Should My Sales Team Have Territories?

Organizing a sales team often involves deciding how to divide territories or books of business. Based on your sales process, industry, and vertical, you can organize your accounts among your reps in multiple ways.

Reconsidering Geographic Territories in Inside Sales

Inside sales, which is mainly digital, often doesn't need geographic territories. Assigning territories based on vertical, industry, or account commonality is more effective. This lets sales reps specialize, be industry experts, and encounter similar struggles across businesses ultimately becoming strategic consultants for their prospects. This specialization can make sales pitches more relevant and increase conversion rates.

The Importance of Good Data

Good data is crucial for any sales strategy. Recent data suggest that over 40% of SDR time is spent on admin work, such as data entry or fixing bad data. Improving your data model can free up time for sales reps and SDRs to be more productive. It can also eliminate the most frustrating parts of their job. High-quality data helps sales reps work more effectively, focusing on leads that are likelier to convert. Accurate data also boosts team morale by reducing frustration and increasing success rates.

Using Intent Data to Define Territories

Nowadays, many companies struggle with top-of-funnel, meaning leads are scarce. An effective strategy is to segment territories based on buyer intent instead of location. This approach prioritizes leads who show signs of engagement, such as downloading content, website visits or attending webinars. Concentrating on these hot leads can significantly increase efficiency by targeting prospects ready to engage. My preferred approach for inside sales teams is to segment prospects based on vertical/industry/account similarities and use intent signals to prioritize those prospects.

Geographic Territories in Outside Sales: Still Valuable

For outside sales, geographic territories are still useful. Assigning reps to specific areas can maximize travel efficiency and face-to-face meeting time. Local knowledge can build trust and help understand regional business nuances, leading to improved sales results. Efficient travel planning within a geographic area can also cut costs and enable reps to visit clients more often.

Conclusion

Whether to use geographic-based sales territories depends largely on your business model and market. Inside sales teams might find industry-based territories enhanced by intent data more beneficial, while geographic territories often remain the best approach for outside sales. Beyond territories, it's important for a sales rep to be considered an industry expert, acting as a consultant rather than just pitching a product. Without industry expertise, a sales rep won't be a trusted advisor.

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