A visual representation of the end-to-end journey of a user interacting with a service, including all touchpoints, channels, and key moments. This map helps in identifying pain points, opportunities, and areas for improvement in the service experience.

Service Journey Map

A visual representation of all the individuals, teams, or organizations involved in the service journey. The map showcases the relationships and interactions between stakeholders and helps to identify their roles, responsibilities, and motivations in the journey.

Stakeholder Map

A set of fictional representations of the main user types interacting with the service. Personas capture their goals, motivations, behaviors, and demographic information to create empathy and understanding of their needs and preferences throughout the journey.

User Personas

A tool for gaining a deeper understanding of the users’ emotional states throughout the service journey. Empathy maps capture what users are thinking, feeling, seeing, hearing, and doing at various stages of the experience, providing insights into their needs and expectations.

Empathy Maps

A comprehensive list of all touchpoints users encounter during the service journey. Touchpoints may include physical locations, people, digital interfaces, and other elements that users interact with. This inventory forms the basis for analyzing user experiences and identifying areas of improvement.

Touchpoint Inventory

A set of quantitative and qualitative measures used to evaluate the success of a service in meeting user needs and expectations throughout the journey. Metrics can include satisfaction scores, time spent, task completion rates, and key findings from user feedback.

Experience Metrics

A list of areas where improvements, innovations, or optimizations can be made within the service journey. These areas may address user pain points, business constraints, or technological hurdles to improve the overall experience and fulfill user needs more effectively.

Opportunity Areas

A set of actionable steps, solutions or strategies proposed to address the opportunity areas identified in the service journey analysis. These recommendations aim to enhance user satisfaction, streamline processes, and align the service with the organization's overarching goals.

Recommendations

A summary of the main findings, insights, and recommendations gathered during the service journey research project, tailored to inform and engage stakeholders or decision-makers in the next steps of project development or improvement.

Presentation Deck

A service journey is a visualization of the user experience that maps a sequence of contact points users encounter and identifies factors influencing satisfaction.

This service journey example explores the process a user goes through when opening an account in a bank.

1. **Discover:** The user becomes aware of different banking services and account types available.
2. **Research:** The user researches and compares different banks and account plans, reviewing benefits and drawbacks.
3. **Visit Bank:** The user visits a local physical bank branch or bank website to gather more information regarding account options.
4. **Open Account:** The user decides to open a specific type of bank account, filling out necessary forms and providing documents.
5. **Deposit:** The user makes their initial deposit into the account.
6. **Receive Debit Card:** The user receives a debit card for their account, either immediately at the branch or within a few days via mail.
7. **Online Banking Setup:** The user sets up their online banking credentials, enabling both online access and mobile banking functionalities.
8. **Regular Account Usage:** The user makes transactions, monitors their account balance, utilizes bank services, and receives account-related notifications.
9. **Customer Support:** The user contacts customer support with any issues or questions, either through phone or online chat.
10. **Account Maintenance:** The user may update their account information, subscribe to new services, or close the account.


Banking Service Journey

This service journey example outlines the stages in selecting and utilizing a mobile telecom service provider.

1. **Need Identification:** The user recognizes their need for a mobile telecom service plan, either for personal or professional use.
2. **Provider Comparison:** The user searches for various telecom service providers and compares their offerings, including plans, fees, coverage, and customer reviews.
3. **Plan Selection:** The user selects the telecom provider and plan that best suits their needs and budget.
4. **Purchasing SIM Card:** The user acquires a SIM card from the selected provider, either online, in a physical store, or from a provider-affiliated retailer.
5. **SIM Activation:** The user activates their SIM card and their associated telecom service plan.
6. **Plan Utilization:** The user begins using the telecom service for calls, messages, and mobile data usage.
7. **Bill Payment:** The user receives a monthly statement for the service usage and makes regular payments to maintain the service.
8. **Technical Support:** The user may require assistance with device compatibility, network coverage, or other issues and contacts the provider's customer support.
9. **Plan Modification:** The user may decide to modify their service plan, either upgrading or downgrading their plan features and costs.
10. **Cancellation/Change:** The user may decide to cancel their current service plan or switch to another telecom provider based on changing needs or experiences.


Telecom Service Provider Journey

Determine the specific service or product that you want to analyze. This can include physical products, digital services, or even offline experiences. Be clear about the aspects you would like to study, and define your target audience.

Identify the service scope

Collect information on the service from various sources like user interviews, observations, surveys, customer support data, etc. Also, collect insights and data from stakeholders (e.g., developers, designers, support representatives) who have valuable first-hand knowledge of user interactions.

Gather data and user insights

Based on the collected data, develop user personas that represent your target audience. These personas help you understand the needs, pain points, and motivations of your users, and can be used to identify opportunities for improvement throughout the service journey.

Create user personas

Break down the entire service experience into distinct stages, from the initial user touchpoint, to when they engage with the service or product, and even after-sales interactions. These stages can include awareness, consideration, purchase, usage, and post-sales support.

Map the service journey stages

For each stage in the service journey, identify the goals, tasks, and actions that users will carry out to achieve these goals. These ensure that you understand user expectations at different stages in the service journey.

Establish user goals and actions

In each stage of the service journey, determine where the users interact with your service or product, as well as the possible channels. Touchpoints can include websites, apps, social media platforms, customer support interactions, etc.

Identify touchpoints and channels

Examine the entire service journey to identify pain points, areas of friction, and opportunities for improvement. Look for gaps in the experience, inconsistencies across channels, or difficulties that users may face while achieving their goals at different stages.

Analyze the service journey

Brainstorm and develop ideas that address the identified pain points or opportunity areas in the service journey. Prioritize these solutions based on their feasibility, impact, and alignment with your business or product goals.

Develop ideas and solutions

Create prototypes or mockups of the proposed solution(s) for the service journey issues. Conduct user testing to gather feedback, and iteratively refine the solution based on the feedback and results.

Prototype and test improvements

Once the improvements have been refined, implement them in the product or service. Continuously monitor the impact of these changes on user satisfaction, engagement, and other relevant performance metrics to ensure the success of the improvements.

Implement and monitor changes

Time

writing supplies, paper, post-its, and possibly software

Tools

People

A journey map is a visualization of the process that a person goes through in order to accomplish a goal.

Journey Mapping 101

User journeys and user flows both describe processes users go through in order to accomplish their goals. While both tools are useful for planning and evaluating experience, they differ in scope, purpose, and format.

User Journeys vs. User Flows

What is a user journey map, and how can it help your business to improve its outcomes? We'll show you how in this complete guide.

What is UX journey mapping?

Describe how the user interact with the service, throughout its touchpoints

Journey Map

Journey mapping is a key process to help you understand your customers’ experience as they interact with your brand, from discovery to purchase and beyond.

Journey Mapping in UX Design: Ultimate 2023 Guide

Service Journey

A detailed script outlining the various steps and interactions a user will experience during the testing session, including instructions for the researcher performing the 'wizard' role.

Testing Scenario Script

A structured guide for setting up the testing environment, including the arrangement of physical elements and technology, as well as tips for making the experience as realistic and seamless as possible.

Setup and Environment Guide

A strategy for identifying and recruiting target users who fit the desired profile for the Wizard of Oz testing, which may include aspects such as demographics, experience, and usage habits.

Participant Recruitment Plan

A document that outlines the details of the testing process and what participants can expect, ensuring they are aware of the Wizard of Oz technique and willingly agree to participate in the study.

Informed Consent Form

A list of tasks or goals that users will be asked to complete during the testing session, designed to explore various aspects of the proposed system or interface.

Task Prompt List

Customizable forms or spreadsheets for capturing various types of data during the testing session, such as user input, errors, task completion times, and subjective feedback.

Data Collection Templates

A set of open-ended questions for participants to reflect on their experience during the testing session, focusing on aspects such as usability, perceived system performance, and areas for improvement.

Debrief Interview Guide

A report summarizing the findings from the Wizard of Oz testing process, including patterns and trends in the data, as well as recommendations for design changes and future research.

Post-Test Observations and Insights

A setup guide for recording the testing sessions, including camera placement and audio setup, to ensure the documentation of both participant interactions and the 'wizard' intervention.

Video Recording Setup

A strategy for analyzing the collected data, including quantitative metrics and qualitative insights, to identify patterns and trends related to user behavior, preferences, and needs.

Data Analysis Plan

The Wizard of Oz is a research method that involves a researcher hidden from the test participant. The participant interacts with a service interface that the researcher and designer can modify during the test.

Identify the goals and objectives of the study, determine the target users and the specific aspects of the user experience you want to investigate.

Planning and Objective Setting

Create a low-fidelity, functional prototype of the desired interface or product you want to test. This could be as simple as a paper-based prototype or a mock-up on a digital platform.

Designing the Interface Prototype

Choose a person or a team that will act as the 'Wizard.' Their role is to simulate the functionality of the system or interface, responding to the user's interactions behind-the-scenes.

Selecting the Wizard

Set up a controlled test environment where the user will interact with the prototype. This can be in a lab or in a place that allows the Wizard to remain unseen by the user during the test.

Preparing the Test Environment

Conduct a few dry runs to ensure that the Wizard and the prototype function smoothly together, and that the user experience will be as realistic as possible in the context of the test.

Testing the Setup

Select and recruit participants that represent your target user group. Brief them about the study, confidentiality, and any compensation they will receive for their time.

Recruiting Participants

Have the participants interact with the prototype, complete tasks, and provide feedback while being observed by the researcher and Wizard. The Wizard simulates the system's functionality and responds to the user's actions.

Conducting the Test Sessions

Gather qualitative and quantitative data, such as task completion rates, error rates, feedback, and time taken. Use methods like observation, interviews, and think-aloud protocol to understand the user's experience and emotions during the test.

Collecting Data

Analyze the data collected to uncover any trends, patterns, and areas of improvement. Summarize the findings and provide recommendations or potential design changes to address issues faced by users during the test.

Analyzing and Reporting Results

Make adjustments to the interface based on the findings and recommendations, and repeat the Wizard of Oz process if necessary to ensure that the changes have addressed the issues and improved the user experience.

Iterating and Retesting

one week for preparation + one day for testing

2 computers, 2 separate rooms, a web camera

Materials

The Wizard of Oz is a type of user-research method that involves interaction with a mock interface controlled by a human. It is used to test costly concepts inexpensively and to narrow down the problem space.

The Wizard of Oz Method in UX

The Wizard of Oz is a UX research method that involves interaction with a mock interface controlled by a human. It is used to test costly concepts inexpensively and to narrow down the problem space.

Wizard of Oz Method in UX (Video)

Researching for voice assistants and conversational interfaces? Try Wizard of Oz testing! Wizard of Oz is a great way to see how users will interact with a digital assistant without committing the resources and development time to build a fully-fledged system just yet.

What in the UX is “Wizard of Oz Testing”?

In our latest post, we'll discuss what Wizard of Oz prototyping is. We answer the how, what, why, and when. Learn more about this methodology.

Wizard of Oz Prototyping: What It Is, How & Why It's Done | UX 4Sight

Learn how the Wizard of Oz method can be used in rapid system or product development to test a system that does not yet exist.

What is Wizard of Oz testing and how can it be used?

Wizard of Oz

A variety of materials including photographs, illustrations, text, colors, and textures for participants to choose and arrange in their collage.

Collage Materials

Clear and concise instructions for participants on how to create their collage and what the collage should represent (e.g. feelings, experiences, or expectations about a product, service or brand).

Participant Instructions

Completed collages created by participants to represent their feelings, experiences, or expectations.

Participant Collages

High-quality photographs or digital scans of each completed collage for documenting and analyzing the visual data.

Collage Photographs

Recorded discussions or interviews with participants about their process of selecting materials and arranging the collage, as well as their reflections on the final result.

Participant Feedback and Insights

An analysis, including thematic and visual patterns, of the completed collages, taking into account the participant's feedback and insights.

Collage Analysis

A comprehensive report outlining the process, outcomes, findings, and insights of the collage method, along with recommendations for future UX improvements.

Collage Method Report

A visual presentation summarizing the findings and insights from the collage method, intended for stakeholders and team members.

Collage Method Presentation

Collage is a UX research method that involves participants creating visual artifacts to express their attitudes, thoughts, feelings, and desires, helping to understand user values and emotions.

This collage showcases users' ideal vacation experiences by combining images and text snippets. Users selected various photographs of relaxing beach scenes, thrilling adventures like hiking and skydiving, and bustling cityscapes with cultural attractions. They also included phrases like 'stress-free,' 'quality time with friends,' and 'exploring diverse cuisines.' This collage helps UX researchers gain insights into users' preferred travel experiences, thus enabling designers to tailor their product or service accordingly.

Travel Experience Collage

The Smart Home Collage represents the users' visions of the ideal smart home experience. Images of various smart devices, such as thermostats, security cameras, and voice assistants, are included alongside drawings and writings with keywords like 'efficiency,' 'user-friendly,' and 'integrated ecosystem.' This collage helps UX researchers understand the user's expectations, fears, and hopes for a smart home system, which can guide the design process for improved usability and user satisfaction.

Smart Home Collage

This collage illustrates diverse health and fitness goals, as expressed by users through a combination of images and texts. The collage includes pictures of people exercising, healthy meals, fitness trackers, and motivational quotes, alongside personal statements such as 'lose 10 pounds,' 'run a marathon,' and 'increase flexibility.' Analyzing this collage enables UX researchers to better understand the motivations, challenges, and goals that drive users to adopt specific health and fitness apps, products, or services.

Health and Fitness Goals Collage

Start by identifying the goals and objectives of the collage exercise. Be specific about what insights you would like to learn from your participants, such as emotions, preferences, attitudes, or mental models associated with the topic.

Define Objectives

Identify and recruit target participants who represent your user segment or audience. Aim for a diverse set of participants with a range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives on the topic of interest.

Select Participants

Prepare a wide variety of visual materials for the collage, including images, words, and symbols from magazines, websites, and other sources. Ensure you have enough variety to cover different themes, and elements that can evoke different emotions and associations.

Gather Materials

Arrange a comfortable workspace with sufficient space, light, and seating for participants. Provide scissors, glue, tape, pens, markers, and other craft supplies. Organize the collage materials into an easy-to-navigate layout for participants to easily explore and select from.

Setup Workspace

Introduce the activity to the participants, explaining the objectives, and any specific instructions or prompts. Encourage them to explore their thoughts, feelings, and emotions associated with the topic as they create their collage. Give participants enough time, usually 45-90 minutes, to thoughtfully create their collages.

Facilitate Collage Creation

As participants finish their collages, document each finished collage by taking photographs or notes. Ensure to collect details of the images used, and the layout or sequence of their arrangement, as this reflects the participant's thought process and associations.

Document Collages

Guide a group discussion or one-on-one interviews with participants about their collages. Encourage them to share the meaning, emotions, and thought processes behind their choices, and how the images they chose relate to the topic. Capture these insights through audio or video recordings, and notes.

Conduct Discussion

Analyze the collected data by identifying patterns, themes, and connections among participants' collages and their explanations. Look for commonalities and differences in their visual representations, emotions, and thought processes to uncover insights about users' experiences, needs, and expectations.

Analyze Results

Summarize the findings in a clear, concise manner, illustrating the key insights and patterns identified through the collage activity. Use visuals, quotations, and descriptions to help convey the participant experiences and perspectives. Present your findings to stakeholders, and consider how to incorporate these insights into your UX design or strategy.

Report Findings

Writing materials, scissors, glue, magazines, camera, printer, and other materials

Equipment

This is the 21st in a series of 100 short articles about UX design and evaluation methods. Today, I will discuss the use of collages for assessing emotional aspects of products and services and generating ideas and requirements. 

Method 21 of 100: Collages

Creating collages allows participants to visually express thoughts, desires,
        emotions, and other aspects of life that may be difficult to via other traditional means.

Collage | 100 Days of UX

Discover UX methods for your next design sprint, agile software development process or digital product life cycle.

Collage

The collaging method helps participants drive the discussion through imagery, oftentimes in an unexpected direction.

How (and Why) To Try the Collaging Method

Design Kit is IDEO.org's platform to learn human-centered design, a creative approach to solving the world's most difficult problems.

Design Kit

A comprehensive list of all identified stakeholders, including their names, roles, and departments or organizations they are associated with.

Stakeholder List

A detailed description of each stakeholder, including their goals, needs, pain points, and any potential influence on the project or product.

Stakeholder Profiles

A visual representation of stakeholders and their relationships with each other, often in the form of a network diagram, that helps to identify key stakeholders and potential allies or opponents.

A framework used to prioritize stakeholders based on their power, interest, and influence in the project or product, which helps the team focus on the most important stakeholders.

Stakeholder Prioritization Matrix

A documented plan that outlines the approach, methods, and frequency of communication with stakeholders, as well as how their input will be incorporated into the project or product.

Stakeholder Engagement Plan

A clear strategy for communicating with stakeholders, taking into account their preferred channels, formats, and language, in order to keep them informed and maintain their trust and support throughout the project.

Stakeholder Communication Strategy

A compiled summary of feedback, insights, and concerns gathered from stakeholders during various phases of the project or product that can be used to inform design decisions and address potential issues.

Stakeholder Feedback Summary

An analysis of stakeholder needs and requirements derived from their input, highlighting any potential conflicts or gaps that need to be addressed in the project or product.

Stakeholder Requirements Analysis

A visual representation of different groups and their relationships relevant to a design challenge, helping to identify key stakeholders and understand their needs and problems.

This stakeholder map identifies all the key players involved in the success and influence of a community outreach platform project. The map could divide stakeholders into categories such as Internal, External, and Users, displaying the relationship between different stakeholder groups to better understand their involvement and impact on the platform.

Internal stakeholders may include the executive team, product management, community managers, and customer support, whereas external stakeholders might involve community partners, sponsors, and tech providers. Users could comprise community members, local leaders, and non-profit organizations.

Community Outreach Platform Stakeholder Map

This stakeholder map helps to discover and visualize the relationships and expectations of the various groups involved in the development and operation of an e-commerce website. The stakeholders can be categorized into Customers, Team members, E-commerce partners, and Upper management.

Customers may include different segments like first-time visitors, returning customers, and loyal members. Team members would involve project managers, developers, designers, and testers. E-commerce partners could be payment gateways, third-party delivery agencies, and vendors. Upper management consists of executives, investors, and board members.

E-commerce Website Stakeholder Map

This stakeholder map represents the connections and interests of different groups in the development and usage of a healthcare mobile app. Stakeholders can be separated into Healthcare providers, App users, App development team, and Regulatory bodies.

Healthcare providers might include doctors, nurses, and hospital administrators. App users can be patients, caregivers, and family members. The app development team consists of product managers, UX researchers, designers, and developers. Regulatory bodies represent organizations like the FDA, which regulate the privacy and security of the app.

Healthcare Mobile App Stakeholder Map

Begin by brainstorming and listing down all individuals, groups, or organizations that are directly or indirectly impacted by, or have a direct or indirect stake in the product or service you are analyzing. This can include users, customers, employees, partners, investors, competitors, regulators, and more.

Identify stakeholders

Once all the stakeholders have been identified, categorize them into different groups based on their common attributes or interests. This can be based on their involvement, level of influence, vested interest or internal hierarchy. Examples of categories can be primary and secondary stakeholders, or internal and external stakeholders.

Categorize stakeholders

For each stakeholder group, identify their interests, needs, expectations, and potential concerns related to the project. This will help in understanding the key factors to consider while addressing each stakeholder group.

Analyze stakeholders' interests and needs

Now that you have an understanding of the different stakeholder categories and their needs, assign priority levels to each group based on their influence and importance to the project's success. A common method to do this is by placing stakeholders on a power/interest matrix, which maps their influence against their interest in the project.

Prioritize stakeholders

Develop appropriate engagement and communication strategies for each stakeholder group, tailored to their needs and priorities. This can include regular updates, meetings, workshops, or involving them in the decision-making process. Make sure to address the concerns of high priority stakeholders effectively to ensure their support.

Determine engagement strategies

Visually represent the categorized and prioritized stakeholders within a stakeholder map, which can be a diagram, chart or matrix. This will serve as a helpful reference for the team to understand the relationship between stakeholders and their strategic importance to the project.

Create a stakeholder map

Stakeholder mapping is an ongoing process that should be regularly reviewed and updated throughout the project lifecycle. Ensure that any changes in stakeholder interests, influence or new stakeholders are accounted for, and update the map and engagement strategies accordingly.

Monster Catalog of
UX Research Methods

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Extensive Variety of Methods

Ready-made Solutions for Various Problems

User-Friendly Interface

Get a Taste of Our UX Research Methods

Service Journey

Wizard of Oz

Collage

Stakeholder Mapping

Support the project

Monster Catalog ofUX Research Methods

Explore the Ultimate Resource for UX Research

Extensive Variety of Methods

Ready-made Solutions for Various Problems

User-Friendly Interface

Get a Taste of Our UX Research Methods

Service Journey

Wizard of Oz

Collage

Stakeholder Mapping

Support the project

Monster Catalog of
UX Research Methods