If you own / operate a small business, one of the very first things I want you to do is document the journey your customer goes through from customer exposure - customer exit.
Documenting exactly what the customer is experiencing on the front end helps you connect the dots on what needs to be happening on the backend of the business that makes it possible for the customer to experience what they're experiencing. These two things cannot be separated from each other.
In today’s email I’m going to explain some core items you should document, why you need to, and give you an example of what this could look like:
CORE ITEMS TO DOCUMENT + WHY YOU NEED TO DOCUMENT THEM
A few examples of core items to document, as it pertains to the journey your customer experiences, as they transition from being exposed to your business, purchasing from you, and exiting your business environment:
What actions activate which tasks (the customer experiences this on the front end which activates this task on the backend of the business)
Whether or not the backend tasks are automated or manual
Who on the team (department or person) is responsible for which tasks
Whether or not the tasks have been turned into written or video SOP’s for training purposes
What softwares are being utilized to accomplish the various tasks
What data is or isn’t being collected throughout the user journey so you can optimize longterm
When your user journey is being documented with the type of information listed above, it gives you the ability to:
Quickly solve individual problems as they arise
Keep training materials updated for core processes
Analyze where problems are coming from, whether it’s a lazy team member, a team member who wasn’t trained properly, realizing that no one within the company was given ownership over a certain process / task, or a broken automation
Make sure you’re collecting various pieces of data throughout the journey that will be necessary for longterm optimization
Consistently optimize micro processes within the user journey, that overtime will compound into the macro process being optimized
Optimize the frontend experience for the customer, leading to sales, retention, customer advocacy, referrals, trust, etc.
AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT DOCUMENTING THIS CAN LOOK LIKE
For this example, let’s assume I own a venue business, where people book my venue locations for weddings, Corporate events, etc. So the first thing I would do is create a Notion page dedicated to this project, followed by creating micro databases that contain all the information I want to collect, and maintain over time. Here are the various micro databases I would create:
Every exposure point that leads to the customer inquiring (customer found us through Instagram, Google search, Pinterest, etc.)
Customer inquires and books tour
Customer tours venue
Customer books venue
Customer onboards
Alcohol order fulfillment
Event rentals fulfillment
“Day of” team processes
Customer’s event is closed
In 2024, if you decide to get serious about documenting your business, I cannot emphasize this enough..start with this documentation protocol. Building and maintaining this documentation protocol will forever be highly useful to your business, as it will always show you the fullest picture on what’s going on, where the gaps are, what problems need be fixed, etc.
HOW I CAN HELP YOU, IF YOU’RE READY
Leading up to the launch of my resource center, I am continuing to work with small businesses fractionally, as well as offering a limited # of pre-paid consulting packages.
If you are ready to implement the “product user journey” documentation protocol into your business, you can purchase my pre-paid consulting package, and I will work with your team, and build it for you.
The pre-paid package is simple. It’s a $2000 package that includes up to 20 hours.
I have four packages available for the rest of Q1.
Email me if you’re interested, and we will discuss the details.