Customer Journey Mapping Game

Players are given a fictional company scenario with a diverse customer base. Each group creates a detailed map of the customer journey, from awareness to purchase and post-purchase, discussing how to optimize interactions at each stage.

1. How to Set Up:

• Materials Needed:
  • Large whiteboards or flip charts
  • Markers in various colors
  • Sticky notes
  • Customer journey templates (optional)
  • Pre-prepared fictional company information packets, including background, market data, customer demographics, and current challenges
  • Timer
• Preparation Steps:
  1. Room Setup: Arrange tables in a way that each team can work together around a whiteboard or flip chart. Ensure there is enough space for movement and discussion.
  2. Material Distribution: Place markers, sticky notes, and any other necessary materials at each station.
  3. Team Formation: Divide participants into teams of 4-6 people. Try to mix departments or roles to encourage diverse perspectives.
  4. Briefing: Provide each team with the fictional company information packets. Explain the objectives of the game: to map out the customer journey for the given company, identifying key touchpoints, pain points, and opportunities.

2. How to Play:

• Gameplay Structure:
  1. Research Phase (20 minutes): Teams go through the information packets and use sticky notes to jot down initial ideas about the customer journey phases.
  2. Mapping Phase (40 minutes): Teams use the whiteboards or flip charts to draw the journey, placing sticky notes at various stages of the customer lifecycle.
  3. Discussion and Refinement (30 minutes): Teams review each other's maps to provide feedback and refine their own journey maps based on insights gathered.
• Key Tasks:
  • Define the stages of the customer journey (awareness, consideration, purchase, retention, advocacy).
  • Identify and mark the main touchpoints.
  • Note down pain points and opportunities at each stage.
  • Discuss potential improvements or innovative solutions.

3. How to Moderate:

• Moderator's Role:
  1. Facilitate Discussions: Help teams articulate their thoughts and ensure that all team members contribute.
  2. Keep Time: Ensure that each phase of the game starts and ends on time.
  3. Provide Guidance: Assist teams in understanding the customer journey stages and their importance. Offer hints or tips if teams get stuck.
  4. Ensure Fair Play: Make sure all teams have equal access to materials and information.
• Interventions:
  • If a team is dominating the discussion or feedback sessions, gently guide the conversation to be more inclusive.
  • Offer additional challenges to teams that finish early, like considering the impact of digital transformation on their journey maps.

4. Other Considerations:

• Debriefing:
  • After the game, lead a debrief session where each team presents their final journey map.
  • Discuss the different approaches taken by teams and the unique insights or solutions they discovered.
  • Highlight the importance of understanding the customer journey in real-world applications.
• Feedback:
  • Gather feedback from participants on the game experience to refine and improve future sessions.
• Follow-Up:
  • Encourage teams to take the insights back to their real work environments.
  • Provide digital copies of the best practices and innovative ideas discussed during the game for further implementation.

5. Wrapping Up:

• Conclusion of the Game: At the end of the session, allow each team a few minutes to finalize their maps and prepare for their presentations.
• Presentation (20-30 minutes): Each team presents their customer journey map to the whole group. They should explain the rationale behind their layout, including the identification of key touchpoints, pain points, and the innovative solutions they propose for enhancing the customer experience.
• Voting Session (Optional): You could add a competitive element by allowing each participant to vote for the journey map they found most complete, innovative, or realistic. This encourages teams to be thorough and creative during the game.

6. Learning and Reflection:

• Group Discussion: After all presentations, open the floor for a group discussion. Encourage participants to reflect on what they learned about the customer journey and how different teams approached similar problems.
• Key Takeaways: Highlight important lessons learned during the game, such as the significance of customer pain points and the impact of small changes at various journey stages.
• Application to Real-World Scenarios: Discuss how these journey maps can be translated into actionable strategies in their respective roles or businesses.

7. Follow-Up Actions:

• Documentation: Ensure that all the journey maps and notes are collected and digitized if possible. Share these documents with all participants as a resource.
• Implementing Insights: Encourage departments to consider how insights from the game could be implemented to improve actual customer interactions and overall experience.
• Plan Future Sessions: Based on feedback, plan future sessions that might focus on other aspects of the customer experience or deeper dives into specific stages of the customer journey.

8. Feedback and Improvement:

• Collect Feedback: Use surveys or informal discussions to gather feedback about the game's effectiveness, engagement level, and areas for improvement.
• Iterate on the Game Design: Based on feedback, make necessary adjustments to the game setup, rules, or materials to enhance learning and engagement for future sessions.

9. Extending the Experience:

• Advanced Scenarios: For teams that found the initial game helpful, consider creating more complex scenarios that involve larger sets of data or multiple interconnected customer journeys.
• Integration with Training Programs: Incorporate this game into regular training programs to continually elevate the customer-centric thinking of the workforce.

10. Celebrating Success:

• Recognition: Recognize and reward the efforts and insights of the teams, especially those who came up with particularly innovative or practical solutions.
• Sharing Best Practices: Share the best journey maps and strategies across the wider organization to inspire others and spread customer-centric innovations.

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