No matter the sector, sales representatives face a significant number of the same challenges. Typical difficulties include: The inability to make quick decisions based on collected data as a result of data latency leads to restricted field insights. A lack of understanding of the region and opportunities that could have been taken advantage of as a result of disconnected tools and shifting market dynamics. Because of schedule gaps, unanticipated downtime, vast geographic areas, unpredictable driving conditions, and antiquated instruments, it is difficult to develop routes that maximize territory.

Planning sales routes is an important part of addressing these issues. Flexible schedules give salespeople the ability to take advantage of unexpected downtime and adapt to unanticipated events such as last-minute appointment requests, inclement weather, or traffic jams. It is especially important for businesses that rely on a physical workforce during times of transition and uncertainty to have route planning that is both agile and effective as well as productive. Due to tools and data being disconnected, sales representatives are required to manually search through sales data and spreadsheets in order to plan their own routes. It's possible that this will result in lost time and missed opportunities. The solution to these problems is called sales route planning, and it involves combining information on customers and sales in order to automatically determine the most productive routes. Because of this, representatives are able to spend more time interacting with customers and less time performing low-value, repetitive tasks. This has the dual effect of increasing both revenue and efficiency.

Michelin, which is in the business of producing tires, engages in cutthroat competition in a market that is already extremely competitive. This frequently resulted in meetings being postponed, unanticipated downtime, and a significant amount of dissatisfaction among sales representatives working out in the field. They were forced to rely on assistance from the back office for route planning and changes, which was not beneficial. As a result of this, Michelin's sales team experienced turnover rates in the double-digit percentage range, and new sales reps lacked prior experience in their respective regions. With the help of Salesforce Maps' intelligent sales route planning, Michelin was able to simplify route planning and give sales professionals the ability to modify and improve their own routes while they were out on the road. They were able to comprehend and optimize their territories by visualizing data on their competitors and marketing opportunities, which led to a 20% reduction in unplanned downtime, an increase in the number of daily customer visits, and an increase in the growth of new pipelines. Mapping technology and business insights were combined to achieve this result.