want to keep in mind high cost products might benefit from instalment plan offers. And don’t forget on-brand abandoned cart reminders.

• Second thoughts: Just make them feel great about buying from you. You’ve made the sale, so you don’t have to try to sell them, but sending testimonials is a great way to keep that confidence up. Think of other ways you can keep your customers excited and feeling good about their purchase.

• Unboxing: Describe the experience you want your customers to have. This is the first tangible interaction between your product and your customer, so it needs to be delightful.

• Relationship: This one’s tricky. Consider all the ways your customer might want to talk to you—Facebook Messenger, FaceTime, WhatsApp, Email, Phone? Write down what makes sense for your audience.

• Value: What’s the value you’re providing? Is it looking fashionable? Clean cars? Healthy and happy dogs? Clearly note the core value you’re delivering, and figure out how you communicate that clearly.

• Loyal fans: List all the ways your customers might repurchase. And list all the ways you might reward your best customers.

Step 4 - Next Steps

Prioritize: Now that you have your customer journey canvas filled out, it’s time to put it into action. Start by addressing the most critical challenges and opportunities you’ve identified - circle those areas. Which challenges are causing the most hindrance to your overall customer journey? And remember to keep your business challenges in mind here. If your business struggles with a low conversion rate, you might want to focus on the first two phases. If your business acquires loads of customers but has trouble with retention, you might want to focus on the middle phases.

Implement and iterate: Now that you know where you’ll start - just do it. Pick the easiest and quickest opportunities that you can implement in under a day, and start there. Once you’re completed those, pick the ones that might take a couple days, and so on until the only ones left are the biggest projects like potentially redesigning your website or packaging. As you implement the changes, monitor their impact on your customer experience.

Gather feedback: Continuously seek feedback from your customers. Use surveys, follow-up emails, and direct conversations to understand how your improvements are being received. Their insights will help you fine-tune your approach. Send out surveys pre and post improvement to see how customer perception has shifted.

Analyze results: Regularly analyze your customer data to see how the changes are affecting key metrics like customer satisfaction, email open rates, repeat purchase rate, and overall sales. Look for trends and patterns that can inform further improvements.

Stay agile: Customer needs and expectations can change over time, so it’s important to stay flexible and ready to adapt. Keep your journey canvas up-to-date and revisit it periodically to ensure it remains relevant.

Celebrate successes: Don’t forget to celebrate the wins! Share successes with your team and recognize the efforts that have led to improved customer experiences. This will keep everyone motivated and committed to continuous improvement.

Stay connected: Join our community by signing up for our newsletter. We’ll send you weekly tips, insights, and strategies to keep enhancing your customer journey and creating delightful experiences. Let’s keep growing together!

By following these steps, you’ll be well on your way to creating a customer journey that not only meets but exceeds your customers’ expectations, turning them into loyal fans who can’t wait to come back for more.