Catchment Modeling is a geographic analysis method that identifies where customers actually come from when they visit or engage a business. Rather than relying on theoretical boundaries or proximity assumptions, the catchment area is determined based on real world customer behavior such as address data, foot traffic analytics or order delivery records.
Catchment areas are essential to understanding how a franchise location pulls business from its surrounding market and how that pattern should influence future territory structures.
Accurate mapping of customer origins helps franchisors:
• Validate whether proposed trade areas match realistic buying behavior
• Reduce reliance on assumptions that can lead to overestimated performance
• Support Item Nineteen earnings expectations with behavior driven data
• Confirm Protected Territories reflect true competitive reach
• Improve lead allocations and marketing strategies
• Prioritize expansion where demand already exists
Catchment insights often reveal that theoretical boundaries do not match actual customer movement.
The process begins with a dataset that ties customer locations to the franchised business. This may include:
• Point of Sale data tied to ZIP Code or full address
• Delivery order history
• Membership or CRM records
• Third party mobility data or mobile signal analytics
• Survey based location profiling sources
Geospatial software then maps those origin points, often weighting them by frequency or revenue value. The resulting shape represents the true trade area based on demand rather than geography alone.
Catchment modeling can assess different levels of engagement including:
• Primary catchment where the majority of revenue originates
• Secondary catchment representing occasional but measurable activity
• Tertiary catchment identifying fringe influence and growth potential
These designations help franchisors refine marketing strategies and territory coverage expectations.
Catchment modeling is critical when:
• Expanding into new markets using existing performance analogs
• Analyzing competitive encroachment from independent operators
• Calibrating franchise marketing contributions based on market access
• Evaluating whether an underperforming unit has adequate demand reach
It creates a defensible bridge between analytics and franchise governance.
Zors allows franchisors to import or analyze customer location data and visualize them against existing territories with contact mapping. By observing where customers cluster and which territories they fall within, franchisors can:
• Confirm alignment between awarded rights and actual performance
• Identify underserved pockets within a market
• Evaluate expansion opportunities using proven demand
• Categorize Areas consistently for both legal and operational use
All territory layers remain unified in a single territory mapping platform, enabling cross team visibility as systems scale.
Drive Time Map
Isochrone
Isochrone Surface Modeling
Voronoi Partitioning
Franchise Territory
Kernel Density Estimation
Lead to Territory Assignment
Franchise Territory Mapping
Contact Mapping
Point of Interest Mapping
Last updated: December 4, 2025
