tool 4 of 12 · class 6 · design for market

customer journey map

The path one customer takes from first hearing about you to becoming a regular, with what they think, feel, and do at each step, and where it breaks today.

instrument · unit economics on one pagedue before class 7 · Oct 6venture book chapter · the business model

what you make

Customer journey map

The path one customer takes from first hearing about you to becoming a regular, with what they think, feel, and do at each step, and where it breaks today.

The journey map is where the product gets designed. Every screen, email, and moment you build later is a point on this map.

Unit economics on one page

Price, cost to make or serve one unit, cost to get one customer, and how many times a customer buys. Four numbers, one page, with a source for each.

Market sizing tells you how big the pool is. Unit economics tells you whether swimming in it pays. Class 13 comes back to these numbers.

what good looks like

  • 01
    The map has a real starting point (where they first hear about you), not just 'sign up.'
  • 02
    At least one step is marked as broken today, with a quote from research.
  • 03
    Every number on the unit economics page has a source or is labeled as a guess.
  • 04
    You can say in one sentence whether one customer makes or loses money, and by how much.

how to do it

  1. 01
    Lay out the steps from first contact to loyal customer. Use sticky notes or a table.
  2. 02
    For each step, write what the customer does, thinks, and feels. Pull from interviews.
  3. 03
    Mark the two steps that hurt most. Those are where the prototype starts.
  4. 04
    Fill in the four numbers. Price you plan to charge, cost to serve one, cost to acquire one, purchases per customer.
  5. 05
    Do the arithmetic. Then write what would have to change for it to work.

the template

Unit economics on one page

Print this page, or copy the structure into your Venture Book. Every line is meant to be filled in.

Price per unit (what one customer pays, per purchase)
Cost to make or serve one unit
Gross margin per unit (price minus cost)
Cost to acquire one customer (marketing spend divided by new customers)
Purchases per customer over their lifetime (your best guess, with a reason)
Lifetime value (margin per unit times purchases)
Lifetime value divided by acquisition cost (above 3 is healthy, below 1 loses money)
What would have to change for this to work
back to class 6

where it comes from