Sales Territory Management

A sales territory is a group of present and potential customers assigned to an individual sales person, a group of salesperson, a branch, a dealer, a distributor, or a marketing organization at a given period of time

A basic unit of sales planning and control (Maynard and Davis)

Sales Territory Advantages

Better market coverage Effective utilization of sales force Efficient distribution of work load Convenient performance appraisal Optimum utilization of sales force time Direct and indirect cost control Efficient relationship building

Allocation of Sales Territories

Nature of product (CD-Large) Channel
Intermediaries (Large) Direct (Small)

Density of population/Market potential Communication and Transportation(R vs.U) Competition (Intense-Small) Trained and Competent sales force (Large) Recession-small, Boom-Large

Allocation of Sales Territories

Uniform pattern in the form of market coverage

Familiarity
Level of control desired by the company Economies of scale and cost

Territory design
Geographical Control Unit (GCU):
The basic unit of market coverage (Nations, States,Postal Index Numbers,Cities and Metros)

Open Sales Territories:

Territories left vacant until new sales people are assigned to them

Incremental Territory:
Additional territory can be added if profit from sales territory exceed cost of managing territory

Territory design
Sales leakage
Lost sales as a result of vacancy and time required for new sales-person to be productive at average level

Trading Area
Areas of logical choice as geographical control unit (based on natural flow of the trade)

Selection of GCU
Select Basic GCU Decide criteria of allocation Decide on Starting Point Combine control units adjacent to starting point Compare territories and conduct workload analysis Assign sales force to new territories

Territory shapes
Criteria
Sales expense Sales Coverage

Popular Shapes
Wedge
( FMCG P&G,HLL ,Marico )

Circle
( Company accounts distributed uniformly-MUL,Hyundai,Park Avenue)

Clover Leaf
Random Distribution of accounts

Territory design
Build Up Method

Break Down Approach

Mapping Program
Topographical Data, Population Statistics

Callplan Used by Xerox