An activity map is a tool that helps identify and understand strategic capability. It connects your organisation’s value proposition to customer needs and expectations.
The process of creating an activity map starts by identifying the key components of your value proposition. Then, you identify management activities and policies that support those core competencies. Finally, you link those management activities and policies to customers in a diagram called an activity system map (ASM).
A well-constructed activity map The Activity Map is a powerful way to communicate your strategy. To make it easier to understand, the ASM should have a clear visual structure and be organized in an intuitive manner. This allows you to easily identify strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for improvement.
The map provides a view of how your activity interacts with other activities and the market in general. An ASM can help you identify ways to improve fit between activities so that your organisation is positioned for success. It can also help you discover new products and services that your competitors may be unable to match.
To create an activity map, start by identifying the different steps of your customer’s journey. Then, determine which devices are most important in each step and how these devices interact with one another. A good way to do this is by using Adobe Experience Cloud Debugger, which is a Chrome browser plugin that allows you to inspect the contents of network requests sent by Adobe Analytics.
Once you have completed the map, it’s a good idea to share it with stakeholders. This enables you to get their feedback on whether the map agrees with their views of the business and identifies any gaps. It’s also a useful opportunity to get a reality check on how the business is progressing towards its goals.
As you complete the map, it’s important to review it regularly. This enables you to identify changes in customer behaviour and how these changes might impact the effectiveness of your organisation’s value proposition. It can also help you spot orphan activities that are no longer connected to customers and may be leading to a waste of resources.
To add a new path to an activity, right-click the node where you want the new path to begin. You can then select Add path variant to add a new variation of a previous path. For example, if a store purchase triggers a coupon email to be delivered, you can add an additional path that displays a web offer to encourage customers to visit the store again. Since a single customer can move concurrently through multiple paths that originate from the same node, you can provide coordinated experiences across channels. For example, a customer might receive a discount coupon in an email, see an advertisement on a website and then use a mobile application to redeem the coupon. By connecting these tasks in an activity, you can drive the highest value for your customers while ensuring that you are meeting your business objectives.