Exercise 7: Map your sales territories
You manage a large sales force that is responsible for generating revenue and growth opportunities for your company. In order to manage your sales force's activities, you need to see their coverage areas on a map.
In this exercise, you use MapPoint to import your territory definition data and create a territory map. Your company's sales territories are organized by county, so your territory definition information consists of a Microsoft Excel worksheet that matches each county with the appropriate sales representative.
Step 1: Import your territory source file and create a territory map
- Clear the current map by clicking New
on the Standard toolbar. - On the Data menu, click Territories.
- On the Choose how you want to create your territories page, accept the default selection of Create from your own set of data, and then click Next.
- On the Import or link to your source file of territory data page, accept the default selection of Import your source file by clicking Next.
- Open the Excel sample data file by browsing to C:\Program Files\Microsoft MapPoint\Samples\, selecting SampData.xls, and clicking Open.
- On the Choose the sheet or range you want to map page, select Territories, and then click Next.
- Look at the headings in the row labeled Data type to confirm that MapPoint has correctly determined the types of data contained in your columns. <Territory> should be one of the data types.
- Click Finish.
- To remove roads from the map and make your territories more visible, on the View menu, point to Map Style, and then click Data Map.
Note If you are prompted to save changes to your current map, you may do so, but it is not necessary for completing this exercise.
Why?
Why?
Note This is the default installation location. If you installed MapPoint in a different location, use Search or Find in Windows Explorer to locate the file.
Why?
MapPoint places your territories data on the map.
Result
You now have a map that shows your sales territories in the southwest region of the U.S. You can import information about clients to this territory map to help you make work assignments.
Step 2: Make work assignments based on territory
You want to get the word out about your new furniture line to all of your clients, so you decide to display your clients' addresses as Pushpins on your territory map. Doing this allows you to match the appropriate sales representative with the clients who are in his or her territory.
- On the Data menu, click Import Data Wizard
. - Open the Excel sample data file by browsing to C:\Program Files\Microsoft MapPoint\Samples\, selecting SampData.xls, and clicking Open.
- On the Choose the sheet or range you want to map page, click Clients, and then click Next.
- Look at the headings in the row labeled Data type to confirm that MapPoint has correctly determined the types of data contained in your columns.
- Click Finish.
- On the Choose a map type page, click Pushpin, and then click Next.
- On the Select the properties for your Pushpin set page, replace SampleData with Clients to more accurately describe the Pushpin set, and then click Finish.
- To get a better view of your sales territories and clients, right-click Custom Territories in the legend, and then click Zoom to Selection.
Note This is the default installation location. If you installed MapPoint in a different location, use Search or Find in Windows Explorer to locate the file.
Why?
Why?
MapPoint determines where your records will be placed on the map, based on the location information contained in your data.
MapPoint places your client data on the territory map.
Result
You now have a map of your sales territories that also contains a Pushpin set of your clients. You notice that Max Benson, Rob Young, Connie Waite, and Sue Jackson all have clients in their sales territories who need to be contacted.
After you complete this exercise, your map should look like this:

This is the final exercise in the MapPoint Tutorial. If you did not complete all the exercises, you can return to the MapPoint Tutorial start page at any time and try them out.
Go back to the MapPoint Tutorial start page and try another exercise.