A geocoding rule must be present for each data source you wish to display on a map. A geocoding rule tells Mapsimise which data fields contain the latitude and longitude values that are used to place markers on a map for each record in the data set.
A geocoding rule also allows you to specify which address fields in your data set to use for the geocoding process. The address fields are all optional; if your data is pre-geocoded then you don’t need to set these up. If your data contains address fields that you wish to convert to latitude/longitude by geocoding, then you need to map at least one of the address fields.
Geocoding Rule for Datatables
Every datatable created with Mapsimise has a geocode rule, set up automatically when the datatable is created. Mapsimise attempts to detect which fields from your datatable to use for latitude and longitude.
Example: If you uploaded a .CSV file with Latitude and Longitude columns (i.e. pre-geocoded data), the geocode rule will be set up to use those fields.
Example: If you upload a .CSV file with address columns only (no latitude/longitude columns), Mapsimise creates its own fields for storing geocodes: mapsimise_latitude and mapsimise_longitude. The geocode rule will be set up to use those fields.
To edit the geocode rule for a datatable, go to Datatables -> <your datatable> -> Details -> Geocoding -> Edit Rule
Geocoding Rules for Live Data Connectors
Each entity/object in the connected system can have one or more geocoding rules. This is useful for geocoding Billing and Shipping addresses separately (Salesforce) or for Address 1 and Address 2 sets (Dynamics 365). Usually, only one address field set will have a geocoding rule – and Mapsimise creates some rules for common entities for Dynamics 365 and Salesforce when a Live Connector is set up.
To create or edit existing geocoding rules, go to Connectors -> <your connector> -> Details -> Geocoding -> Edit Rule
Editing a Geocoding Rule
The geocoding rule edit screen (above) is where you map fields used in the geocoding process to fields in your data set. The dropdown boxes are fields in your data set.
For address lines, only fields that contain string datatypes are shown. For Latitude and Longitude, only fields of a decimal number datatype or fields that have been marked as Latitude and Longitude during the datatable upload process are shown.
You can map as many or as few address fields as you wish. If you intend to have Mapsimise geocode your addresses, you will need to have at least one address field mapped. If you’re only mapping one address field, it would usually be the ZIP/Postal Code.
If your data set has addresses contained in a single text field separated by commas or line breaks, you can map this field to Street Line 1.
The Default Country field is used during geocoding when a record from your data set does not contain a value in the field you mapped for Country. If your company operates mostly in a single country, your data entry personnel may not always enter a country in record addresses. In these cases, it would be preferential to select your company’s country as the Default Country to improve geocoding results.