Set Primary & Secondary Coverage Zones for Rep Absences

Yes. Add two columns to your import, one for the primary rep and one for the backup rep, then color a layer for each. The first layer shows who owns every area day to day. The second layer shows the next-closest person set to cover it. Both sit on the same map, so you are never guessing who the fallback is. When someone is out, you already have the answer in front of you, decided ahead of time rather than sorted out in a rushed phone call.

Build your territories as usual, then add a salesperson-two column that names the backup for each area. Color a second layer by that column with the Grouping Tool, and every area now shows both its owner and its standby rep. On the day someone calls in sick, you look at the backup layer, see who is next-closest, and stretch their zone over the gap. Nothing needs rebuilding. The plan was already on the map, waiting for the day you needed it.

Yes, and that is the point of setting it up in advance. When a rep goes off sick or on holiday, open the map, find their area on the backup layer, and hand the coverage to the standby rep already named there. If you would rather stretch a neighbor over the gap, redraw that rep's zone with the Boundary Tool to reach it. Either way takes a minute, because the decision about who covers what was made when things were calm, not during the scramble.

That is exactly how the salesperson-two column works. Every area can point to its own backup, so Paul covers Michael in one region while Michael covers Paul in another, or a third rep covers both somewhere else. You are not forced into one blanket rule. Because the backup is set per area, the map reflects real geography and real workloads. When you color the second layer, each area lights up with the specific person set to step in, not a generic stand-in for the whole team.

No. The backup lives on its own layer, colored by the salesperson-two column, sitting over your primary coverage. You can show it, hide it, or flip between the two whenever you want. Your day-to-day territory map stays exactly as it was. When a gap opens, you switch the backup layer on to see who covers, then switch it off again once the rep is back. The two views share one map, so nothing is duplicated and nothing gets out of sync.

Share the map. Maptive gives you a view-only link you can send to the whole office, and you can password-protect it if you want. Everyone opens the same map, sees the primary rep and the backup rep for each area, and knows who to route a call or a lead to while someone is out. No spreadsheet to email around, no separate memo about holiday cover. The coverage plan lives in one place, and a quick link keeps everyone looking at the current version.

Yes. An open seat is simply an area with no active primary rep, so you point it at the standby rep on the backup layer until the role is filled. Color that area to the covering person and share the map so the office knows where leads go in the meantime. When the new hire starts, you swap them into the primary layer and the area returns to normal. The backup setup carries the coverage through the gap without leaving any area unassigned.

Mostly the Grouping Tool, which colors your markers by any column, so you color one layer by the primary rep and a second by the backup rep. If you want to stretch a rep's zone over a gap, the Boundary Tool lets you group ZIP codes, counties, or states and drag the edges. Import your reps and areas from Excel, CSV, or Google Sheets to start. Everything sits on one map, and a shared link lets the office read the coverage without touching your setup.

As many as your team needs. A single map holds up to 200,000 locations, so a full account list with a primary and a backup rep on each fits comfortably. Every rep on your team can appear on both the primary and the backup layers, covering different areas in each role. You are not limited to one backup for the whole map. Each area gets its own named fallback through the salesperson-two column, and the map colors them all so you can read the plan at a glance.

Yes. Maptive lets you share a map as view-only or with edit access, and for a coverage plan you usually want view-only. Send that link to the office and everyone can see the primary and backup rep for each area, but nobody can change your setup by accident. Add a password if the map should stay internal. When you update a backup, the shared link shows the new version, so the office is always reading the current coverage plan rather than an old copy.