The success of a company’s sales team depends on several factors, including the proper organization of sales territories assigned to sales representatives and account managers.
Because Brazil is a vast country with significant regional differences, creating an effective map to represent sales territories can be a challenging task.
Creating Your first Sales Territory Map
To create a sales territory map, start by organizing a spreadsheet that associates each municipality with a sales representative. For example:
| MUNICIPALITY | SALES REPRESENTATIVE |
| São Paulo | João Martins |
| Campinas | João Martins |
| Rio de Janeiro | Eduardo Terra |
| Belo Horizonte | Maria Aparecida Souza |
Next, use this spreadsheet to generate a thematic map with GIS software. Figure 1 presents an example of sales territories for a company operating nationwide.
Figure 1 – Sales Territories
A company’s sales performance is closely related to the quality of its territory design. Achieving annual sales targets does not necessarily mean that a sales territory has been properly structured. Conversely, failing to meet targets may indicate that a territory is poorly balanced or inadequately defined.
For this reason, sales territories should be designed to be as balanced as possible, considering factors such as:
- Population
- Sales potential
- Geographic area (km²)
- Number of municipalities
- Historical sales volume
- Number of customers
Continuous Territory Management
Sales territories should not be considered permanent. As markets evolve and business conditions change, territories should be reviewed and adjusted regularly based on:
- Sales performance results
- Market growth or decline
- Customer distribution changes
- Competitive dynamics
- Organizational objectives
Periodic territory optimization helps ensure a fair distribution of opportunities and workloads among sales representatives while improving overall commercial performance.
Benefits of Sales Territory Mapping
Sales territory maps can help organizations:
- Balance sales workloads.
- Improve market coverage.
- Identify underserved regions.
- Support strategic planning.
- Monitor sales performance geographically.
- Allocate resources more effectively.
- Enhance customer service and relationship management.
By visualizing territories geographically, managers can better understand market opportunities and make more informed decisions regarding sales operations.
Resources for Creating Sales Territory Maps
Municipal Boundaries (2005 and 2007)
Well-designed sales territories are a fundamental component of successful commercial operations, helping organizations improve efficiency, increase market penetration, and achieve more balanced sales performance.