Map and Tack System. To know just where each man is at all times—to be able to locate Smith or Brown instantly, every day—is very necessary. Perhaps the best method of doing this is by the use of what is known as the map and tack system.
State maps, printed in colors, are fastened in the bottoms of shallow drawers, a drawer for each state. Sharp pointed tacks, with heads covered with silk in a great variety of colors, are used for various classifications, and colored silk cords are used to indicate routes and territory boundaries.
To each salesman is assigned a specific color, by which he is always known. Tacks with heads of the proper colors are placed in the map at the towns on his territory. A cord is then strung from tack to tack in the order in which he will cover the territory. When the salesman leaves a town the cord is removed from that tack, coiled up, and placed over the tack at the next town. The tack at the end of the cord always shows the present location of the salesman. Fig. 31 illustrates a map with cords—represented by the heavy lines—indicating salesmen's routes.
Fig. 31. Map Showing Operation of Map and Tack System Courtesy Browne-Morse Company
Other tacks, with heads of a different color or coiled wire heads for holding labels, are used to indicate special facts—as, competition strong, customer ready to buy, claim to be adjusted, or collections to be made. These are placed at the side of the salesman's tacks and are a reminder to write to him, about the special matter, at that town. If an inquiry is received or a good prospect developed, in some small town not regularly visited by any salesman, a special tack is placed in the map at that point. A cord of special color is then strung from this tack to the nearest stopping point on any salesman's route. This is a reminder to write the salesman instructing him to make a special trip to this point outside of his regular territory.
Fig. 32. Traveler's Route Card