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'Territory group properties' popup
'Territory group properties' popup

Learn how to edit group properties, add data fields, aggregate metrics, demographics and mass-create territories from geo-library

Sergey Shurygin avatar
Written by Sergey Shurygin
Updated over a week ago

This article covers the use of Territory group properties popup. For more information about territory groups, and how to create, remove and share them with other users, visit this article.

The Territory group properties popup allows you to do the following:

  • adjust properties for the group's territories in one place (which is especially useful in case of a large number of territories),

  • include or exclude territories in the group in/from the process of auto-assignment of records (if it has been activated),

  • configure data fields for territories in the group, including aggregate and demographic metrics,

  • mass-create territories out of geo-library regions, download the list of the currently selected geo-library regions, and export the GeoJson with all the territories.

For a new territory group, the popup looks like this:

General properties

Name

The name of the territory group is visible in the list of territory groups.

Code

The identifier of the territory group when accessed in automation.

Auto-assign records to territories in this group

When checked, territories in this group will participate in the auto-assignment of records and count toward your auto-assignment limit. When unchecked, records within these territories will not be assigned to them. This setting helps exclude groups you don't need in the auto-assignment process - to stay under the auto-assignment limit.

Data fields: function, custom and demographic

Data fields are text or numeric values on every territory in the group that can be shown in the territory name and/or its data popup. Numeric fields - metrics - can also automatically colorize territory based on a metric’s value and a configurable color scale.

Mapsly offers 3 types of data fields:

  1. Function (aggregate metric): its value is automatically calculated based on records located in the territory. It can be the number of such records or an aggregate (SUM, MAX, MIN, or AVG) across the records by the specific field.

  2. Demographic metric: a pre-loaded value from data provided by the US Census Bureau. Available only for territories generated from the geo-library’s areas for which the US Census Bureau aggregates census data, like postal code tabulation areas, counties, states, census tracts, and census group blocks.

  3. Custom data field: a placeholder field of a text or numeric type that can be filled for each territory manually (in a territory's properties), using Mapsly automation suite (for example, by a workflow), or by importing from a file. Numeric data fields (metrics) can also be issued to colorize territories like any other metric type.

To add a metric, press the plus button to the right of Data fields and select the type of data field you need:

Function (aggregate metric)

To add an aggregate metric select Function, and in the Metric properties popup that will open, select the aggregate function that will be applied to the target field of the selected target object for all records of this object in a territory:

Available functions are:

  • SUM: the sum of all values

  • MIN: the minimum of all values

  • MAX: the maximum of all values

  • AVE: the average of all values

  • COUNT: the number of records of the selected object in a territory; for this function, you need to select only the target object (no need to select a field).

The Object selector only contains objects for which auto-assignment is activated.

The Field selector is available for all functions except COUNT and contains numeric fields from the selected object.

How to apply a function only to a subset of records that match a condition

Suppose you'd like to apply the function only to records that match a condition and exclude the records that don't. In that case, you'll need to add a custom field to your object and use a Mapsly workflow (or a workflow in your data source, if available) to fill it with the value of the target field for records that match the condition, or 0 for records that don't.

Then, add a Function field and select the newly created custom field. Since it contains 0 in all records that don't match your condition, you've effectively excluded records that don't match your condition from the aggregate metric's value.

Implementation services are included in your Mapsly subscription. So contact us in chat or at [email protected] - and our engineers will implement data fields and metrics you need free of charge.

Demographic metrics (US only)

Mapsly allows you to add a Demographic metric that will be automatically filled in from any of the 50,000+ indicators offered by the US Census Bureau's most recent available 5-year American Community Survey. Both population counts and percentages are available.

IMPORTANT! Since US Census Bureau aggregates metrics for certain geographies, demographic metrics are available only for territories created from the geo-library regions for which the US Census Bureau offers data, which are:

  • States

  • Zip code tabulation areas

  • Census tracts

  • Census block groups

For free-drawn territories added to a territory group demographic metric will remain empty. Also, they will remain empty in territories, for which the US Census Bureau does not provide data.

Use Geographies section (described below) to mass-add territories from the Mapsly geo-library.

Note #1. At this moment, demographic metrics are only available for the US states and territories.

Note #2. Since Mapsly uses the Census Bureau data API, demographic metrics may become temporarily unavailable when the Bureau's API is unavailable.

To add a demographic metric, select Demographic, and select the metric in the Demographic metrics popup that will open.

Custom data field (text or numeric)

Custom fields are data fields that Mapsly does not automatically fill in. They are helpful in cases when you'd like to enter some text strings or metric values by hand, or using automation (for example, to sync them from the corresponding CRM records), or when you're creating a territory group into which you'll then be importing a GeoJson or KML file that contains your data.

To add a custom data field, select Custom: text or Custom: number, depending on the desired field type.

Visualization

Color

Select whether you'd like your territories to have a color based on the value of one of the metrics you added above in Data fields or a fixed default color.

In the case of a metric-based color, you'll see additional options:

using which you can:

  • select the metric whose value will determine the color,

  • adjust the color scale,

  • optionally, select the minimum and maximum values that will correspond to the left and right sides of the color scale,

  • select the number of ranges into which the color scale will be broken down,

  • and select the No data color indicating that the selected metric has no data for a particular territory.

To adjust the color scale, click on the scale:

and in the color scale configuration popup that will open, you'll be able to:

  • click on a color marker to adjust its color:

  • click on an empty space on the marker line to add a new marker (the cursor will turn into a "cross" when in the "add marker" position):

  • drag a marker out of the marker line to remove it:

You may leave the minimum and/or maximum values empty - and Mapsly will determine them automatically based on data in your records.

In the case of a fixed color, you can pick this color. In both cases, you may later override the color for individual territories in each property.

Compound territory visualization

This setting affects only territories created by merging multiple geo-library regions (like zip codes) and specifies whether to display those component regions inside the territory. If you pick to show component areas, you can also specify whether you'd like their names (zip codes) to be shown as well or not:

Naming

Check the Show territory name box if you'd like the names of territories in the group to be shown on the map. When the box is checked, you can specify 3 parameters that will govern how the name is displayed:

Territory name template

Indicate what your territory names will look like by entering static text (that will appear in the same way in the names of all territories) and insering data field values by clicking Insert tag on the right:

Example: this template

For zip-code based territories will produce names like this:

95640 (Pop: 12,203, Rev: $2,345,322)

Color

Indicate whether the text color of territory names should match their territory's color or should be displayed with a fixed color. In case of a fixed color, specify the color:

Size

Indicate whether the font size of territory names should be determined dynamically based on the territory size (the larger the territory, the larger the name) or displayed with a fixed font size. In case of a fixed size, specify the size:

Data pop-up

Check the Show data pop-up box if you'd like Mapsly to show a popup when a user hovers their cursor over a territory, and specify which data fields to show in the popup:

Data fields will appear in the data popup in the order they're added in the Data fields input above.

Geographies

Use this section to mass-add territories based on geo-library regions. To start selecting regions, click Modify:

Visit this article to learn how to use geo-library.

For each of the selected regions, Mapsly will add one territory to the group that matches the boundaries of the geo-library regions.

Note #1: You can also mass-add and remove territories using geo-library directly from the list of territory groups without opening the Territory group properties popup.

Note #2: it is not possible to mass-add territories containing multiple geo-library regions - if you'd like to add such territories, you would need to create them one by one as described here.

Once you have added at least one territory using the Geographies section or Lasso in the list of territory groups, you can then export the list of names of the selected territories by clicking Download area names (CSV) on the right:

You can also export the shapes and data field values of all territories in the group (both hand-drawn and generated from the geo-library) by clicking the Download GeoJson link below:

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