Which strategies should you choose when launching your sales route?

Reducing miles travelled, balancing working days, finishing earlier, or visiting high-priority customers: not all roving sales representatives share the same goals when planning their route.

A Field Sales Representative covering an extensive territory might seek to limit travel. A HoReCa sales representative will focus on the number of achievable visits within an area. A sales manager, meanwhile, will want to distribute appointments evenly throughout the week. Some reps are happy to stay overnight, while others prefer to increase the mileage travelled in a single day.

The best sales route therefore depends as much on the objectives pursued as on the points of interest to visit or personal organisation.

To meet these different needs, optimisation engines can offer several calculation strategies. But how do they work? What are their advantages, and in which situations should they be favoured?

What is a route optimisation strategy?

A route optimisation strategy corresponds to the priority given to the engine when it organises a sales representative's visits.

When a rep selects several points of interest, different organisations are generally possible.

Some make it possible to reduce the miles travelled. Others distribute appointments more evenly or prioritise certain customers.

The engine must therefore strike a balance between several objectives.

Choosing an optimisation strategy means indicating what you wish to prioritise in the organisation of your travel.

This choice does not replace planning constraints.

Working hours, visit durations, opening times, and already confirmed appointments remain essential elements to take into account.

The strategy comes into play to guide the calculation among the different possible organisations.

What are the main route optimisation strategies?

There are several ways to organise a sales route. Each meets a specific need.

1. Minimise the route: reduce the miles travelled

The “reduce driving time” strategy seeks to limit the total distance travelled between the various points of interest. The aim is to avoid unnecessary detours and back-and-forth travel by favouring a coherent geographical organisation.

When to choose this strategy?

It is particularly beneficial when:

• The sales representative covers a vast geographical territory.

• Customers are far apart from one another.

• Travel accounts for a significant portion of the day.

• Reducing mileage is a priority.

Take the example of a sales representative in building materials wholesale who needs to visit several distributors scattered across different regions. By prioritising distance reduction, they can seek an organisation that limits travel between different areas of their territory.

Key takeaway: this strategy is suitable when the main objective is to reduce the miles travelled. However, it does not guarantee that days will be balanced in terms of number of visits or duration.

2. Balance days: distribute workload more effectively

The “Balanced days” strategy seeks to distribute visits more evenly over the planned period. Without this logic, an optimisation might concentrate numerous appointments on certain days and leave others significantly lighter.

The objective here is to achieve a more consistent schedule.

When to choose this strategy?

It can be useful when:

• The sales representative wants to maintain a relatively stable pace of visits.

• The route spans several days or weeks.

• Days vary greatly in terms of appointment counts.

• The sales manager seeks to avoid an excessive concentration of visits.

Imagine a Field Sales Representative who needs to carry out twenty visits over a week. Rather than front-loading a large share of appointments on the first few days, a balancing strategy can pursue a more even spread.

Key takeaway: balancing days does not necessarily mean carrying out the exact same number of visits every day. Appointment duration, travel, and customer availability also affect the distribution.

3. Finish early: favour days that wrap up sooner

The “Finish early” strategy aims to organise visits in a way that encourages an earlier end to the day whenever constraints permit. It can be particularly attractive for a sales representative who wants to complete their travel early enough to dedicate time to other activities.

When to choose this strategy?

It can suit several situations:

• Reserving time at the end of the day for sales follow-ups.

• Setting aside a time slot for meeting reports or administrative tasks.

• Avoiding unnecessarily prolonged travel.

• Adapting the route to a day that includes other commitments.

Take the example of a sales rep who needs to carry out several visits in the morning and early afternoon before dedicating the end of the day to preparing the next day's appointments.

A strategy prioritising an earlier finish to the route can be very relevant.

Key takeaway: this strategy seeks to facilitate an earlier end of the day, without guaranteeing an identical finish time every day.

4. Priorities first: visit the most important customers

Not all customers in a portfolio necessarily carry the same priority level.

Some points of interest offer high commercial potential. Others require an urgent visit or have not been visited for several weeks.

The “Priorities first” strategy aims to favour points of interest deemed high priority in the organisation of visits.

When to choose this strategy?

It is particularly well-suited when:

• Certain customers must be visited as a priority.

• The sales rep wants to catch up on visit-frequency delays.

• A sales campaign targets a specific selection of points of interest.

• The portfolio contains more customers than can be visited during the period.

Imagine a supermarket Field Sales Representative who needs to organise their travel around strategic stores.

They can start by identifying high-priority points of interest from their sales data, then use this priority to steer the planning process.

Key takeaway: this strategy allows commercial priorities to carry more weight in the organisation of visits. It does not guarantee that all priority points of interest can be scheduled if constraints conflict.

5. Sectors: group visits by geographical area

The “Sectors” strategy favours organising visits by geographical area.

The goal is to limit travel between different parts of the territory and promote consistent coverage of each area.

When to choose this strategy?

It can be relevant when:

• The portfolio covers several towns or counties.

• Points of interest are distributed across distinct zones.

• The sales representative wishes to dedicate specific days to specific sectors.

• Geographical coverage is a major priority.

Take the example of a HoReCa sales representative covering several urban areas.

Rather than multiplying journeys between these cities throughout the week, a sector-based strategy can encourage grouping visits within the same zone.

Key takeaway: this strategy favours geographical consistency. However, it may result in a daily distribution that differs from what a balancing strategy would produce.

How to choose the right strategy based on your objectives?

There is no single strategy that is universally better than the others.

The choice depends on the customer portfolio, the geographical spread of customers, and the priorities for the period.

These strategies are not entirely mutually exclusive.

A route organised by sectors can also reduce mileage. A route that minimises travel can sometimes produce balanced days.

The difference lies in the objective that the engine seeks to favour first.

Why can two strategies produce similar routes?

In certain situations, several strategies yield very similar results.

This is notably the case when points of interest are clustered in the same area, opening hours are relatively similar, or confirmed appointments leave little room for rescheduling.

For example, if a sales representative needs to visit six stores located in the same neighbourhood, the “Minimise the route” strategy and the “Sectors” strategy may propose comparable organisations.

Conversely, when the portfolio is widespread and constraints are numerous, the differences can be much more pronounced.

Choosing a strategy does not necessarily result in a radical overhaul of the schedule.

Why compare several strategies before setting off on your route?

When a sales representative hesitates between several goals, comparing different options can help them choose the most suitable organisation.

A comparison mode makes it possible to calculate several strategies using the same points of interest and constraints.

In the new Sidely engine, this mode allows for comparing three strategies side by side.

The value lies in visualising the outcomes of different choices.

For instance, one route might offer fewer miles, while another spreads visits more evenly across the week.

Which indicators should you compare?

To evaluate multiple proposals, it is useful to look at:

The number of scheduled visits

How many points of interest will the sales rep be able to visit during the period?

The miles travelled

What total distance does the route represent?

Travel time

How much time will be spent travelling between visits?

The distribution of days

Are certain days particularly heavy? Do others have available slots?

Priority customer coverage

Are the most important points of interest included in the schedule?

The best option is not necessarily the one with the lowest figure on a single metric.

It is the one that best matches sales objectives and constraints for the period.

What other options can customise a sales route?

Beyond the chosen strategy, certain parameters make it possible to tailor the route even further to field realities.

Open routes: finish somewhere other than the starting point

On a standard route, the itinerary can be built with a return to the starting point.

However, this approach does not suit every situation.

A sales rep might, for instance, start their day at home and end in another town.

An open route allows the engine to calculate visit organisation without requiring a return to the departure point.

This option is particularly valuable when travel forms part of a multi-day schedule.

Flexible lunch break

A lunch break set at a fixed time can sometimes complicate visit scheduling.

A flexible break gives the engine more leeway to position this pause throughout the day.

The goal is to accommodate the break while maintaining an organisation that aligns well with appointments and travel.

Daily mileage cap

A sales representative may want to cap the distance driven each day.

The mileage cap allows this limit to be incorporated into route planning.

This option is especially useful for teams covering large territories or wanting to keep daily travel within boundaries.

However, it may reduce the number of visits that can be carried out on certain days.

Locked appointments

A confirmed appointment represents a commitment that the engine must respect.

In Sidely, locked visits retain priority during optimisation.

For example, if a sales rep has an important appointment in a distant town, the engine can organise the other visits of the day around that destination area.

This prevents generating a schedule that needlessly multiplies journeys back and forth.

CRM and sales routes: choose the best tool to boost productivity.

How does the new Sidely engine use these strategies?

Sidely has upgraded its route optimisation engine to make commercial travel planning easier. It finds an organisation for visits based on selected points of interest and entered constraints.

Smarter visit selection

Our engine simplifies visit pre-selection. It directly identifies points of interest that can be incorporated into the schedule while accounting for constraints.

The objective is to make better use of visit opportunities without relying solely on pre-set thresholds.

Multiple strategies to meet different goals

The new engine includes various optimisation strategies: reducing mileage, balancing days, finishing early, prioritising key customers, or grouping by geography.

A comparison mode also lets you evaluate multiple strategies side by side to see which one suits you best.

Better consideration of field constraints

Our route planning and optimisation engine helps generate routes that align more closely with reps' actual commitments and field realities.

• Locked appointments are kept in the schedule, even when they take up a significant amount of time.

• When a confirmed appointment is located far from the starting point, the engine can prioritise visits located within its destination area.

• Opening hours are also factored in to avoid scheduling a visit during an incompatible time slot.

Indicators to better understand your route

Sidely also allows you to view distances and travel times associated with the route.

This information can be displayed by day, by week, or across the entire optimised period.

It gives the sales representative greater visibility over time spent travelling and the overall structure of their schedule.

Which optimisation strategy should you choose? Key takeaways

The best optimisation strategy depends above all on the sales objective being pursued.

Minimising miles prioritises reducing travel. Balancing days promotes a more even distribution of visits. The “Priorities first” strategy gives greater weight to important customers, while the sector-based approach focuses on geographical consistency.

Yet no strategy can override field constraints.

Opening hours, visit durations, confirmed appointments, and available time will always influence the result.

The challenge is therefore not to find a perfect strategy, but to choose the one that best matches your current commercial priorities.

With its new optimisation engine, Sidely enables you to organise visits based on the real constraints of field teams and build a route aligned with their objectives.