Consistent CX requires orchestration over automation

Illustration: (Expand to read)

The below image is an example of a process flow flowing through different tools; the incoming signals signifies customer behavior, and the actions signifies the business’s response. Customer records are accommodated at different stages and moved when the Signals are triggered. And, that is how customer experience can be coherently delivered through the process.

Understanding Journey Builder and its components 

About FSM: Finite State Machine is a tool that is made up of a finite number of states (as in states of being) . When there is an external influence on a resting state, the tool will move the physical entity from that state. This is called the transition. Consider a power switch where there are two states: On and Off. When you toggle the switch ON, your toggling action acts as a transition that moves the switch from the state off to on. And what the switch renders after this transition is its designated action—like a fan running as a result.
   

  More examples of Finite State Machine 

STAGES 

1. Create goals for your journey at the starting stage
   
2. Mark multiple stages as the end stage along with their sentiments
   
3. Set up instant, schedule, and recurring actions for every other stage.
   

Add success and failure stages 

1. To any stage, if they are the last step in the process, you can mark them as the end stage in the stage info. You can also mark the sentiment of the stage as Success, Failure, or Neutral, which indicates the success or failure of the journey taken.
   
2. You can also create success and failure stages right from within the floating Elements tray and associate them to the journey created.
   

Note:

Marking as end stages will indicate the customer's journey for that process is ended. They can, however, enter or continue to be in another journey based on their qualification for that journey’s criteria.

To configure stages in Journey Builder 

1. Log in to your CRM organization as an admin.
   
2. Navigate to Setup> Experience Center > CommandCenter > Journey Builder. Alternatively, you can also search for Journey Builder in the Setup search.
   
3. In the Journey Builder page, click on the Create Journey button from the top-right of the list view.
   
1. To add stage to an existing journey, open the journey from the list view.
   
4. In the ensuing Create Journey form, provide Journey name and Description. Click Proceed.
   
5. The builder will welcome you. Click on the Create Stage button to get started. The first stage will be named Stage 1 by the system, and it is connected to the zeroth moment called the Start stage.
    
1. Goals are the journey's objective, and they are not mandatory. If you’d like to add goals, click on the Start stage to configure Goals for this journey.
   
1. You can select from these options: Reaching a particular stage, Take a predefined path, or the time taken to reach a stage.
   
2. Based on your selection, select associated attributes to define the selected goals.
   
3. Click Save once you're done.
   
2. Up next, rename the Stage 1 as desired. You can also add a description to serve as a reference.
   
3. Likewise, create as many stages as you’d like to have in your journey.
   
4. You can add a stage from the floating Elements tray, or simply click on the existing stage. This will display visual cues to create new stages in the rest of its sides as branches. Click on the desired branch to add a new stage.
        
6. After creating a stage, add Actions to each stage to orchestrate personalized responses for the customers' choices on their journey.
    Learn more about setting up actions.

UX Shortcuts to create Stages

1. Hover on a stage to view nodes along the mouse path.
   
2. Click on a current stage and click on the proximity handles to create a Stage adjacent to the existing one.
   
3. Click the +New button on the stages options from the elements tray to create empty stages.
   
4. Convert a success/ failure end stage into a stage

TRANSITIONS 

Signals

Signals can capture events of the following types with their examples:

1. Record actions: CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete)
   Example: Create of a record, Update to the Last modified time, Edit to the record, Delete of the record.
   
   
2. User actions: Email, Call, Webform submissions
   Example: Submission of a webform, Receiving an incoming email, Attempting an outgoing call.
   
   
3. Integration Signals: Events from Zoho’s applications integrated with Zoho CRM.
   Example: Visiting a Survey, Registration received for a Webinar, Receiving a Desk ticket.
   
   
4. Custom Signals: Any custom capability that can trigger the record’s movement in the journey.
   Example: Prospect wish-listing a product, Abandoning a cart, Drop in demand observed in the MRP tool and so on.

Conditions

Transition in a nutshell

1. Add standard and custom Signals to capture a wide range of events
   
2. Provide conditions for Signals for accurate transmission
   
3. Narrow down further using record conditions for precision
   
4. Add Identifiers to identify and track customers in the web of other customer journeys
   
5. Add logs for effective journey administration
   

Wait as a fallback option 

To configure transitions 

1. Click the plus ➕ icon between two stages to create a transition.
   
2. Select the desired Signals. It can be the system-standard CRM Signals, integration-based application Signals, or custom Signals.
   
1. Further select the Signal attributes.
   For example: If you have selected Record Create as a Signal, then the Signal attributes are the modules, layouts, and other Signal conditions. Attributes like these are available distinctively for each Signal.
3. Click Add Record Conditions to achieve finer record transition.
   
4. Click the Identifier tab to add identifiers for each Signal. Learn more about creating identifiers.
   
5. Click the Logs tab to record events occurred during the transition for future reference. Press the Add Log button to invoke the field. You can also use #Merge fields to refer to a few particular records that passed  a transition.
   

UX shortcuts for transitions

To create Transition:

1. Drag the Stage node and drop it to the neighbouring Stage to enable transitions between them. It helps when connecting stages that are distant from one another.
   
2. Creating a stage will allow you to configure transition right next to it.
   
3. Create a transition from the elements tray by determining the stages
   

ACTIONS 

1. Instant actions are executed the next moment the record reaches the respective stage.
   Example: If a prospect submitted a gated form, then an email with the requested exclusive content can be shared via instant actions.
2. Scheduled actions are scheduled a certain period after the record has reached the stage.
   Example: A task can be created for the sales representative two days after the record creation to remind the sales reps to take further actions.
3. Recurring actions are actions that are set to keep executing every day, hour, or minutes until the record is moved to the next stage or if the Wait transition lapses its timer.
   Example: You can send reminder emails to your customers requesting that they complete the balance payment using recurring actions. If the payment is made, the emails will stop moving the record to the next stage; if they exceed a certain amount of time (and if the Wait deadline is crossed), then the record can be moved to the next stage called Violated with legal steps as actions. 

Notes: Actions are listed based on the modules and transitions selected for the stage.

To add actions

1. Go to the desired stage, then click the Actions tab from the sliding panel.
   
2. Click the New Action Group button.
   
3. Choose the desired module on which actions will be executed.
   
4. Select the Run for specific transition checkbox to execute this action group only for the records that come via a certain transition. Select all the desired transitions.
   
5. Append actions from the action group: Instant, scheduled, and/or recurring.
   
6. Select the action and furnish their properties from within each action accordingly. 

Notes:

1. If you have chosen an action group to run for records coming via specific transitions, then they get the precedence in terms of execution.
   
2. If action groups are configured for both specific transitions and 'All Transitions,' the specific transition action group will run first, followed by the 'All Transitions' action group.
   
3. If you have selected to run for specific records, then it applies for all action groups created for that stage.
   
4. You cannot uncheck the run for specific records once selected. You have to delete the action group and redo the configuration.
   
5. Action limits:
   

Illustrating Customer Journey in CommandCenter

1. The desired path or the journey is built with multiple stages in sequence
   
2. From the Zero moment, the behavior or action of a prospect or a customer can be observed and received using Standard and Custom Signals.
   
3. Signals trigger the transition, thereby moving the corresponding records to the appropriate stage.
   
4. Contextual actions get established as a result.
   
5. These structural components help in building journeys. Journey builder also comes with a few other components to identify, manage, and measure customer journeys: Goals, Identifiers, Logs, Deadline, and Variables.
   

Administrative components of Journey Builder 

GOALS 

1. Reaching a particular stage
   
2. Take a predefined path
   
3. Time taken to reach stage
   

IDENTIFIERS 

Note:

You can choose up to ten identifiers per transition

How does it work? 

Just for clarity: 

While identifiers are applicable for the CommandCenter suite as a whole, their role in Journey Builder is limited to attributing journeys with the respective customers’ journeys. In Path Finder, identifier helps in recording new paths and building their journey as they are discovered.

1. Signal fields lists all single-line fields available in the modules chosen in the Signal selection.
   
2. Reference fields in a transition will list all the previous transitions as breadcrumbs. By referring to one of the previous transitions, you are instructing the system to attribute the current transition to those customers that crossed that particular transition. You can use reference fields when there is no match between the two transitions, or if you want to narrow down to customers based on their historical engagement.
   

To add identifiers 

1. Go to the transition, select the Identifier tab from the sliding panel.
   
2. Based on the number of Signals, you would have as many fields to add Identifiers in.
   
3. Choose up to five unique identifying values from all of the fields. You can also use the system suggested fields for quick selection.
   

Manage Identifiers: 

1. Go to the journey and click Manage Identifier from the top-right corner, next to the Publish button.
   
2. Review the stages and transitions listed for your reference and start populating identifiers for each transition configured. 

LOGS 

DEADLINE  

1. Go to the journey, click on the Manage Variables icon from the top-right corner, near the Delete button.
   
2. You can capture records with desired attributes using user-defined variables.
   
1. Provide a name for the variable and the value. You can use the #merge fields to refer to the route.
   
2. Click Save.
   
3. You can also look at the system-defined Variables built based on transitions created.
   

Tools to enhance journey building experience 

Get into the state of flow: Shortcuts summary

1. Hover on a stage to view nodes along the mouse path.
   
2. Click on a current stage and click on the proximity handles to create a Stage adjacent to the existing one.
   
3. Click the +New button on the stages options from the elements tray to create empty stages.
   

1. Drag the Stage node and drop it to the neighboring Stage to enable transitions between them. It helps when connecting stages that are distant from one another.
   
2. Creating a stage will allow you to configure transition right next to it.
   
3. Create a transition from the elements tray by determining the stages
   

1. Pick the transition node from one stage and place them over another to rectify the configuration
   

1. Right click on the Stage or Transition to edit or delete.
   

1. Use your mouse’s scroll wheel or laptop’s trackpad.
   
2. Double-click on the zoom level to render optimal magnification.
   
3. Click on the navigation preview and pinch to magnify or shrink the entire journey.
   

1. Use your mouse’s trackpad
   
2. Click on the navigation preview and move the view-port indicator