Mapping Experiences, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 10

CHAPTER 10. Service Blueprints

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Background and history of visualizing services
• Lean techniques and diagrams
• Extending service blueprinting
• Elements of a service blueprint
• Case study: Facilitating collaborative sessions with practical service blueprinting

In my first book, Designing Web Navigation, I discuss the principle of transitional volatility. First described by David Danielson in 2003, transitional volatility is the degree of reorientation a person experiences when moving from page to page on a website. If there is too much volatility, they get lost in hyperspace.

Figure 10-1 shows this pattern of interaction. It’s a sequence of becoming accustomed to one location (habituate), forming an expectation about the next point (predict), and then adjusting to a new position (reorient). The pattern then repeats.

FIGURE 10-1. The pattern of transitional volatility across points of interaction.

We see a similar effect on a larger scale when individuals interact with an organization. Instead of page to page, they move from touchpoint to touchpoint. At each interaction there is a reorientation period, even if brief. If there is too much reorientation at each touchpoint, the experience feels disjointed.

A high degree of transitional volatility arises from an inconsistency in touchpoints. You’ve probably experienced this yourself. For instance, I once ...