Configure Routes and Tours

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:

• Use the route template to create a route.
  
• Work with the tour template to create a tour.
  
• Create a tour from a route.
  

Create a Route

Now it’s time for Fatima to create a route from the route template that she created in the previous unit. After creating a route, Fatima adds customers to it. She can also define the default sequence of stops along the route.

Fatima creates a route with all the NTO stores in the downtown area, with each location in a specific order. This route is already created in your org, so just read along to learn how it’s done.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Routes.
   
2. Click New.
   
3. Specify the following details:
   
   • Route Name: NTO Downtown Route
   • Route Template: NTO Downtown Route Temp
     
   • Valid From: Select any future date
     
   • Valid Thru: Select any future date after the Valid From date
     
   • Description Language 1: NTO Downtown Route
     
   • Start Warehouse: Downtown
     
   • End Warehouse: Downtown
     
   • Default Start Time: 08:00
     
   • Default User: David Lopez
     
   • Default Truck: Truck 001
     
4. Save your changes.
   

Add Customers to Routes

After Fatima creates a route from the route template, she adds all the NTO stores in the Downtown area to this route. When you add customers, they’re added sequentially to the route. You can modify the customer sequence on the Edit Sequence page. Visit templates must be in the same sales org as the sales org of the user. The default visit template is the visit template of the route.

Here’s how to add customers to an existing route. In your Developer Edition org, customers are already added, so just read along to learn how.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Routes.
   
2. Search for and select the relevant route.
   
3. On the Related tab, click Add Customer.
   
4. Select Van Sales for the Visit Template.
   
5. Select *NTO Atlanta, *NTO Store #201, and *NTO Store #226. You can select the customer accounts from the list. You can also find the customer by using the provided filters under Search Customers.
   
6. Click Add.
   

Edit the Customer Sequence in Routes

Drivers execute tasks and visits for customers based on their sequence in a route. You can reorder the sequence of customers by providing the sequence number or using the drag-and-drop feature on the Edit Sequence page.

When you add customers to a route, the system automatically creates a corresponding visit for each customer on the route and associates it with the tour (by using route). To determine the customer sequence and visit sequence, manage the customer sequence in a route.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Routes.
   
2. From the Related tab, select NTO Downtown Route.
   
3. Click ⏷ in the header field and then click Edit Sequence.
   
4. Provide or modify the sequence number in the Sequence field, and then save your changes. You can also drag and drop the accounts to change their sequence.
   

Create a Tour

You have two ways to create a tour: from a tour template or from a route. When creating tours, keep these points in mind.

• All the tour checks and tour object references values are preset from a tour template.
  
• The sales org of the tour is preset as the sales org of the tour template.
  
• In a tour, the planned start time is the start date and time for the first visit (determined by the visit or customer sequence). The planned start time for subsequent visits is calculated as the previous visit start time plus the visit duration.
  

Create a Tour from a Route

While creating a tour from a route, Fatima ensures that:

• Multiple customers are added to a route.
  
• The route is present and is in the active status.
  
• The route has an associated tour template, and the tour template is active.
  
• The route has at least one customer with a visit.
  

Fatima creates a van-sales tour by using a predefined route. This tour is already created for you in your Developer Edition org.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Tours.
   
2. Click New Tour via Route.
   
3. Specify the following details:
   

• Tour Name: Tour Using Route to Downtown
• Route: NTO Downtown Route
  
• Date: Any future date
  
• Time: Any time of the day
  
• Description Language 1: Tour Using Route to Downtown
  

4. Save your changes.
   

A tour named Tour Using Route to Downtown opens up. All the tour details from the tour template, the tour checks, and the tour object references are populated in this new tour. The system also presets the warehouse, user, and vehicle details from the associated route. The system creates a corresponding visit for each customer on the route and associates it with the tour.

Create a Tour from a Tour Template

Drivers can create a van sales tour independently of a route by using a tour template.

Fatima creates a tour from a tour template as follows. This tour is already present in your org.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Tours.
   
2. Click New Tour via Template.
   
3. Select the Downtown Tour tour template, and click Continue.
   
4. Specify the following details:
   

• Tour Name: Tour to Downtown
• Default Driver: David Lopez
  
• Description Language 1: Tour to Downtown
• Start Warehouse: Downtown
  
• End Warehouse: Downtown
  

5. Save your changes.
   

Create Visits for Tours

When you create tours (by using tour templates or routes), you can manually add visits to the tour that aren’t derived from the route. Assigned visits are shown in the Related tab of the tour. You can create visits for multiple accounts. When you create a tour from a route, the system creates a corresponding visit for each customer on the route and associates the visit with the tour (by using the route).

To map visits to a tour, the user’s default location must be set. Fatima creates van sales visits for a few of the NTO stores, along with some other grocery stores in the East. These visits are already created for you in your special edition org.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Tours.
   
2. Select Tour To Downtown.
   
3. Click Create Visit.
   
4. Select the Van Sales visit template. Visit templates must be of the same sales org as the sales org of the user. The default visit template is the visit template of the tour.
   
5. Select the following stores from the list.
   
   • *NTO Atlanta
     
   • *NTO Store #201
     
   • *NTO Store #226
     
   • East Large Grocery
     
   • East Medium Grocery
     
6. Click Add.
   

A visit for each selected store is created. You can check the recent visits in the Visits tab of Field Sales Execution.

Edit Visit Sequence for Tours

Drivers execute visits based on their sequence defined in a tour. To edit the default visit sequence, use the drag-and-drop feature on the Edit Sequence page.

1. From the App Launcher, find and select Tours.
   
2. Select Tour to Downtown.
   
3. Click Edit Sequence.
   
4. Provide or modify the sequence number in the Sequence field, and save your changes.
   
5. Save your changes, if any.
   

You can also adjust the sequence by using the Sequence option on the Edit Sequence page. Alternatively, you can use the Planned Start Time option to change the sequence based on the Date or Time fields.

You can see how Fatima can change the sequence of the visits to the customer stores in a convenient way. This makes things easier for David, the delivery driver, to complete routes in a time-saving way.

Let’s Hit the Road

In this module, you discovered how a warehouse admin makes life easier for direct store delivery drivers and van sales reps. Once your routes and tours are fully set up, your delivery services can run at their best. The workflow is simple and user-friendly, even for drivers and van sales reps who aren’t tech-savvy. Your warehouse admins can prepare meticulous, time-saving tours to keep drivers efficient and successful as they transport your precious cargo to customers.

Resources

• Salesforce Help: Tour Management