Customer Journey Research: Mapping Decisions, Moments & Opportunities

Why the customer journey matters

Customers don’t think in “channels” or “touchpoints”; they simply move through their lives, making decisions shaped by needs, emotions, and context. For food and drink brands, this journey is rarely linear. It may start with an advert on social media, continue in a supermarket aisle, and finish with a delivery order placed late at night.

Understanding the full customer journey means seeing not just where purchase happens, but also:

  • What sparks awareness and interest

  • How customers research, compare, and shortlist

  • Which touchpoints carry the most influence

  • Where barriers cause drop-offs or delays

  • How loyalty is built (or lost) after the purchase

At Good Sense Research (GSR), we help brands map journeys in all their messy, real-world complexity. We combine qualitative and quantitative research, observational methods, and advanced analytics to reveal:

  • The critical “moments of truth” where conversion happens

  • The pain points that frustrate and disengage customers

  • The emotional drivers that shape choice

  • The opportunities for brands to connect more effectively

What we deliver (and how)

1) Journey mapping & visualisation

Outcome: A clear, evidence-based map of how your customers move from first exposure to repeat purchase.

What we do:

  • Chart customer journeys across in-store, digital, and hybrid channels

  • Map journeys for different missions (main shop, food-to-go, treat, gifting, late-night delivery)

  • Visualise decision trees and customer flows for clarity

  • Segment journeys by demographic, occasion, or mindset

Why it matters: When teams share a single journey map, decisions about marketing, product, and service become aligned.

Case snapshot: A retailer discovered that 40% of its “treat” mission customers were abandoning baskets online due to unclear delivery windows. Adjusting communication increased completed orders.

Illustration of a customer journey from person icon to shopping cart to checkmark on wooden blocks, symbolising how Customer journey research UK visualises decision pathways and key touchpoints to optimise the purchase experience.

2) Identifying moments of truth

Outcome: Clarity on the points in the journey where decisions are truly made.

What we do:

  • Use ethnography, diaries, and digital tracking to capture in-the-moment behaviours

  • Analyse which touchpoints (ads, packaging, reviews, displays) trigger decisions

  • Quantify the impact of promotions vs. brand loyalty

  • Distinguish between “influencing” and “deciding” touchpoints

Why it matters: Not every touchpoint has equal weight. We help you invest where it matters most.

Shopper smiling while selecting packaged food from a supermarket shelf, representing how Customer journey research UK identifies key moments of truth and decision points that influence purchasing behaviour and brand choice.

3) Pain point & barrier analysis

Outcome: Evidence-led understanding of what gets in the way of purchase.

What we do:

  • Identify functional barriers (availability, pricing, delivery slots)

  • Capture emotional barriers (confusion, mistrust, perceived effort)

  • Map where and why customers abandon journeys

  • Recommend solutions to remove friction

Case snapshot: For a QSR chain, we identified that delivery app imagery was causing mistrust about portion size. Updating photography increased conversion rates significantly.

Female shopper looking uncertain while making a purchasing decision in a supermarket, illustrating how Customer journey research UK identifies pain points and barriers that influence customer choices and buying behaviour.

4) Channel & touchpoint integration

Outcome: Journeys that feel seamless to customers, even across multiple channels.

What we do:

  • Analyse journeys across physical stores, apps, websites, and delivery platforms

  • Evaluate consistency of messaging and experience

  • Recommend ways to synchronise promotions, packaging, and communications

  • Test how customers perceive and use each channel in combination

Why it matters: Customers don’t separate “online” and “offline”; they expect it all to work together.

Close-up of a person using a mobile food ordering app, selecting a salad bowl, representing how Customer journey research UK analyses digital touchpoints and channel integration to enhance the customer experience and drive conversions.

5) Post-purchase & loyalty loops

Outcome: Understanding what drives repeat behaviour, advocacy, and long-term brand connection.

What we do:

  • Track satisfaction, repeat purchase, and loyalty behaviours

  • Capture feedback on at-home usage, delivery experiences, and aftercare

  • Measure the impact of loyalty schemes, apps, and communications

  • Identify triggers for churn or switching to competitors

Case snapshot: A beverage manufacturer used loyalty loop analysis to discover that most repeat customers were being retained by recipe inspiration emails rather than discounts.

Illustration of a customer making a contactless payment for takeaway food, symbolising how Customer journey research UK explores post-purchase behaviour and loyalty loops to enhance customer retention and satisfaction.

Common challenges customer journey research solves

Marketing and operations teams working to different assumptions about customers

  • Investment spread too thinly across touchpoints instead of focused on the critical few

  • Poor integration of digital and physical experiences

  • Customers abandoning journeys before purchase due to avoidable friction

  • Loyalty programmes failing to drive true retention

Shopper comparing two snack products on a supermarket aisle, representing how Customer journey research UK uncovers decision-making challenges, product confusion, and opportunities to improve customer clarity and purchase confidence.

How we work: our process

  1. Discover – Define key customer groups, missions, and categories to explore.

  2. Map – Capture behaviours across all relevant touchpoints.

  3. Analyse – Identify moments of truth, barriers, and emotional drivers.

  4. Visualise – Create clear journey maps and dashboards for stakeholders.

  5. Activate – Build recommendations into marketing, NPD, and customer experience strategies.

Visual representation of a customer journey flowchart with wooden blocks and arrows on a yellow background, illustrating how Customer journey research UK maps decision pathways, identifies key touchpoints, and optimises consumer experiences.

Typical customer journey projects

  • End-to-end journey mapping for a food-to-go retailer to improve conversion

  • Barrier analysis for a QSR delivery partner to reduce basket abandonment

  • Loyalty loop mapping for a hotel chain to optimise guest retention

  • Multi-channel journey mapping for a supermarket to align digital and in-store experiences

  • Journey segmentation by mission type for a beverage brand

Shopper scanning a sauce bottle with a smartphone in a supermarket, representing how Customer journey research UK tracks digital and in-store behaviours to understand decision-making, touchpoints, and purchase influences.

Deliverables

  • Customer journey maps and decision trees

  • Touchpoint influence analysis

  • Pain point dashboards

  • Recommendations playbooks

  • Loyalty and retention strategy guides

Shopper using a smartphone while grocery shopping, symbolising how Customer journey research UK captures real-time behaviour, decision-making, and digital touchpoints throughout the shopping experience.

Results we target

  • Higher conversion at key moments of truth

  • Reduced drop-offs across digital and physical journeys

  • Increased satisfaction through smoother journeys

  • More effective channel integration

  • Stronger loyalty and repeat purchase

Couple cooking pasta together at home, illustrating how Customer journey research UK uncovers real-life consumer behaviours, emotional triggers, and decision-making moments that shape brand experiences.

FAQs

Do you focus only on food and drink?
Yes; our expertise is rooted in the food and drink ecosystem, from farm to fork.

Can you track both online and in-store journeys?
Absolutely; most journeys now involve both, and we design our methods accordingly.

Is this only for B2C brands?
No; we also work with suppliers, manufacturers, and operators where B2B journeys are critical.

Can you update journeys over time?
Yes; we often repeat mapping projects to track how journeys evolve with technology and culture.

Shopper comparing yogurt products in a supermarket, representing how Customer journey research UK identifies key decision points, shopper motivations, and influences driving purchase choices.

Let’s map your customer journey together

When you see the customer journey clearly, you see opportunities you didn’t know existed.

Talk to us about your customer journey challenge

  • Book a discovery call

  • Request a case study

  • Arrange a journey mapping workshop

Let’s get started, shall we?

Talk to our team today about your research needs, we’d love to help.