ROI Case File No.209 | 'The Disconnected Customer Experience of Western European Apparel'

Chapter 1: Light and Shadow of Omnichannel Strategy—The Illusion of Integration

The week after the HealthTech Solutions human-centered design case was resolved, a sophisticated client arrived from Western Europe.

"Detective, we should have achieved cutting-edge omnichannel strategy, yet customers are leaving us."

Marco Bernardi, Customer Experience Director of EuroStyle Fashion, couldn't hide his bewilderment. In his hands was a performance report from a digital transformation project that invested 10 billion yen over three years.

"As a traditional European fashion brand, we built seamless customer experiences integrating e-commerce sites, physical stores, mobile apps, and social media."

EuroStyle Fashion's Omnichannel Investment: - E-commerce platform renewal: 3.5 billion yen - Store digitalization (POS/inventory systems): 2.8 billion yen - Mobile app development: 1.8 billion yen - Customer data integration platform: 1.9 billion yen - Total investment: 10 billion yen (3 years)

Technical integration was indeed impressive. However, Marco's expression remained troubled.

"One year has passed since investment, but we haven't achieved expected results. Rather, customer satisfaction has declined."

Post-Omnichannel Implementation Results: - Sales growth rate: Target +15% → Actual +3% (significantly underachieved) - Customer satisfaction: 4.2/5 → 3.6/5 (deteriorated) - Repeat purchase rate: 68% → 54% (deteriorated) - App downloads: Target 500,000 → Actual 120,000 (24% achievement)

"What puzzles us most is that individual channels function fine, yet overall customer experience has declined."

Chapter 2: Fragmented Customer Experience—Invisible Disconnections

"Mr. Marco, what specific problems are occurring?"

Holmes asked gently.

Marco pulled out a customer feedback collection.

"Customers frequently say it's 'difficult to use' and 'troublesome,' but we can't identify specific problem points."

Representative Customer Feedback:

"I wanted to check a product I saw online at the store, but staff didn't know the details." (30-year-old woman)

"Got a sale notification on the app, but it wasn't displayed on the website." (40-year-old man)

"Wanted to return a store purchase online, but the process was too complex." (50-year-old woman)

"Made to input the same information multiple times across different channels." (20-year-old woman)

I noticed a common pattern in customer voices.

"All feedback indicates 'lack of coordination between channels.'"

Marco sighed deeply.

"Exactly. Everything should be technically integrated, yet actual customer experience shows disconnections."

Individual Channel Performance:

E-commerce Site: - Monthly visitors: 1.2 million (target achieved) - Conversion rate: 2.8% (industry average) - Average session duration: 4 minutes 15 seconds (good)

Physical Stores: - Store visitors: Monthly 450,000 (+5% year-over-year) - Purchase rate: 32% (industry average) - Average transaction: 18,000 yen (+8% year-over-year)

Mobile App: - Monthly active users: 80,000 - Push notification open rate: 15% (industry average) - In-app purchase rate: 4.2%

"Individual numbers aren't bad, so why does overall satisfaction decline?"

Chapter 3: The Gaps Revealed by JOURNEY Mapping—Absence of Customer Perspective

⬜️ ChatGPT | Catalyst of Vision

"Customer experience must be a 'continuous story.' Disconnections create disappointment."

🟧 Claude | Alchemist of Narratives

"JOURNEY mapping converts customer journeys into narratives. If there are disconnections, the story breaks down."

🟦 Gemini | Compass of Reason

"Let's integrate customer touchpoints with JOURNEY mapping and make experience consistent."

The three members began analysis. Gemini deployed the "Customer Journey Map" framework on the whiteboard.

Customer Journey Map Elements: 1. Awareness 2. Interest 3. Consideration 4. Purchase 5. Experience 6. Loyalty

"Mr. Marco, let's examine the specific journey actual customers follow."

Typical Customer Journey Analysis:

Phase 1: Awareness Stage - Touchpoint: Instagram advertisement - Customer Experience: Discovered attractive product images - Emotion: Interest, anticipation - Problem: None

Phase 2: Interest Stage - Touchpoint: E-commerce site visit - Customer Experience: Checked product details, size and color options - Emotion: Growing interest - Problem: Can't judge actual fit or texture

Phase 3: Consideration Stage - Touchpoint: Physical store visit (to check product) - Customer Experience: Asked staff about product seen online - Emotion: Confusion, irritation - Problem: Staff unaware of online product details

Phase 4: Purchase Stage - Touchpoint: In-store purchase decision - Customer Experience: Online membership information not utilized - Emotion: Annoyance, disappointment - Problem: Need to re-enter personal information

Phase 5: Experience Stage - Touchpoint: Product use, app styling suggestions - Customer Experience: App suggestions not linked to purchased products - Emotion: Disappointment, distrust - Problem: Purchase history not reflected in app

Phase 6: Loyalty Stage - Touchpoint: Considering repeat purchase - Customer Experience: Past purchase history and preferences not utilized - Emotion: Disappointment, departure - Problem: Personalization not functioning

Claude made a shocking observation.

"This is serious. EuroStyle Fashion achieved 'technical integration' but completely failed to achieve 'experiential integration.'"

Seven Disconnection Points Discovered by Journey Mapping:

1. Information Disconnection: Product information not unified across channels
2. Knowledge Disconnection: Store staff unaware of online information
3. Data Disconnection: Customer data not linked in real-time
4. Experience Disconnection: No consistent experience design across channels
5. Emotional Disconnection: Customer emotional states not carried between channels
6. Value Disconnection: Values provided by each channel not linked
7. Expectation Disconnection: Gap between customer expectations and actual experience

Chapter 4: The Perspective of Connecting Stories—Challenge to Consistency

Detailed customer behavior research revealed the depth of the problem.

Specific Problems Identified by Journey Analysis:

Technical Integration vs. Experience Integration Gap:

Technical Integration (Achieved): - Inventory data integration: ✓ - Customer database integration: ✓ - Payment system integration: ✓ - Point system integration: ✓

Experience Integration (Not Achieved): - Information consistency: × (Different product descriptions per channel) - Staff knowledge integration: × (Stores unaware of online information) - Personalization: × (Past history not utilized) - Emotional continuity: × (Expectations reset when changing channels)

Competitor Comparison:

Success Case A (Journey Integration Type): - Technical investment: 60% of EuroStyle's - Customer satisfaction: 4.6/5 (+1.0 vs. EuroStyle) - Feature: Emphasis on cross-channel experience design - Repeat purchase rate: 79% (1.5x EuroStyle's)

Success Case B (Simple Integration Type): - Omnichannel functionality: Limited - Customer satisfaction: 4.4/5 (+0.8 vs. EuroStyle) - Feature: Consistent experience with few touchpoints - Brand loyalty: 85%

EuroStyle Fashion's Fundamental Design Mistakes:

1. Technology-First Integration Approach
2. System integration became the goal
3. Customer experience design deferred

4. Continued departmental silos

5. Unclear Role Division Between Channels

6. Each channel having independent functions
7. Unclear usage guidelines for customers

8. Confusion from overlapping functions

9. Insufficient Experience Design Penetration to Employees

10. Conducted technical training but no experience training
11. Poor understanding of customer journeys
12. Lack of information sharing between departments

Marco was stunned.

"We thought 'omnichannel' was a technical challenge, but it was actually an 'experience design' challenge."

Chapter 5: The Detective's JOURNEY Analysis—Repairing Disconnected Experience

Holmes compiled the comprehensive analysis.

"Mr. Marco, the essence of Customer Journey Mapping is 'making customer stories consistent.' Technical integration alone cannot achieve true customer experience."

Journey-Integrated Omnichannel Strategy:

Phase 1: Experience Design Reconstruction (6 months)

1. Customer Journey Redesign - Clarify expectations at each touchpoint - Optimize role division between channels - Experience flow emphasizing emotional continuity

2. Disconnection Point Resolution - Specific solutions for each of the seven disconnection points - Real-time information coordination system construction - Staff education program renewal

3. Consistency Indicator Introduction - Journey-wide satisfaction measurement - Expectation fulfillment during channel transitions - Experience consistency scoring

Phase 2: Organizational Structure Transformation (3 months)

1. New Customer Experience Organization - Cross-channel experience management responsibility assignment - Experience quality management at each touchpoint - Centralized customer feedback

2. Employee Education Systematization - Journey understanding training for all employees - Systematized cross-channel information sharing - Customer-perspective behavioral evaluation system

Phase 3: Continuous Improvement System (Ongoing)

1. Journey Optimization PDCA Cycle - Monthly journey analysis - Immediate customer feedback reflection - Early detection and resolution of new disconnection points

2. Experience Value Visualization - Journey-wide ROI measurement - Quantify sales/satisfaction improvement through experience enhancement - Incorporate experience indicators into investment decisions

"What's important is subordinating technology to customer experience. Integration should be experience-driven, not technology-driven."

Chapter 6: Creating Consistent Narratives

Fifteen months later, a report arrived from EuroStyle Fashion.

Journey-Integrated Omnichannel Results:

Dramatic Customer Experience Improvement: - Customer satisfaction: 3.6/5 → 4.5/5 (significant improvement) - Repeat purchase rate: 54% → 76% (target achieved) - Cross-channel transition satisfaction: 2.8/5 → 4.3/5 (dramatic improvement) - Brand loyalty: +65% improvement

Disconnection Point Resolution Results: - Information consistency: 95%+ achieved - Staff knowledge sharing: All staff can access online information - Real-time data coordination: 99% accuracy achieved - Personalization: 89% purchase history utilization rate

Business Results: - Sales growth rate: +3% → +18% (significantly exceeded target) - Omnichannel customer purchase amount: 2.4x single-channel customers - App downloads: 480,000 (96% of target achieved) - Employee engagement: +42% improvement

Marco's letter conveyed deep learning:

"Customer Journey Mapping enabled us to shift thinking from 'technical integration' to 'experience integration.' By making customer stories consistent, we achieved true omnichannel experience. Most important was designing 'how customers feel' at each touchpoint. Now customers evaluate us as 'easy to use' and 'consistent,' and we feel technology investment is creating true value."

Detective's Perspective—The Invisible Value Called Experience

That night, reflecting on the case, I considered.

The EuroStyle Fashion case demonstrated fundamental challenges in the digital age. Technical integration and experiential integration are completely different concepts—the former alone cannot create true customer value.

The true value of Customer Journey Mapping lay in viewing customer experience as a "story" and designing its consistency. Customers use multiple channels but remember them as one continuous experience in their hearts. If that story has disconnections, no matter how technically superior, it leads to disappointment.

"True omnichannel isn't technology integration. It's experience integration."

In modern business, customer touchpoint diversification advances. But the more touchpoints increase, the more important consistent experience design becomes. Technology is a means, not an end. It should be used as a tool for beautifully weaving customer stories.

"Customer experience is a story. And beautiful stories are born from consistency. Disconnected stories, no matter how luxurious individual chapters may be, only disappoint readers."—From the Detective's Notes