Maptitude Mapping Software Logo

MAPTITUDE BLOG

Sales Territory Mapping Software Buyers Guide for 2024

Stewart Berry

Author: Stewart Berry

Mapping software buying guide

Is your organization looking for sales territory mapping software and wondering which brand is the best? Are you tired of being deceived by “top 10” product reviews that don’t use real customer testimonials? If so, and you need help deciding which brand to buy (and which to avoid), keep reading. Below is the most comprehensive overview of the tools available, including rankings based on user reviews as well as my own market assessment of the top 25 territory applications.

Territory realignments face typical software project issues. 20% of such projects fail and over 52% face major challenges. Only 22% are successful.1 But you can limit issues by picking the right brand.

When you make the right choice the benefits of territory mapping are clear and have the potential to hugely improve your sales numbers, through:

  • Increased revenue: Organizations that invest in territory management technology see a 7% yearly increase in sales purely through territory redesign, as well as 14% higher sales objective achievement than the average business. (Source: Xactly)
  • Reduced turnover: Sales reps who are assigned to territories that are well-aligned with their skills and experience are more likely to stay with their company. A study by the Aberdeen Group found that companies with a well-defined territory management process had a 30% lower sales turnover rate than those without. (Source: Aberdeen Group)
  • Lower cost of sales: When sales reps can focus their efforts on the most profitable accounts, it can lead to a lower cost of sales. A study by the Gartner Group found that companies with a well-defined territory management process had a 15% lower cost of sales than those without. (Source: Gartner Group)
  • Improved efficiencies: Sales territory alignment mapping can help to improve the efficiency of your sales team by ensuring that they are spending their time in the most productive way possible. A study by the McKinsey Group found that companies with a well-defined territory management process were able to increase their sales productivity by 10%. (Source: McKinsey Group)
  • Greater intelligence: Sales territory alignment mapping can help you to gain a better understanding of your customers and your market. This information can be used to develop more effective sales strategies and to target your marketing efforts more precisely. (Source: Xactly)

In this guide, I reveal the most highly rated territory alignment applications. I also share what features users and researchers rate highest, so you know which apps to avoid. I use independent 3rd party review sites to allow you to pick the right product.

In this article:

How I Found the Best Performing Territory Mapping Applications

To determine the most recommended territory applications, I analyzed data from consumers to get a true perspective.

Wherever possible, I used validated users of the GIS (geographic Information System) brands mentioned in this guide. Nothing speaks to this topic more clearly than people who own these brands and use them regularly.

I’ve taken time to analyze hundreds of reviews from sites like G2 and Capterra to provide a balanced view of what business users think. I link directly to these websites to allow you to compare the products yourself.

What Sales Territory Mapping Software Users Say

Territory mapping applications are a type of GIS (Geographical Information Software). Most reviews are for GIS and are not specific to territory mapping. This reduces the number of reviews available in this sub-category.

I identified two sites specifically covering this topic: SourceForge and SoftwareAdvice. They both allow sorting by average rating. The only brand featuring in the top 5 of both lists is Maptitude. Maptitude is ranked in first place on SourceForge. Only one other product, RealZips, was reviewed and had a single response.

What Mapping Software Users Say

More mapping software reviews are available when not limited to territory apps. Capterra and G2 are popular review sites. When sorting by highest rated, Maptitude is again in the top 5. Top-rated products appearing on multiple sites included:

G2 allows you to compare products side-by-side. I looked at the products for the top-ranking vendors. You can see that the ratings are quite close for the four offerings. However, Maptitude consistently has the highest scores for “Features.”

These competitors mention territory tools on their websites: Esri/ArcGIS/ArcMaps, Carto, and Maptitude. The next highest G2 ranked products that have territory functionality are: MapInfo Pro and QGIS.

SoftwareReviews takes a deep dive into how users feel about mapping brands. Each year they publish their Geographic Information Systems Emotional Footprint Awards. Hexagon GeoMedia and Maptitude received multiple best GIS (Geographic Information System) awards.

However, GeoMedia does not appear to have territory functionality. The reviews available did not mention territories. Also, searching on ‘hexagon geomedia "sales territories"’ returned no relevant results.

Maptitude was classified as a “Champion” according to the comprehensive online survey. SoftwareReviews' Net Emotional Footprint measures high-level user sentiment. It aggregates emotional ratings from 26 questions, creating an indicator of the overall user feeling toward a product. Maptitude received a Net Emotional Footprint of +80 and exceeded user expectations in being trustworthy. In general, GIS users were most satisfied with vendors providing remarkable service experiences.

Maptitude was also a 2022 SoftwareReviews Gold Medal Award winner, being recognized as an outstanding vendor in the technology marketplace as evaluated by users. Gold Medals are the capstone of an in-depth software evaluation report, and awarded using a proprietary, transparent methodology. This composite satisfaction score averages four different areas of evaluation: Net Emotional Footprint, Vendor Capabilities, Product Features, and Likeliness to Recommend.

 Start Mapping Now 

Purchase Advice

Hierarchies

The Capterra buying guide makes one mention of territories. They note that “an enterprise or premium product that is priced higher may include additional features such as advanced market analysis tools, sales territory hierarchy, and advanced map sharing.”

You must check the software price for hierarchies if you want to map districts and sales regions.

Features

The Sales Management Association (SMA)2 conducted a survey on sales territory design. Based on the answers, it is advisable that the chosen application provide:

  1. Automated territory balancing to avoid manual territory creation errors
  2. Several balancing measures to ensure equitable territory design
  3. Balancing on territory size to prevent too large or too small territories
  4. Rebalancing of territories based on new data
  5. Import of data by territory
  6. Import of existing spreadsheet territory data
  7. Learning materials, human support teams, videos, webinars, and tutorials to ensure effective use
  8. Technology for the visualization of sales data and for travel/route optimization
  9. The different levels of geography used by the organization (e.g., postal/ZIP Codes, Census Tracts, Counties, States/Provinces)
  10. An easy-to-use interface so that periodic territory planning does not require retraining of staff

After-Purchase Advice

According to research3, mapping software failure has three causes. The mapping brand chosen can help avoid these pitfalls.

1. The Ability Factor

The application should minimize the learning of new skills. You should ask, does the territory tool:

Managing external data sources can cause project failure. At a minimum, diverse data tables should easily open. Ideally, most of the data required should be provided as part of the purchase.

2. The Effort Factor

The application should not be hard to use. You should ask, does the territory tool make it easy to:

  • Be accessed by your analysts?
  • Share results?
  • Onboard new analysts?

Problems accessing and using software can cause project failure. At a minimum the chosen territory design platform should allow online sharing. Ideally, most of the features required should be wizard driven to simplify the process.

3. The Support Factor

The application should not require unique IT support. Training should be minimal. You should ask, does the territory tool:

  • Require new IT support?
  • Have many non-standard elements?
  • Require specialized hardware?
  • Require training and are courses available/free?

Unusual technology requirements can cause project failure. At a minimum a Windows style interface should be provided. Ideally, single document management should be supported: GIS systems are notorious for complex file management issues4. Also, Cloud access to maps would allow operating system independence.

 Start Mapping Now 

Territory Tools Must Haves

The range of features available in a districting app can be daunting and makes it hard to assess what is truly important. Here are some of the major items you need to have on your checklist.

A Setup Wizard

To get started quickly there should be a Setup Wizard for importing region, county, or postal data directly into a new territory layer. The typical steps supported should be to:

  1. Choose the territory fields in an input table (e.g., territories, districts, regions)
  2. Choose the area field in an input table, such as postal zones
  3. Seamlessly merge areas based on the territory codes
  4. Automatically compute the attributes of the new areas
  5. Create overlaps in as many places as required
  6. Effectively visualize coincident territories
  7. Display the map
Sales area mapping software can create overlapping territories

Sales area mapping software allows you to create overlapping territories. You can then visualize them with an "edge-based" color theme.

A Territory Manager

A Territory Manager helps you modify your alignments without having to learn a whole new interface. There should be a dedicated toolbar that allows you to:

  1. Balance your territories by any variable (e.g., population, number of customers, or sales volume).
  2. Use point-and-click and lasso tools to move features from one territory to another.
  3. For each territory, view demographic totals (such as high-income earning households by Postal/ZIP Code).
  4. For each territory, view a count of the number of combined zones and assigned reps.
  5. Manage territory overlap and hierarchies.
Sales territory mapping by ZIP Code showing balanced franchise territories created with Maptitude territory optimization software

Sales territory mapping by ZIP Code. Grouping ZIP Code territories balanced by sales, customers, population, or other values. Maptitude territory optimization software.

Automated Territory Creation Using Areas

Automatic territory creation tools simplify the territory building process by reducing the initial hands-on effort required. Territories can be balanced to have equal numbers of customers, sales, population, etc. Methods include:

  • Partitioning that organizes postal zones, counties, or other regions into territories. This method uses proximity or similarity to produce contiguous, compact, and balanced territories. Partitioning supports service territory alignment, sales and marketing, redistricting, and many other applications.
  • Clustering that organizes customers, facilities, or areas into groups. These groups are compact and can be serviced efficiently. Territories can be restricted to a certain size (e.g., the maximum population or customer count). Clustering is flexible and solves many problems such as sales force deployment.
Maptitude sales territory mapping software can automatically create balanced territories from groups of features

Territory mapping software should be able to automatically create balanced territories from groups of features

Maptitude territory planning software can cluster and organize features into compact groups

Territory planning software should automatically cluster and organize features into compact groups

Esat Angun

We use Maptitude extensively for running complex Territory Alignment scenarios. The depth of the product, its total utility and functionality is immense. Import-Export capability with Excel is seamless. It is easy to work with and Maptitude support is second to none. My complements to the Maptitude team: They have created a solid product and it is one of the best software investments we have made as an organization.”

  Esat Angun
Director - Sales Operations, Octapharma, USA

Automated Territory Creation Using Streets

An automized street-based territory tool provides advanced zone creation capabilities. Rather than abstract areas, the actual roads travelled are used to create alignments. Territories can be created around locations using the:

  • time it takes to travel along roads
  • distance travelled
  • facility weight (e.g., facility size, number of clients, or revenue)

Sales representatives can then visualize market assignments, market coverage, and lists of locations, all based on travels costs.

Map created with territory management software with territories around hospitals that are based on travel time to the nearest hospital

Territory management software includes a territory mapping tool for creating street-based territories. The map shows the shortest travel time zones to various hospitals.

Aaron Wesson

A wonderful territory mapping program and then some! Ease of moving territories, obtaining census data and plotting territories to that data. Beautiful interface and several ways to customize the product and exports. The ability to pull in my older MapPoint files and data was a huge plus! Great video tutorials that help you get started as well.”

 Aaron Wesson
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology

National or International Territory Creation

Territories may cover multiple countries or even the entire world. If so, the product needs to be able to create international territory maps. Supported features must include the ability to select/lasso entire countries or sub-national geographies such as provinces or postal boundaries.

Territory mapping software should create territories from any level of geography within a country

Create territories from any level of geography within a country

Territories from countries in Europe and North Africa

Create territories from countries on a global scale

 Start Mapping Now 

Territory Tools To Avoid

These tools can actually be perfectly reasonable for many applications. They are included in this section simply because they have characteristics that may hamper territory management over time. This may be especially true in comparison to methods that use geographic boundaries that neatly cover the whole country, such as counties or postal boundaries.

Circular rings (buffers) and drive-time zones can be used to define sales territories. Such “rings” can be hard to manage when they overlap  because it causes problems for managing reps and customers. Also, because they are not based on postal/ZIP Codes, it can be difficult to explain the territories to others. Circular rings are great analytical tools but are less useful for managing territories.

Another problematic territory method is areas of influence (Thiessen Polygons or a Voronoi Diagram). These are based on straight-line or “as the crow flies” distance. They automatically determine the closest area to each facility, but ignore barriers such as buildings and natural features. They create simple service areas that can show under or over-served locations, but they do not consider the locations that can actually be reached when driving or walking.

A third method is manual editing. These tools allow the user to create, add, move, or split areas by drawing boundary lines. It is also possible to add and edit areas by copy-pasting lines from features such as roads, railroads, or rivers. This method allows the most customization and flexibility. However, as with rings, they may be hard to share with others. They can also be time consuming to create and manage. Some franchise businesses use metes and bounds reports to describe the outer boundary of each territory.

Circular territories around store locations created with territory mapping software

Circular rings showing areas 2.5 and 5 miles around store locations

Map of Washington DC Metro stations and territories based on line distances created with territory mapping tool

Straight-line distance territory mapping tool identifies areas that are under or over-served with simplified territories.

Example: Franchise Territories

Providing fair and balanced "protected" territories is important. This is especially true in the franchise industry. Franchises must:

  • Maximize market potential while avoiding cannibalizing the sales of an existing location
  • Establish boundaries clearly to legally adhere to a sales or franchise agreement

Territory mapping software must track and balance unlimited territory characteristics. This supports establishing, justifying, and defending profitable territories.

CASE STUDY

CKE Restaurants How CKE Grew Their Business with Maptitude
CKE relies on Maptitude to simplify territory identification and allocation. This improves franchisee satisfaction by providing insightful market intelligence.
Sean Young

“Maptitude just works! We now build our franchise territories with ease. Our organization has benefited from our ability to strategically plan out prospective territories, gauge market penetration of our active franchise territories, and begin to identify what our top performing territories have in common.”

Sean Young
The Glass Guru

Example: Sales Territory Mapping Software

Maptitude territory software provides tools for creating territories for business mapping. Maptitude empowers sales teams with robust territory management software. Maptitude is a professional territory map creator. Extensive geographic and demographic data is included. This allows you to start creating territories immediately. Many other mapping and GIS software packages require you to buy data separately.

The Maptitude sales territory mapping tools provide easier ways to create new territory plans. This is important because effective territories mean higher sales. Maptitude achieves this by automatically creating fair and equitable territories for your salespeople.

Maptitude is a versatile territory planning solution. The software provides the sales tools and software tools that sales managers need.

Maptitude is the perfect alternative to:

Matt Ardoin

“We are able to do things with Maptitude that we had not dreamed of doing before (using MapPoint and Territory Mapper). There are so many possibilities, that you can easily create a mapping solution that perfectly meets the need of your business model.”

Matt Ardoin
Great Direct Concepts
Sales territory mapping ExcelSales territory mapping Google Maps

Sales territory mapping Excel/sales territory mapping Google Maps
 

 Start Mapping Now 

Territory Mapping Software FAQ

What are sales territories?

Sales territories or market areas can consist of groups of postal zones, counties, or other regions that a business uses to manage a larger overall market. Businesses use sales territories to manage sales representatives. Fair and balanced sales territories help maximize revenue by providing equal sales opportunities to salespeople.

Map of territories created from Florida counties with company sales data attached to the territories and shown in a bar chart theme

Sales territory map software can map territories from smaller areas, such as states and provinces, with your data attached.

What is sales territory mapping software?

Sales territory mapping software is an application for visualizing, balancing, and analyzing sales territories using maps. Sales territory management can be complex, and the visual nature of maps simplifies the process. Sales territory mapping software allows you to share your territory alignments and to create graphics such as heat maps of revenue by salesperson.

You can use sales territory map software to create territories based on:

  • a table or Excel spreadsheet of data
  • the features in a map on which you interactively choose by clicking (e.g., postal areas)
  • a custom boundary line that you manually draw using map editing tools

It is also possible to create overlapping territories or territories based on streets. Your territories can be saved in many formats (e.g., Shapefile, Oracle Spatial, or SQL Server Spatial).

What are the benefits of sales territory mapping software?

The benefits of sales territory mapping software are being able to:

  • Manage your sales territories based on geography, demographics, revenue, or customer distribution
  • Group areas to create your own customer trade areas and territory assignments
  • Create overlapping territories
  • Build territories based on drive time, drive distance, or straight-line distances
  • Use intuitive territory design tools to create custom territory maps
  • Improve sales management using territories based on the latest data
  • Access many file types including Microsoft Excel and Google Map formats (KML, KMZ)

Top 10 statistics on why you should align your territories:

  1. Report an increase in sales of up to 16% (Source: Salesforce)
  2. Have an average of 11% higher customer retention rates (Source: Route4Me)
  3. Reduce administrative costs by up to 25% (Source: HubSpot)
  4. Improve customer service by up to 36% (Source: Marketo)
  5. See a reduction in travel costs of up to 28% (Source: Microsoft Dynamics)
  6. Reduce cycle time by up to 21% (Source: SAP)
  7. Reduce salesperson idle time by up to 20% (Source: Oracle)
  8. Increase sales team productivity by up to 14% (Source: Salesforce)
  9. Reduce customer onboarding time by up to 29% (Source: Gartner)
  10. Reduce fuel costs by up to 23% (Source: IBM)

Andy Zoltners“Companies we have worked with have estimated that poor alignment costs them between 2%-7% of sales. For many companies millions of dollars are being forfeited each year due to territory inequities.”

Andy Zoltners
“Sales Territory Alignment: An Overlooked Productivity Tool”
Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management

What is sales territory planning?

Sales territory planning is the process of defining, mapping, and assigning regions to salespeople to efficiently cover all sales prospects within a company's or organization's market. Equitably balancing opportunities between reps helps manage the logistics of serving territories, as well as providing a way to assess high performers and to analyze sales commissions. A territory map is one of the most essential components of a sales strategy and is the basis for effective planning.

What are territory mapping tools?

Territory mapping tools define the area boundaries used to manage a salesforce. Examples of territory mapping tools include:

  • Manual tools for interactively editing territory areas on a map
  • Point-and-click tools for choosing areas such as postal and ZIP Codes on a map
  • Automated tools where sales, customers, opportunities, or other sales data are automatically balanced between locations

What are manual territory mapping tools?

Manual territory mapping tools are often time intensive map-based methods for drawing sales areas. A planner or analyst can draw, trace, or pick lines on a map. Typically, existing areas such as postal or ZIP Codes are not used. Often, streets, natural features such as rivers, and other landmarks are used to define the territories.

What are point-and-click territory mapping tools?

Point-and-click territory mapping tools allow areas such as postal or ZIP Codes to be added to a sales territory by clicking on a map. Examples include being able to:

  • Click on areas
  • Drag a rectangle or circle around areas
  • Click a line that intersects with areas
  • Lasso areas

The rules for territory assignments can be defined, such as whether:

  • to let districts overlap
  • to allow the choosing of unassigned or empty areas
  • to allow the reassignment of areas

What are automated territory mapping tools?

Automated territory mapping tools build balanced territories using mathematical models. Existing territories and neighboring areas can also be automatically readjusted to have equal values. For example, building franchise territories tracks the population or target prospects living in each area so that each has the same total values. Often an acceptable threshold is used since it is very hard to have exactly equal numbers.

What is the best software for sales territory mapping?

Here is my list of the top 11 best software for sales territory mapping based on an analysis of real user reviews. In a separate article I also conduct a full market analysis and provide the Caliper Rank for the top 25 territory applications.

  1. Maptitude
  2. Google Maps/Earth
  3. QGIS
  4. Esri/ArcGIS/ArcMaps
  5. Scribble Maps
  6. MapInfo Pro
  7. eSpatial
  8. Maptive
  9. Mapline
  10. Anaplan
  11. Spotio

The best sales territory mapping software is an application that meets the needs of the sales organization. The main differences between products for managing territories are:

  • desktop vs online
  • support for hierarchies
  • support for automated balancing

The best territory program provides a suite of tools that are designed to make it easy to create territories for businesses. A territory map maker should provide detailed geographic and demographic information that allows an analyst to start building territories immediately.

Sales territory planning and management software must provide:

  • A clear visual representation of sales distribution and sales data
  • Sales maps with territory overlays that show prospects and sales rep territories
  • An intuitive mapping process when analyzing territories for sales capacity planning
  • Plotting of pins for new sales reps
  • Minimal sales overlaps
  • Analysis of sales performance
  • Import of predictive insights and quota planning data
  • Accurate sales territory plans.

Maptitude sales territory mapping software provides you with a suite of tools that are designed to make it easy to create territories for businesses. Maptitude empowers sales teams with robust software for managing territories.

Unlike other mapping and GIS software that come with limited to no data, Maptitude is a territory map maker that provides detailed geographic and demographic information, allowing you to start building territories immediately.

How do you use a sales territory mapping software?

Sales territory mapping software is used to build territories. The main steps in the process are:

  1. Opening an Excel file that contains customer addresses, sales volume, and sales territory
  2. Using the Excel file to create a territory layer in the map
  3. Using territory tools to manually, interactively, or automatically edit and rebalance the territories
  4. Exporting the changes back to Excel

For completed territories, Excel reports list the ZIP Codes that comprise each territory as well as the customers, revenue, sales, opportunities, etc., in each market.

The following is a step-by-step guide for using sales territory mapping software. There is also a ”How do you use sales territory mapping software” video.

1

Use the “Create-a-Map Wizard” to create a geocoded point layer of your customers on a map.

2

Start the “Territory Wizard.” Use the geocoded point layer or the Excel file to create the territories. Balance the total customer sales in each territory. Choose other variables, e.g., population, number of households, or disposable income. Maptitude adds the territories to your customer map and opens the Territory Manager. The territories tab displays the territories list and the total sales. This is for all the customers located in each territory.

3

Some of the territories may have “holes” in them. Holes are often ZIP Codes that were not in your Excel file because there were no customers located there. To fix the holes, use the selection/lasso tools. These allow you to click on the holes in the territory to select the underlying ZIP Codes.

4

Adjust the territories so that the sales totals are more balanced. Track how the sales totals for the territories change. This happens as you move ZIP Codes from one territory to another.

5

The final task is to update the customers with their new territories.

  • Automatically compare each customer with the changed territory layer
  • Fill in a field with the name of the territory in which the customer is now located.
  • Export the territory demographics to Excel. For example:
    • Population
    • Estimated household income
    • Number of households
    • Income ranges
    • Age
    • Racial distribution
    • Housing data

There's no better territory mapping software at any price. Why spend more for less?

Next Steps

Learn more about Maptitude to see how you and your team can benefit from mapping software!

Schedule a Free Personalized Demo

Free Trial  Buy Now 

 

See also: Sales Mapping Software

Sources:
1 Albrecht, Jochen. "GIS Project Management." (2018). (Date accessed: Dec. 6, 2022)
2 “SMA Research Findings: 10 Important Territory Planning Statistics.” n.d. Xactly. Accessed December 13, 2022. https://www.xactlycorp.com/blog/sma-research-findings-territory-planning-statistics.
3 Birks, David F., Syed Nasirin, and S. H. M. Zailani. "Factors influencing GIS project implementation failure in the UK retailing industry." International Journal of Information Management 23, no. 1 (2003): 73-82. (Date accessed: Dec. 6, 2022)
4 Gimond, Manuel. n.d. Chapter 3 GIS Data Management | Intro to GIS and Spatial Analysis. Mgimond.github.io. https://mgimond.github.io/Spatial/gis-data-management.html.

Maptitude Mapping Software Logo
G2 ReviewsCheck out our G2 Reviews
4.7/5 of 138 reviews
4.7 stars

Third-party trademarks

Related Articles

Find Us 1172 Beacon St., Suite 300
Newton MA 02461 USA

Home  |  Products  |  Contact  |  Secure Store

Copyright © Caliper Corporation