Selecting relevant layers

Choosing the right layers determines whether your journey map drives action or collects dust. Start by clarifying your map's purpose and audience.^[1] A map for executives improving customer satisfaction needs different layers than one for developers fixing technical issues. Executive maps might emphasize emotions and business metrics, while technical maps focus on systems and data flows.

Consider your organization's maturity and readiness. Teams new to journey mapping should start with 3-4 essential layers: actions, emotions, data, and touchpoints. These provide enough insight without overwhelming viewers. Advanced teams can add specialized layers like business metrics, compliance requirements, or competitive comparisons. Each additional layer should answer a specific question or support a clear decision.

Match layers to actionable outcomes. If your goal is reducing support calls, include a questions layer showing the most comment enquiries from customers at each stage. For conversion optimization, add a barriers layer highlighting obstacles. For digital transformation, map current versus future state in parallel layers. The best journey maps use only layers that directly inform planned improvements.