Mapping the Real Peak and End of a Post-Purchase Journey
Objective: Given a company's real post-purchase touchpoint sequence (order confirmation through the first re-order email), identify the actual emotional peak and end versus the intended ones, and propose one fix for whichever is weaker.
You're a CX analyst at Honasa Consumer (Mamaearth). The brand assumes its 'unboxing moment' is the peak of the customer journey, but nobody has actually mapped it against the peak-end rule.
List every touchpoint from order confirmation to the first re-order nudge, mark the intended peak and end, then identify what's actually most likely to be remembered.
Before you start
What you'll need
Free path (everything below is enough to finish)
Free, simple enough for a 6-row journey map
Free, fastest way to validate the assumed peak/end against real memory
Paid upgrades (optional, faster/deeper)
Better analytics and segmentation than Google Forms once the sample grows past a pilot
No access? Google Forms handles a 5-10 person pilot at zero cost
The process
2 steps
Step 01 of 02
Memory of an experience is roughly the average of its emotional peak and its end, duration and the forgettable middle barely register. There are two selves: the experiencing self living every moment, and the remembering self deciding whether to come back.
Below are 6 real touchpoints in Mamaearth's post-purchase journey. Rank them by likely emotional intensity (not company intent) and mark which one is the actual peak.
Procedure
- List touchpoints: order confirmation email, shipping delay SMS, package arrival, unboxing (branded box + sample sachets), first product use, day-14 re-order reminder email
- Score each 1-5 for actual likely emotional intensity based on the copy/experience described, not company intent
- Circle the single highest-scoring touchpoint, that's the real peak
- Note whether the real peak matches what the brand assumes is the peak (the unboxing)
Touchpoint Intended Emotion Actual Intensity Notes Order confirmation Reassurance 2 Generic, forgettable Shipping delay SMS (none, ops msg) 4 Unintended negative peak, no apology or compensation Package arrival Excitement 3 Neutral, just a box on a doorstep Unboxing (branded box+samples) Delight 4 Genuinely well-designed, ties with the delay First product use Satisfaction 3 Depends on skin match, out of brand's control Day-14 re-order email Urgency 2 Generic discount code, no personalization
Healthy
The real peak is identified even when it's negative (the shipping delay SMS scored as high as the unboxing), and that's flagged as a risk, not ignored.
Unhealthy
Assuming the unboxing is automatically the peak just because it's the touchpoint the brand designed most carefully.
What this means
An unaddressed negative touchpoint (the delay SMS) can tie or beat your best-designed positive touchpoint for emotional intensity, and negative peaks are remembered just as strongly as positive ones.
So what do I do about it?
| Symptom | Action | Effort |
|---|---|---|
| A negative touchpoint scores as high as your best designed moment | Add an apology + small compensation to the delay SMS so it can't out-compete the unboxing as the peak | 30 min |
Step 02 of 02
The last email in a sequence, the order-confirmation page, the cancellation flow, are remembered disproportionately. Spend design budget on the end, not just the splashy first touchpoint.
Of the 6 touchpoints, which one is functionally 'the end' of this journey, and does it currently earn that weight?
Procedure
- Send a 3-question form: 'What's the last thing you remember from your order?', 'How did that make you feel?', 'What would have made it better?'
- Compare responses against your assumption of what 'the end' is (the day-14 re-order email)
- Write one specific redesign for the end touchpoint based on the responses
Q: What's the last thing you remember from your order? 4/8 respondents: 'the generic discount email' (negative/neutral) 3/8 respondents: 'nothing, I don't remember' (no end at all) 1/8 respondents: 'a thank you note in the box' (positive, but this was the unboxing, not the actual end) Finding: the real 'end' (day-14 email) is currently the weakest touchpoint in the journey, not the strongest.
Healthy
The redesign proposal targets the actual end touchpoint respondents named, not the touchpoint the brand assumed was the end.
Unhealthy
Redesigning the unboxing again because it's already the team's favorite touchpoint to work on.
What this means
If customers can't name an 'end' at all, the journey doesn't have one designed, it just stops. That is itself the finding.
So what do I do about it?
| Symptom | Action | Effort |
|---|---|---|
| Customers report no memorable 'end' to the journey | Replace the generic day-14 discount email with a personalized note referencing their specific product | half day |
Final deliverable
A 6-touchpoint journey map scored for emotional intensity, with the actual peak and end identified and one concrete redesign proposed for the weaker of the two.
See a reference example
Nykaa post-purchase journey, peak/end map (excerpt) Touchpoint Actual Intensity Role Order confirmation 2 Neither Delivery running late SMS 4 Unintended peak (negative, no compensation offered) Unboxing 3 Intended peak, underperforms Re-order reminder 2 Intended end, weakest touchpoint in the sequence Finding: fix the delay SMS first, it's currently the strongest emotional moment in the journey and it's negative.
Success criteria
You're done when you can:
- All 6 touchpoints are scored and the actual (not assumed) peak is correctly identified
- The redesign proposal targets the touchpoint customer responses actually named, not the brand's assumption