{
    "version" : "https://jsonfeed.org/version/1",
    "content" : "news",
    "type" : "single",
    "title" : "Build Sites to Address the Entire User Journey |Digital.gov",
    "description": "Build Sites to Address the Entire User Journey",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2020/06/16/build-sites-address-entire-user-journey/index.json","item" : [
    {"kicker" : "This Week's IDEA","title" :"Build Sites to Address the Entire User Journey","deck" : "Making Remote Work Work for Journey Mapping","summary" : "This week, we’re exploring what it means to understand the user experience, and we’re taking a look at ways to use journey mapping to find opportunities for improving products and services.","date" : "2020-06-16T15:00:00-05:00","date_modified" : "2025-01-27T19:42:55-05:00","authors" : {"ben-peterson" : "Ben Peterson","julie-strothman" : "Julie Strothman","mark-trammell" : "Mark Trammell","matt-dobson" : "Matt Dobson"},"topics" : {
        
            "customer-experience" : "Customer experience",
            "design" : "Design",
            "digital-service-delivery" : "Digital service delivery",
            "user-experience" : "User experience"
            },"primary_image" : { "uid" : "this-weeks-idea-card", "alt" :
  "the words, "This Week's IDEA" with a line drawing of a lightbulb in white, on dark blue background", "width" :
  "1073", "height" :
  "600", "credit" :
  "", "caption" :
  "", "format" :
  "png" },"branch" : "bc-archive-content-3",
      "filename" :"2020-06-16-build-sites-to-address-the-entire-user-journey.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2020/06/2020-06-16-build-sites-to-address-the-entire-user-journey.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2020/06/2020-06-16-build-sites-to-address-the-entire-user-journey.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2020/06/2020-06-16-build-sites-to-address-the-entire-user-journey.md","slug" : "build-sites-address-entire-user-journey","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2020/06/16/build-sites-address-entire-user-journey/","content" :"\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"quote-block \"\u003e\n    \u003cblockquote\u003e\n      \u003cspan class=\"quote-block__quotation-mark\"\u003e“\u003c/span\u003e\n      I wisely started with a map.\n      \u003cspan class=\"quote-block__quotation-mark\"\u003e”\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccite\u003e— J.R.R. Tolkien\u003c/cite\u003e\u003c/blockquote\u003e\n  \u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWelcome to \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/topics/this-weeks-idea/\"\u003eThis Week’s IDEA\u003c/a\u003e, where we talk about one essential topic around \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/resources/21st-century-integrated-digital-experience-act/\"\u003e21st Century IDEA\u003c/a\u003e and share resources and tools that you can use to start making small, incremental changes to your websites and digital services.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne of the design principles of the \u003ca href=\"https://designsystem.digital.gov/\"\u003eU.S. Web Design System\u003c/a\u003e (USWDS) is promoting \u003ca href=\"https://designsystem.digital.gov/design-principles/#promote-continuity\"\u003econtinuity\u003c/a\u003e, or minimizing disruption, for your customers over time and across platforms, agencies, and devices.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAgencies, websites, and services all have different audiences, goals and missions, so we may implement solutions differently. One way to mitigate these challenges is to design sites with the USWDS in mind, and build sites with user-centered solutions to address the entire user journey, not just a specific task. One way you can do this is through \u003ca href=\"https://methods.18f.gov/decide/journey-mapping/\"\u003ejourney mapping\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBelow, we cover how journey maps provide value to your project and how you can use them even when the people you need to work with are geographically distributed.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"what-are-journey-maps\"\u003eWhat are journey maps?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJourney maps are artifacts that display how one person goes through a process, which could be as common and everyday as making a cup of coffee, or important and infrequent as applying for a passport. They range from as few as two steps on a path, to as many are needed to adequately make the journey understandable. Each mapped step of a journey can describe goals, interactions, materials required, and even thoughts or emotional states.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"why-use-a-journey-map\"\u003eWhy use a journey map?\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt\u0026rsquo;s rare for an agency to have control over how a customer experiences a service from start to finish. Creating journey maps can help you see how your customer experiences the full service - before and after they interact with your piece of the puzzle. The process and resulting map can reinforce empathy skills, like walking in someone else’s shoes, that helps you understand the customer mindset as they enter and exit each step.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJourney mapping as a process can help your team think strategically about work, prioritize, and gain alignment on shared goals. Journey maps help ask “Why?” in a focused way, e.g.:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy are we doing ____?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy are we not doing ____?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy are we doing ____ the way we’re doing it?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"how-to-journey-map\"\u003eHow to journey map\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe major steps of journey mapping are:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAlign on the purpose of your journey mapping\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSelect a process to map\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIdentify phases and steps of the process (it’s critical to get customers’ or users’ perspective here)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSelect and visualize the attributes of each step\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnalyze the map to find patterns or opportunities for improvement\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"when-you-have-a-distributed-team\"\u003eWhen you have a distributed team\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen your team is distributed or cannot be together in person, you can condense this process by structuring your meeting in three steps:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAlign on the journey mapping purpose and determine what to map\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBreak the process down and visualize it\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnalyze the map to find patterns or opportunities for improvement\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"before-you-collaborate-remotely\"\u003eBefore you collaborate remotely\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor a seasoned facilitator and experienced researcher adjusting to remote synchronous collaboration may be the most challenging part. Gauge the participants’ familiarity with synchronous remote collaboration and with activities like journey mapping in order to decide how to orchestrate the session.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"what-helpers-do-you-need\"\u003eWhat helpers do you need?\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn advance, ask someone to be the moderator. While you guide the discussion and share your screen with the group, the moderator can keep an eye on the chat, assist anyone having a technical issue, and call your attention to someone who has something to say. Will you be making notes on your shared screen while you facilitate, or would you like a scribe to do the typing/drawing?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"select-the-tools-youll-use\"\u003eSelect the tools you’ll use\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTools can range from pen and paper to spreadsheets to concept-mapping software or slide deck tools. The tools you use should prioritize collaboration over complexity. A high-fidelity version of the journey map will come later. When selecting the right tool consider:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhich tool are you most confident using?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDo you want everyone to easily work together in the document?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIs the team learning new tools or the journey mapping process on their own without a facilitator?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"tech-check-test-your-tools\"\u003eTech check: test your tools\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTest out your setup with the moderator. Tell participants in advance what tools you’ll be using and make sure that everyone will be able to participate equally. You might suggest they have pen and paper handy so you can ask them to write thoughts down during the session. If this type of collaboration is very new for team members, schedule a 30-minute drop-in session for people to try out whatever you will be using.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"set-the-ground-rules\"\u003eSet the ground rules\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the beginning of each session, tell people how and when they can contribute, e.g.:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e“Stay muted and unmute yourself to speak any time” -or- “Type ‘Comment’ in the chat and the moderator will call on people”\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e“Go ahead and write in the shared document as we go” -or- “The scribe and I will be taking notes on-screen as we go. If we don’t capture your intent, please let us know!”\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"step-1-align-on-journey-mapping-purpose-and-determine-what-to-map\"\u003eStep 1: Align on journey mapping purpose and determine what to map\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"introduce-mapping-and-prep-for-collaboration\"\u003eIntroduce mapping and prep for collaboration\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProvide a simple example to introduce your participants to the concept and structure of a journey map. For example, describing the \u003ca href=\"https://digitalgov.s3.amazonaws.com/journey-map-getting-ice-cream.xlsx\"\u003eprocess of going out for ice cream\u003c/a\u003e (Excel spreadsheet, 5 KB, 1 sheet).\u003cbr\u003e\na. Consider where the journey begins and ends. Break down the journey into phases and steps, being as high level as possible and include only the detail necessary for the journey to be understood.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAsk everyone to send you a list (could be in a shared document) of the expected steps in the process\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet up the journey map document. For this example, we’ll use the spreadsheet above.\u003cbr\u003e\na. In the first column, label the rows: Phase, Steps, Pitfalls, Thoughts, Feelings, Channel\u003cbr\u003e\nb. In the steps row, enter the steps, left-to-right. When there are duplicates of a step, just pick one.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n        src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/journey-map-ice-cream.png\"alt=\"A simple spreadsheet version of a journey map for easy remote collaboration \"/\u003e\u003cp\u003eA simple spreadsheet version of a journey map for easy remote collaboration\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003ch2 id=\"step-2-break-the-process-down-and-visualize-it\"\u003eStep 2: Break the process down and visualize it\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"review-the-steps-in-the-process\"\u003eReview the steps in the process\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAsk your team to group these steps into phases of the process and name each phase. (Enter these in the phase row)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat are some pitfalls that can happen during the process? Enter them below the step where they can occur.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFor each phase, what might people be thinking?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFor each phase, what feelings might they have?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"step-3-analyze-the-map-to-determine-next-steps\"\u003eStep 3: Analyze the map to determine next steps\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIdentify pain points and opportunities for improvement\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReview the map focusing on how things interact, noting the unexpected, points of friction and steps that might be streamlined\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDetermine priority areas to address\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNext steps could be, sharing this map with others, to make sure you’ve accurately reflected the journey, or creating buy-in for changes to roles and processes, or adding a “How might we?” brainstorm to think about ways to improve the journey.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTo maximize the usefulness of your map, make it a living document that is updated as process changes or with additional rows of information that could be metrics you could measure improvement by, like how much time or money is spent at each step (or in between steps) or customer satisfaction. You could also show the current state and a reimagined future state map to get buy in for making the experience better.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"additional-resources\"\u003eAdditional Resources\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://methods.18f.gov/decide/journey-mapping/\"\u003eJourney Mapping\u003c/a\u003e from 18F’s methods cards collection\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://coe.gsa.gov/2019/04/17/cx-update-9.html\"\u003e3-part series on journey mapping\u003c/a\u003e from GSA’s Customer Experience Center of Excellence\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"up-next\"\u003eUp Next\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAttend \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/event/2020/06/24/dap-learning-series-shifting-your-metrics/\"\u003eShifting Your Metrics Mindset\u003c/a\u003e on June 24. Learn how to orient your analytics strategy around success metrics. This webinar is part of the Digital Analytics Program’s learning series.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe \u003ca href=\"https://lab.opm.gov/\"\u003eLab at OPM\u003c/a\u003e offers classes in human-centered design. Check out their 2020 classes, including the monthly workshop on the \u003ca href=\"https://leadership.opm.gov/programs.aspx?course=234\"\u003eFundamentals of Human-Centered Design\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAttend “Making Remote Work Work for Journey Mapping” on July 9. This webinar will be conducted by members of the 18F Research Guild.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"from-the-field\"\u003eFrom the Field\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeet Charlotte. She is a resident of Northern California who survived the devastating Camp Fire, which burned nearly 154,000 acres. Her house was destroyed and her family farm severely damaged. To Charlotte, this is a tragic life event that is upending her existence. To the federal government, it triggers possible eligibility for programs spread across dozens of agencies: Imagine each of the U.S. government’s services as part of a broader customer journey. How might federal agencies change their approach or even work together? How might citizens think differently about those services and their overall experience with government? —\u003ca href=\"https://www.performance.gov/mapping-cx-journey/\"\u003evia Performance.gov\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDo you have a 21st Century IDEA-related comment or question? Or would you like to give a shout out to your colleagues? Send it to us at \u003ca href=\"mailto:digitalgov@gsa.gov\"\u003edigitalgov@gsa.gov\u003c/a\u003e, and we’ll work to incorporate it into the next newsletter.\u003c/p\u003e\n"}
  ]
}