How to visualize the user's end-to-end experience, including touchpoints, emotions, pain points, and opportunities for improvement. The second part is Mental models - a way to get insights into the internal representations and understanding that users have about how your system or product works.

1. UserJourneyand
ExperienceMaps
howtovisualizetheuser'send-to-endexperience,
includingtouchpoints,emotions,painpoints,and
opportunitiesforimprovement
Week10
ElroyChibex

2. User Journey & Experience Map
What are experience maps
What are user journey maps
Specific users, scenarios, and goal
Defining user stage
Mapping the custome
Mapping the busines
Mapping the competitio
Current vs futur
Hypothesis vs researc
Low-fidelity vs high-fidelity
Mental models in UX Researc
What is a mental model
User mental models are uniqu
What’s included in a mental mode
Mental models are flexibl
Mixed-up mental model
Mental models have inerti
Make your product confor
Improve users’ mental model
Represent mental models in personas

3. Mapping as a concept
We use maps to display what users go through to achieve their goals from their perspectives
Well-designed maps visualize business interests and contain competitor evaluations.
UX practitioners can use this to evaluate the current state of user experience or plan a desired one.
The downside of mapping is its cost. User journey maps or experience maps require resources for
conducting user research and comprehensive analysis. The results, however, can provide fascinating
insights about your users that you can use to improve your product service and boost profits.

4. What are experience maps?
An experience map is a visualization of the end-to-end user experience that an average user
goes through to accomplish a goal.
It allows for understanding users' overall experience before you start designing your product to
meet their needs.
In other words, experience maps demonstrate how people achieve their goals without using
your or your competitors’ products. This helps designers identify problems and pain points at
the very early stages.
Use experience maps to determine whether a problem exists and whether users need your
solution in the first place.

5. What are experience maps? cont.
Example: What would a user do when they want to order food? How do people buy cloth in
offline stores
Experience maps have phases, actions, thoughts, and mindsets/emotions
Phases: Phases define major goals that users want to achieve on their journey
Actions: Actions refer to actual steps people take to achieve their goals
Thoughts, mindsets, emotions: The map should reflect what emotions and thoughts arise
while users go through an experience.
In the end, scan each phase of the user experience map and identify any possible areas of
friction or room for improvement.

6. Whatareuserjourneymaps?
Acustomeroruserjourneymapvisualizesanaverageuser'sprocessofaccomplishingagoal
usingaspecificproduct,organization,service,orbrand.
Ajourneymap,however,isaboutspecificactorsinspecificscenarios,highlightingpainpoints.
Forexample,ajourneymapforanonlineshoppingappwoulddemonstratewhatstepsusers
taketobuyanecessaryitemonlineonagivenappandidentifyproblemslike:doubtsabout
productquality,trustissues,deliverytime,complexnavigationofawebsite,orblurryimages.
Customerjourneymapshelpallstakeholdersunderstandhowusersaretreatedateach
channel—forexample,whileplacinganorderthroughawebsite,amobileapp,oraphonecall.
Theycanbeusedatanypointinthedesignprocessandcanpinpointspecifictouchpointsthat
causepainordelightinexistingproductsoronesinthedesignstage.
Journeymapsfocusonwhoexperiencesthejourney,whatgoaltheyhave,whatstepsthey
taketoaccomplishthesegoals,andwhatexpectations,emotions,andthoughtsthey
experiencealongtheway.

7. Specific users, scenarios, and goals
There are 3 critical elements of a journey map
Actor: This is the persona/user who experiences the journey
Scenario and expectations: A scenario describes the situation that occurs when an actor takes
certain actions to achieve their goal and has certain thoughts and expectations about it. The
scenario can be real (for existing products or services) or anticipated (for products or services at
the design stage)
Journey phases: Journey phases are the different high-level stages in the user journey. A scenario
of ordering a takeaway from a restaurant could include phases of: awareness, consideration,
conversation, customer service, and loyalty.

8. Defining user stages
The definition of phases is the first step for both experience and journey maps. Formulate phases
depending on a specific scenario. For example, for an e-commerce scenario (like buying AirPods),
the stages can be: discover, try, buy, use, and seek support.
Phases should demonstrate the entire experience or scenario, so you can easily identify where
users drop off and what keeps them from going all the way to the end. Keep in mind that phases
are not actions that users take to achieve a certain goal.
Most maps should be based on real user data so the first step before this should be conducting
user research.

9. Mappingthecustomer
Oncethephasesaredefined,starttrackinguserorpersonaactionsandmappingthe
thoughtsandfeelingsthatemergealongtheway.
Prioritizethemostfrequentlyidentifiedbehaviorsandfeelingsorthemostrelevantonestoa
goal
Actions:Actionsdescribeactualstepsandbehaviorstakenbyuserstoachieveaspecific
goalduringeachphase
Mindsets:Mindsetsincludealluserthoughts,motivations,andneedsduringthejourney.
Emotionssignaltouswhetherusersarehappyorfrustratedwhileachievingtheirgoals.

10. Mapping the business
It's essential to involve stakeholders in the creation of experience/journey maps. Once each phase is
filled with data, you and your teammates can evaluate the map, identify any points of friction, and offer
opportunities. Opportunities stand for insights into what can be improved in the journey.
When working on a journey map, you can see the points where users get confused, upset, or frustrated
when navigating your product or service. For example, you can identify when users decide to back off
and not subscribe to your offer.

11. Mappingthecompetition
Itisalsogoodtomapwhatcompetitorsdoateachstageoftheuser/personajourney.
Thismayrequirepriorresearchonwhatcompetitorsoffertotheirusers.
Youcanusethemap'sphasesandusergoalstodefinecomparisoncriteriabeforeyou
start.Youcanalwaysaddmorecriteriaifnecessary.
Whatarethebenefitsofevaluatingyourcompetitors
Preventfailuresandlearnhowtoavoidthe
Discoverhowcompetitorssolvesimilarusabilityissue
Discovercompetitors'strengthsandweaknesse
Learnabouttrendsandinnovationsinyourproductfield
Themosteffectivewaystoevaluateyourcompetitorsinclude
Usingcompetitors'productsandevaluatingallthecustomertouchpointsand
channels—themediumofinteractionbetweenacustomerandanorganizatio
Readreviewsaboutcompetitors'productsonsocialmedia,mobileappstores,
marketplaces,orsimilarresources.

12. Current vs future
Hypothesis vs research
Low-fidelity vs high-fidelity
A journey map can also be used to make a projection of what you want the future experience to look
like. Then create another one with the current state of things and then compare.
Current mappings show the actual state of user experience. They help identify and document existing
problems and pain points.
Future mappings represent the desired state of user experience. They help set goals for creating a
product or service that will be tailored to user needs
But avoid using future maps as a reference for finalized design decisions.
Hypothesis maps are based on the team's expectations and assumptions about how things are. This
approach allows compiling the perspectives of all team members, formulating a research plan, and
creating a user research-based map
Research maps are based on the research data gained for building the map. While this method is
time-consuming and costly, it yields the most intriguing and useful insights into user behavior,
needs, pain points, and preferences
The fidelity level of your map depends on what design process stage you are in right now, your
budget, and time resources
Like low-fidelity prototypes, low-fidelity maps are better for the initial stages.are perfect
for brainstorming, revising, and updating. They're created with materials at hand (for example,
sticky notes and a whiteboard) and are easier to change and move around
High-fidelity maps are more polished and represent a final version. They're less flexible for
updates and are usually created digitally as a UX artifact that can be easily shared with
stakeholders.

13. MentalModelsin
UXResearch
howtogetinsightsintotheinternalrepresentations
andunderstandingthatusershaveabouthowyour
systemorproductworks.

14. Whatisamentalmodel
Understandingthementalmodelsyouruserslikelyhaveaboutyourproductcanbe
keytocreatinganinterfacethat’sintuitiveanddelightfultousefromtheirveryfirst
interaction.
Mentalmodelsareallaboutauser’sbeliefsratherthanfacts.They’rebasedonwhat
usersknow(orthinktheyknow)ratherthanactualfactsaboutthewayasystemor
productworks.
Mentalmodelsinfluencethewayusersinteractwithyourproduct.Theytakeaction
basedonthewaytheythinkthesystemwillwork,oftenbasedonpastexperience
withsimilarsystems.

15. Usermentalmodelsareunique
Everyuserhasaslightlydifferentmentalmodelbasedontheirpastexperiences.Thisis
trueevenwhenusingthesameproducts;eachuserwillbuildaslightlydifferentmental
modelofthewayitworks.
Becausedesignersaresointimatelyinvolvedinthecreationoftheirproducts,their
mentalmodelstendtobeverycompleteandaccurate.
It’suptodesignerstobridgethatknowledgegaptohelpuserscreatemoreaccurate
mentalmodels.

16. What’s included in a mental model?
Usersbuildmentalmodelsbasedontheirpastexperiences.Forexample,iftheyarriveonyoure-
commercesiteforthefirsttime,theylikelyhaveanideaofhowtheythinkthesiteshouldwork.
Theirmentalmodelsincludethingslikehowtoaddaproducttotheirshoppingcart,howtoenter
theirshippinginformation,andhowtopayfortheirpurchase
Onewaytoimproveusermentalmodelsistoexplainthingswithinyourinterfacesothattheyhave
abetterunderstandingofhowitworks.Evensomethingassimpleaslabelingyourinterface
elementstomakethemmoretransparentcanhaveaprofoundeffectonauser’smentalmodel

17. Mixed-up mental models
User mental models, because they’re based on beliefs rather than facts, are not always accurate.
Case in point: many users will type a website address in a search field rather than in the address
bar of their browser. Their mental model of how to most efficiently get to a new website is mixed up.
Understanding the most common mixed-up mental models can help designers prevent usability
issues before they happen — either by changing the system to better fit the mixed-up mental model
or by including a better explanation of how the system actually works

18. Inertia for mental models
Mental models have inertia — things that users already know tend to stick in their mind, even when
those models aren’t helpful in the current situation. This can cause problems for designers who aim
to create a new way for users to interact with their product.
When you do something new, you have to overcome the inertia of users' existing mental models.
Because of this, it’s best to only create something new when it’s superior to the old way of doing
things.
One of the easiest ways to prevent usability issues is by making your product conform to
users’ existing mental models, assuming those models are similar.
For example, most users assume that the close function on a modal window will appear in the
upper right-hand corner of the modal. If you place the close function elsewhere, it’s more likely
to confuse (and frustrate) users.
Unless you have an excellent reason for straying from the likely mental models of your users,
conforming to those models makes your product more intuitive for them to use.
Capitalize on existing mental models to make your product more intuitive for first-time users.

19. Lastly...
If you’re creating a new product with new interaction methods, it can be difficult to overcome users’
existing mental models.
The most important aspect of overcoming an existing model is to educate users.
Mental models are key when creating things like documentation, user manuals, or onboarding
flows.
By showing users where your product differs from their existing mental models, you’ll shorten the
learning curve for them and prevent frustration
When creating user personas, also make sure to include the existing mental models of that user (or
group of users)

20. Thankyouforlistening