The customer journey map that reveals gaps between teams
Customer journey mapping records what a customer is trying to do, the questions they need answered and the interactions that help or hinder the decision. Its practical value is finding gaps between marketing, sales and delivery. Start with a specific service and a recognisable buying situation, then distinguish observed behaviour from the team’s assumptions.
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Discuss an ongoing marketing partnershipChoose one journey before drawing the map
An organisation-wide map can become too broad to guide a useful change. Begin with one service, one customer situation and a clear start and end. For example, map the path from recognising a recurring operational problem to commissioning an initial review. Renewal or expansion can be a separate journey if it involves different questions and people.
Identify the roles involved. The person researching options may not approve the purchase, and the person using the service may join the conversation later. Record those differences without assuming every buyer follows the same sequence. The map is a working account of decisions and handovers, not a timetable customers are required to obey.
Use evidence already available: enquiry wording, recurring sales questions, feedback, permitted interview notes and delivery handover issues. Where the team is guessing, label the entry as an assumption. That gives research a clear job and prevents a plausible workshop story from becoming an unquestioned fact.
Map the questions before choosing the content
| Customer task | Question to resolve | Useful interaction | Possible handover gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recognise a problem | Is this issue significant enough to investigate? | A clear explanation of symptoms and boundaries | Content implies a diagnosis the service cannot provide remotely |
| Explore options | Which kind of support fits the situation? | Comparison of service approaches and initial scope | Sales receives an enquiry with no service context |
| Evaluate a supplier | Can this team handle our requirements? | Relevant evidence, process and responsibility details | Important evaluation questions remain in one person’s inbox |
| Gain internal approval | What are we authorising and who is accountable? | A concise scope and decision summary | Marketing promises differ from the proposed engagement |
| Begin the work | What happens next and what must we provide? | Named contact, onboarding instructions and agreed next steps | Delivery repeats questions the customer already answered |
This invented map shows possible issues, not findings about a real organisation. The strongest improvement is usually the one supported by actual customer or team evidence. A map should make it easier to identify that evidence, not give every possible problem equal weight.
Inspect what moves between systems and people
For each transition, identify the information that must travel with the customer. An enquiry form might need the selected service and a short description of the need. A sales handover may require agreed scope, unresolved questions and any commitment already made. Delivery needs the approved engagement details rather than a general marketing label.
Record where that information lives and who checks it. A map can reveal that the website, CRM and project system use different names for the same service. It can also expose a gap that software alone will not solve, such as nobody being responsible for reviewing an enquiry or closing a feedback loop.
Avoid adding fields merely because the map makes them available. Collect the information needed for the next task and explain its purpose where appropriate. Detailed information that the team cannot use responsibly creates work rather than improving the customer experience. Keep sensitive or confidential material within the organisation’s approved handling process.
Turn the map into a short improvement queue
Choose a small number of gaps to address and define the change required. An action might be to clarify the service scope, carry a form selection into the CRM or create a consistent onboarding message. Give each action an owner and a way to check whether it has been implemented and is useful.
Test the revised journey with a realistic scenario. Can a customer understand what to do without being coached? Can the receiving team see the context needed to act? Does a changed status stop an unnecessary reminder? The map becomes operational when these checks can be performed on the actual process.
Revisit it when the service, audience or delivery method changes. Keep a dated working version internally and record what evidence changed the team’s view. A journey map does not need to become a large permanent presentation; it needs to support decisions and clear responsibilities.
For one common transition, our guide to B2B lead nurturing and sales handover explores follow-up ownership and stopping rules in more detail.
