journey composition service

The stages may not be the same for you — in fact, your brand will likely come up with a set of unique stages of the customer journey. But where do you start? Let's take a look.

Generally, there are 5 phases that customers go through when interacting with a brand or a product: Awareness, Consideration, Decision, Retention, and Loyalty.

1. Awareness Stage

In the awareness stage, customers realize they have a problem. At this point, they may not know that they need a product or service, but they will begin doing research either way.

During this stage of the customer journey, brands should deliver educational content to help customers diagnose a problem and offer potential solutions. Your aim should be to help customers alleviate their pain point, not encourage a purchase.

Some educational content that I've created in the past are:

• How-to articles and guides
• General whitepapers
• General ebooks
• Free courses

Educational content may also be delivered via customer touchpoints such as:

• Social media
• Search engines

2. Consideration

In the consideration stage, customers have done enough research to realize that they need a product or service. At this point, they begin to compare brands and offerings.

During this stage, brands should deliver product marketing content to help customers compare different offerings and, eventually, choose their product or service. The aim is to help customers navigate a crowded marketplace and move them toward a purchase decision.

Product marketing content may include:

• Product listicles
• Product comparison guides and charts
• Product-focused white papers
• Customer success stories or case studies

Product marketing content may be delivered via customer touchpoints such as:

• Your website
• Conferences

3. Decision Stage

In the decision stage, customers have chosen a solution and are ready to buy.

During this stage, your brand should deliver a seamless purchase process to make buying products as easy as possible. I wouldn't recommend any more educational or product content at this stage — it's all about getting customers to make a purchase. That means you can be more direct about wanting customers to buy from you.

Decision-stage content may include:

• Free consultations
• Product sign-up pages
• Pricing pages
• Product promotions (i.e "Sign up now and save 30%")

Decision-stage content may be delivered via customer touchpoints such as:

4. Retention Stage

In the retention stage, customers have now purchased a solution and stay with the company they purchased from, as opposed to leaving for another provider.

During this stage, brands provide an excellent onboarding experience and ongoing customer service to ensure that customers don't churn.

Retention-stage strategies may include:

• Providing a dedicated customer success manager
• Making your customer service team easily accessible
• Creating a knowledge base in case customers ever run into a roadblock

Retention-stage strategies may be delivered via customer touchpoints such as:

5. Loyalty Stage

In the loyalty stage, customers not only choose to stay with a company — they actively promote it to family, friends, and colleagues. The loyalty stage can also be called the advocacy stage.

During this phase, brands should focus on providing a fantastic end-to-end customer experience. This should span from your website content to your sales reps all the way to your social media team and your product's UX.

Most importantly, customers become loyal when they've achieved success with your product — if it works, they're more likely to recommend your brand to others.

Loyalty-stage strategies may include:

• Having an easy-to-navigate website
• Investing in your product team to ensure your product exceeds customer expectations
• Making it easy to share your brand with others via a loyalty or referral program
• Providing perks to continued customers, such as discounts

Loyalty-stage strategies may be delivered via customer touchpoints such as:

• Your products

To find out whether your customers have reached the loyalty stage, try a Net Promoter Score survey , which asks one simple question: "On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend us to a friend?" To deliver this survey, you can use customer feedback software like Service Hub .

Now, let's get to the good stuff. Let's talk about creating your customer journey map.

What is the customer journey map?

A customer journey map is a visual representation of the customer's experience with a company. It also provides insight into the needs of potential customers at every stage of this journey and the factors that directly or indirectly motivate or inhibit their progress.

The business can then use this information to improve the customer's experience, increase conversions, and boost customer retention.

Now, the customer journey map is not to be confused with a UX journey map. But, for clarity, let's distinguish these two below.

What is UX journey mapping?

A UX journey map represents how a customer experiences their journey toward achieving a specific goal or completing a particular action.

For example, the term "UX journey mapping" can be used interchangeably with the term "customer journey mapping" if the goal being tracked is the user's journey toward purchasing a product or service.

However, UX journey mapping can also be used to map the journey (i.e., actions taken) towards other goals, such as using a specific product feature.

Why is customer journey mapping important?

While the customer journey might seem straightforward — the company offers a product or service, and customers buy it — for most businesses, it typically isn't.

In reality, it's a complex journey that begins when the customer becomes problem-aware (which might be long before they become product-aware) and then moves through an intricate process of further awareness, consideration, and decision-making.

The customer is also exposed to multiple external factors (competitor ads, reviews, etc.) and touchpoints with the company (conversations with sales reps, interacting with content, viewing product demos, etc.).

Keep in mind that 80% of customers consider their experience with a company to be as important as its products.

By mapping this journey, your marketing, sales, and service teams can understand, visualize, and gain insight into each stage of the process.

You can then decrease any friction along the way and make the journey as helpful and delightful as possible for your leads and customers.

Customer journey mapping is the process of creating a customer journey map — the visual representation of a company's customer experience. It compiles a customer's experience as they interact with a business and combines the information into a visual map.

The goal of this process is to draw insights that help you understand how your customers experience their journeys and identify the potential bottlenecks along the way.

It's also important to note that most customer journeys aren't linear. Instead, buyers often experience a back-and-forth, cyclical, multi-channel journey.

Let's look at the stages that you should include in any customer journey.

• The Buying Process
• User Actions
• User Research

1. The Buying Process

To determine your customers' buying process, you'll want to pull data from all relevant sources (prospecting tools, CMS, behavior analytics tools, etc.) to accurately chart your customer's path from first to last contact.

However, you can keep it simple by creating broad categories using the typical buying journey process stages — awareness, consideration, and decision — and mapping them horizontally.

2. Emotions

Whether the goal is big or small, remember your customers are solving a problem. That means they're probably feeling some emotion — whether that's relief, happiness, excitement, or worry.

Adding these emotions to the journey map will help you identify and mitigate negative emotions and the pain points that cause them.

On HubSpot's journey map , we use emojis to represent potential emotions at different stages of the customer journey. 

3. User Actions

This element details what a customer does in each stage of the buying process. For example, during the problem-awareness stage, customers might download ebooks or join educational webinars.

Essentially, you're exploring how your customers move through and behave at each stage of their journey.

4. User Research

Similar to the last section, this element describes what or where the buyer researches when they are taking action.

More than likely, the buyer will turn to search engines, like Google, to research solutions during the awareness stage. However, it's important to pay attention to what they're researching so you can best address their pain points.

5. Solutions

1. Use customer journey map templates.

Why make a customer journey map from scratch when you can use a template? Save yourself some time by downloading HubSpot's free customer journey map templates .

This has templates that map out a buyer's journey, a day in the life of your customer, lead nurturing, and more.

These templates can help sales, marketing, and customer support teams learn more about your company's buyer persona. Not only will this lead to improvements to your product, but also a better customer experience.

2. Set clear objectives for the map.

Before you dive into your customer journey map, you need to ask yourself why you're creating one in the first place.

What goals are you directing this map towards? Who is it for? What experience is it based upon?

If you don't have one, I would recommend creating a buyer persona . This is a fictitious customer with all the demographics and psychographics representing your average customer. This persona reminds you to direct every aspect of your customer journey map toward the right audience.

3. Profile your personas and define their goals.

Next, you should conduct research. This is where it helps to have customer journey analytics at the ready.

Don't have them? No worries. You can check out HubSpot's Customer Journey Analytics tool to get started. 

Some great ways to get valuable customer feedback are questionnaires and user testing. The important thing is to only reach out to actual customers or prospects.

You want feedback from people interested in purchasing your products and services and who have either interacted with your company or plan to do so.

Some examples of good questions to ask are:

• How did you hear about our company?
• What first attracted you to our website?
• What are the goals you want to achieve with our company? In other words, what problems are you trying to solve?
• How long have you/do you typically spend on our website?
• Have you ever made a purchase with us? If so, what was your deciding factor?
• Have you ever interacted with our website to make a purchase but decided not to? If so, what led you to this decision?
• On a scale of 1 to 10, how easily can you navigate our website?
• Did you ever require customer support? If so, how helpful was it, on a scale of 1 to 10?
• Can we further support you to make your process easier?

You can use this buyer persona tool to fill in the details you procure from customer feedback.

4. Highlight your target customer personas.

Once you've learned about the customer personas that interact with your business, I would recommend narrowing your focus to one or two.

Remember, a UX journey map tracks the experience of a customer taking a particular path with your company — so if you group too many personas into one journey, your map won't accurately reflect that experience.

When creating your first map, it's best to pick your most common customer persona and consider the route they would typically take when engaging with your business for the first time.

You can use a marketing dashboard to compare each and determine the best fit for your journey map. Don't worry about the ones you leave out, as you can always go back and create a new map specific to those customer types.

5. List out all touchpoints.

Begin by listing the touchpoints on your website.

Based on your research, you should have a list of all the touchpoints your customers are currently using and the ones you believe they should be using if there's no overlap.

This is essential in creating a UX journey map because it provides insight into your customers' actions.

For instance, if they use fewer touchpoints than expected, does this mean they're quickly getting turned away and leaving your site early? If they are using more than expected, does this mean your website is complicated and requires several steps to reach an end goal?

Whatever the case, understanding touchpoints help you understand the ease or difficulties of the customer journey.

Aside from your website, you also need to look at how your customers might find you online. These channels might include:

• Social channels
• Email marketing
• Third-party review sites or mentions

Run a quick Google search of your brand to see all the pages that mention you. Verify these by checking your Google Analytics to see where your traffic is coming from. Whittle your list down to those touchpoints that are the most common and will be most likely to see an action associated with it.

At HubSpot, we hosted workshops where employees from all over the company highlighted instances where our product, service, or brand, impacted a customer. Those moments were recorded and logged as touchpoints. This showed us multiple areas of our customer journey where our communication was inconsistent.

The proof is in the pudding -- you can see us literally mapping these touch points out with sticky notes in the image below.

HubSpot's free customer journey map template makes it easier than ever to visualize the buyer's journey. It saved me some time organizing and outlining my customer experience and it made it clear how a website could impact my user's lives. 

The customer journey map template can also help you discover areas of improvement in your product, marketing, and support processes.

Download a free, editable customer journey map template.

Types of Customer Journey Maps and Examples

There are four types of customer journey maps , each with unique benefits. Pick the one that makes the most sense for your company.

Current State

These customer journey maps are the most widely used type. They visualize the actions, thoughts, and emotions your customers currently experience while interacting with your company. They're best used for continually improving the customer journey.

Image Source

Day in the Life

These customer journey maps visualize the actions, thoughts, and emotions your customers currently experience in their daily activities, whether or not that includes your company.

This type gives a broader lens into your customers' lives and what their pain points are in real life.

Day-in-the-life maps are best used for addressing unmet customer needs before customers even know they exist. Your company may use this type of customer journey map when exploring new market development strategies .

Future State

These customer journey maps visualize what actions, thoughts, and emotions that your customers will experience in future interactions with your company. Based on their current interaction with your company, you'll have a clear picture of where your business fits in later down the road.

These maps are best for illustrating your vision and setting clear, strategic goals.

Service Blueprint

These customer journey maps begin with a simplified version of one of the above map styles. Then, they layer on the factors responsible for delivering that experience, including people, policies, technologies, and processes.

Service blueprints are best used to identify the root causes of current customer journeys or the steps needed to attain desired future customer journeys.

If you want a look at a real customer journey map that HubSpot has used recently, check out this interview we conducted with Sarah Flint, Director of System Operations at HubSpot. We asked her how her team put together their map (below) as well as what advice she would give to businesses starting from scratch. 

Customer Journey Mapping Best Practices

• Set a goal for the journey map.
• Survey customers to understand their buying journey.
• Ask customer service reps about the questions they receive most frequently.
• Consider UX journey mapping for each buyer persona.
• Review and update each journey map after every major product release.
• Make the customer journey map accessible to cross-functional teams.

1. Set a goal for the journey map.

Determine whether you aim to improve the buying experience or launch a new product. Knowing what the journey map needs to tell you can prevent scope creep on a large project like this.

2. Survey customers to understand their buying journey.

What you think you know about the customer experience and what they actually experience can be very different. Speak to your customers directly, so you have an accurate snapshot of the customer's journey.

3. Ask customer service reps about the questions they receive most frequently.

Sometimes, customers aren't aware of their specific pain points, and that's where your customer service reps come in.

They can help fill in the gaps and translate customer pain points into business terms you and your team can understand and act on.

4. Consider UX journey mapping for each buyer persona.

It's easy to assume each customer operates the same way, but that couldn't be further from the truth.

Demographics, psychographics, and even how long someone has been a customer can determine how a person interacts with your business and makes purchasing decisions.

Group overarching themes into buyer personas and create a UX journey map for each.

5. Review and update each journey map after every major product release.

Every time your product or service changes, the customer's buying process changes. Even slight tweaks, like adding an extra field to a form, can become a significant roadblock.

So, reviewing the customer journey map before and after implementing changes is essential.

6. Make the customer journey map accessible to cross-functional teams.

Customer journey maps aren't very valuable in a silo. However, creating a journey map is a convenient way for cross-functional teams to provide feedback.

Afterward, make a copy of the map accessible to each team, so they always keep the customer top of mind.

Breaking down the customer journey, phase by phase, aligning each step with a goal, and restructuring your touchpoints accordingly are essential steps for maximizing customer success .

Here are a few more benefits to gain from customer journey mapping.

1. You can refocus your company with an inbound perspective.

Rather than discovering customers through outbound marketing, you can have your customers find you with the help of inbound marketing.

Outbound marketing involves tactics targeted at generalized or uninterested audiences and seeks to interrupt the customers' daily lives. Outbound marketing is costly and inefficient. It annoys and deters customers and prospects.

Inbound marketing involves creating helpful content that customers are already looking for. You grab their attention first and focus on the sales later.

By mapping out the customer journey, you can understand what's interesting and helpful to your customers and what's turning them away.

2. You can create a new target customer base.

You need to understand the customer journey properly to understand your customers' demographics and psychographics.

It's a waste of time and money to repeatedly target too broad of an audience rather than people who are actually interested in your offering.

Researching the needs and pain points of your typical customers will give you a good picture of the kinds of people who are trying to achieve a goal with your company. Thus, you can hone your marketing to that specific audience.

3. You can implement proactive customer service.

A customer journey map is like a roadmap to the customer's experience.

It highlights moments where people experience delight and situations where they might face friction. Knowing this ahead of time allows you to plan your customer service strategy and intervene at ideal times.

Proactive customer service also makes your brand appear more reliable. For example, when I worked in customer support, we would anticipate a surge in tickets around the holidays. To be proactive, we'd send out a message to customers letting them know about our team's adjusted holiday hours. We would aalso tell them about additional support options if we were unavailable and what to do if an urgent problem needed immediate attention.

With expectations set, customers won't feel surprised if they're waiting on hold a little longer than usual. They'll even have alternative options to choose from — like a chatbot or knowledge base — if they need to find a faster solution.

4. You can improve your customer retention rate.

When you have a complete view of the customer journey, it's easier to pick out areas where you can improve it. When you do, customers experience fewer pain points, leading to fewer people leaving your brand for competitors.

After all, 33% of customers will consider switching brands after just one poor experience.

UX journey mapping can point out individuals on the path to churn. If you log the common behaviors of these customers, you can start to spot them before they leave your business.

While you might not save them all, it's worth the try. Increasing customer retention rates by just 5% can increase profits by 25%-95%.

5. You can create a customer-focused mentality throughout the company.

As your company grows, it can be tricky to coordinate all your departments to be as customer-focused as your customer service, support, and success teams are. That's because each department has varying goals, meaning they might not be prioritizing customer needs -- they might focusing on website traffic, leads, product signups, etc.

One way to overcome this data silo is to share a clear customer journey map with your entire organization. The great thing about these maps is that they map out every single step of the customer journey, from initial attraction to post-purchase support. And, yes, this concerns marketing, sales, and service. 

For more examples of customer journey maps, read on to the next section for a few templates you can use as a baseline for your company's map. 

Customer Journey Mapping Examples

To help guide your business in its direction, here are examples to draw inspiration from for building out your customer journey map.

1. HubSpot's Customer Journey Map Templates

HubSpot's free Customer Journey Map Templates provide an outline for companies to understand their customers' experiences.

The offer includes the following:

• Current State Template
• Lead Nurturing Mapping Template
• A Day in the Customer's Life Template
• Customer Churn Mapping Template
• Customer Support Blueprint Template

Each of these templates helps organizations gain new insights into their customer base and help make improvements to product, marketing, and customer support processes.

Download them today to start working on your customer journey map.

2. B2B Customer Journey Map Example

This customer journey map clearly outlines the five steps Dapper Apps believes customers go through when interacting with them.

As you can see, it goes beyond the actual purchasing phase by incorporating initial research and post-purchase needs.

This map is effective because it helps employees get into the customers' minds by understanding the typical questions they have and the emotions they're feeling.

There are incremental action steps that Dapper Apps can take in response to these questions and feelings that will help it solve all the current problems customers are having.

3. Ecommerce Customer Journey Map Example

This fictitious customer journey map is a clear example of a day-in-the-life map.

Rather than just focusing on the actions and emotions involved in the customer's interaction with the company, this map outlines all the actions and emotions the customer experiences on a typical day.

This map is helpful because it measures a customer's state of mind based on the level of freedom they get from certain stimuli.

This is helpful for a company that wants to understand what its target customers are stressed about and what problems may need solving.

4. Future B2C Customer Journey Map Example

This customer journey map, designed for Carnegie Mellon University, exemplifies the usefulness of a future state customer journey map. It outlines the thoughts, feelings, and actions the university wants its students to have.

Based on these goals, CMU chose specific proposed changes for each phase and even wrote out example scenarios for each phase.

This clear diagram can visualize the company vision and help any department understand where they will fit into building a better user experience.

5. Retail Customer Journey Map Example

This customer journey map shows an in-depth customer journey map of a customer interacting with a fictitious restaurant.

It's clear that this style of map is more comprehensive than the others. It includes the front-of-stage (direct) and back-of-stage (non-direct or invisible) interactions a customer has with the company, as well as the support processes.

This map lays out every action involved in the customer experience, including those of the customer, employees directly serving diners, and employees working behind the scenes.

By analyzing how each of these factors influences the customer journey, a company can find the root cause of mishaps and problem-solve this for the future.

To get your business from point A — deciding to focus on customer journeys — to point B — having a journey map — a critical step to the process is selecting which customer mindset your business will focus on.

This mindset will determine which of the following templates you'll use.

1. Current State Template

If you're using this template for a B2B product, the phases may reflect the search, awareness, consideration of options, purchasing decision, and post-purchase support processes.

For instance, in our Dapper Apps example, its phases were research, comparison, workshop, quote, and sign-off.

2. Day in the Life Template

Since this template reflects all the thoughts, feelings, actions, needs, and pain points a customer has in their entire daily routine — whether or not that includes your company — you'll want to map out this template in a chronological structure.

This way, you can highlight the times of day at which you can offer the best support.

Get an interactive day in the life template.

3. Future State Template

Similar to the current state template, these phases may also reflect the predicted or desired search, awareness, consideration of options, purchasing decision, and post-purchase support processes.

Since this takes place in the future, you can tailor these phases based on what you'd like the customer journey to look like rather than what it currently looks like.

Get an interactive future state template.

4. Service Blueprint Template

Since this template is more in-depth, it doesn't follow certain phases in the customer journey.

Instead, it's based on physical evidence — the tangible factors that can create impressions about the quality and prices of the service — that often come in sets of multiple people, places, or objects at a time.

For instance, with our fictitious restaurant example above, the physical evidence includes all the staff, tables, decorations, cutlery, menus, food, and anything else a customer comes into contact with.

You would then list the appropriate customer actions and employee interactions to correspond with each physical evidence.

For example, when the physical evidence is plates, cutlery, napkins, and pans, the customer gives their order, the front-of-stage employee (waiter) takes the order, the back-of-stage employee (receptionist) processes the order, and the support processes (chefs) prepare the food.

Get an interactive service blueprint template.

5. Buyer's Journey Template

You can also use the classic buyer's journey — awareness, consideration, and decision — to design your customer journey map.

Get an interactive buyer's journey template.

Charter the Path to Customer Success

Once you fully understand your customer's experience with your business, you can delight them at every stage of their buying journey. Remember, many factors can affect this journey, including customer pain points, emotions, and your company's touchpoints and processes.

A customer journey map is the most effective way to visualize this information, whether you're optimizing the customer experience or exploring a new business opportunity to serve a customer's unrecognized needs.

Use the free templates in this article to start mapping the future of customer success at your business.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in August, 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Don't forget to share this post!

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Outline your company's customer journey and experience with these 7 free customer journey map templates.

Service Hub provides everything you need to delight and retain customers while supporting the success of your whole front office

User journeys workstream

The user journeys workstream also involves decisions that can be changed or reversed with little effort or impact. The emphasis is on starting with a basic build of the user journey and iterating frequently and rapidly to get to the final product. It is rare for the final user journey to look exactly like the first one proposed, so an agile and iterative approach makes sense for this workstream.

The user journeys workstream consists of five phases: discovery, design, build, test, deploy, and post go-live support.

In this phase, you gather existing user journey flows and designs, and pass them to the contact flow build team. If these do not exist or you want to design a new user journey, gather stakeholders in a workshop and collaboratively develop a user journey framework in a visual capture tool such as the following:

Visual canvas tool – Use a tool such as Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Visio, or draw.io. Screen-share the canvas to all stakeholders in a workshop. Add blocks and decision points to build an end-to-end user journey, and add placeholders for steps that should be confirmed later (for example, the exact wording or import of a queuing message audio file). Add the name of the owner who should confirm the placeholder.

Contact flow designer – Instead of using a drawing tool like draw.io or Visio, consider using the contact flow designer that’s included in Amazon Connect to develop and document the user journey over screen-share. Use prompt block placeholders for steps that should be confirmed later (for example, the exact wording or import of queuing message audio file). Use a simple text-to-speech (TTS) prompt block to record the owner who is confirming the step (for example, “Queue A message .wav file to be provided by John Smith”). This enables you to perform end-to-end testing of the user journey and routing logic in parallel.

Workshop attendees: 

Project managers

Business and solutions architects

Business analysts

Service line owner and operator

Design documentation is optional. It depends on the size and complexity of the contact flow. If you use the contact flow designer, which has an intuitive, easy-to-follow flowchart interface, the journey is self-documented and represents the actual build of the contact flows. This ensures a single source of truth during the rapid and agile development of the user journey. Otherwise, standalone design documents for contact flows must adhere to change control to avoid diverging from the actual build over time.

Amazon Connect configuration is available by using AWS CloudFormation templates and APIs in infrastructure as code (IaC) tools. Use DevOps tools to build and manage Amazon Connect components such as security profiles and contact flows. If you design flows by using the contact flow designer, you can include the flows in your IaC DevOps tools and manually export them as JSON files.

You can also start building contact flows in a development environment while other AWS accounts are being created, and export the flows into the test and production environments when their Amazon Connect instances are ready.

The test phase consists of two sequential subphases: 

Functional testing – Performed iteratively over agile sprints as contact flows are created in Amazon Connect. Performed by: functional test team

User acceptance testing (UAT) – Performed only after contact flows have passed functional tests. Performed by: client business users (a dedicated team or users from the service line business unit)

In this phase, agent and user credentials are uploaded into the Amazon Connect production instance so that users can log in. You should upload contact flows only after they successfully pass UAT testing in the previous phase. Claim a temporary phone number in the Amazon Connect dashboard and assign it to the contact flows. These phone numbers will be visible only to the project team, who will use them to place test calls. The project team often runs a selection of UAT scripts during this process. This approach provides preparatory ( pipe-clean ) testing of the user journey before the system goes live and real agents can access the workflow. At the scheduled go-live time, this temporary number is replaced by the publicly routable number used by customers―this is the point where you cut over to the new system. If necessary, you can roll back changes by swapping the number back to the legacy service line.

Post go-live support (PGLS)

The project team remains engaged with the service line stakeholders, the business as usual (BAU) support teams, and end users during the first few weeks after the new contact center goes live. The project team can help users get started on the new system, get involved in troubleshooting live issues alongside the BAU support team, and improve contact flows based on customer and agent feedback.

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Teaching BD

Shah Jamal's Online Classroom

• English Writing

Write A Composition: A Journey by Bus

Writing a composition : a journey by bus a journey by bus.

Journeys are always a pleasure to me. Whenever I go on a journey my heart leaps up with joy. I got an opportunity to make a journey by bus. My friend, Sohel, serves in Khulna. He invited me to pay a visit to Khulna.

On the 4 th September, I got upon Dhaka-Khulna coach at Gabtali bus stand. I procured a ticket the day before. The bus was to start at 7 a.m. So, I reached the Gabtali bus stand at 6 a.m. The seats of the coach were comfortable. Luckily, I had my seat by the window. It was a sunny morning. The bus left at 7 a.m.

The bus started running at a good speed and soon we were far from the din and bustle of the city. We enjoyed beautiful green fields, orchards, and trees on both sides of the highway. I also enjoyed beautiful campus of the Jahangir Nagar University, the Savar Dairy Farm, and Savar Cantonment. The bus was moving ahead leaving behind the trees, houses and small shops on either side of the road. It was really very delightful to watch the green beauties of nature.

An interesting part of the journey was crossing the mighty river, the Padma, by ferry. We reached at Aricha within an hour and a half. The driver told us to get down from the bus. When I got down from the bus and got on the ferry, I felt a good relief and saw the boats plying on the placid water of the mighty river. At the ferry ghat, there were some hawkers and vendors who were selling fruits, chanachur, muri, betel leaf, and the cigarette. Some passengers bought muri and chanachur. Crossing by ferry in the gentle breeze was very pleasant.

Our bus reached Daulatdia ghat. Again I took my seat. The bus began to run at a high speed. We crossed Rajbari and Faridpur on the way. We also crossed Magura and Jhenaidah on the way and reached Jessore town at about 2 p.m. I enjoyed the natural beautiful scenery on the other side of the highway. When our bus stopped at Jessore, some passengers got down. Our bus reached Khulna at 3:30 p.m. Sohel received me at the bus stand.

The journey gave me much pleasure. It was one of the most memorable days in my life. The memory of this journey always hurts me in a great deal.

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Composition

A journey by boat composition for all class students.

A journey by boat composition : A successful and happy life can’t be imagined without making any journey during holidays.Therefore, with a view to making life successful and fruitful one should make any journey during one’s holidays. A Journey means to go from one place to another alone or with a group. A journey by boat means to go from one place to another by boat. Bangladesh is a land of rivers, canals, haors and beels. So,it is very easy, cheap and comfortable to make a journey by boat in our country. It is very enjoyable.

Time and occasion : It was the month ‘Ashar’. Our examination was over.Our college was closed.The rainy season had just set in. My father asked me to go to my uncle’s house which is about 20 km.away from our house. The house is on the other side of the Padma. So, I got a chance to make a journey by boat. Three friends joined me.

Description : We hired a small beautiful boat.It had two able-bodied boatmen who were very jolly-minded and cheerful. We started from our river ghat in the morning at 7 am on December 20,2019. The sky was clear and the weather was fine. The river was calm. At first the boatmen started rowing. Next they set sail. The boatmen began to sing “Bhatiali” songs.The songs charmed me very much.

Scene : I enjoyed the scenery on the either banks of the river.Our boat was dancing with small waves.We saw hundreds of boats plying up and down in the river. We saw many boys and girls bathing and swimming in the river. we saw many fishermen fishing in the deep river and the farmers harvesting in the paddy fields. We also found many boats, steamers and launches plying across the river.

Destination : We reached my uncle’s house at 2 p.m. Uncle, aunt and cousins gladly received us. We had a rich lunch there.

Evening scene : After taking a rest, we started for our house again at 4 p.m. when we reached near our river ghat, the sun was setting.The water of the river also turned red. Really,the scenery was very charming.It was dark when we reached home.

Conclusion :A journey by boat is really very enjoyable.It removes the monotony of works and studies. I achieved/gained new experience and new knowledge.I shall never forget this happy journey in my life. So,every student or every person should make a journey by boat once a year on holidays.

A Journey By Boat Composition 2 :

Composition on A Journey By Boat : There are different sorts of journey in our country. I like most a journey by boat. No other journey can be more enjoyable than a journey by boat. Whoever looks for rest and delight should make a journey by boat.

Time and occasion : During the last Autumn vacation my father asked me to go to my sister’s house at Daudkandi, 20 miles away from our house. So,I got a chance to make a journey by boat.Two other friends joined me.

Description of the journey : We hired a fine boat. We started our journey from Homna ghat at 10 a.m. There were two boatmen.The sky was clear.The river was calm and full to the brim . At first the boatmen plied the boat with oars. When the wind was favourable,they set sail. Soon the boat began to move fast. There were small waves in the river. The boat began to dance with the waves. The boatmen were singing. It was a ‘Bhatiali’ song. It filled us with joy.

Scenery enjoyed : We enjoyed the scenery of the river. We saw many boats big and small plying up and down. We saw some steamers and motor lunches plying through the river. Fishermen were catching fish in the river. Boys and girls were swimming. Women were going home with jars filled with water. There were fields on both sides of the river. Cattle were grazing there.

Exciting moments : Rough weather makes a journey by boat risky. Strong winds and storms often prove dangerous. I saw a terrible sight of the river. when I was crossing by boat. Within a short time, a storm rose and the river turned violent. There were huge waves and a strong wind. The boat was about to capsize. I got nervous. But the experienced boatmen stopped and tied the boat with strong ropes to a post. However, the storm was over within a short time and we started again. Still I cannot but thank the skill of the boatmen.

Destination : At about 4 p.m.we reached the ghat of my sister’s house. My sister was very glad to see us. She received us cordially. Thus our journey came to an end.

Conclusion : It is one of the most memorable journeys in my life.There was a lot of pleasure as well as a horrible experience of a storm in the journey. Both the positive and negative aspects of the journey got impressed on my mind forever.

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At Your Microservice: NVIDIA Smooths Businesses’ Journey to Generative AI

NVIDIA’s AI platform is available to any forward-thinking business — and it’s easier to use than ever.

Launched today, NVIDIA AI Enterprise 5.0 includes NVIDIA microservices , downloadable software containers for deploying generative AI applications and accelerated computing. It’s available from leading cloud service providers, system builders and software vendors — and it’s in use at customers such as Uber.

“Our adoption of NVIDIA AI Enterprise inference software is important for meeting the high performance our users expect,” said Albert Greenberg, vice president of platform engineering at Uber. “Uber prides itself on being at the forefront of adopting and using the latest, most advanced AI innovations to deliver a customer service platform that sets the industry standard for effectiveness and excellence.”

Microservices Speed App Development

Developers are turning to microservices as an efficient way to build modern enterprise applications at a global scale. Working from a browser, they use cloud APIs, or application programming interfaces, to compose apps that can run on systems and serve users worldwide.

NVIDIA AI Enterprise 5.0 now includes a wide range of microservices — NVIDIA NIM for deploying AI models in production and the  NVIDIA CUDA-X collection of microservices which includes NVIDIA cuOpt .

NIM microservices optimize inference for dozens of popular AI models from NVIDIA and its partner ecosystem.

Powered by NVIDIA inference software — including Triton Inference Server, TensorRT, and TensorRT-LLM — NIM slashes deployment times from weeks to minutes. It provides security and manageability based on industry standards as well as compatibility with enterprise-grade management tools.

NVIDIA cuOpt is a GPU-accelerated AI microservice that’s set world records for route optimization and can empower dynamic decision-making that reduces cost, time and carbon footprint. It’s one of the CUDA-X microservices that help industries put AI into production.

More capabilities are in the works. For example, NVIDIA RAG LLM operator — now in early access and described in more detail here — will move co-pilots and other generative AI applications that use retrieval-augmented generation from pilot to production without rewriting any code.

NVIDIA microservices are being adopted by leading application and cybersecurity platform providers including CrowdStrike, SAP and ServiceNow .

More Tools and Features

Three other updates in version 5.0 are worth noting.

The platform now packs NVIDIA AI Workbench , a developer toolkit for quickly downloading, customizing, and running generative AI projects. The software is now generally available and supported with an NVIDIA AI Enterprise license.

Version 5.0 also now supports Red Hat OpenStack Platform, the environment most Fortune 500 companies use for creating private and public cloud services. Maintained by Red Hat, it provides developers a familiar option for building virtual computing environments. IBM Consulting will help customers deploy these new capabilities.

In addition, version 5.0 expands support to cover a wide range of the latest NVIDIA GPUs, networking hardware and virtualization software.

Available to Run Anywhere

The enhanced NVIDIA AI platform is easier to access than ever.

NIM and CUDA-X microservices and all the 5.0 features will be available soon on the AWS , Google Cloud , Microsoft Azure and Oracle Cloud marketplaces.

For those who prefer to run code in their own data centers, VMware Private AI Foundation with NVIDIA will support the software, so it can be deployed in the virtualized data centers of Broadcom’s customers.

Companies have the option of running NVIDIA AI Enterprise on Red Hat OpenShift, allowing them to deploy on bare-metal or virtualized environments. It’s also supported on Canonical ’s Charmed Kubernetes as well as Ubuntu.

In addition, the AI platform will be part of the software available on HPE ProLiant servers from Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) . HPE’s enterprise computing solution for generative AI handles inference and model fine-tuning using NVIDIA AI Enterprise.

In addition, NVIDIA Inception member Anyscale, Dataiku and DataRobot — three leading providers of the software for managing machine learning operations  — will support NIM on their platforms. They join an NVIDIA ecosystem of hundreds of MLOps partners, including Microsoft Azure Machine Learning, Dataloop AI, Domino Data Lab and Weights & Biases .

However they access it, NVIDIA AI Enterprise 5.0 users can benefit from software that’s secure, production-ready and optimized for performance. It can be flexibly deployed for applications in the data center, the cloud, on workstations or at the network’s edge.

NVIDIA AI Enterprise is available through leading system providers, including Cisco, Dell Technologies , HP, HPE, Lenovo and Supermicro.

Hear Success Stories at GTC

Users will share their experiences with the software at NVIDIA GTC , a global AI conference, running March 18-21 at the San Jose Convention Center.

For example, ServiceNow chief digital information officer Chris Bedi will speak on a panel about harnessing generative AI’s potential. In a separate talk , ServiceNow vice president of AI Products Jeremy Barnes will share on using NVIDIA AI Enterprise to achieve maximum developer productivity.

Executives from BlackRock, Medtronic, SAP and Uber will discuss their work in finance, healthcare, enterprise software, and business operations using the NVIDIA AI platform.

In addition, executives from ControlExpert, a global application provider for  car insurance companies based in Germany, will share how they developed an AI-powered claims management solution using NVIDIA AI Enterprise software.

They’re among a growing set of companies that benefit from NVIDIA’s work evaluating hundreds of internal and external generative AI projects — all integrated into a single package that’s been tested for stability and security.

And get the full picture from NVIDIA CEO and founder Jensen Huang in his GTC keynote .

See notice regarding software product information. 

NVIDIA websites use cookies to deliver and improve the website experience. See our cookie policy for further details on how we use cookies and how to change your cookie settings.

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What Is Journey-as-a-Service (JAAS)?

Table of Contents

Simplified and Accessible Customer Journey Management

According to Forrester, the age of the customer started in 2010 . Thirteen years later, it’s still such a prevalent topic of conversation, it’s as if the age of the customer has only truly just begun.

Customer experience (CX) has plenty of room for improvement. Across 13 industries, CX quality dropped in 2022 for the first time since 2017. The average U.S. CX Index score across industries was 71.3 (out of 100)—a score equivalent to a “C.”

One of the ways CX can make a comeback, in our view, is when more brands leverage Journey-as-a-Service (JaaS). JaaS helps brands manage journeys more quickly and easily, simplifying the improvement of customer experience. Keep reading to discover what is JaaS and how you can use it to improve CX.

What is Journey-as-a-Service (JAAS)?

A customer journey is the arc of engagement with a particular brand or service. As customers move through the five customer journey stages—awareness, consideration, purchase/decision, retention and advocacy—they interact with a variety of systems through multiple channels. Those systems span marketing, sales and service technologies. Customers may research, compare, and purchase products and services on company websites, pay their bills using an app, communicate with customer service via interactive voice response (IVR), and complete surveys via SMS.

JaaS is a self-service tool that enables CX, digital experience (DX) and marketing professionals to design, test and launch cohesive customer experience initiatives without getting seven teams involved. JaaS takes industry-specific best practices to address common CX issues and streamlines the implementation of a unified process across systems and departments.

CSG’s JaaS is a self-service portal that allows all users to input and change journey details without calling technical support or a professional services team. Using JaaS is like using TurboTax to prepare your tax return. The user-friendly software makes it easy to identify your CX challenge and deploy specific journeys to address those issues.

Benefits of Journey-as-a-Service

Here’s what an effective JaaS tool can do to help brands improve CX:

• Help brands and services guide their customers from initial contact through purchasing a product/service, paying monthly bills, seeking customer support, and renewing their contract or repurchasing
• Allow brands and services to quickly launch and deploy industry-specific, pre-built customer journeys
• Make it easy to start with a single journey (e.g., cross-selling) and then build a library of customer journeys across an organization

Examples of Customer Journeys that Can Be Deployed with Journey-as-a-Service

JaaS can manage many customer journeys related to researching, buying, onboarding, using, managing and receiving support for products and services. Here are a few examples:

Retail: Shopping Cart Abandonment

If a customer placed an item in the online shopping cart and then abandoned the website, the journey orchestration component of JaaS determines the communication channel where the customer has been most responsive (e.g., email or SMS). The system immediately sends a message and link via that channel, prompting the customer to complete the purchase. If the customer completes the purchase, the platform continues sending cart abandonment notifications in future instances.

Healthcare: Appointment Reminders

When a patient is scheduled for an upcoming medical visit, the JaaS system determines the optimal channel and time(s) for appointment reminders based on the patient profile. The system sends the reminder(s) via email or SMS, requesting patient confirmation. When the patient confirms the appointment, the systems sends a “how to prepare” informational message via the same channel.

Financial Services: Mortgage Loan Approval

When a loan applicant has not responded to requests for additional documents, the system determines alternative channels where the person may be more active. The system sends reminders over those channels (e.g., email, push notifications, or outbound IVR). After submitting the missing documentation, the person receives an automated message confirming receipt.

Telecom: Payment Reminders

When the customer’s account is at risk for becoming overdue, the system determines the message and timing based on segmentation, regulations and prior communications. Then the system sends proactive and compliant SMS payment reminders. After payment, the customer receives confirmation and a note regarding what to expect for future payments due.

RELATED EBOOK: Retail Experience: Orchestrate Compelling Communications that Capture Consumer Attention

Best Practices for Journey-as-a-Service

CX initiatives are difficult to start, and they thrive on results and momentum. It’s critical that they can demonstrate their impact quickly to help build support inside your organization.

Identify the biggest customer pain points. Where is your organization falling short of delivering positive experiences? For example, you might audit contact center calls to identify why customers are calling.

• Are they confused by their bill?
• Are they having a hard time redeeming promotional offers?
• Are they angry that they haven’t received any updates regarding their internet outage?

Start by orchestrating one journey. Choose a journey that’s easy to improve and provides quick return on investment. Getting a quick win up on the board drives organizational awareness and board support for future CX investment .

Then deploy more journeys. You’ll see greater impact (better customer satisfaction, greater revenue) as you incorporate multiple journeys.

Now is the Time to Invest in CX

Improving CX pays off, directly impacting revenue. According to Forrester, a 1-point improvement in a large multichannel bank’s CX Index score can lead to an incremental $123 million in revenue . Realizing the potential return on investment, forward-thinking business leaders are investing in CX technology. The IDC predicts the overall customer experience software market to rise from $167.3B in 2021 to $295.7B in 2026.

To be competitive, your brand must deliver superior CX throughout the customer journey and work to simplify the customer journey. If you have been mapping customer journeys and/or employing journey analytics—or even if you’re just thinking about starting—now is the time to adopt JaaS.

CSG’s journey management software is user-friendly, allowing any user to analyze and orchestrate customer journeys without needing an army of technical resources. We help customers figure out where to start, and we provide industry-specific, pre-built journeys to get you up and running quickly. At the core of our Journey as-a-Service is CSG Xponent Ignite , our award-winning, industry-leading customer engagement solution that can help businesses supercharge their CX outcomes.

RELATED VIDEO: Learn about CSG Xponent Ignite

Contact us to learn more.

Josh Davidson

Service journey quality: conceptualization, measurement and customer outcomes

Journal of Service Management

ISSN : 1757-5818

Article publication date: 4 May 2021

Issue publication date: 17 December 2021

The quality of the customer journey has become a critical determinant of successful service delivery in contemporary business. Extant journey research focuses on the customer path to purchase, but pays less attention to the touchpoints related to service delivery and consumption that are key for understanding customer experiences in service-intensive contexts. The purpose of this study is to conceptualize service journey quality (SJQ), develop measures for the construct and study its key outcomes.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a discovery-oriented research approach to conceptualize SJQ by synthesizing theory and field-based insights from customer focus group discussions. Next, using consumer survey data ( N  = 278) from the financial services context, the authors develop measures for the SJQ. Finally, based on an additional survey dataset ( N  = 239), the authors test the nomological validity and predictive relevance of the SJQ.

SJQ comprises of three dimensions: (1) journey seamlessness, (2) journey personalization and (3) journey coherence. This study demonstrates that SJQ is a critical driver of service quality and customer loyalty in contemporary business. This study finds that the loyalty link is partially mediated through service quality, indicating that SJQ explains loyalty above and beyond service quality.

Research limitations/implications

Since service quality only partially mediates the link between service journey quality and customer loyalty, future studies should examine alternative mediators, such as customer experience, for a more comprehensive understanding of the performance effects.

Practical implications

The study offers concrete tools for service managers who wish to understand and develop the quality of service journeys.

Originality/value

This study advances the service journey concept, demonstrates that the quality of the service journey is a critical driver of customer performance and provides rigorous journey constructs for future service research.

• Service journey
• Customer journey
• Service delivery
• Customer experience
• Service quality
• Service design

Jaakkola, E. and Terho, H. (2021), "Service journey quality: conceptualization, measurement and customer outcomes", Journal of Service Management , Vol. 32 No. 6, pp. 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-06-2020-0233

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2021, Elina Jaakkola and Harri Terho

Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

1. Introduction

The notion of satisfying customers through service excellence is a cornerstone of service research and practice. During the past decade, managers and researchers alike have increasingly stressed the role of customer journeys as opposed to individual service encounters for the achievement of service excellence and the subsequent competitive advantage ( Rawson et al. , 2013 ). This emphasis aligns with broader marketing research suggesting that the set of touchpoints along the customer journey gives rise to customer experience ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Tueanrat et al. , 2021 ). Indeed, a recent industry report suggests that, across industries, companies' journey performance is substantially more strongly correlated with customer satisfaction and business outcomes, such as revenue and repeat purchase, than is firm performance at individual touchpoints ( Duncan et al. , 2016 ).

In the extant marketing literature, the “customer journey” is commonly defined as the series of touchpoints that customers encounter and interact with during their purchase process ( Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ; Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Becker et al. , 2020 ). In today's markets, customer journeys are ever more complex, as digitalization has accelerated the birth of a myriad of channels through which customers can interact, search for information and conduct their purchases ( Sousa and Voss, 2006 ; Edelman and Singer, 2015 ). What is more, increasing specialization has fragmented the contemporary service delivery to involve a network of providers ( Tax et al. , 2013 ). Firms must therefore manage expectational, operational and functional interdependencies between various touchpoints ( Dhebar, 2013 ), keeping in mind that clumsy and inconsistent journeys have been identified as an important source of customer churn ( Rawson et al. , 2013 ).

The customer journey is a powerful concept for understanding a customer's path to purchase (e.g. Edelman and Singer, 2015 ). However, the purchase decision-making focus is less useful for supporting service management; as in service-intensive contexts, service delivery and consumption encounters play a major role in the formation of customer experiences, accentuating the importance of touchpoints that customers interact with after their purchase decision (see Lemke et al. , 2011 ). Thus, service researchers and practitioners seeking to understand and design high-quality journeys can benefit from journey constructs that capture the functional and operational interdependencies between touchpoints comprising the service process (e.g. Tax et al. , 2013 ; Rawson et al. , 2013 ; Dhebar, 2013 ).

Extant service research offers valuable methods for analyzing and designing the composition of journeys, such as service blueprinting ( Bitner et al. , 2008 ), customer journey mapping ( Zomerdijk and Voss, 2010 ) and multilevel service design ( Patricio et al. , 2011 ), but it lacks the conceptual tools for assessing the quality of service journeys from the customer's viewpoint. This means that managers are missing the tools for measuring to what extent they succeed in designing their journeys for service delivery, and many service organizations continue measuring perceived service quality at particular touchpoints, or rely on simple aggregate measures, such as the Net Promoter Score. Research on customer experience (CX) also considers journeys, but CX measures predominantly focus on customers' perceptions of their overall experience with a brand (e.g. Brakus et al. , 2009 ) or a firm during the purchase process ( Kumar et al. , 2014 ; Kuppelwieser and Klaus, 2021 ), offering limited insights on the touchpoints related to service delivery and consumption that are critical for service-intensive contexts.

Against this background, the purpose of this paper is to conceptualize service journey quality (SJQ), develop measures for the construct and study its customer outcomes . Service journey refers to the process or sequence that a customer goes through to access and use a particular service (cf. Tueanrat et al. , 2021 ; Følstad and Kvale, 2018 ; Voorhees et al. , 2017 ). This study adopts a discovery-oriented approach for conceptualizing SJQ ( Zaltman et al. , 1982 ). First, by synthesizing extant theory (e.g. Homburg et al. , 2017 ; Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ) and field-based insights from customer focus group discussions, we define SJQ as the degree to which customers perceive the combination of provider-owned service process touchpoints functioning as a (1) seamless, (2) coherent and (3) personalized whole. Second, by building upon the definition and insights from the qualitative study, we develop measures for the SJQ constructs using survey data ( N  = 278) from consumers in the financial services context. Third, we demonstrate the nomological validity and practical relevance of the SJQ constructs by linking them to service quality and customer loyalty using a second survey dataset ( N  = 239) from the financial industry.

This study makes three key contributions. First, the developed conceptualization and measure for SJQ advances extant service research that has, for nearly a decade, highlighted the critical role of journeys (e.g. Zomerdijk and Voss, 2010 ; Ostrom et al. , 2015 ), but offered scant insight into what constitutes the quality of a journey in a service-intensive context. This study develops service process-focused SJQ constructs that capture the key aspects of functional service journeys, putting the emphasis on customer perceptions of the interdependencies between journey touchpoints rather than on individual encounters or the overall evaluation of a firm, thereby complementing current constructs in the area of customer journeys and experience (e.g. Lemke et al. , 2011 ; Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ). Second, this study provides rare empirical support for the notion that the journey quality is a critical driver of customer performance in contemporary service businesses (e.g. Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ). Specifically, we demonstrate that service journey seamlessness, personalization and coherence are central drivers of customer loyalty intentions. Third, the study clarifies the nomological network of service journeys by providing new insights about the theoretical mechanisms through which journey quality affects loyalty. Earlier research has pointed out that the link between journey quality and loyalty is primarily due to improved brand attitudes ( Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ). Our results show that in service-intensive contexts, the journey-loyalty relationship can furthermore be partially explained through improved service quality perceptions. Since the service quality's mediation effect is only partial, we encourage future research to study more closely the role of other alternative mediators, such as customer experience, in linking SJQ to customer loyalty ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ). All in all, this research provides new measures for service design, service management and customer experience research, as well as for managers who wish to set goals, understand and develop their performance in service journeys as a strategic priority.

This paper is organized as follows. The next section outlines the key literature streams that offer the conceptual building blocks for SJQ. The subsequent sections report the empirical research conducted; we first conceptualize SJQ and its key dimensions by synthesizing theory-based views and field-based insights into SJQ, second, develop measures for the construct and finally demonstrate its nomological and predictive validity. The final sections outline the study's theoretical and managerial implications.

2. Conceptual underpinnings of service journey quality

The research that can be drawn from to conceptualize service journey quality is fragmented in multiple literature streams. In the service context, many of the dealings between customers and providers take place after the actual purchase decision has been made as the realization of a service offering often involves both parties. SJQ is hence best understood through literature streams that tackle the various stages of the process that consumers go through when accessing and consuming a service.

Table 1 outlines the key literature fields that offer insight into SJQ. The service management and service design research discuss high-quality service delivery processes; customer experience studies identify strategic journey-related goals for service providers and channel management research provides insights on the design and deployment of diverse channels for effective service processes.

The traditional service management literature has highlighted that customers' quality perceptions are affected not only by what they receive as an outcome of the service but critically also by the functional performance of the service process ( Grönroos, 1984 ). This research has mainly focused on the quality of the core service delivery taking place during the service encounter ( Voorhees et al. , 2017 ), typically examining customer perceptions of either a firm's service excellence at one point in time or their overall experience with the firm (e.g. Parasuraman et al. , 1991 ; Brady and Cronin, 2001 ). The studies considering the service encounter's processual nature have analyzed how positive service outcomes are affected by a particular phase or event of the service process ( Stauss and Weinlich, 1997 ; Verhoef et al. , 2004 ; Sivakumar et al. , 2014 ) or the customer relationship ( Dagger and Sweeney, 2007 ). In other words, service management research mostly focuses on individual service encounters or overall service quality rather than on the journey elements that support the functioning of the service process as a whole.

The literature on service design focuses on the customer-centered innovation of new services by emphasizing the user experience, suggesting methods for analyzing customer journeys and aligning the partners in service delivery (e.g. Karpen et al. , 2017 ; Steen et al. , 2011 ; Yu and Sangiorgi, 2018 ). Methods such as service blueprinting emerged as an attempt to gain a broader view of the service process that comprises both joint service encounters and the steps customers take outside the service setting ( Bitner et al. , 2008 ). Subsequent service design studies have expanded the analysis to include complex systems that customers and users navigate to fulfill their needs (e.g. Patricio et al. , 2011 ; Tax et al. , 2013 ). This stream highlights the importance of designing the journey in a holistic manner and incorporating the entire service delivery network to ensure a consistent service experience (e.g. Tax et al. , 2013 ). Yet, the emphasis lies on offering tools for mapping and developing customer journeys, and these studies do not offer constructs for measuring service journey quality from the customer's perspective.

Customer experience research highlights the importance of journeys by defining the customer experience as “customers' nondeliberate, spontaneous responses and reactions to offering-related stimuli along the customer journey” ( Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ). Research on customer experience management (CEM) focuses on sellers' activities for strategically designing and managing experiences throughout the customer journey. Homburg et al. (2017) found that best-practice firms have four strategic goals for designing and improving customer journeys: (1) the thematic cohesion of touchpoints, (2) the consistency of touchpoints, (3) the context sensitivity of touchpoints and (4) the connectivity of touchpoints. Kuehnl et al. (2019) found evidence for the first three of these dimensions. These findings offer tentative insights into the relevant dimensions of SJQ. However, the CX research predominantly studies customer purchase journeys, and the only existing consumer-assessed journey design construct by Kuehnl et al. (2019) emphasizes brand-focused journey qualities relating to the brand experience, brand attitudes and customer loyalty. The CX stream has thus paid very limited attention to the functional and operational touchpoint interdependencies that are critical for service contexts ( Rawson et al. , 2013 ; Dhebar, 2013 ).

Finally, research on multichannel customer management addresses “the design, deployment, and evaluation of channels to enhance customer value through effective customer acquisition, retention, and development” ( Neslin et al. , 2006 , p. 96). Customer channels are the medium through which service providers communicate or interact with customers (e.g. call centers, e-mails, SMS, chats and face-to-face conversations) hence representing platforms for digital or human-served touchpoints ( Halvorsrud et al. , 2016 ; Sousa and Voss, 2006 ). The multichannel literature predominantly focuses on channel choice behavior, such as the drivers for online channel use (e.g. Melis et al. , 2015 ), an optimal mix of channels (e.g. Montoya-Weiss et al. , 2003 ) and the role of specific channels during particular phases of the purchase process (e.g. Verhoef et al. , 2007 ). In terms of SJQ, this stream contributes insights into channel properties that attract and guide customers, especially the importance of integrating channels to enable the easy transitioning from one channel to another (e.g. Montoya-Weiss et al. , 2003 ; Neslin et al. , 2006 ; Barwitz and Maas, 2018 ). However, as noted by Anderl et al. (2016) , channel studies tend to either focus on one single channel or consider the interplay of a few selected channels to understand the consumer's path to purchase. This literature reveals little about the quality of the combination of different types of touchpoints located within a range of channels as the focus lies on the channel strategies rather than on the functioning of the journey for service delivery.

As this literature review demonstrates, the issue of understanding and designing service journeys is relevant for many research streams, but the question as to what constitutes SJQ has not been explicitly addressed so far, and the research lacks valid measures on this topic. The research on service management and service design emphasizes the importance of gaining a customer view of the service process, but does not offer tools for understanding and measuring the functional quality of journeys. Customer experience and channel management research, in turn, focuses on the customer purchase journey and offers little insight into the interdependencies between post-purchase touchpoints that are critical for service delivery processes.

3. Conceptualization of service journey quality

To conceptualize SJQ, we applied a discovery-oriented research approach (e.g. Zaltman et al. , 1982 ). By adhering to this approach's established procedures, we build upon our initial insights from a literature review for a theory-based view and complement and refine it with a field-based view. The existing research offers a good basis for forming an initial, theory-based understanding of SJQ, but since existing studies have not addressed journeys specifically from a service process perspective, we conducted a qualitative study on consumers' perceptions of high-quality service journeys to (1) substantiate and (2) enhance and nuance the theory-based view. The conceptualization process was abductive in nature: we moved between theoretical concepts and empirical observations in an iterative fashion ( Dubois and Gadde, 2002 ), resulting in a synthesis of theory and qualitative insights that allowed us to define the SJQ construct and its key dimensions. The conceptual basis established in this phase also forms a robust foundation for the scale development process in the study's latter stages.

3.1 Theory-based view of service journey quality

The first step of the conceptualization process focuses on forming a theory-based view of the SJQ concept's key content. As our literature review demonstrates, research on service process quality and customer journeys can together offer tentative insights into SJQ. First, many studies stress the importance of designing the journey as a whole and integrating touchpoints such that the journey runs smoothly (e.g. Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Homburg et al. , 2017 ; Sousa and Voss, 2006 ). However, due to the increasing functional and operational touchpoint interdependencies of the service processes, mere excellence in individual interactions may not be enough for successful service delivery if the service delivery touchpoints do not align and work in concert (see Rawson et al. , 2013 ).

Second, many authors highlight that touchpoints and their cues should be thematically consistent and coherent along the journey (e.g. Homburg et al. , 2017 ; Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ). Customers experience and evaluate service cues across touchpoints, and with an increasing number of channels and partners involved in service delivery, they may feel lost if the service touchpoints are very dissimilar (cf. Berry et al. , 2006 ).

Third, research emphasizes the individual and subjective nature of journeys, suggesting that they should be sensitive to customers ' individual needs and channel preferences (e.g. Barwitz and Maas, 2018 ; Patricio et al. , 2011 ). High-quality service delivery should therefore adapt to the needs of the individual customer throughout the whole service process (cf. Dhebar, 2013 ). These three themes – touchpoint integration, thematical coherence and sensitivity to individual customer needs – were adopted as the initial theory-based view for SJQ conceptualization, which was refined and complemented with empirical insights from service-intensive contexts.

3.2 A qualitative study for establishing a field-based view of service journey quality

Next, we conducted a qualitative study to generate an understanding of SJQ by drawing from human experiences ( Gioia et al. , 2013 ). Following Sharma and Conduit (2016) , we took the Gioia approach to first conduct open coding to identify themes emerging from data, to capture any SJQ aspects that are relevant for consumers' lived service experiences. In accordance with the abductive approach, we next integrated the first-order codes into second-order, theory-centric themes iterating between the data and the tentative conceptualizations derived from previous research ( Dubois and Gadde, 2002 ). The qualitative data thus served the purpose of substantiating and refining the theory-based view and formulating service process specific definitions for the tentative themes.

3.2.1 Data collection

We employed focus groups to capture consumer insights into SJQ. Focus groups are a suitable data collection means for explorative purposes because the method allows one to gain insights from a large number of individuals through nondirective inquiry strategies that result in a rich understanding of the studied phenomenon ( Flick, 2018 ). We organized nine focus groups of four or five consumers each, and the participants were both female and male and aged between twenty and forty years ( Table 2 ). The aim of selecting focus group participants was to facilitate the open sharing of views and understandings while ensuring that the generated data would be able to meet the research aim's requirements ( King et al. , 2019 ). The participants were university students with differing backgrounds, thus ensuring some common ground, yet a relatively broad range of views.

Each group discussed service journeys in one of the following service contexts: retail, hospitality, teleoperator and insurance services ( Table 2 ). Service delivery in these contexts often features multiple touchpoints, facilitating the gaining of a rich set of insights. The groups were asked to choose one of the four contexts, wherein each participant had some recent dealings. The participants were instructed to discuss their actual experiences of service processes in the chosen context by focusing on experiences they perceived as particularly positive or negative. The participants were asked to describe their service journeys and elaborate upon the aspects that they perceived as the root causes of their positive and/or negative perceptions of the service process. All these procedures aimed to elicit the recall and identification of critical SJQ dimensions in a nonobtrusive way.

3.2.2 Data analysis

Following the Gioia approach ( Gioia et al. , 2013 ), we conducted a thematic analysis on the data, starting with identifying any journey-specific themes mentioned by the focus group participants as relevant to their positive or negative past service experiences; this stage is akin to open coding as conducted in grounded theory ( Strauss and Corbin, 1990 ). Next, we compared and grouped the first-order codes to identify broader second-order themes related to journey quality aspects by iterating between the data and the tentative theory-based conceptualizations. The first-order analysis adhered to the informants' voices, while the second-order analysis developed a higher level of abstraction and used theory-driven insights to determine if and how the first-order themes may be connected and labeled to suggest concepts that explain the observed phenomenon ( Gioia et al. , 2013 ; cf. Sharma and Conduit, 2016 ).

3.3 Conceptualization: synthetizing theory-based view and empirical findings

By synthesizing previous research with findings from qualitative study, we define SJQ as the degree to which customers perceive the combination of provider-owned service process touchpoints functioning as a (1) seamless, (2) coherent and (3) personalized whole. With provider-owned touchpoints, we refer to touchpoints controllable by the service providers, i.e. brand- and partner-owned touchpoints ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ). The rationale is that while modern multichannel service processes may involve a network of service providers and outsourcing partners ( Tax et al. , 2013 ), the customer nevertheless evaluates the process as a whole and often sees each touchpoint representing, and remaining the responsibility of the focal service provider, whether outsourced or not ( Kranzbühler et al. , 2019 ). Thus, the SJQ construct focuses on service delivery touchpoints that service providers are able to design and manage (see Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ). We identify three key SJQ dimensions: seamlessness, personalization and coherence discussed in detail below.

I hit a car at the parking lot and called my insurance company. Their call center connected my call to the insurance payout services and also transferred my details since the person picking up already knew who I was and why I was calling! She told me what would happen next and helped me pick a repair shop. After the call, I got a text and an email with instructions to the repair shop, and the owner of the other car immediately got a call from my insurance company about his compensation, and I did not have to worry about it at all. (I2)

I had ordered from their online store but I could return items at the [physical] store…that was very convenient, not having to pack and send the clothes that did not fit. (R2)

I was trying to activate my new mobile phone subscription, but it was very difficult. I got a letter that instructed that I should register in one place, then confirm in another site, and then activate it in a third place! The salespersons gave totally different instructions. (T1)

These findings find support in existing research, pinpointing that journey touchpoints should be functionally integrated to enable a smooth end-to-end journey ( Homburg et al. , 2017 ). Edelman and Singer (2015) note that firms should streamline journeys so that customers are able to execute complex service processes quickly and easily; and Rawson et al. (2013) recommend shifting from siloed to cross-functional approaches in developing journeys. Combining the qualitative insights with extant research, we define journey seamlessness as the degree to which touchpoints are integrated allowing a customer ' s smooth transition between various service process touchpoints .

The [mobile phone] service provider sent me an ad to promote its special package for young adults; it looked trendy and playful. The firm was also present in our student event; they organized a funny game and gave away energy drinks…Even their sales reps were cool; they called themselves “social media ninjas”—so everything was about the trendy, bold, and youthful brand… (T1)

It is easy since every Ikea store is almost identical, and it feels the same since you can see Ikea colors all the time…their website looks like Ikea since there is blue and yellow. You also see yellow and blue signs in the stores, and you collect stuff in a yellow bag, and they pack them in a blue bag! (R1)

Different service employees had completely different styles of doing things...So their service principles seem to depend on who you happen to ask! (R3)

These findings resonate with the notion of brand cues' thematic cohesion and consistency across touchpoints (see e.g. Berry et al. , 2006 ; Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ). Previous research on customer experience management has indeed recommended that firms should systematically manage and orchestrate “experience clues” across various touchpoints ( Berry et al. , 2006 ; Zomerdijk and Voss, 2010 ). Synthesizing the qualitative insights with previous research, we define journey coherence as the degree to which service process touchpoints provide consistent experience cues .

We went to a big concert and stayed in a hotel close by. There were many concert attendees staying there, and the hotel had decided to extend the breakfast time the next morning so that we could sleep in after the concert! That seemed like excellent service. ( H2 )

I needed to file an application for compensation for a broken sink in my bathroom. I could've done that online, by phone, or by visiting their office, but I chose the mobile application since I like to do everything with my phone. (I1)

We were two families with small kids traveling together [on a cruise ship] and had booked family cabins. It was really convenient that all the family cabins were located along the same corridor, and party people were at the other end of the ship. Passengers with prams had their own entrance to the ship, and there was a ship mascot greeting us and handing coupons for free ice cream at the play area, our kids loved it! ( H1 )

Also previous research has noted the importance of designing touchpoints that are sensitive to the customer's situational context ( Homburg et al. , 2017 ; Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ), highlighting that customers should find the touchpoint architecture adaptive to their changing needs ( Dhebar, 2013 ). Combining the empirical and research insights, we define journey personalization as the degree to which the combination of service process touchpoints is tailored to fit the customer ' s preferences and situational context.

4. Service journey quality scale development

4.1 qualitative scale development procedure.

The conceptualization of SJQ enabled us to proceed into building measures for the construct. The scale development follows the established procedures for building new scales ( Churchill, 1979 ; MacKenzie et al. , 2011 ). Specifically, on the basis of the construct definitions and insights from the qualitative study, we built an initial indicator pool for all three SJQ constructs, coming up with 23 total indicators that have been designed to evenly reflect the key domain of each SJQ dimension. Next, we assessed the indicator content validity through a qualitative item-sort task test suggested by Anderson and Gerbing (1991) . Twelve senior scholars were asked to assign each scale item under one SJQ construct definitions or option “other” if it could not be accurately assigned to any one definition. All but one indicator received more than ten out of twelve correct responses, thereby passing the suggested threshold criterial of psa (>0.5) and csv (>0.7). When a reviewer felt unclear about or rated an item incorrectly, the indicator was carefully evaluated, and some wordings were consequently fine-tuned. Finally, we selected the six representative indicators from the item sort test for each dimension to sustain the final scale at a reasonable length – see Appendix for the final scale indicators.

4.2 Data collection for the scale validation

To validate the developed measure, we conducted a consumer survey concerning SJQ in financial services where the process of accessing and using the service typically involves a multitude of touchpoints in different channels. The data were collected in a centrally located downtown shopping center in a northern European town. We randomly approached adult customers and asked them to participate in an academic study that concerned their experiences with their primary financial service providers. We implemented a movie ticket draw as an incentive for consumers to participate and guaranteed full anonymity for each respondent and received N  = 278 responses. The data were deemed adequate for the initial scale validation purpose of the first survey study.

4.3 Assessment of the SJQ scale validity and reliability

The SJQ scale validity was assessed based on confirmatory factor analysis using AMOS 24 software. The initial analysis of the proposed three-factor SJQ model with 18 indicators led to the elimination of two items from the seamlessness construct due to problems with discriminant validity. The elimination of problematic items is possible since the reflective indicators are interchangeable and because the construct is unchanged when an indicator is removed ( Bollen and Lennox, 1991 ). A purified three-dimensional model with 16 items demonstrated a satisfactory fit. The chi-square statistic was significant (222.4; p  = 0.00), but the critical ratio of the chi-square over degrees of freedom was close to 2 ( χ 2 /df = 2.2), thus indicating a reasonable fit. The central fit indices provide support for the scale validity: goodness of fit index (GFI) = 0.91; comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.95; Tucker–Lewis index (TLI) = 0.94; standardized root mean residual (SRMR) = 0.042 and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.066 [0.054; 0.078] (c.f. Hu and Bentler, 1999 ). All indicator loadings were above 0.70 and significant at p  < 0.01. Figure 1 summarizes the CFA results.

The Fornell and Larcker (1981) test further supports the discriminant validity because the average variance extracted (AVE) values for all constructs exceeded 0.50, and the squared AVE values of each construct exceeded correlations with other constructs. Construct reliabilities were also satisfactory, as all Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability values were higher than 0.70 (see Table 3 for scale details).

Finally, we compared the proposed three-dimensional model against alternative models, including a null model, a single-factor SJQ model and three two-dimensional SJQ models, to further assess the dimensionality of the construct. All alternative models had poor fit (see Table 4 ), thereby supporting the proposed three-dimensional conceptualization of SJQ. All in all, the initial scale validation stage provided support for the validity and reliability of the scales.

5. Nomological and predictive validity of SJQ

5.1 research model and hypotheses.

The study's final stage focused on testing the nomological and predictive validity of each SJQ construct. For this purpose, we identified the two seminal constructs of customer loyalty and service quality from earlier service research, which are conceptually related to SJQ. Figure 2 below presents this study's research model. Next, we discuss the research model and its hypotheses as well as justify the use of composite constructs to test the hypotheses.

Service journey quality has a positive relationship with customer loyalty.

Service journey quality has a positive relationship with service quality.

The relationship between service journey quality and customer loyalty is partially mediated by service quality.

5.2 Use of composite constructs in the research model

Theoretical constructs are not per se multidimensional or unidimensional, but can usually be operationalized either way, thus representing various levels of theoretical abstraction ( Law et al. , 1998 ). SJQ and service quality represent two theoretically distinctive, although complex concepts in the research model, as both possess multiple unique dimensions. Against this background, both constructs can be meaningfully operationalized at a higher level of abstraction by means of second-order composite constructs ( Hair et al. , 2017 ). The use of hierarchical component models offers two important benefits for this study. First, they can notably reduce model complexity by decreasing the number of relationships in the full mediation model, thereby increasing parsimony ( Hair et al. , 2017 , p. 281). Second, although all studied SJQ and service quality constructs are independent by nature, they are likely to correlate with one another due their conceptual closeness concerning quality in service business settings. Establishing a higher-order structure can reduce potential collinearity issues ( Hair et al. , 2017 , p. 281).

Research should always carefully consider specification of the studied constructs because model misspecification can severely bias structural parameter estimates and lead to inappropriate conclusions about the hypothesized relationships between constructs ( Jarvis et al. , 2003 ). We argue that SJQ and service quality are best modeled as first-order reflective, second-order formative (Type II) composite constructs. We build this argument upon the following four criteria that define whether a construct is more efficiently measured by a reflective or formative perspective: (1) causality between the construct and its dimensions, (2) interchangeability of the dimensions, (3) covariation among the dimensions and (4) whether or not all dimensions have the same antecedents and consequences (cf. Jarvis et al. , 2003 , p. 203). The qualitative study suggests that the three SJQ dimensions form the overall level of the construct rather than a uniformly reflect the construct as dropping one dimension would alter the SJQ's conceptualization. Similarly, the dimensions can but are not required to correlate since a service firm might score high in seamlessness, but at the same time fail to provide personalized service encounters. Finally, one may logically expect that the various independent dimensions can have different drivers and outcomes.

5.3 Data collection

The data collection for testing the research model was conducted in collaboration with a Northern European bank that is classified as the second-largest bank in the country wherein the study was conducted. The bank provided us access to its consumers in one of its branches and drew a sample of 4,757 customers from its customer base. A customer experience-labeled survey was sent to the customers in the university's name as an academic survey. A movie ticket draw was used to incentivize the selected customers to participate in the study. All responses were highlighted to be fully confidential, and the respondents were guaranteed full anonymity for their responses. The data collection with two reminders led to N  = 239 customer responses. The respondents' characteristics are summarized in Table 5 .

5.4 Measures

We employed established scales for all the constructs in the research model. Specifically, we measured customer loyalty using the scale by Zeithaml et al. (1996) , service quality with the measure developed by Cronin and Taylor (1992) and SJQ with the developed scale. In addition, since the study relied on a single-respondent design, we included a common method variance (CMV) marker variable to the questionnaire. For this purpose, we used an a-priori “Consumer Orientation Toward Sporting Events” scale developed by Pons et al. (2006) with four indicators and no nomological relationship with other study constructs, as recommended by the established guidelines ( Lindell and Whitney, 2001 ; Chin et al. , 2013 ).

5.5 Analytical procedures

Since the maximum-likelihood-based SEM is problematic for testing models with formative constructs, we analyzed the research model with PLS modeling using the SmartPLS3.0 software ( Hair et al. , 2012 ). This method is closely suited to studies that build upon formative constructs and complex models with higher-order constructs and mediation effects. We implemented the guidelines established by Hair et al. (2012) to estimate the research model. The modeling of second-order composite constructs follows the guidelines of Becker et al. (2012) as well as Cadogan and Lee (2013) . Specifically, the simulation study conducted by Becker et al. (2012) demonstrates that reflective-formative, hierarchical type II constructs are most effectively modeled by the repeated indicator approach, path weighting scheme and mode B measurement. We further tested the SJQ construct's relationship with the second-order formative service quality construct through its lower-order dimensions (see Figure 2 ), which represents a conceptually superior way to estimate antecedent relations for formative constructs ( Cadogan and Lee, 2013 ). To account for the total effects on service quality, the explained variance in each dimension was multiplied by its weight, and the individual contributions of each dimension were added together ( Becker et al. , 2012 ). The statistical significance of the PLS parameter estimates were tested with a bootstrapping procedure based on 5,000 subsamples. For clarity, we estimated the research model in two parts; we first estimated a simple baseline model with exclusively direct relationships between SJQ and customer loyalty and second, estimated a full model with the service quality construct as a mediator.

5.6 Common method variance

Because the study relies on a single-respondent design, common method variance (CMV) must be taken into account. We relied on both procedural and statistical approaches to assess and control CMV as recommended by Podsakoff et al. (2003) . The procedural means include respondents' guaranteed anonymity, careful scale item development for added clarity and the use of different scale anchors for IV and DV. We also used several statistical means to assess CMV. First, Harman's single-factor test produced seven factors with eigenvalues greater in an un-rotated factor analysis and no single factor explained above 50% of the covariance. Second, we applied Lindell and Whitney's (2001) partial correlation technique to assess the magnitude of CMV effects in construct correlations. Importantly, the marker variable was found to have low (0.06–0.12) and insignificant relationships with other study constructs (see Table 6 ), while the specific data analysis procedures (see Lindell and Whitney, 2001 ) did not exhibit any substantial changes in their correlation coefficients or their significance when controlling for the CMV marker variable. Finally, we applied a measured latent marker variable approach when testing our research model, which has been proven to effectively detect and correct CMV in a PLS analysis (see Chin et al. , 2013 ). Specifically, our full research model includes separate CMV marker variables for all constructs in the model (see Figure 2 ). All marker variable paths were again close to zero and insignificant (see Table 7 for full details). Importantly, the marker variable's inclusion in the model did not change path coefficients or significances; overall, the results indicate that a common method bias is not a major problem for this study.

5.7 Testing the research model and hypotheses

We began testing the research model by assessing the scale validities and reliabilities. The outer model results show that all standardized indicator loadings exceeded the recommended threshold of 0.70 and were all significant at the p  < 0.01 level (see Appendix ). The construct reliabilities were supported, as all Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability values were higher than 0.70. Convergent and discriminant validity were supported because all AVEs were higher than 0.50 and because the AVE's square root exceeded the construct correlations (see Table 6 for scale details). The scale correlations were high, although closely aligned with earlier service quality research findings that have found key service quality constructs and customer performance outcomes to be tightly interrelated ( Brady and Cronin, 2001 ; Dagger and Sweeney, 2007 ). The correlations are also theoretically meaningful since all the studied constructs measured diverse aspects of service performance, including service journey quality, overall service quality and customer loyalty. Finally, a separate test of PLS cross-loadings confirmed that all indicators loaded highest on the construct that they were intended to measure ( Hair et al. , 2012 ).

The inner model evaluation also supported the quality of the model. We examined VIF values of the first-order constructs in relation to higher-order formative constructs and concluded that all values were below the suggested threshold of 5 ( Hair et al. , 2012 ).

The structural model results provide support for all three hypotheses. First, the direct effect model confirms that the developed SJQ measure has a strong, positive relationship with customer loyalty, thus supporting H1 (see Table 7 ). Specifically, the second-order SJQ construct had a path coefficient of 0.76** for loyalty in the direct effect model, thus explaining 60% of its variance. All first-order dimensions had positive and significant weights: personalization (0.40**), coherence (0.38**) and seamlessness (0.29*), thus supporting the predictive validity of all three dimensions for customer performance. The first-order path coefficients to the second-order constructs can be interpreted similarly to formative indicator weights – that is, by indicating the relative contribution of the lower-order construct to the higher-order construct while predicting outcomes in the studied nomological network ( Becker et al. , 2012 ).

Second, the full structural model results support the second hypothesis that SJQ is a central enabler of service quality in today's complex business environment. Interestingly, SJQ was positively related to all dimensions of service quality: reliability (0.85**), assurance (0.73**), tangibles (0.68**), empathy (0.65**) and responsiveness (0.57**). Yet, only two first-order dimensions of service quality contributed significantly to the second-order construct when predicting loyalty. By calculating the total indirect effects ( Becker et al. , 2012 ), SJQ explains 53% of the variance in service quality.

Third, the full mediation model results also support the partial mediation of H3 because the relationship between SJQ and customer loyalty became weaker, yet remained significant when controlling for the service quality mediation link. A separate, bootstrapping-based Preacher Hayes mediation analysis confirms the significance of the hypothesized partial mediation (see Table 8 ).

Specifically, when controlling for the service quality link, SJQ's direct effect on customer loyalty (0.26**) remained substantial and highly significant. SJQ also had a strong indirect effect (0.50**) on customer loyalty through the service quality link. Interestingly, SJQ's total effect on loyalty (0.76**) due to its direct and indirect effects was stronger than service quality's effect on loyalty (0.58**). Finally, a closer look at the dimension weights of the second-order constructs provides insight into the relative importance of the dimensions in the broader nomological network. When broadening the study focus to the full research model with both service quality and loyalty as dependent variables, the SJQ dimension weights slightly changed as the relative impact of personalization (0.56**) and seamlessness (0.28**) became more important compared to coherence (0.21*). In line with earlier findings in banking contexts (see Bloemer et al. , 1998 ; Choudhury, 2013 ), reliability (0.70**) is the dominating dimension of service quality when predicting customer loyalty. Beyond reliability, the tangibles (0.18*) represent the only other significant 2nd order service quality dimension.

6. Contributions and implications

6.1 theoretical implications.

This research responds to calls for the development of a more thorough understanding of what makes service journeys excellent and supportive of superior customer outcomes ( Ostrom et al. , 2015 ), as well as to the managerial need for easily applicable tools for measuring performance in service delivery through complex journeys. The customer journey is considered a key concept for understanding the emergence of customer experiences (e.g. Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ), but extant research has overlooked the development of this concept to fully capture the essence of service processes. This paper informs research and managerial practice by conceptualizing SJQ, developing measures for the construct and studying its relationship with service quality and customer loyalty. Extant journey research spans various literature fields ( Table 1 ), thus rendering the findings relevant for many areas of service research. This study makes three main contributions, which are discussed in detail below.

First, the conceptualization and measure development for SJQ offers researchers constructs that capture the key aspects of functional customer journeys from the service process point of view. This contributes to the service management and experience research by moving the focus from individual encounters or overall service or brand evaluations (e.g. Parasuraman et al. , 1991 ; Brakus et al. , 2009 ; Lemke et al. , 2011 ; Kumar et al. , 2014 ) to the potentially multichannel and multiprovider service journeys as whole. As such, the SJQ construct provides a modern service quality tool that tackles service delivery through complex journeys, whose quality cannot be exclusively understood as an aggregate sum of individual service encounters ( Rawson et al. , 2013 ). For service design research, the SJQ construct offers a set of concrete goals for designing journeys to ensure that cues and touchpoints operate in concert and allow for personalized configurations, and it enables the measuring of to what degree these designed journey qualities are achieved. For customer experience research, SJQ offers a journey conceptualization that captures the key elements that affect CX formation in service-intensive contexts. This supports customer experience management ( Homburg et al. , 2017 ) and complements the constructs developed by Kuehnl et al. (2019) that link brand-focused journey qualities to brand attitudes, brand experiences and loyalty, but scarcely address the operational and functional touchpoint interdependencies relevant for service processes. For multichannel customer management research, the SJQ construct provides a tool for analyzing the performance of channel integration in service-intensive contexts, complementing the existing journey perspective that is purchase-process focused.

This study's second contribution is in confirming that SJQ is a critical driver of customer performance in contemporary service businesses. Specifically, we demonstrate that service journey seamlessness, personalization and coherence act as central drivers for both perceived service quality and customer loyalty intentions. The positive connection between the quality of journeys and service quality is intuitive, yet no earlier study has demonstrated this link. This study's findings indicate that customers' overall service quality assessments are affected by their perceptions of how successfully various service delivery touchpoints operate in concert. This link is evident even though many service quality dimensions focus on personal interactions at a single encounter. It is likely that encounters at earlier stages of the service journey build expectations that affect the customer's interpretation of later service encounters. In other words, high-quality journeys reduce negative surprises and enable the consistent meeting of customer expectations, which builds better service quality perceptions. Thus, this study demonstrates that SJQ represents an important service quality enabler and provides evidence for the assumption that, in today's multichannel, digitalized markets, service excellence warrants the perfection of service journeys (cf. Halvorsrud et al. , 2016 ; Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ). This finding is underscored by the empirical finding that SJQ has a stronger total effect on customer loyalty than on service quality.

Finally, this study contributes to the existing literature by clarifying the nomological network of service journeys and the theoretical mechanisms through which journey quality affects loyalty. Our findings reveal that service quality mediates the direct relationship between SJQ and customer loyalty. In other words, improved service quality represents a central mechanism that explains why high-quality journeys can help secure more loyal customers. This result complements earlier studies that have attributed the link between journey quality and loyalty primarily to improved brand attitudes ( Kuehnl et al. , 2019 ). However, this mediation is merely partial, thus indicating that SJQ contributes to customer loyalty above and beyond service quality when controlling for the mediation link. This finding is of great importance because it indicates that the relationship between SJQ and customer loyalty cannot be explained by improved service quality perceptions alone, but there may be other potential mediators as well, such as customer experience (see Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ). This proposition is discussed further in the implications for future research section.

In sum, this research provides new measures for service research, as well as for managers who wish to set goals, understand and develop their performance in service journeys. This study is among the first to develop the concept of service journeys to capture the nature of the process customers go through to access and use offerings in service-intensive contexts, in order to complement the customer journey concept that is predominantly anchored in the consumer decision-making process. In doing so, this study helps organize the pieces of the customer experience and journey puzzle by clarifying and nuancing the nomological network of some of these key concepts of contemporary service research.

6.2 Managerial implications

Contemporary service businesses rely increasingly on numerous interconnected online and personal service delivery channels, as well as diverse partners, in providing a service. This means that firms need to consider and manage various expectational, operational and functional interdependencies between various service delivery touchpoints ( Dhebar, 2013 ). While service design tools, such as blueprinting, have been developed to help in designing functional service journeys, very few tools have been developed for assessing the quality of service journeys from the customer's viewpoint. This is problematic because measuring perceived service quality at individual touchpoints says little about the quality of the service process as a whole, and simple aggregate measures, such as the Net Promoter Score, do not reveal the cause of customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction. This study develops constructs to assess customer-perceived SJQ and provides empirical evidence for the relevance of high-quality service journeys, demonstrating that consumers' SJQ perceptions drive both service quality and customer loyalty. These findings indicate that service providers should invest in the development and monitoring of SJQ instead of just focusing on individual service encounters or overall satisfaction.

Specifically, our results highlight that service journey quality from the customer's perspective is determined by the three key dimensions of journey seamlessness, coherence and personalization. These SJQ dimensions provide managers concrete goals in designing their service journeys. First, journey seamlessness requires that the various provider and partner-controlled touchpoints along the service process are integrated and aligned so that the customer can smoothly transition between the touchpoints, whether outsourced or not. Second, journey coherence can be achieved by thematically integrating all touchpoints and the related “experience cues” to provide a consistent impression of the firm or the brand throughout all service encounters. Third, journey personalization stresses the tailoring of the combination of service process touchpoints to fit the customer's service delivery preferences and the customer's situation. Firms can use the SJQ measures developed in this study to analyze, monitor and develop the quality of their service journeys, as well as to set collaboration and quality goals for partners (see Appendix ).

The three SJQ dimensions can also be used to analyze the functionality of customer relationship models for different customer segments that typically follow distinct journeys (e.g. when customer segments are served through different service channels). Measuring SJQ perceived by different customer segments helps the internal benchmarking of journeys, in order to reveal potential pain points in different journeys and improve performance, particularly for mass segments wherein the customers navigate their journeys independently. We also urge companies to assess whether or not SJQ might be a source of differentiation and thereby a competitive advantage in their industry and to develop their journeys accordingly.

6.3 Limitations and implications for future research

This study naturally has some limitations. Noteworthy is that the SJQ construct does not capture social and customer-owned touchpoints that are outside a firm's influence ( Lemon and Verhoef, 2016 ; Becker et al. , 2020 ), but instead focuses on provider- and partner-owned touchpoints, i.e. the parts of the journey that firms can seek to manage ( Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ). Furthermore, as the SJQ construct focuses on the quality of the service process, it does not cover what the customer receives as the outcome of the service. Therefore, when the aim is to study both technical and functional quality ( Grönroos, 1984 ), the SJQ construct should be used together with complementary measures.

While the conceptualization builds upon a broad empirical basis that includes a qualitative study and two quantitative studies, further research related to the SJQ construct's nomological network is needed. This study has identified initial evidence that service journey quality predicts customer loyalty, but those findings were based on a single-respondent study design with subjective performance measures. Future research should confirm the findings using stronger research designs with objective performance measures and multiple-respondent study designs. Also, since the quantitative study findings are based on data exclusively from the financial sector, future research should investigate the relative importance of the construct dimensions and test the results' generalizability in other empirical contexts. We assume that the developed measure is applicable across service-intensive industries, but this assumption warrants further research. Researchers could study not only brand-focused contexts, such as tourism and hospitality but also contexts such as healthcare, public services, and B2B settings, wherein more functional interdependencies between touchpoints should be a key. Future studies could also examine the SJQ construct's application to experience-centric and hedonic versus mundane services, as well as to different types of journeys.

We call for a systematic research effort that focuses on SJQ and its antecedents, outcomes, mediators and moderators. Various areas of service research – including service management, service design and customer experience management – should more closely study which marketing activities drive seamless, coherent and personalized service journeys. On the outcome side, future research should study SJQ's effects on objective performance and examine whether or not improved customer experience also mediates the performance link. The role of experiential outcomes is emphasized by the study finding that the SJQ-loyalty link is not fully mediated by service quality improvements. Since customer experience refers to customers' nondeliberate, spontaneous responses and reactions to offering-related stimuli along the customer journey ( Becker and Jaakkola, 2020 ), high-quality service journeys should logically be connected to positive customer experiences. Due to the complexity of the customer experience phenomenon, its measurement is challenging. Advances in this area can offer the means to study the suggested experience link in more detail (e.g. the EXQ measure by Kuppelwieser and Klaus, 2021 ), in order to clarify whether and how service journey quality relates to customer experiences. Finally, we call for research attention on the key moderators – that is, those conditions that either strengthen or weaken SJQ's antecedent and outcome sides in different contexts.

Confirmatory factor analysis of the three-factor SJQ scale

Research model

Connection of the Service Journey Quality concept to extant journey literature

Focus groups

Scale properties and correlations – scale validation sample 1

Respondent characteristics

Scale details for the full research model

Scale details

Note(s) : a Seven-point Likert-scale, anchored by 1- “strongly disagree” and 7- “strongly agree”

b Seven-point rating scale concerning likelihood, anchored by 1- “very unlikely”, 7- “very likely”

c Deleted items

* p  < 0.01

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Corresponding author

About the authors.

Elina Jaakkola is Professor of Marketing at Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Finland. Her research interests focus on value creation, customer/actor engagement, customer experience, service innovation, and knowledge intensive business services and solutions. Her research has been published in a wide range of journals and book chapters, for example Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Product Innovation Management, Journal of Service Research, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Service Management, Journal of Business Research, and AMS Review.

Harri Terho is Adjunct Professor and Senior Research Fellow in Marketing at Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Finland. His research interests focus on value creation in business markets, selling and sales management, the role of technology in marketing and sales, as well as B2B customer experiences and journeys. His research has been published in Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, and Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing among others.

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For the first time Rosatom Fuel Division supplied fresh nuclear fuel to the world’s only floating nuclear cogeneration plant in the Arctic

The fuel was supplied to the northernmost town of Russia along the Northern Sea Route.

The first in the history of the power plant refueling, that is, the replacement of spent nuclear fuel with fresh one, is planned to begin before 2024. The manufacturer of nuclear fuel for all Russian nuclear icebreakers, as well as the Akademik Lomonosov FNPP, is Machinery Manufacturing Plant, Joint-Stock Company (MSZ JSC), a company of Rosatom Fuel Company TVEL that is based in Elektrostal, Moscow Region.

The FNPP includes two KLT-40S reactors of the icebreaking type. Unlike convenient ground-based large reactors (that require partial replacement of fuel rods once every 12-18 months), in the case of these reactors, the refueling takes place once every few years and includes unloading of the entire reactor core and loading of fresh fuel into the reactor.

The cores of KLT-40 reactors of the Akademik Lomonosov floating power unit have a number of advantages compared to the reference ones: a cassette core was used for the first time in the history of the unit, which made it possible to increase the fuel energy resource to 3-3.5 years between refuelings, and also reduce the fuel component of the electricity cost by one and a half times. The FNPP operating experience formed the basis for the designs of reactors for nuclear icebreakers of the newest series 22220. Three such icebreakers have been launched by now.

For the first time the power units of the Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear power plant were connected to the grid in December 2019, and put into commercial operation in May 2020. The supply of nuclear fuel from Elektrostal to Pevek and its loading into the second reactor is planned for 2024. The total power of the Akademik Lomonosov FNPP, supplied to the coastal grid of Pevek without thermal energy consumption on shore, is about 76 MW, being about 44 MW in the maximum thermal power supply mode. The FNPP generated 194 million kWh according to the results of 2023. The population of Pevek is just a little more than 4 thousand, while the FNPP has a potential for supplying electricity to a city with a population of up to 100 thousand people. After the FNPP commissioning two goals were achieved. These include first of all the replacement of the retiring capacities of the Bilibino NPP, which has been operating since 1974, as well as the Chaunskaya TPP, which has already been operating for more than 70 years. Secondly, energy is supplied to the main mining companies in western Chukotka in the Chaun-Bilibino energy hub a large ore and metal cluster, including gold mining companies and projects related to the development of the Baimsk ore zone. In September 2023, a 110 kilovolt power transmission line with a length of 490 kilometers was put into operation, connecting the towns of Pevek and Bilibino. The line increased the reliability of energy supply from the FNPP to both Bilibino consumers and mining companies, the largest of which is the Baimsky GOK. The comprehensive development of the Russian Arctic is a national strategic priority. To increase the NSR traffic is of paramount importance for accomplishment of the tasks set in the field of cargo shipping. This logistics corridor is being developed due regular freight voyages, construction of new nuclear-powered icebreakers and modernization of the relevant infrastructure. Rosatom companies are actively involved in this work. Rosatom Fuel Company TVEL (Rosatom Fuel Division) includes companies fabricating nuclear fuel, converting and enriching uranium, manufacturing gas centrifuges, conducting researches and producing designs. As the only nuclear fuel supplier to Russian NPPs, TVEL supplies fuel for a total of 75 power reactors in 15 countries, for research reactors in nine countries, as well as for propulsion reactors of the Russian nuclear fleet. Every sixth power reactor in the world runs on TVEL fuel. Rosatom Fuel Division is the world’s largest producer of enriched uranium and the leader on the global stable isotope market. The Fuel Division is actively developing new businesses in chemistry, metallurgy, energy storage technologies, 3D printing, digital products, and decommissioning of nuclear facilities. TVEL also includes Rosatom integrators for additive technologies and electricity storage systems. Rosenergoatom, Joint-Stock Company is part of Rosatom Electric Power Division and one of the largest companies in the industry acting as an operator of nuclear power plants. It includes, as its branches, 11 operating NPPs, including the FNPP, the Scientific and Technical Center for Emergency Operations at NPPs, Design and Engineering as well as Technological companies. In total, 37 power units with a total installed capacity of over 29.5 GW are in operation at 11 nuclear power plants in Russia. Machinery Manufacturing Plant, Joint-Stock Company (MSZ JSC, Elektrostal) is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of fuel for nuclear power plants. The company produces fuel assemblies for VVER-440, VVER-1000, RBMK-1000, BN-600,800, VK-50, EGP-6; powders and fuel pellets intended for supply to foreign customers. It also produces nuclear fuel for research reactors. The plant belongs to the TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom.

Rosatom obtained a license for the first land-based SMR in Russia

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ROSATOM and FEDC agree to cooperate in the construction of Russia's first onshore SNPP

ROSATOM and FEDC have signed a cooperation agreement to build Russia's first onshore SNPP in Yakutia.

Word of God among the cardboard: Easter journey of the poor at St. Peter's

By Benedetta Capelli

Among the makeshift beds, the patched cardboard, and the dirt that can be seen at night in and around St. Peter's Square, the power of the Resurrection of Jesus has arrived, His message of peace and hope that excludes no one but rather strengthens and revitalizes the most sorrowful hearts.

The Claretian Sisters carry out this mission under the Colonnade, animated by the charism of their founder, Antonio Maria Claret. On Tuesday night, March 26, they held a penitential service with the poor in preparation for Easter.

A journey that leads to communal prayer

Sister Elaine Lombardi, of the Missionaries of Saint Anthony Maria Claret, told Vatican News that several years ago, in the Roman parish dedicated to Saint Faustina Kowalska of Divine Mercy, some young people had begun an important journey starting from Lectio Divina and then culminating in a strong desire to help others, especially the most impoverished.

They began their experience by offering tea and a few biscuits. "It wasn't so much what we were giving,” the Brazilian-born nun explained, “but it was our presence that made the difference."

The pandemic halted all activities, yet online the group of young people participating in Lectio Divina grew to 100 attendees.

At the same time, the need to offer more than just tea to the poor increased, so they came up with the idea to offer a weekly meal.

Tuesday was chosen as the day, and food was brought for about 200 people. They also encouraged prayer, since the volunteers and sisters felt a growing need to bring the Word of Life to the most fragile.

"We started with the Christmas novena under the Colonnade,” Sister Elaine said. “At the end, many poor people living there asked us to continue, and the project of Lectio Divina with the homeless once a month was born. We share the Word of God, which actually becomes sharing of one's life. The beautiful thing is that many tourists also stop and pray with us."

Using simple words

As the Church approaches Easter, Sister Elaine explained, the group has chosen to prepare more intense and intimate moments, culminating in Tuesday evening’s penitential prayer.

"We always start with the Word of God followed by a moment of prayer,” she said. “Usually, we take care not to use too many words, our choice is to go the path of simplicity because many homeless people who participate are foreigners; some do not know Italian well."

The penitential service is a request for forgiveness for one's sins. "The response of the poor,” she added, “is always very positive, many come to us to say that these moments do them good; they make them feel human. These are moments in which they can share life with those they do not know, they can feel important, feel free to speak. It's a beautiful response."

‘I can't read the Bible…’

"There are some very beautiful stories that we have collected," Sister Eliane related. "One of them, Francesco, who has a unique life story and lives on the streets, started participating in Lectio Divina . He was depressed because of the difficulties he faced every day. Once, at the end of the prayer, he approached me to ask for a Bible, and I gave him the one I had in my hand and that we had used for the Lectio ; it was arranged on the small altar we make with one of the suitcases of the poor and the vestments we bring. He took it, but then the following week he came to talk to me to tell me that he didn't know how to read."

Francesco had found someone who pays attention to him, listens to him, and with whom he could enter into a Christian relationship, so he didn't hesitate to tell the sister that the moments of prayer experienced and the Word of God nourished his desire to know the Gospel and therefore to learn to read.

"We immediately got busy and looked for a place where he could cultivate this desire. I think this is very, very beautiful and it touched me deeply," Sr. Elaine recalled.

The Claretian missionary then told of listening to many other stories of life suffering that some bravely tell, explaining why they are on the streets but also how the Word of God helps them in their daily lives.

Another important moment for Sister Elaine was the meeting with the Pope on July 24, 2023, in which Francesco reiterated that "the Church and the world today urgently need the faithful and courageous testimony of consecrated lives."

Words, the nun explained, that motivated everyone to continue on this journey of encounter around the Word of God.

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From Waldorf to the World: Sailor's Journey in the U.S. Navy

I n Virginia Beach, Va., Waldorf, Maryland, native Petty Officer 1st Class Elantra Robinson is marking her twelfth year of distinguished service in the U.S. Navy, currently stationed at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek. A 2010 graduate of Westlake High School, Robinson embodies the hardworking and dependable ethos she attributes to her upbringing in Waldorf.

Robinson’s journey into the Navy was driven by a desire for new experiences and opportunities beyond the familiar confines of her hometown. “I joined the Navy because I was looking for something different in my life, the opportunity to travel and because I wanted new experiences,” Robinson shared. Her role as a culinary specialist today stands testament to her quest for a unique path, one not initially inclined towards college education but rather an adventurous and fulfilling career in the military.

Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, alongside Fort Story, represents the pinnacle of training and housing facilities for the nation’s expeditionary forces. These installations, critical to the Navy’s operations, reflect the strategic importance of maritime and amphibious capabilities in ensuring global commerce and security. With a significant portion of the world’s commerce and digital communication dependent on maritime security, the role played by service members like Robinson is crucial to the nation’s prosperity.

Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the chief of naval operations, emphasized the Navy’s commitment to earning the trust and confidence of the American populace, stating, “Together we will deliver the Navy the nation needs.” It’s a sentiment that resonates deeply with Robinson, who takes pride in her ability to contribute to the safety and security of the country. One of her most cherished experiences was the simple yet profound moment of being recognized for her service by children, highlighting the personal and societal impact of her role.

Robinson’s dedication extends beyond her professional achievements to a personal mission of mentorship and guidance. “My proudest accomplishment is that I’ve been able to give back to the junior sailors I lead,” she said. This commitment to fostering a positive environment and imparting valuable lessons to her peers is a cornerstone of her service.

Behind her success and resilience lies a network of support that Robinson is quick to acknowledge. She expressed heartfelt gratitude towards her godparents, Joann and Willie Hunt, for their unwavering support since her childhood, and her mother, Tracey Rawlings, for guiding her through the challenges of adolescence. This foundation of familial and communal support has been instrumental in her journey and achievements within the Navy.

Petty Officer 1st Class Elantra Robinson’s story is one of dedication, service, and the pursuit of personal growth through the unique challenges and opportunities offered by military life. As she continues to serve and inspire, Robinson exemplifies the values of hard work, dependability, and the spirit of giving back, making her an exemplary figure in the fabric of America’s naval force.

Universal Orlando unveils 'How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk' land at Epic Universe

  Universal Orlando Resort  announced the " best kept secret this side of … well, anywhere ."

Park officials revealed the first look at its new "How to Train Your Dragon — Isle of Berk" land for its upcoming Epic Universe park , the mythical land from the popular “ How to Train Your Dragon ” franchise.

“Guests visiting Berk will encounter one of the most breathtaking environments Universal has ever created – complete with immense architecture featuring hand-carved details, lush landscaping, and extraordinary heights of rolling hills surrounding vibrant dragon houses and local establishments,” Universal shared in a press release on Thursday.

The latest details include what lies inside "How To Train Your Dragon - Isle of Berk," as well as what is known about the highly anticipated theme park so far.

What attractions will be in Epic Universe's Isle of Berk?

The land will feature four new attractions for guests, including:

Hiccup’s Wing Gliders  – "On this family thrill coaster, Hiccup invites brave new Vikings to take a ride in his latest glider contraption – a winged flying machine that launches aspiring Dragon Riders into the sky for a dragon’s eye view of Berk. Guests will fly alongside Hiccup and Toothless and reach speeds up to 45 mph as they soar around the perimeter of Berk – and even through the lagoon – while experiencing firsthand what it’s like to fly on a dragon."

Fyre Drill  – "Mischievous Viking twins Ruffnut and Tuffnut invite teams of Vikings to compete to outscore and out-soak each other on this wet-and-wild boat battle. Guests will board a colorful dragon-headed boat and blast water cannons at flame-like targets to practice putting out fires – a crucial skill to master when living with dragons."

Dragon Racer’s Rally  – "Berk’s new Vikings racers can practice aerobatic maneuvers and high-speed barrel rolls on two Viking-made dragon-riding trainers that reach heights of up to 67 feet in the air. Guests can control how “wild” or “mild” their experience will be as they perform high-flying, gravity-defying, swooping and soaring skills that are necessary to earn the accolades worthy of a true champion dragon racer."

Will there be any restaurants, quick service spots in Epic Universe's Isle of Berk?

After a day of flying and training with dragons in the Florida heat, every Viking will need to get their energy replenished. Luckily, there are a variety of themed eateries, including:

• Mead Hall  – The beating heart of Berk and the village’s main gathering hall, Mead Hall is where guests can feast like a Viking and enjoy a savory menu featuring a variety of meats, fish, sandwiches and more along with a collection of meads and ciders.
• Spit Fyre Grill  – Overlooking the action of the Fyre Drill water attraction, Spit Fyre Grill is a quick-service dining location featuring delicious, hearty meals flame-seared by a helpful (unseen) dragon fry cook.
• Hooligan’s Grog & Gruel  – Guests can grab quick bites at this festive racing-themed food stand located in the Viking Camp.

Can I meet characters from the 'How to Train Your Dragon' movies?

Fans of the dragon-filled fantasy series can expect to encounter their favorite characters from the films — even Toothless!

You can meet the beloved dragon and Hiccup at the Haddock Paddock.  Plus, throughout the day, Universal shares guest may also encounter other familiar Vikings and dragons while exploring Berk. 

In addition to character meet-and-greets, The Untrainable Dragon will be a live show inspired by the popular  “Untrainable” show  at  Universal Beijing Resort .

“This dragon-filled live spectacular takes guests on an unforgettable journey with beloved characters Hiccup, Toothless, Gobber, and Astrid as they work together to solve the mystery of The Untrainable Dragon,” according to Universal. 

I need to prepare for journey to Berk. Where can I stream the 'How to Train Your Dragon' trilogy?

Need to brush up on your Berk lore? Or maybe you haven't even tapped into the world of the "How to Train Your Dragon" franchise." Luckily, you have at least a year to catch up.

• How to Train Your Dragon (2010) - You can stream it currently on Amazon Prime Video. You are able to watch it by renting or purchasing on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, and Vudu.
• How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) : You can stream it currently on Netflix, Peacock Premium, and Netflix basic with Ads. You are able to watch it by renting or purchasing on Apple TV, Vudu, and Amazon Video.
• How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019) - You can stream it currently on FXNow or fuboTV. You are able to watch it by renting or purchasing on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, and Vudu.
• Dragons: Race to the Edge (2015 - 2018) - You can stream all six seasons on Netflix.

What else will be in Universal's Epic Universe?

In addition to the Isle of Berk, visitors can also expect to explore four other lands in the park. Altogether, these lands will have “more than 50 awe-inspiring attractions, entertainment, dining and shopping experiences,” according to a press release from the resort.

• Celestial Park  - The first world guests enter at the park, featuring relaxing gardens, a “wet play area,” a grand carousel and Starfall Racers, a dual-launch racing roller coaster with 5,000 feet of track and speeds up to 62 mph. Celestial Park will also serve as the gateway to Epic Universe’s four other worlds, which will be accessed by themed portals.
• Dark Universe  - Guests can expect to “encounter everything from the experiments of Dr. Victoria Frankenstein to the shadowy landscape where monsters roam in a world of myth and mystery.”
• Super Nintendo World - Bring guests into the fan-favorite video game franchise for adventures with Mario, Princess Peach and more. Made its  U.S. debut at Universal Studios Hollywood  last year.
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Ministry of Magic  - Seeks to blend the 1920s wizarding Paris from Warner Bros. Pictures’ ‘Fantastic Beasts’ films with the iconic British Ministry of Magic from the Harry Potter series,” according to Universal Orlando, which is already home to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley.

Explore Epic Universe: Universal Orlando Resort reveals first details on highly anticipated Epic Universe

Is Epic Universe bigger than Universal Studios Florida?

With a 750-acre site, Universal Epic Universe will be the largest theme park at Universal Orlando Resort.

Universal Orlando’s two existing theme parks are Universal Studios Florida and neighboring Universal Islands of Adventure.  Universal’s Volcano Bay water park  is its third park. 

Will Epic Universe have a hotel?

A newly announced Universal Helios Grand Hotel will be located inside Epic Universe, at the end of Celestial Park. USA Today reported it will feature 500 rooms and its own access to the park. 

When will Epic Universe open?

Universal hasn’t yet announced an opening date for Epic Universe, only that it will open in 2025.

Contributing reporting: Eve Chen , USA Today

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This documentations provides detailed information on how to work with audience composition within Adobe Journey Optimizer. If you are a Real-time Customer Profile only customer and are not using Adobe Journey Optimizer, click here .

Audience composition allows you to create composition workflows , where you can combine existing Adobe Experience Platform audiences into a visual canvas and leverage various activites (split, exclude…) to create new audiences.

Once done, the resulting audiences are saved backed into Adobe Experience Platform along with existing audiences and can be leveraged in Journey Optimizer campaigns and journeys to target customers. Learn how to target audiences in Journey Optimizer

Audience composition is accessible from Adobe Journey Optimizer Audiences menu:

The Overview tab provides a dedicated dashboard with key metrics related to your organization’s audience data. To learn more, refer to Adobe Experience Platform Dashboards guide .

The Browse tab lists all existing audiences stored into Adobe Experience Platform.

The Compositions tab allows you to create composition workflows where you can combine and arrange audiences to create new ones.

Click on each card to learn how to work with audience composition:

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