Choosing the right sales territory planning software for your business can be a daunting task. With so many different options on the market, it can be difficult to determine which will be the best fit for your needs. Before you spend money on new software, here are some key factors to consider and examples of the different types of territory planning software.
How to Choose Territory Planning Software
Prior to choosing a territory planning or mapping software, it is important to be clear on your overall GTM planning process and objectives. For example, your choice may differ depending on whether you have a straightforward geographic GTM model with a small team, or a global model with multiple teams and products. Below are some important considerations.
Geographic vs Non-Geographic Territory Planning
Does your GTM require feet on the street or are live demonstrations an essential part of your sales process (e.g., solar, pharmaceutical sales)? Is minimizing travel time a priority? If so, a geographic territory mapping software may be sufficient to serve your needs. In contrast, many companies, influenced by the pandemic, have shifted to a remote selling model and away from geographic territory plans. They have found that they are much more efficient ways to divide opportunities that give sellers a better chance at hitting their numbers. For example, territories could be divided by industry, company size, expected ARR, propensity to buy or many other factors. Other companies have adopted hybrid models, for example, enterprise accounts may be divided by industry or account size, while SMB accounts are divided by geography.
GTM Plan Complexity
A company with fewer than 20 sellers will have very different territory planning requirements than one with 300 resources (spread across Sales, SDRs, Sales Engineering, and Customer Success), and/or multiple teams and products. Territory planning in these complex organizations can often take months and requires the ability to conduct what-if scenario planning and easily deploy these plans into production.
GTM Plan Volatility
In many organizations or markets, change is a constant. The assumptions upon which a territory plan is based can be incredibly volatile. They may be impacted by outside factors such as market changes, competition, or economic conditions. For example, the last few years have proven that market conditions can change quite dramatically in a short time, such as with a global pandemic or recession. If your business experiences a high level of volatility, territory planning software can help you to plan continuously and react with agility to market changes.
Different Types of Territory Planning Software
Spreadsheets
Not surprisingly, most organizations begin by using Excel or Google sheets to conduct territory planning. Using spreadsheets is manual and error prone, however, may work well up until a certain point. Once your organization scales beyond 50 reps it can become difficult to manage.
Territory Mapping Software
Sales Territory Mapping software integrates sales data with geolocation. Sales Operations uses it to design territories, visualize customers and leads on a map, distribute territories, and even track rep location in real time. Sales reps can also use it to manage their routes and schedules and be more efficient with their time in the field.
There are numerous territory mapping solutions available on the market. Some popular ones include:
- Map My Customers
Enables managers to assign territories and field sales to visualize their customers on a map, plan their routes, and record CRM data remotely.
- Spotio
Spotio is a fully-featured sales engagement platform specifically designed to take field sales team performance to the next level. It includes sales territory mapping, routing, real-time sales activity tracking and visit verification, task automation, and document management.
- Salesforce Maps
Salesforce Maps enables field sellers to view customer and market data on an actionable map interface and allows them to build smart visit plans with intelligent route optimization.
Territory Management Software
Territory Management software provides more functionality than simple territory mapping tools. It allows users to plan more complex territories based on the criteria that matter most to their business, including geography or any other criteria. This software typically also enables scenario modeling and continuous territory management.
Fullcast is a complete end-to-end GTM Planning and Execution platform. It enables users to build territories and assign resources in days (not months), including, if desired, through a powerful AI-based territory balancer (SmartPlan). Territories can be built using any data from the CRM. It is also possible to create geo-based territories using a sophisticated mapping tool.
In addition to territory planning, Fullcast enables users to make continuous GTM plan changes in response to changing market conditions, like resource or strategy changes, and deploy them instantly in the CRM. Users can also automate GTM policies (e.g., lead routing, holdouts, account hierarchy) so that operations are always aligned with the plan.
Salesforce ETM is a non-map based territory management tool. Users can design territories, perform some scenario modeling, and create assignment rules.
- Xactly AlignStar
AlignStar is an interactive map-based territory planning solution. Users can build and optimize balanced territories on the map using historical data.
Corporate Planning Software
Some organizations attempt to use sales performance management or corporate planning tools like Anaplan or Workday Adaptive Planning to manage their territories. Originally designed for the FP&A function, these tools lead to significant productivity improvements in financial planning. Although you can certainly build and model territory plans with these tools, they are not purpose-built for territory or GTM planning. In most cases, it takes considerable time and effort to implement the software and customize your plans. Furthermore, these tools generally lack territory mapping or continuous planning capabilities.
In summary, territory planning software can be a powerful tool that helps businesses of all sizes manage and optimize sales territories. There are many different options to consider based on your GTM planning complexity and maturity level – from free spreadsheets, to geography-based mapping solutions, to more robust territory management platforms.
