ROUTE.PLUS – THE SYSTEM FOR PLANNING AND OPTIMIZING ROUTES OF SALES REPRESENTATIVES

Route.plus system is used to continuously optimize the work of sales departments. The idea is to optimize the way of working and not allow the work plan to cease to be optimal in the upcoming months. Undoubtedly, the market and points of sale change. So do the strategies and ways of reaching them. Route.plus system lets you keep up with these changes, because it provides a tool that allows to quickly and precisely optimize the work model with changed variables. It alters your business strategies into tasks for sales representatives.

We approach the optimization process on two interconnected levels: at the level of building the territorial division and at the level of planning daily routes for sales representatives. We believe that these processes can not be separated. If we try to build territories based on simplifications, eg an equal number of clients in each territory, then after generating routes in these territories, it will turn out that one SR will be worinkg 9 hours whereas the second one will only have 7 man-hours. Therefore, building territories with regard to route planning is much more accurate and effective.

The system supports us with its tools at the following stages:

• During the process referred to as constructing territories. We use customer segmentation modules, organizational structure modelling and the geographical design of territories module.
• During initial and weekly route planning, we have at our disposal route generation systems and a module in which routes can be viewed and modified.
• During the system maintenance, the implementation performance report module allows us to assess the level of implementation of work plans by sales representatives, while the remaining reports allow us to assess the compliance of assumptions, e.g. regarding customer service, with reality.

What are the main benefits of using the route.plus system?

• Territorial division will be tailored to our strategy, i.e. optimal. This means that the number of territories will be matched exactly to the way we handle sales points. The territories will also be optimal in terms of geography.
• Within territories, we will generate optimal work plans for each sales representative. An optimal plan means that it will be significantly faster in implementation and will allow you to cover fewer kilometres. The plans will also allow for accurate implementation of our assumptions regarding e.g. frequency of customer visits. The problem of going too often to unprofitable clients and visiting the best clients too rarely, will finally be dealt with.
• We will be sure that sales representatives work exactly as long as we assumed. The system will show us information about territory workload. In case of overloaded territories, we will be able to move some clients to neighbouring territories, and in the event of underloading, we can decide to acquire new sales outlets, or to increase the frequency of service at highly profitable sales points.
• Regional managers won’t have to create work plans for their teams. They will be able to use this time to work on the market instead, knowing that work plans are optimal and perfectly balanced. The work will be focused on managing the region by defining the manner of service, not on painstaking planning of work.