If your sales team is tired of chasing cold leads, or you’re stuck with territories that never quite deliver, you’re not alone. Sorting sales territories by gut feeling or old spreadsheets doesn’t cut it anymore—especially if you sell into tech-heavy industries. This guide is for sales ops, territory managers, or anyone who wants to stop guessing and start using real data. We’ll walk through how to actually use Hginsights for what it’s good at: mapping out accounts by the technology they use, so your best reps spend their time where it matters.
Let’s get into it.
Why Tech Install Base Matters in Sales Territory Planning
First things first: not all companies are equal prospects. If you’re selling cloud services, a company still running everything on-prem is a tougher pitch. If you’re pushing Salesforce add-ons, you want to know who’s actually using Salesforce, not just any CRM.
That’s where install base data comes in. Knowing who uses what tech helps you:
- Skip dead-end accounts that just aren’t a fit
- Spot “greenfield” opportunities where your product fills an obvious gap
- Prioritize high-value targets for your best reps
But here’s the catch: this only works if you trust your data. That’s why people turn to tools like Hginsights, which gathers install base info at scale. Just don’t expect magic—good data is only half the battle.
Step 1: Get Clear on Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
Before you dive into any tool, you need to know who you’re actually after. If you don’t have a tight ICP, you’ll end up with a bloated target list that wastes everyone’s time.
What to do:
- List your must-have technologies. What tech stacks does your best-fit customer already have? Are there techs they must not have?
- Define company size, industry, and geography. Don’t let install base data distract you from the basics.
- Get input from the field. Your reps know which accounts are a slog. Ask where they’ve won and why.
Pro tip: Don’t let “possible fit” accounts crowd out your real winners. It’s better to have a short, high-quality list than a giant one you can’t work.
Step 2: Pull Relevant Install Base Data from Hginsights
Now it’s time to fire up Hginsights and get your hands on the install base data. Here’s how to do it without getting lost in the weeds.
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Log in and head to the search or export feature. If you’re not an admin, make friends with someone who is.
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Build your filters:
- Technologies Installed: Pick the platforms, products, or categories that match your ICP.
- Tech Spend / Stack Depth: Sometimes you can sort by how “deep” a company is in a certain ecosystem. Use it if you have it.
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Company Size and Geography: Don’t skip these—territories are often built around them.
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Export your list. Most teams use CSV, but check what your CRM can handle.
What to ignore: Don’t get distracted by “nice-to-have” data fields that no one will use. Focus on what actually drives your territory decisions.
Step 3: Map Accounts to Existing (or New) Sales Territories
Here’s where you turn a raw account list into something your sales team can act on.
Options for mapping:
- By region: Standard for most teams. Just make sure you’re not splitting up clusters of similar tech users.
- By tech maturity: Some orgs group accounts by how advanced their tech stack is—put junior reps on legacy stacks, seniors on bleeding-edge tech.
- By vertical: Grouping by industry can make sense if certain techs are more common in some sectors.
How to actually do it:
- Use spreadsheets or your CRM to tag each account with territory info.
- If you’re using territory management software, import the data—but don’t expect it to be plug-and-play. You’ll need to clean and format your data first.
- Watch out for duplicates, weird account names, or missing fields. There’s always cleanup.
Pro tip: Don’t just dump new data on your reps. Walk them through the “why” behind any big changes.
Step 4: Prioritize Accounts Within Each Territory
Even with better data, not every account deserves the same effort. Prioritization is where you win or lose.
How to prioritize:
- Tech fit: Accounts using your target tech or showing signs of readiness go to the top.
- Potential spend: If Hginsights gives you estimated spend, use it. But don’t treat it as gospel—it’s an estimate, not a contract.
- Timing signals: Look for recent tech buys, contract renewals, or leadership changes. These can signal openness to new vendors.
- Existing relationships: Don’t ignore what your reps already know. Sometimes the spreadsheet is wrong.
What not to do: Don’t overcomplicate your scoring system. If reps can’t explain it in one sentence, it’s too much.
Step 5: Roll Out and Monitor—But Expect to Iterate
Now you’ve got territories mapped to the tech install base and a prioritized list. You’re done, right? Not quite.
Rollout tips:
- Communicate clearly. Tell reps how and why things are changing—and be ready for pushback.
- Monitor results. Watch for early signs: Are more meetings being booked? Are win rates up in the new territories?
- Stay flexible. If something’s not working, don’t wait a year to fix it. Data is always incomplete, and the market moves fast.
What to skip: Don’t get bogged down building perfect reports right away. Focus on what’s actionable.
What Works (and What Doesn’t) with Hginsights and Install Base Data
What works:
- Building territories that actually match your product’s sweet spot
- Avoiding wasted effort on accounts that will never buy
- Giving reps talking points (“I see you use X—how’s that going?”)
What doesn’t:
- Treating install base data as 100% accurate—there are always gaps and delays
- Assuming a big list equals big results—quality beats quantity every time
- Handing your team a new system without buy-in
Ignore the hype: Hginsights and similar tools aren’t magic. They’re just better maps. Your team still has to do the driving.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
If this sounds like a lot, that’s because it is—at first. But you don’t need to overhaul everything overnight. Start with a pilot, test what works, and keep things simple. The goal isn’t to have the fanciest map—it’s to help your team spend less time on dead ends and more time where they can actually win.
The best territory plan is the one your team actually uses. Don’t be afraid to tweak, scrap what’s not working, and double down on what does. Good data helps, but smart, focused action is what gets you paid.