Generative Research

Journey Map

If who a person is today can be defined by the sequence of decisions made in their lifetime, the question that I am faced with is: what made that person choose those paths in the first place? What critical milestones and influences paved the way? I believe that understanding these factors directly link to better analysis skills beyond just business but down to a deeper personal level. So in this blog post today, I will map the journey of a close friend of mind who I have kindly named John. The story of how John became the person he is today stems from the myriad of moments that brought him to finally choose to become a marketing major at the University of Texas at Austin. Following the critical moments in his life, I will document how a person’s daily life – as well as other factors – influence major decisions in his or her life.

I. Early Life

Now, a good story always has its traditional beginnings, so here begins John’s childhood dream to be a businessman. Early on in his life, John was exposed to the importance of making money and following his dreams. His influence for a future career path trace it’s roots back to the hard working lives of his parents. John’s mother and father were both immigrants to America bringing nothing but the desire to achieve the American Dream through hard work. They focused their careers on being entrepreneurs of owning businesses while still working traditional jobs. John’s mother had numerous businesses under her name, including two after-school learning centers, two lab-testing businesses, while still managing a medical career – all aspects filling her plate with dedication, yet she managed to come home and spend time with him and his brothers. His father, at the time, was no different. As a highly positioned engineer, John’s father constantly traveled around the world to manage the construction of numerous projects, yet he too still found time in between to be with the family.

Goals at a Young Age

            As John grew up surrounded by constantly working parents, he realized how important it is to maintain good personal interactions – both at work and at home. Though he was exposed to a plethora of career industries (i.e. medical, business, engineering, etc.), John found that the one that required the best of working hours, the most amounts of time stability, and the most profitable career would be business. His focus was on making money efficiently so that he could spend more time with his own family (compared to what his parents were able to provide) when he too would be a parent in the future.

II. High School

            By the age of 15 or 16, John’s father and mother were grooming him into the business mold. Real estate seminars, business ethics meetings, and even the family business executive seminars filled the weekly planner as weekends and weeknights were packed with anything to develop him. John emphasized how essential business books written by acclaimed authors such as Robert Kiyosaki were to the family as the family read the same books together and held weekly discussions. Prior to any college application or decision where to go, John knew with full confidence that moment he would only be a business major. With his grades, exam scores, and rankings elevated to the top-tier of his high school, his second option of anything outside the business school became out of the question. It was business or bust.

Breaking Family Tradition

            Therefore, when junior and senior year of high school rolled around, John had to decide on what type of business into which he would go. His father had a real estate background, yet the market reflected little confidence in that area. Both of John’s brothers were finance majors with minors in economics so that too played a heavy role in helping him decide, but that too did not fully appeal to him because it was very number heavy. Plus, there was a lurking feeling deep down in him that kept telling him to break the trend. Why go all in when its better to differentiate and experience something different such to build off of the family norm? Though John was still unsure of which major he would pursue in the business school, he knew that he still had time to decide when he got there. Thus, he would be open-minded to all options.

III. College

            In his first semester here at the University of Texas at Austin, John began to lean towards finance as a leading option. Not that he discredited choosing any other major, but the decision was nearly set in stone. McCombs had exposed him to plenty of career options in the field and the versatility that the major brought. Finance had been a top major choice of several college students within the business school and recognized nation wide among other public schools of business. With his family by his side, John had found his major – for now.

The Shake-Up

            Entering his second semester, John was already advanced in credits so choosing a major for good would have to come sooner than later. In his attempt to graduate early in 3 years, John took BA101S that Spring of his first year with almost 60 hours of credit. Unaware to him, his life was about to be shaken up. Every semester, professors come into each BA101S class to talk to the students about choosing their major. One by one they preach and convince the class with future potential or technical analysis or any form they can to connect with the students on their level. But to John, nothing fazed him in his decision. It would take a miracle to change his mind.

            That miracle would walk in last into that room. As John recalls the moment, he depicts a somewhat older more mature man walk in slowly and confidently to the front of the room. No PowerPoint. No fancily worded speech. Nothing. The man sat down on the table and plainly said, “Now I am not going to bore you with some speech, so let’s get down to business. Yes, all those majors are great. But you all are here to make money, right? You cannot make money if you do not sell anything. That’s marketing. That’s the link between all these majors and the customers that are out there.” The man continued on with a PowerPoint as John furthers his memory, and when the end of the presentation rolled around, the man simply put a stack of business cards on the table and walked away. A flood of people rushed to the front to grab them, and there would not be enough for everyone, including John.

The Decision

            Not remembering his name or very much about him, John did know what that man looked like and what he said. Those words he held onto closely. After that day, he thought only a miracle could change his decision to become a business major, and a miracle it was. At that point, John proudly and confidently filled out his major selection sheet under “Marketing.”

            Later on, in his Spring semester of his second year, John had unknowingly signed up for two classes taught by the very man who convinced him to become a marketing student. Sitting near the front of his class in amazement, he proudly thanked the teacher for what he said that day semesters ago. “Thank you, sir. Truly. Your speech that day was short, direct, and ever so inspiring. You are the reason that I have followed the path of marketing. I do hope to enjoy your class. By the way, my name is John, sir.” The man replied, “Why thank you, John, and I am John Highbarger.” And the rest is history.

Empathy Map

            In the marketing world, the ability to analyze consumers in order to properly empathize and segment them is an essential part to achieving success. Fully understanding the multiple aspects beyond just the very shallow surface and investigating their lives deep within provide more insight into creating a better persona to which the marketer can relate. In this blog post, I intend to empathize with my cousin, Ms. B, to better understand her from a marketing standpoint by using the six sections of the Empathy Map: Think & Feel, See, Say & Do, Hear, Pain, and Gain.

            For background purposes, I do believe it is important to note her and my relationship to establish a better foundation of this post. Ms. B is a relative of mine who was born in the agrarian plains of north Philippines and currently is in her late 30s. About nine or ten years ago, Ms. B first moved here to America, and ever since she has lived with and has been employed by my mother at an after-school learning center. In general, she is single, slowly adapting to the American culture, and aspiring to one day be a physical therapist.

            However, as a marketer these basic details are not enough to relate to her on the basis of segmentation, so this analysis of her is beyond my perspective of her; rather, this ‘persona’ detailed below is a compilation of the inner “her” who creates the person that I see on the outside. And so, let the creative juices flow and the real marketing process begin.

I. What does she think and feel?

Deep down, in the heart of Ms. B, lies a hole of an outsider – both in the family and in her environment – and with this, I believe that she intends to assimilate as best she can. Being an age where she does not fully fit in with her parents and grandparents because of her slightly younger age and her single status, Ms. B does what she can to hold on to her youth by leaning towards the family’s younger demographic. Constantly, she has engulfed herself in trendy pop music (Taylor Swift’s 22 is on constant replay), pop culture (the Miley Cyrus twerk show), and even a young (perhaps too young) of a fashion sense.

This pseudo-youthful exuberance maintains a personal satisfaction in her mind, but in the long run, Ms. B understands that she needs to grow up out of living in her aunt’s house, find a career to sustain herself, and then meet a man to marry with whom to start a family. She does not want to age into that “crazy, old aunt.” Thus, she truly feels that her goal in going out to meet men in public and focusing on her dream to be a physical therapist motivates her daily to truly fit in with the adults, a newfound home, and a career. 

Unfortunately, when it comes to her general environment and surroundings, Ms. B, being a somewhat freshly transitioned American, worries about the handicap of her Philippines-born background. She struggles with her grammar and pronunciation frequently and shows deep frustration when corrected. I do believe that her seclusion from parts of the family, as well as her delayed achievement into her chosen career, can all relate back to her own cultural obstacle. 

II. What does she see?

As previously mentioned, Ms. B works in an after-school learning center (where she spends the majority of her weekdays) and then has the weekends to herself. Her environment at work is mainly her family who run the center, high schoolers who work at the center, and children from pre-school up until high school. Outside of work, Ms. B spends vast amounts of time at the gym, the mall, her sister’s house, or hanging out with friends at bars and clubs.

Though most of her days are spent at work, the lack of autonomy there pushes the focus of her interests outside to her personal life. Her small group of friends is of the same demographic as her (single, late 30s, and Asian) that dress similar to her and some old friends back home in the Philippines that she communicates with over Skype. I do believe that Ms. B’s outgoing friends who enjoy going out influence her more than family since she can more easily connect to them.

           In terms of what appeals to her in her own personal time, Ms. B does spend most of her free time at the gym or mall. With her job paying a fair amount, I do find her to be shopping as a middle class earning single woman searching for deals and discounts in department stores such as Macy’s and Dillard’s or other smaller boutiques. As for purchases, she is easily attracted to comfortable wear, along with stylish, vibrant colored, eye-catching apparel for any number of occasions, especially at the gym. This focus in her style of shopping all ties back to her desire to look young and have fun with her friends.

III. What does she say and do?

When meeting Ms. B, the first impression that most people tend to have is that they enjoy her happy, easy-going aura. She always carries a positive attitude with her and has been held in high regards by the students’ parents at the learning center where she works. Around both the parents and students, Ms. B maintains the appropriate level of interaction (i.e. professional and friendly with adults and teacher-like and disciplinary with the students). Though she is not necessarily in the field that she wants to be in, career-wise, I do find that Ms. B shows a true content attitude with the situation that she is in because that job helped her come to America and provided a decent living for the past decade. 
Also at work, in contrast to her personal style outside of work, Ms. B stays semi-professional in her appearance – as so the job environment requires. Also, with her role as one of the head assistants, her duty is to maintain all of the paperwork entry into the computer. Such a responsibility can result in files being mixed up or even lost, yet she keeps her desk neatly organized so that her own personal system of carrying out her responsibilities are easily tracked and completed. Her work ethic is unquestioned; her personality is magnetic; and to put the bow on top, her appearance is neatly together.   

IV. What does she hear?

When it comes to trying to get into Ms. B’s ear, few actually are heard. Ms. B takes criticisms harshly and only finds them constructive when coming from close friends and very few family members. With friends being of similar likeness, Ms. B often hears praise and warm admiration of her style, general ideas, and other daily choices. Rare has it been noted when her friends contradict her viewpoints and opinions because she has a very dominant yet friendly personality – a trait that others fear upsetting.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said when it comes to what co-workers say, especially when the ones you work with and for are your own family. The older generation, including her aunt/boss, criticizes Ms. B beyond her work ethic but even her outgoing, partying, single lifestyle by advising her to settle down and grow up. The constant theme revolves around the reminder that she cannot avoid her age forever. In addition, the younger crowd tends to shun her out even though she tries so hard to fit in – an outcast amongst her boss, co-workers, and family. 
Therefore, Ms. B acts somewhat hardened to the criticisms of her family, acknowledging the fact that her current status does not align with that of the family. Instead, she focuses her life on what does make her happy: Praise. I would not put it to her friends to be those who influence her since their praise seems to only boost her pride and reinforce her style of living. If anything, the only thing that influences Ms. B is what makes her feel better about herself, and that comes from the kind words from her friends and the parents at work with whom she interacts with on a daily basis.  

V. What are her pain points?

Though this battle between her family and friend’s comments outwardly show little effect upon Ms. B, internally I do believe it is a completely different story. I find that her need to be elevated by her peers who are in the same situation as her is just a coping mechanism to what truly bothers her: what her family is saying is right. Within numerous families, there is that old, single aunt who goes around criticizing other people’s lives yet goes home alone every night. This family is no different. As an outcast at only her late 30s, Ms. B deep down can extrapolate a similar future if she cannot find that man and career to help her settle down – a life she fears is very possible. 
As aforementioned in the first section, Ms. B is trying to have the life that everyone envisions for her. She does want a man with whom to settle down, and she is studying non-stop to pass the physical therapist exam. But dreams do not occur overnight. They take time to develop as well as the right timing and opportunity. Yes, the daily reminders are important, but they do irk her since her nightlife is geared towards finding a man, specifically. With this move to America, these past few years have proven to be a more challenging obstacle than she would have hoped.

VI. What does she hope to gain?

Despite this hurdle, Ms. B believes that she is an intelligent and hard-working woman who can independently find success. She is motivated to assimilate better into the American culture and become a practicing physical therapist.  After years of working in the same position under her aunt, I know that Ms. B wants to finally make it on her own. In addition, I can conclude that she does want to have the traditional life that the adults in the family have, including one similar to that of her older sister who has been married for over a decade and has two children.

In her mind, success can be measured in the small strides that bring her closer to the goal of her ideal life. Having her own family and a career: these are not final destinations but steps leading to one. By achieving these two, maybe then the adults in the family can finally accept her as one of them. 

Conclusion

            In summary, what I have presumed about Ms. B initially was based on my brief experiences with her. I never really looked at her through a deeper lens to view what she experiences daily. Even though this whole persona was created in my own image of her, I believe that I have found a way to better understand a woman whose struggle and constant drive for happiness are not just aspects of her life but the cycle that defines it.