{"id":1116740,"date":"2023-07-29T05:05:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-29T12:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.questionpro.com\/blog\/?p=1116740"},"modified":"2026-09-29T05:27:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T12:27:13","slug":"volkswagen-customer-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.questionpro.com\/blog\/volkswagen-customer-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Volkswagen Customer Journey: A Map, Its Stages, and CX Lessons You Can Use"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Volkswagen customer journey is a public example of how a global automaker designs its customer experience across search, purchase, and ownership. Volkswagen’s Chief Experience Officer, Dr. Markus Kleimann, shared the map through the Volkswagen Newsroom, giving outsiders a rare look at how the brand connects its website, dealers, in-car systems, and support hotline into one strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The map breaks the journey into three stages: before use, while use, and after use. Each stage lists the customer’s actions next to the touchpoint that supports it, so teams across the company can see exactly where a gap in service or communication might occur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we’ll walk through Volkswagen’s customer journey stage by stage, compare its approach to other automakers, and show how to build a similar journey map for your own business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

What is a customer journey map?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A customer journey map<\/a> is a visual chart of every step, action, and touchpoint a customer experiences with a brand, from first contact to loyalty. It turns a customer’s path into stages a team can study and improve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three related terms often get mixed up. The customer journey is the actual sequence of steps a buyer takes. A customer journey map is the visual document that records that sequence. Customer experience, often shortened to CX, is the broader discipline of managing how a customer feels at each of those steps. For a deeper breakdown of the format, see this guide to creating a customer journey map<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Volkswagen’s version adds one more layer. It separates the journey by use case, such as purchase, drive, charge, and update, so each department knows exactly which touchpoint belongs to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does the Volkswagen customer journey map example look like?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Volkswagen’s customer journey map example centers on its electric vehicle division and lines up customer actions against three usage stages. The chart below reflects the structure Volkswagen shared through its newsroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n
Journey stage<\/th>\n Customer actions<\/th>\n Key touchpoints<\/th>\n <\/tr>\n <\/thead>\n
Before use<\/td>\n Inform, seek advice, buy<\/td>\n Website and dealer network<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
While use<\/td>\n Navigate, drive, park, charge at home, charge on the go, charge at work<\/td>\n HMI (in-car touchscreen display), Wallbox, We Connect app<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n
After use<\/td>\n Update, purchase extra functions, use service and workshops<\/td>\n Customer Care hotline<\/td>\n <\/tr>\n <\/tbody>\n <\/table>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Each row exists because a real customer need sits behind it. A driver who charges at work has a different touchpoint than one who charges at home, so Volkswagen tracks them separately instead of grouping every charging moment into one line item.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does Volkswagen guide customers before purchase?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before a purchase, Volkswagen focuses on awareness, consideration, and decision, the three stages that shape most automotive customer journeys. The brand tailors its message before a shopper ever sits in a car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Volkswagen runs two distinct advertising styles side by side. One uses traditional colors and messaging aimed at conventional buyers. The other uses bright colors and bolder design to reach a younger, less traditional audience. Both point back to the same digital ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That ecosystem includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n