Evaluating  Existing  Itineraries Evaluating existing itineraries starts the same as for a  new  itinerary  but  now  we  have  actual  results  to evaluate and additional questions to consider. MATCH  ITINERARY  WITH  THE OVERLAY.–  Go to the SMART board and mentally draw out the itinerary route. Do yellow accession dots frequently crop up on the route? In a rural area this is an especially  good  indicator  of  itinerary  success.  Some target market centers will draw prospects from other areas and may be difficult to identify with the efforts of an  itinerary.  This  step  should  still  be  done  to  get  a mental picture of the itinerary route in relationship to the rest of the territory. DISCUSS EACH POINT OF CONTACT.–  Ask the recruiter about each point of contact. How many referrals  have  been  provided?  Have  those  referrals resulted in new contracts? Check the referral recognition request file to see if the contact has been recognized. What has the recruiter done to encourage referrals? If the referrals are coming in, great, the stopping point is effective. If not, first help the recruiter develop new tactics  for  requesting  referrals.  Then,  if  that  is  not effective, recommend deleting that stopping point or finding a new point of contact. If the stopping point is a lead-generating activity, discuss what activity has taken place. Has the media center run hometown news releases or public service advertising? If a take-one rack has been placed, what sort of turnover of materials is happening? Have leads been identified as originating from  the  literature  placed  there?  You  are  primarily trying  to  determine  if  the  stopping  point  is  worthwhile or  should  be  replaced. PERSONALLY DEVELOPED CONTACTS AND REFERRALS.– You should check the last few months of applicant logs to see if PDC and referral interviews are being generated in the area of the itinerary. If not, you should determine if the recruiter is beginning the itinerary with a goal in mind or approaching the task in a  hit-or-miss  fashion.  The  RINC  should  help  the recruiter set goals before each itinerary is run. If goals are set, but not met, training should be accomplished as soon  as  possible.  The  RINC  should  accompany  the recruiter on the itinerary (this does not have to wait for the scheduled run date; itineraries may be run any time in addition to the scheduled days of travel) to provide actual show-and-tell training. Try pairing the recruiter up with another recruiter on an itinerary. Not only do they learn from each other, there is confidence in numbers. P O T E N T I A L    T A R G E T    M A R K E T CENTERS.–   The   recruiter   should   be   identifying potential  target  market  centers  on  the  back  of  the itinerary  data  card.  These  should  be  evaluated  as  time allows to determine whether or not they should be added to  the  actual  itinerary.  The  potential  target  market centers should not remain on the card indefinitely. They either  prove  effective  and  are  added  to  the  front  of  the card  or  are  deemed  unproductive  and  lined  out indicating  no  further  evaluation  is  required.  Every recruiter  should  be  identifying  potential  target  market centers  as  a  means  to  continued  improvement  and keeping  pace  with  social  change. Itinerary Check Rides You can evaluate certain elements of an itinerary in the  office.  A  thorough  evaluation  can  only  be accomplished  by  running  the  itinerary  with  the  recruiter and observing his or her interaction with the community. As mentioned earlier, the RINC will run the itinerary with the recruiter as part of the regular review for new itineraries.  The  RINC  will  also  run  existing  itineraries with  new  recruiters  before  they  decide  to  keep  them  or develop their own. ZSs should conduct annual check rides with all RINCs. The check ride can tell you a lot about  how  the  itinerary  is  being  run.  The  following paragraphs will cover some important considerations to make during check rides. ITINERARY PREPARATION.– Before  departing the  NRS,  discuss  the  recruiter’s  preparation  activities. Preprospecting.– Was this itinerary preprospected? The RINC should have loaded the working tickler with prospect  cards  from  the  area  a  few  days  before  the actual day of travel. Additional Contacts.–  Additionally,  the  working tickler   may   be   loaded   with   cards   without   phone numbers,  DEP  cards,  or  other  cards  that  should  be contacted. Taking the time to consider these contacts on an itineraty can save the recruiter a lot of road time and make the itinerary that much more effective. Goals Set.– The RINC and recruiter should also have set  specific  goals  for  the  itinerary.  How  many  referrals and PDCs does the recruiter plan to obtain? What new COIs will be contacted? How will flexible time during the itinerary be used? Setting goals for the itinerary is the  most  important  preparation  step.  Goals  refine  the itinerary  plan  and  give  the  recruiter  a  measure  of success. 5-18