MOVING FROM MAPPOINT. A Quick Guide to Switching to New Mapping Software. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 1 of 25

Transcription

1 MOVING FROM MAPPOINT A Quick Guide to Switching to New Mapping Software Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 1 of 25

2 Table of Contents 1. Introduction 2. Benefits of Cloud Based Mapping Software 3. How to Transfer Your Data From MapPoint to espatial 4. Mapping Your Sales Data 5. Assessing Regional Sales Performance 6. Create And Manage Your Territories 7. Visualizing Your Market Coverage and Competitor Analysis 8. Mapping Your Customers and Prospects 9. Creating Optimal Routes For Your Sales Team 10. Combining Datasets and Visualization Methods 11. Working as a Team: Sharing and Collaborating 12. Moving From MapPoint: Some Personal Experiences 13. Moving to MapPoint Checklist 14. Why Not Try It Out For Yourself? Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 2 of 25

3 Introduction Businesses and individuals still using Microsoft s MapPoint and Streets & Trips need to start thinking about alternatives. - Blair Hanley Frank, Geek Wire If you re reading this, you may be aware that MapPoint was discontinued at the end of The software is no longer available and there will be no more updates. Many sales professionals have relied on MapPoint for important data analysis, so this development has made users very anxious. The main problem with the discontinuation of MapPoint is the fact that the geographic information within the MapPoint software is becoming more and more out-of-date the existing software will become obsolete. Data analysis runs with MapPoint will continually decrease in reliability and support will be discontinued. Don't fret; it's not all bad news. There are many alternatives to MapPoint and many of them offer even greater functionality and features. Most of the alternative mapping solutions - such as espatial - let you trial their software before you make any decision on purchase. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 3 of 25

4 Benefits of cloud-based mapping software Modern cloud-based mapping software is no longer physically confined to specific desktops and can be accessed almost anywhere. This is a big change that provides many benefits to sales professionals: Ease of Access: Maps can be accessed anywhere with an internet connection, across multiple devices including PCs, Macs, ios devices and Android devices. Ease of Use: No installation or special plug-ins are required. All you need is an up-to-date internet browser. Sharing and Collaboration: Maps can be shared and embedded online, and collaboration features allow teams to work remotely to produce and analyze maps together. Instant Updates: Online mapping software is continuously and seamlessly updated with regular improvements and added functionality. Security: Using cloud-based software means that your data and visualizations can be saved and backed up in real-time, ensuring peace of mind. Furthermore, advanced firewalls and protocols can protect your data from external threats. Lower cost of ownership: No need for IT support, backups, installations, patches, data transfer, etc. Real-time support: espatial assigns a Customer Success Representative who provides customized training along with realtime, live chat support. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 4 of 25

5 How to Transfer Your Data From MapPoint to espatial If you have been using MapPoint for a while it is likely you have a significant amount of data. Luckily there are only three simple steps you need to take to move your data from MapPoint to an alternative such as espatial. **Note: If you have manually added in pushpins that were not in the original dataset you will need to use a Pushpin Tool to export the Geocodes Step 1 Download from MapPoint Data can be exported for complete, individual datasets (including territories) for the entire map; or for all data points for all datasets in a selected area or freeform shape. To export the data for an individual dataset or territory, select the required dataset in the Legend and then select Export to Excel on the Data menu. To export the data for a selection area, first create a selection area around the data points you wish to export. Right-click in the selection area and select Export to Excel from the popup menu. Step 2 Ensure your data is arranged correctly It is unlikely that this will be an issue but it is a good idea to check your dataset is formatted correctly. There are 4 simple rules: 1. Address, City, County, State and ZIP should all be in separate columns 2. Each column has a unique header 3. Each Column has only one type of data (e.g. Numerical, Text) 4. The file must be in a standard spreadsheet format, CSV, XLS or XLSX format The resulting Excel workbook consists of a summary worksheet plus one worksheet for each dataset. The summary worksheet lists each dataset complete with the number of data points exported and internal hyperlinks to the individual worksheets: Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 5 of 25

6 espatial will automatically recognize location fields but you can manually adjust them if required Step 3 Upload your data to espatial This is quite a simple process. Your data most likely falls under three categories; 1. Spreadsheet file containing addresses 2. Spreadsheet file containing X and Y coordinates 3. Spreadsheet file containing geographic region names Simply log in to your espatial account and select upload new data: Click "Complete". Your data will be instantly viewable on the map. If you would like to see a step by step tutorial video, simply click here. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 6 of 25

7 Mapping Your Sales Data What You Already Do With MapPoint you have probably mapped your regional sales data using features like push pins, heat maps and color-coded data. This enables you to make sense of large quantities of data and gain valuable visual insights. It s fair to assume that mapping your sales data has become increasingly important to you. What Now? MapPoint s data will no longer be updated. Considering maps are dynamic, you re going to need a mapping software solution that can keep up with constant changes. espatial s mapping software is based on Google Maps so you can be confident your maps are always up-to-date. You can also map your sales data in the usual way and benefit from up-todate census data, but with added features. Here's How You Can Map Your Sales Data With espatial Map leads and customers to visualize and diagnose areas that are not converting Produce sales figures on heat maps What s New? While some of these features are familiar, there are many added features that MapPoint did not have. The ability to safely share and update interactive maps keeps sales managers and field teams connected and makes communication easy. You can also compare and contrast datasets and mapping visualizations in useful new ways. MapPoint was only available on Windows desktops and laptops. Cloud based software is available anywhere and from multiple devices and operating systems. Here s what espatial Customers Say espatial is a game-changer in terms of helping our sales reps visualize and target their territories! -- Mark Hagen, Marketing Operations Director, Perfection Learning. Prioritize territories based on sales performance Manage and realign sales territories Assign leads based on proximity to sales reps, using radius maps Optimize routing for your sales teams with up-to-date geographic data Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 7 of 25

8 Assessing Regional Sales Performance What You Already Do Effective sales management involves regular monitoring of regional sales performance. MapPoint provides territory and heat mapping features that enable sales professionals to analyze regional data. The discontinuation of MapPoint means that these functions will eventually become obsolete. If you previously mapped regional sales data using MapPoint, you will have produced something like this: Here's How It's Done with espatial Modern mapping software solutions such as espatial offer the same features as MapPoint but with significant improvements. The same heat maps developed with MapPoint, such as the one shown above, can be built with ease: Regional Heat Map: This is a MapPoint map that outlines sales performance by state using different shades of green to denote the level of sales that are being observed in each state. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 8 of 25

9 Standard Heat Map: Check out this interactive Sales Density Heatmap that outlines sales density across the US with green pins outlining the client, point of contact and other relevant information. You ll find that it's much clearer and more comprehensive than a typical MapPoint heatmap. Enhancing Your Sales Performance Analysis MapPoint was helpful for sales professionals, but sophisticated mapping software such as espatial has taken geographic data analysis further. espatial can segment and filter data, isolate key sales areas and relate them to other relevant data. For example, you can develop a regional heat map outlining the sales performance by state and use a filtering tool to isolate sales above or below certain criteria. You can then layer and filter similar data from the previous year. This results in a visual representation of sales performance by region over a two-year period. Match the sales value color ranges to your existing target structure for instant recognition of high and low performing areas. While similar maps can be produced using MapPoint, they can be unclear and difficult to digest: It s the whole visual thing. It s simple. It s cost effective it just works! We ve used all sorts of products in the past from a sales standpoint, but nothing that does it quite as visually as this. That s what makes the difference. Here s what espatial - Graham Oliver, Managing Director, Door Entry IP Customers Say Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 9 of 25

10 Create And Manage Your Territories What you already do There are two ways you can create territories in MapPoint; 1. Manually combining geographic elements such as states, zip codes and counties into territories. 2. Uploading a spreadsheet containing your territories for automatic and instant creation. Here s how it s done with espatial espatial lets you create a territory map by stitching together existing geographic boundaries or by uploading a spreadsheet of your pre-defined territories. This means that if you want to import existing territories from MapPoint, you simply have to export an excel file and bring it into your new espatial account. Once created, the territories can be given unique names and used as basemaps on which you can place other market-relevant data. Results can also be reported on at a territory level. Overlay other data: Once a territory has been created, it can be used and re-used as a canvas on which to plot other data. This can be the starting point for an in-depth, focused and fresh market analysis. Hierarchies of territories: espatial provides the capability to create hierarchical territories whereby entire countries can be divided into national, regional and local territories. This allows territories to be matched to the reporting structure present in many organizations. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 10 of 25

11 Link data to territories: Territory mapping software allows you to link key data to your territory map. For instance, it can link census information about population density, educational levels, age, etc. When such demographic data is used in conjunction with your own business data, it can be a powerful motivating tool, inspiring better planning and faster decision-making. It can also be used with your latest market, lead or sales information to create up-to-date balanced territories. Create balanced territories: When linked to data, territory maps can provide an instant picture of the division of work across territories. For example, the number/value of customers per salesperson s territory can be highlighted. You can even rebalance territories so that workloads are spread in a more equitable way. Adjust when necessary: Markets change constantly and so do territories. espatial makes editing customized territories easy by automatically updating maps linked to new data. Worldwide mapping: espatial is not limited to the U.S., therefore espatial can support the expansion of your business into new territories. Communication and information sharing: Many companies print out wall sized maps illustrating their territories. With espatial this is easy to do and you can also share live interactive versions of these maps. Benefits of territory management Visualizing your territory sales data is essential for effective territory management. Mapping software enables you to manage your territories by allowing you to: Create territories based on your existing customer base and target market Visualize the extent of your coverage and overlay data about customers, prospects, teams and other resources Share maps remotely to communicate effectively with your sales teams Quickly divide a large target area into more manageable assigned regions Analyze your territory performance Create territory hierarchy to reflect your organization s structure Allocate sales teams more effectively with balanced territories and earning potential Improve sales team efficiency, resulting in greater profits Create and control your own territories without external consultants Improve decisions about market expansions Manage franchises, publish locations and illustrate availability Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 11 of 25

12 Visualizing Your market Coverage and Competitor Analysis What you already do Using mapping software to visualize your market coverage can help you gain an accurate perspective by visualizing density of customers, leads and prospects. This ultimately enables you to run a more effective sales team. If you have been using MapPoint to analyze your market coverage and competitors, you have likely used the Territory Wizard to define markets and the Data Mapping Wizard to make shaded maps or circle maps. Radius Mapping Radius maps take two sets of data and let you focus on their spatial relationship. Your company may want to investigate issues such as: How many customers are within 5 miles of your business? Are there any significant coverage gaps in your network? Which areas are most lucrative for expansion? What significant trends or patterns can we capitalize on? How can I minimize transport costs? Here's How It's Done with espatial Solutions such as espatial have features similar to MapPoint which allow you to recreate your old maps, but with more advanced visualization and analysis capabilities. This feature can be used to gain an accurate perspective of market coverage by visualizing density of clients and customers. In turn, this lets you devise a more organized sales strategy and run a more effective sales team. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 12 of 25

13 Heat Mapping Identify gaps in the market by using heat maps. Heat maps use color schemes to allow you to not only identify high performing zones, but also those lucrative untapped markets. You can upload your data and set conditions according to a specified color scheme. This visualization allows you to gain crucial sales insights, and provides guidance on how you can adjust your sales approach and strategy. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 13 of 25

14 Mapping Your Customers and Prospects Here s what espatial customers say What you already do You may already use MapPoint to create radius maps. This involves focusing on the spatial relationship between two sets of data. Although this feature has traditionally been available on MapPoint, modern mapping software like espatial makes radius mapping easier than ever. Here's how you do it with espatial Sales managers who want to keep their sales team productive can make use of a Within Distance Report and radius map. This report is composed of a dataset of prospects and of existing customers. Once these data sets are combined, you can create a radius map where your field sales operatives are the center point. While MapPoint requires users to save these maps as a file in order to share information with stakeholders, modern cloud-based mapping software is far less restrictive. Maps can be shared through links and the embedding feature. Field sales operatives can look at the radius map remotely to find the nearest existing customer and pay them a courtesy call. It (MapPoint) was a really great software, but they stopped updating it. I would upload maybe 5000 points with MapPoint and it might only plot 3500 of them. espatial is giving me 99% success. That s the No.1 reason right there. I would say that if you re looking for the most upto-date software out there and the most up-todate maps espatial is second to none. -- David Klarich, Senior Marketing Specialist at USI Building Solutions. How do you know it's right for your business? To try out a cloud-based radius map with your customer and prospect data, visit and sign up for a free trial Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 14 of 25

15 Optimized Routing for Sales Teams What You Already Do Although you may have produced some useful routing maps using MapPoint, this functionality will gradually deteriorate as the geographic data in the software becomes outdated. You may be concerned about being able to continue generating route maps in the future. Modern cloud based alternatives on the market will keep this data up-to-date so that you can continue creating optimal routes for your sales team members. Here's How It's Done with espatial Route Maps can be accessed on the road from multiple devices and can be used as dynamic, shareable and collaborative maps. An itinerary including turn by turn directions can also be exported and printed for offline use. Optimize Your Time and Stay Connected: When plans change en route for sales team members, they can use this type of Route Map to find the nearest available customer. Information on a Route Map can also inform field sales team of when a client is available on a proposed day. Validate mileage reports from your field sales team. Client records and tips on reaching hard-to-find locations can be updated by multiple users. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 15 of 25

16 What are the key advantages of route optimization with cloud-based mapping software? Cloud-based mapping software route maps are regularly updated to provide accurate up-to-date directions. Maps can be accessed from any device with an internet connection (PCs, Macs, ipads, iphones and other smartphones). What espatial Customers Say Maps change we needed something that was always up to date. That s what led us to espatial." - - Kaitlin Lounsbury NCA. Route optimization is built into espatial and works with existing data. No additional third-party software is required to generate routes. Routes can be shared by sending an with a webpage link. espatial allows private and public sharing of maps. Route plans can be changed or updated on the go. Maps will update to generate alternative or new routes. Create routes across multiple layers of data. Upload a list of hotels/airports/etc. to use in conjunction with your accounts when creating routes. How do you know if this is right for your business? 1. Sign up for a free trial and try create route maps 2. Watch this video, which outlines espatial route optimization and its benefits 3. Organize a product demonstration for yourself or your team by contacting [email protected] Optimized routes can be printed as hard copies or sent to mobile devices and opened using the Google Maps app. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 16 of 25

17 Combining Datasets and Visualization Methods What You Already Do MapPoint provided useful supplementary content such as census data that enhanced the quality of analysis run by sales professionals. Unfortunately, as there will be no more updates to the software, the accompanying data will stop receiving updates. Modern cloud-based mapping software providers like espatial can keep census data up-todate, allowing for more accurate, reliable analysis. With espatial, a sales manager can combine data on prospects, leads and opportunities in order to develop a quick overview of their distribution and value across regions. This can be done using Aggregate by Value: Pins can be color coded to identify the different types of target: Here's How It's Done with espatial While MapPoint allowed you to develop different visualizations using various features, sophisticated mapping software such as espatial allows you to combine data and incorporate the collective data into one visualization. For example, espatial s Aggregate by Value combines data and presents it through a combination of a map, table and chart. This enables sales managers to quickly manage large amounts of data and easily track how sales executives, products and campaigns are performing across regions. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 17 of 25

18 The value of each status is aggregated in a table and also represented visually in the bar chart: Finally, all of these elements can be combined to provide a comprehensive visual representation of a combination of customer data. Click here to interact with the Leads, Prospects and Opportunities map through your web browser. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 18 of 25

19 Working as a Team: Sharing and Collaborating MapPoint is stored on your local disk, so opportunities for sharing and collaboration are limited. This means that multiple users cannot interact and edit maps all at once from different locations. Sales teams are not always in the same location so it can get very tricky trying to work off individual computers especially when the team is on the road. Moving to a cloud based solution creates new opportunities for your business to discover the power of collaboration and sharing. Some of the benefits of this include: Sharing sensitive data securely to specific team members Supporting strategic decision making in important meetings Sharing key information quickly and professionally Improving performance of teams through interaction and working towards a common goal Collaboration Features We all know the importance of teamwork regarding a successful sales force. Some studies have shown that 70% of interactive data visualization adopters improved collaboration and knowledge sharing 1. Being able to share and collaborate is a critical factor of this. There are 5 essential mapping features for successful collaboration within your sales team: 1 This was found through research from Aberdeen Group: White, D. (2013) Visualization. Set Your Analytics Users Free. 1. Sharing Maps Within Your Team Easily share maps, directions, charts, reports and tables directly to specific team members. The maps will be viewable on multiple devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones. Cloud-based mapping solutions make sharing as simple as copy and paste. 2. Multiple User Support - Team members of a nationwide sales team can add their own data latest sales or leads to a dataset on a daily basis, thus creating a complete, up-to-date picture of the whole market. This type of map is therefore a great way of disseminating up-to-date, mission-critical information to a wide audience. 3. Export in Multiple Formats Sometimes you need to create a professional, visually aided report or presentation. The ability to export maps and charts to PDF or JPEG is essential to creating reports that stand out. 4. Embedded Maps These are great for telling a business story on a webpage. Interactive maps can be added to websites, posts and blogs which help to highlight locations to customers or show the scope of your operation for whatever purpose. 5. Printing Maps - There are times when only printed maps will do. You might, for example, want to print maps to include in a paper presentation. Or you may want to print maps and post them on your office wall to motivate a sales team. Whatever the reason, a printed map can be a great resource. Key to this are the printing options that are offered; the mapping solution must provide small (A) to XL (E) printing options along with the ability to print accompanying charts and table all in a convenient and compact manner. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 19 of 25

20 What espatial Customers Have Said About Sharing & Collaboration With the click of a button I can see information related to any location, at any time. More than 50 of our top leaders now use espatial maps for instant analysis of their territories So what are the advantages of these collaboration features? Cross functional departments can interact with their data. Software privileges control what data is viewable for specific team members. Multiple exporting options mean that you can share precisely what you need. High quality print-outs of maps, tables and charts can be easily created. - Mike Stengel, VP, PSAV Presentation Services Why not try out a cloud based mapping software that offers all of these benefits and collaboration features? Start your free trial with espatial today. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 20 of 25

21 Moving From MapPoint: Some Personal Experiences David Klarich, Senior Marketing Specialist at USI building solutions Since Microsoft announced its plans to discontinue MapPoint last summer, many users have been switching their mapping software to espatial. We spoke to two users about why they switched to espatial s cloud-based solution. David uses mapping software to prospect for new business. His company needs to know the location of the next upcoming building project. We re in the new construction industry, explains David, We track permits to see where a lot of the work is going. We use mapping software when our leadership team is looking for ways to jump start sales.where do you want to focus on this month. Let s really try and hit this area. So why stop using MapPoint? It was a really great software, but they stopped updating it. I would upload maybe 5000 points with MapPoint and it might only plot 3500 of them. espatial is giving me 99% success. That s the No.1 reason right there. I would say that if you re looking for the most up-to-date software out there and the most up-to-date maps espatial is second to none. Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 21 of 25

22 Jill Rodriguez, Executive Vice President at RMG Former MapPoint user Jill Rodriguez delivers innovative advertising and loyalty solutions to the Canadian retail sector. She combines mapping and census software to create heat maps of demographic data with store locations layered over top. She recalls her experience with MapPoint, and explains why she switched to espatial. MapPoint was anything but user-friendly says Jill. It was the least intuitive program I had ever used. Every time we used a map, we had to call up and get help. Looking to replace MapPoint, Jill spent 2 days testing mapping programs. All the free ones won t pull in FSAs. All the high end ones are literally we re talking $15-20K, since for them you also need to use lats and longs [Latitude and Longitude positions], which means you then have to buy another piece of software, in order to convert all your addresses. Finally, Jill came upon espatial. espatial is the only multi-layer mapping program I found that would accept my store addresses, instead of Lats and Longs, I am able to continue to utilize my census software to pull the necessary FSAs and upload them onto espatial. By combining both data sets I can create our base maps. And then espatial allows me to take it one step further by allowing dynamic overlaying of customer stores and the ability to pull combined store lists right from the map. Jill is now using less software to get the same results that she got when using MapPoint. This has also brought more flexibility, in terms of styling maps and distributing them. She even describes the response from one of her colleagues as having gone map-happy since RMG implemented espatial. Jill has also seen the advantages of switching from desktop-based mapping software to online mapping software. With desktop based software, you have to print out a piece of paper and take it with you You can take an espatial map, put it on an ipad. You can fix it, you can lock it and you can send it to your reps. The reps go in the field with their ipads and they just punch in the addresses of the people they want Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 22 of 25

23 Moving to MapPoint Checklist Feature MapPoint espatial General Web based software Search addresses and geocode Route mapping, territory mapping and management, radius mapping, heat mapping, pushpin/address/post code mapping Easy, secure saving or sharing of maps online GIS-related features and flexibility used to define and present data and map layers Operates across multiple platforms Mac, PC, ipad, iphone, etc Geographic Data Up-to-date Census Tract boundaries, ZCTA (ZIP Code Tabulation Areas) Codes, Census data and demographics Street data that includes Guam and other U.S. territories Worldwide data support Create & Optimize Routes Print Routes Forward route maps to drivers smart phones or tablets with notes on jobs & turn-by-turn audio directions Worldwide routing support Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 23 of 25

24 Feature MapPoint espatial Territory maps Redraw territories while aggregating the value of opportunities within each territory Use drawing tool to customize areas to export data for regions or territories Create custom territory boundary layers Additional Map Analysis tools Bubble Maps Aggregate by value Filters Map/database filtering Control visibility of map/layer filters Maps & Styles Ability to turn map layers on and off Ability to customize any aspect of the map and map styles Support Ongoing support for the mapping product and for customer questions Named Customer Success Rep assigned to each paid account Live Chat Support Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 24 of 25

25 Why Not Try It Out For Yourself? MapPoint has now been discontinued and will no longer be receiving support or updates from Microsoft. Thankfully, powerful cloud-based mapping solutions like espatial can meet all your mapping needs. Switching from MapPoint is easy you can even experience espatial for yourself with our free trial. Start your free trial today at Improve sales performance with mapping software Page 25 of 25