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Here’s the Buzz: The Gen Z Coffee Journey

asian woman working and enjoy weekend with online social connection

We recently finished a remote journey mapping project with Gen Z college students to understand their experience buying coffee at a coffee shop (to learn more about our approach including the tools we used, check out our blog, Remote Journey Mapping: A Coffee Journey). Based on the students’ input prior to our collaboration session, we condensed the experience into a simple, five phase journey:

  • Decide Where to Buy
  • Decide What to Order
  • Order and Pay
  • Pick Up Coffee
  • Drink Coffee

Our Gen Z college students were energetic, fully engaged and excited to share their thoughts and ideas as they helped co-create the coffee buying experience. While we learned a lot about their experience and their ‘Java Journey’, a few learnings stood out for us…

  • These college students are not loyal to one coffeeshop or brand. They visit a variety of coffee shops for different reasons – scenarios like needing a quick cup before class, a place to study or a spot to meet friends impact where they might go.
  • They are hesitant to order a new coffee beverage and tend to stick with what they know. Trying something new can feel stressful and overwhelming – what if they don’t like it and feel like they’ve wasted money?
  • They recognize buying coffee from a coffee shop is expensive. Despite knowing it’s expensive, it is something they “don’t want to give up”, so they “try not to think about it”.
  • They like watching the process of the barista making their coffee. They think it’s fun to see the coffee being made and progress into a finished drink, but they also want to watch to make sure their order is done right.
  • Overall, buying coffee from a coffee shop is a happy experience. College students expressed feelings of excitement and relief throughout the journey. Coffee helps give them what they need for staying motivated and productive with their schoolwork.

We developed a more detailed journey map, but we also created this short and sweet infographic using Canva to bring their journey to life, in their own words.

Java-Journey-Infographic

If you want to chat more about journey mapping reach out!

Jennifer Cuthill
Jennifer@clearworks.net

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