Key takeaways
- Identify clear objectives while planning and organizing territory plans.
- Emphasize efficient data management; consistently tracked variables can include customer data, sales performance, and market trends.
- Implementing your plan can be facilitated by data analysis software.
- Continuously revise your territory plan to reflect evolving market conditions.
- Avoid common mistakes and incorporate industry best practices for territory planning.
About this guide
As part of a sales strategy, territory planning refers to the process of assigning specific geographical areas to sales teams or individual sales reps based on certain criteria. It plays a crucial role in creating a balanced distribution of work and resources. Organizing your territory plans is necessary to ensure maximum sales efficiency and capitalize on market opportunities. Failing to properly organize can lead to conflicts in sales territories, missed revenue potential, and inefficient usage of man-hours. By reading this article, you'll learn the effective methodology for organizing territory plans, and how to avoid common mistakes.
1. Identify your goals
Your first step in organizing territory planning is understanding your objectives. Are you looking to increase market share in a specific region? Or are you aiming for better customer segmentation to provide personalized solutions? Being clear about your goals guides the structure and implementation of your territory plans.
There may be variations in organizing territory plans based on factors such as the size of your sales team, geographical spread, number of customers, and the types of products or services sold. Tailoring your territory plan to your specific needs ensures optimal sales performance.
2. Plan your organization system
Next, identify what actions are necessary to achieve your goals. This could include tasks such as analyzing sales data, identifying market trends, or tracking competitor movements. The data tracked in your system could differ based on your specific needs; however, items such as customer information, industry trends, competitor landscape, and previous sales performance are commonly tracked elements.
A significant step in setting up your territory plan is ensuring you follow good data management practices. Poor naming conventions or keeping unrelated data in the same table can compromise the functionality and efficiency of your plan. Accordingly, create a logical, clear, and consistent data structure right from the outset.
3. Implement your system
Implementation of your territory plan could be facilitated through various software applications that assist in data analysis, visualization, or customer relationship management. This is where our data and project management tool, Skippet, comes into play. With its artificial intelligence capabilities, Skippet can help create a custom system that caters to your specific territory planning needs without unnecessary rigidity.
4. Maintain your organization system over time
The work doesn't end with implementing your territory plan. Over time, as market conditions change, client needs evolve, and your business grows, your territory plans will need to change too. Regular upkeep and revisions to your territory planning system will ensure it continues to serve its purpose effectively.
Best practices and common mistakes
When it comes to territory planning, there are some best practices to consider. Central to these practices is the balancing act between customer potential and work capacity. Equitably allotting territories based on sales potential can help avoid over or under-servicing. Another good practice is to review and realign your territories regularly to account for market shifts and growth.
In terms of common mistakes to avoid, ignoring the capacity of your sales team when assigning territories can lead to missed opportunities and low morale. Similarly, neglecting the impact of competitor presence in your territories could lead to unanticipated obstacles. By focusing on a holistic picture and not just geographical comfort, you can prevent such oversights.
Example territory plan organization system
Let's examine a hypothetical territory planning system, highlighting how different members of a sales team might interact with it. To keep our example relevant, we'll assume we're working with a medium-sized team selling a range of software products across different states.
First, we have the sales reps, who are the ones interacting with clients. The data management system tracking territory plans provides them information about their assigned territories, which is broken down by region, target customer industries, historical sales data, and potential business opportunities. The system can also provide details about competitor activity in their territory, enabling them to strategize accordingly.
Middle management can use this organization system to monitor sales rep activity, provide strategic direction, and assist in problem-solving. With neatly organized territory plans, management can easily identify areas of high and low sales performance. They can spot trends and make projections about future performance, based on historical and current data.
Finally, the system can aid senior management in making strategic decisions. They can view the data in an aggregate form and make informed decisions about resource allocation, profit analysis, and strategic sales planning.
The data within this system needs to be regularly updated and accessible to the relevant team members. Using a project and data management workspace like Skippet, different layers of access can be granted based on roles, ensuring information is both secure and accessible.
Wrapping up
To summarize, organizing territory plans systematically is crucial for efficient sales performance. It requires identifying your objectives, setting up an organized system based on these objectives, implementing it effectively, and committing to maintaining it over time. Incorporating best practices and shunning common mistakes can help optimize the process. Software and tools like Skippet, using AI, can provide a useful aid in creating a custom solution for territory planning.
Frequently asked questions
How often should territory plans be reviewed?
Territory plans should be consistently reviewed and updated. The frequency depends on the volatility of your market and how rapidly factors such as customer needs, competitor activity, or your own business strategies change.
Can territory planning systems be used by both small and large sales teams?
Yes, territory planning is beneficial irrespective of the team size. The principles remain the same, but scale and complexity might differ. Smaller teams may have simpler, broader territory assignments, while larger teams may require more segmented and custom-defined territories.
How do you balance customer potential and sales rep capacity when assigning territories?
Customer potential and sales rep capacity should be factored in when assigning territories. Using a data-driven approach helps you objectively assess these aspects. Tools with AI capabilities, like Skippet, can analyze various data points to suggest a balanced territory plan.
What data should be tracked in a territory planning system?
The data tracked can vary, however, it commonly includes customer data, sales performance history, competitor activities, market trends, and potential business opportunities. The objective is to equip the sales team with comprehensive information to strategize effectively.
