First time map user? I recognized the look. You saw a business map somewhere and you realized the value a map could lend to your business. You’ve done some light research online and are a little overwhelmed by the options. You’re anxious to get cracking, creating that one map that describes your whole business. Where to begin?
Relax. You’ve got time. You’re already ahead of most competitors.
Lets Review Business Map Software Options
Maps are not new and business mapping software has been around for decades now – for at least a little more than one decade anyway. Your supplier options include mapping tools with names like Google, Apple, and Microsoft on them. There are the popular web map engines like Google Maps, Map Quest, and Yahoo and there are also Geographic Information System software products (GIS) like Esri, MapInfo (now Pitney Bowes), and Intergraph.
For most of you, the above map applications are not the best solution. If you want sales planning tools, CRM mapping supplements, sales territory management, and marketing analysis – you’re definitely on the right track. If you want to spend upwards of $5000 on a business mapping application plus hire a mapping profession to run it, go with Google Maps, Esri, or Pitney Bowes. Unbelievably advanced mapping capabilities await you. You will be thrilled with all the maps you get.
For the rest of you, read on. Most of the people I talk to everyday come to us (a standard business web mapping software) through an Internet search. And most of you have a budget for mapping software that ranges between $Free and $500.00 per user. I hear users say things like, “I just want to see my stores” or “I need the zip codes around this location.”
“I just need a map.”
You just want a map. You may want a map that lets you visualize customers, resources, competitor locations, or prospects. And you may seek to create sales territories to improve accountability in your sales force. Or perhaps you want to collect customer locations by zip code, or zip codes around a metro area. Or maybe you want to estimate the drive time areas around a restaurant.
You know you want the tool to be easy to use. And you want to be able to share your maps with others in your business. The good news is, you can have all these things, and keep the mapping expenses within your budget.
Web-based map tools, like Map Business Online and our competitors, are designed to solve your everyday business problems. These tools provide solutions to problems like these:
• My boss needs to drive accountability into our sales organization through territory management
• I want to visualize where all my competitors are doing business and the area demographics
• We need an efficient route across more than 25 customer drop off locations
• We have to email everyone on my donor list within 25 miles of this event location
• I need to plan franchises territories by zip code in 25 metro areas by Tuesday
• We need to draw concentric circles around store locations and consider demographics and consumer drive times
• I must create a list of zip codes within 50 miles of a location and include population for each zip code.
All of these uses of business mapping software are just examples. Each business uses their mapping tools in different ways. That’s what’s great about businesses – none of them are exactly the same. And that’s what’s great about mapping tools – they let you view your business in a way that matches your particular business need.
So pick an option that’s right for your business based on business complexity and budget. Ask yourself, is my business mapping challenge a complex, multifaceted Gordian knot that requires a team of experts and a decade of study, discussion and planning? Or do I just want to visualize my customers, territories, and competitors on a map? If it is the latter, click the link below (or one similar) and get started.
Www.MapBusinessOnline.com America’s fastest growing business mapping software. Let a map help you learn about your business.
