Sales training programs help determine the size of the sales force. The size of the sales force has to be fixed at the optimum level. A number of interrelated considerations are involved like the level of sales expected and the number of sales people needed for generating this sale. Also, there are a minimum number of salespeople needed regardless of the level of sales. A minimum number of salespeople are needed to furnish the required marketing intelligence and costs involved in maintaining the sales force.

Some firms try to fix the sales force size first and then structure the territories suitably and allot them to available salespeople. Other firms attempt an integrated exercise of determining the number of territories and the number of salespeople and arrive at the optimum. The latter practice has greater merit.

A sales territory is a geographical grouping of customers and prospects. Accordingly, designing sales territories means the division of the total marketing area into a number of territories, with the objective of servicing the territory effectively, economically and profitably. Two methods are employed commonly in designing sales territories: the equal workload method and the equal potential method.

The equal workload method aims at equalizing the workload of all salespeople. The territories are formulated so that they are equal in workload rather than in potential. The workload is considered in terms of the time required for the salesperson to service all the accounts in a territory. On the other hand, equal potential method starts on the basis of the productivity of a salesperson that varies depending on the potential of the territory. An attempt is made to structure the territories with equal potentials rather than equal workloads.

Proper designing of sales territories brings several benefits to the firm. It facilitates effective planning, as well as controls marketing operations, since a properly designed sales territory is a more homogeneous area. Market data is more meaningful when collected and applied at the territory level. Moreover, when the total area is broken up into well-designed territories, control of the marketing effort and evaluation of performance become easier.