U.S. patent application number 14/089294 was filed with the patent office on 2014-09-04 for system and method for providing shopping aids and incentives to customers through a computer network.
This patent application is currently assigned to Catalina Marketing Corporation. The applicant listed for this patent is Catalina Marketing Corporation. Invention is credited to David M. Diamond, Michael E. Kacaba, David A. Rochon, Michael C. Scroggie.
Application Number | 20140249918 14/089294 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26679245 |
Filed Date | 2014-09-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140249918 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Scroggie; Michael C. ; et
al. |
September 4, 2014 |
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING SHOPPING AIDS AND INCENTIVES TO
CUSTOMERS THROUGH A COMPUTER NETWORK
Abstract
A system and method for delivering purchasing incentives and a
variety of other retail shopping aids through a computer network,
such as by E-mail over the Interne or the World Wide Web. Customers
(10) of retail stores can establish a bi-directional communication
link with the system, log in (16) to the system, and then elect to
browse among available purchasing incentive offers (18, 22), or
elect to explore other shopping aids, such as a shopping list
generator (26), a recipe center (30), or simply elect to claim a
product rebate or to receive product information. If the customer
elects to have product information or rebate information delivered,
only minimal customer identification is required. For purchase
incentives redeemable at retail stores, the customer must provide
identification information and must also designate a retailer (12)
at which the purchasing incentive can be exercised. For receipt of
focused incentives based the customer's past shopping behavior, the
customer must also supply a unique customer id., such as a check
cashing card number or credit card number, used for in-store
purchases. For delivery of a product sample, the customer's name
and address must be supplied. The system merges this
customer-supplied information (270) with other purchase incentive
data (272) and creates a printable graphical image of the
purchasing incentive (282) for transmission to the customer. In an
alternate embodiment of the invention, the purchase incentive is
not transmitted directly to the customer. Instead, the terms of the
incentive are transmitted electronically to the retail store (310)
designated by the customer, who receives either a token (316) to
present at the store or an advisory message. In yet another
embodiment of the invention, incentives may be targeted to specific
consumers based on a consumer purchase history (502), and
transmitted to consumers' computers (510) using electronic mail
addresses stored in a consumer database (506), or using a "personal
page" in the computer network, established for each consenting
consumer.
Inventors: |
Scroggie; Michael C.;
(Laguna Niguel, CA) ; Kacaba; Michael E.; (Santa
Monica, CA) ; Rochon; David A.; (Darien, CT) ;
Diamond; David M.; (Pawling, NY) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Catalina Marketing Corporation |
St. Petersburg |
FL |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Catalina Marketing
Corporation
St. Petersburg
FL
|
Family ID: |
26679245 |
Appl. No.: |
14/089294 |
Filed: |
November 25, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
09756788 |
Jan 10, 2001 |
|
|
|
14089294 |
|
|
|
|
09401939 |
Sep 23, 1999 |
|
|
|
09756788 |
|
|
|
|
08905501 |
Aug 4, 1997 |
6014634 |
|
|
09401939 |
|
|
|
|
PCT/US96/20497 |
Dec 23, 1996 |
|
|
|
08905501 |
|
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/14.53 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 20/387 20130101;
G06Q 30/0643 20130101; G06Q 20/12 20130101; G06Q 30/0225 20130101;
G06Q 30/0235 20130101; G06Q 30/0601 20130101; G06Q 30/0234
20130101; G06Q 30/0239 20130101; G06Q 30/0255 20130101; G06Q
30/0269 20130101; G06Q 30/0224 20130101; G06Q 30/0222 20130101;
G06Q 30/02 20130101; G06Q 30/0236 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/14.53 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 30/02 20060101
G06Q030/02 |
Claims
1. A system for delivering incentives over the Internet comprising:
a Web site for providing purchasing incentives from multiple
sources; a consumer purchase history database based on consumer
online shopping activity, wherein said consumer purchase history
database stores in association with an identification or a consumer
identification of all items selected and purchased during a
transaction by said consumer; a consumer database which stores
e-mail addresses of consumers, wherein said consumer database is
connected to said Web site so as to receive consumer data from said
Web site; and means for delivering purchasing incentives to
consumers by e-mail.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates generally to systems for providing
incentives to customers to shop in retail stores and, more
particularly, to systems for delivering customer incentives and
other shopping aids via a computer network. Various approaches have
been widely used to deliver purchasing incentives, usually in the
form of printed discount coupons, to customers of retail stores.
Coupons have been distributed to customers by mail, either in a
random manner or in a more demographically focused manner. Coupons
have also been delivered to customers in retail stores, either from
kiosks or at the check-out stand in response to the customer's
purchase of some preselected item or items. The latter technique is
well documented in prior patents assigned to the same assignee as
the present application; e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,212, "Method and
Apparatus for Dispensing Discount Coupons."
[0002] In recent years, an increasing number of retail store
customers also own personal computers and, of these, many have
access to computer network services that provide connections to the
Internet and the World Wide Web. Although some computer sites
connected to the World Wide Web have begun to offer "online"
shopping services, and some services have proposed to deliver
discount coupons through a computer network, the full potential of
online delivery of incentives has not been realized prior to the
present invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention resides in a system and method for the
distribution, via a computer network, of incentives and other
related shopping aids useful to retail customers. Importantly, the
incentives are distributed in such a way that they may be redeemed
only at a specific retailer selected by each customer.
[0004] Briefly, and in general terms, the method of the invention
comprises a sequence of steps performed at a central site in
cooperation with a communication device at a customer site. The
steps include logging in a remotely located customer using identity
data and geographic region data transmitted by the customer over a
communication network transmitting back to the registered customer
a plurality of incentive offers, the incentive offers being
exercisable in the customer's geographic region; and then receiving
incentive offer selection data from the customer over the
communication network, the offer selection data including the
designation of a retailer at which selected offer or offers may be
exercised. In response to the customer selection data, the method
performs the steps of generating a purchasing incentive containing
(in encoded form) the identity of the retailer designated by the
customer and the identity of the customer; and transmitting at
least one incentive to the customer over the communication network,
for subsequent printing by the customer. For security reasons, the
transmitted incentive may be encoded with the identity of the
retailer selected by the customer, and preferably also contains a
customer identification code.
[0005] An important element of the invention is that it permits the
customer to plan his or her shopping and shopping-related
activities more efficiently. To this end, the method also includes
the step of communicating with the customer concerning the use of
shopping aids other than incentives or coupons. In one aspect of
the invention, this communicating step includes transmitting a list
of products available for purchase, receiving customer selections
from the list of products, and then transmitting a shopping list to
the customer. Thus the customer may browse through a list or index
of available products, preferably organized by store department,
and then make selections by marking appropriate entries on a
computer screen, such as by positioning a mouse pointer on the
desired items and clicking a mouse button.
[0006] Another aspect of the invention includes the steps of
transmitting meal planning information, including a list of
recipes, to the customer, receiving a customer selection of one or
more recipe, transmitting back to the customer a shopping list that
includes ingredient products needed in each selected recipe, and
possibly transmitting to the customer at least one purchase
incentive pertaining to an ingredient product used in a selected
recipe. While shopping for products with purchasing incentive
offers, or while preparing a shopping list, the customer may also
use this feature to obtain the details of any recipe that is found
to be of interest. The system of the invention transmits the recipe
in two separate portions: (a) a complete copy of the recipe in
traditional format, including a list of ingredients, and
preparation and serving instructions, and (b) the list of
ingredients in shopping list form, which the customer may take to
the store. The latter portion of the recipe is added to the
customer's shopping list automatically and the system transmits a
purchase incentive or coupon if an incentive offer is associated
with any of the recipe ingredients. The system also provides other
meal planning information such as meal calorie and fat content,
vegetarian meal ideas and recipes, recipes for meals that can be
prepared in under thirty minutes, and so forth.
[0007] The purchasing incentive offers in the presently preferred
embodiment of the invention are derived from two sources: product
manufacturers and retailers. The manufacturers' incentives are
presented to the customer in the form of a convenient index that
the customer can browse through and select from. Similarly, retail
supermarkets provide the source of another set of special offers,
organized by store.
[0008] Another important aspect of the invention is the manner in
which incentives or coupons are generated in the system of the
invention. Specifically the step of generating a purchase incentive
includes converting numeric and textual information provided by the
customer to graphical form; converting other numeric and textual
information to graphical form; and merging the converted
information with other graphical information defining the
incentive, to form a composite graphical incentive image for
transmission to the customer.
[0009] In one embodiment of the invention the step of transmitting
at least one incentive includes transmitting only an advisory
message to the customer, and transmitting the terms of the
incentive directly to the retail store selected by the customer,
for use by the customer on a subsequent visit to the store. In a
related embodiment, the step of transmitting at least one incentive
includes transmitting only an incentive token to the customer, and
transmitting the terms of the incentive directly to the retail
store selected by the customer, for use by the customer, who brings
the token to the store on a subsequent visit, and receives the
discount or other benefit defined by the incentive offer.
[0010] The invention may also be defined in terms of a method for
distributing purchasing incentives and other shopping aids to
customers over a communication network, the method comprising the
steps of: (1) registering as a customer by providing at least an
individual identification, a postal region code, and retail store
selection; (2) transmitting from a central site and receiving at a
remote customer site, a plurality of incentive offers, each of
which is exercisable based on the customer's postal region; (3)
selecting at the customer site one or more of the incentive offers
and transmitting these selections back to the central site; (4)
generating at least one purchasing incentive containing in encoded
form the identity of the retail store selected by the customer and
the identity of the customer; and (5) transmitting at least one
incentive to the customer.
[0011] The invention may also be defined in terms of a system for
distributing purchasing incentives to retail customers, the system
comprising a communication network establishing bi-directional
communication between a central site and each of a plurality of
customer devices; a file at the central site containing a plurality
of incentive offers; and a computer located at the central site,
for coordinating bi-directional communication with the customers
over the communication network. The computer at the central site
includes means for registering customer information at the central
site, based on information transmitted from any of the customer
devices to the central site computer, over the communication
network, the customer information including geographical region
data and identification data; means for retrieving incentive offers
from the file of incentive offers, based on the customer's
geographical region, and transmitting the retrieved offers to the
customer over the communication network; means for receiving
customer selections made from the incentive offers transmitted to
the customer, and for receiving a customer designation of a
retailer at which the selected incentives are to be exercised;
means for generating at least one purchasing incentive containing
in encoded form the identity of the retailer designated by the
customer and the identity of the customer; and means for
transmitting the generated purchasing incentive to the customer
over the communication network.
[0012] More specifically, the system further comprises another file
at the central site containing a list of products available for
purchase: and the computer at the central site further includes
means, responsive to a customer request, for transmitting the list
of products to the customer, receiving customer selections from the
list, and transmitting a shopping list back to the customer. The
system may further comprise another file at the central site
containing meal planning information available for customer use;
and the computer at the central site further includes means,
responsive to a customer request, for transmitting meal planning
information including a list of recipes to the customer, receiving
customer selections from the list, and transmitting complete
recipes back to the customer, together with an ingredients shopping
list and any associated purchasing incentives.
[0013] In the disclosed embodiment of the invention, the means for
retrieving incentive offers and transmitting them to the customer
includes a manufacturer offer file containing purchasing incentive
offers currently proposed by manufacturers of products for sale to
customers, and also includes a retailer offer file containing
purchasing incentive offers currently proposed by retailers of
products for sale to customers.
[0014] In one form of the invention, the generated purchasing
incentive is transmitted to the customer in the form of an advisory
message only, and the computer further includes means for
transmitting the terms of a purchasing incentive directly to the
retail store designated by the customer, who may then exercise the
incentive upon visiting the designated store. In a related form of
the invention, the generated purchasing incentive is transmitted to
the customer in the form of an encoded token, and the computer
further includes means for transmitting the terms of the purchasing
incentive directly to the retail store designated by the customer,
who may then exercise the incentive upon visiting the designated
store and presenting the token.
[0015] Implementation of the invention in the form of a network
site, such as a World Wide Web site, represents a significant
departure from prior, conventional uses of Web sites for commercial
purposes. Instead of being administered by or for a single
commercial entity, the Web site through which customers communicate
in accordance with the present invention is a cooperative site
involving both retailers and manufacturers, to provide customers
with a variety of information, planning aids, and shopping
incentives from multiple sources.
[0016] A difficulty with conventional incentive distribution
methods is that different retail marketing areas have different
weekly cycles on which incentives and discounts are based. In one
area, retailers may advertise weekly specials beginning on
Thursdays in preparation for weekend buying, while in another area
they may advertise weekly specials in a Sunday newspaper
supplement. Manufacturers may offer special deals that are
completely unsynchronized with these local retailer cycles, based,
for example, on a calendar week starting on some other day. In the
cooperative site on which the present invention is implemented, all
the advertised incentives, whether coming from retailers or
manufacturers, can be timed to comply with the advertising cycle of
the local retail region.
[0017] Another aspect of the invention allows the customer to
receive more focused incentives if he or she elects to supply a
customer identifying number (customer id.) normally used in the
purchase of items at the retail store. The customer id. may be a
check-cashing card number or other customer loyalty card number, or
may be some other form of identification used to pay for purchases.
Because the store can track the purchasing history of each customer
who consistently uses the same customer id. when paying for the
purchases, a customer who supplies this customer id. to the on-line
system of the present invention may then receive more targeted
incentives based on his or her prior purchasing history. For
example, the customer may receive an incentive for his or her
favorite brand of toothpaste, based on a prior purchase of the same
toothpaste some weeks earlier. If the customer elects not to
provide the customer id. to the on-line system, these more targeted
incentives will not be available to that customer.
[0018] It will be appreciated from the foregoing summary that the
present invention represents a significant advance in the field of
retail marketing using computer networks. In particular, the system
of the invention provides a highly secure incentive distribution
scheme because each incentive or coupon may identify the retailer
at which the coupon may be used, and also preferably identifies the
customer to whom the coupon was issued. The invention also provides
a variety of other planning aids to customers using computers
before visiting a supermarket. These aids include the generation of
a shopping list for the customer, the distribution of selected
recipes, together with ingredients lists and incentives, if any are
available for the ingredients, and the distribution of product
information or rebate forms. Other aspects and advantages of the
invention will become apparent from the following more detailed
description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] FIG. 1 is a an overall process flow diagram of the system of
the invention;
[0020] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of the log-in process used by a
customer in accordance with the invention;
[0021] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a restriction process used to
restrict access to only authorized customers in a selected
geographic region;
[0022] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of the main menu process of the
system of the invention;
[0023] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of an offer browser process used in
the system of the present invention;
[0024] FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a supermarket specials process
used in the system of the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a recipe center process used in
the system of the present invention;
[0026] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a shopping list maker used in
the system of the present invention;
[0027] FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of a registration process used in
the system of the present invention;
[0028] FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a final list process used in
the system of the present invention;
[0029] FIG. 11 is a pictorial view of a coupon for purposes of
explaining how its components are merged dynamically for
transmission to the customer;
[0030] FIG. 12 is a flow diagram of the process of dynamic coupon
creation used in the system of the present invention;
[0031] FIG. 13 is a simplified block diagram depicting an alternate
embodiment of the invention in which coupons are not distributed
directly to customers;
[0032] FIG. 14 is a simplified block diagram depicting another
aspect of the invention, in which customer id. information
volunteered by the on-line customer is used to generate more
focused purchase incentives to be transmitted to the customer;
[0033] FIG. 15 is a simplified block diagram depicting another
aspect of the invention, whereby targeted and untargeted incentives
are delivered to consumers by electronic mail;
[0034] FIG. 16 is a simplified block diagram showing how data is
gathered and updated for us in a consumer personal page;
[0035] FIG. 17 is a simplified block diagram showing how a consumer
personal page is automatically updated based on consumer purchasing
activity; and
[0036] FIG. 18 is a simplified block diagram depicting another
alternate embodiment of the invention, in which a token is
generated instead of a coupon, and the token is presented at a
store in order to obtain a cash discount voucher.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0037] As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the
present invention pertains to a system for the distribution of
shopper incentives and related shopping aids by means of a computer
network to which customers have access at remote locations, such as
in their homes.
[0038] Overview:
[0039] FIG. 1 provides an overview flow diagram of the system of
the invention. The system provides a unique communication network
connecting consumers, indicated at block 10, retailers 12 and
manufacturers 14. The consumers 10 log in and fulfill log-in
requirements as indicated in block 16, and may then proceed to a
main menu 20. From the main menu 20, a consumer may elect to go to
an offer browser index page 18, which is linked to an offer browser
22. The offer browser 22 has associated sub-offers 24 available for
consumer selection. Basically, the offer browser 22 receives offer
data from the manufacturers 14 on a periodic basis, and displays
the offers to consumers 10 who have logged in to the system. The
offer and sub-offer structure permits consumers to select coupon
offers, rebate offers, or information offers made available by the
manufacturers. Selected offers are accumulated in a session record
maintained for the time that each consumer is logged in to the
system.
[0040] From the main menu 20, a consumer may also elect to go to a
shopping list 26, under which store departments 28 provide lists of
products for sale. The consumer may mark any items for entry on a
shopping list to be printed later. The consumer may also elect to
go from the main menu to a recipe index 30, which provides a
linkage to previously stored recipes 32. In response to consumer
selection of a recipe 32, the ingredients are automatically entered
into the consumer's final shopping list, and any coupon offers or
rebate offers associated with any of the ingredients are also
automatically included in the final list to be transmitted to the
consumer. A consumer may also elect to go from the main menu 20 to
a supermarket special index 34, which has linkages to previously
stored supermarket special offers 36. These have been entered and
periodically updated by the retailers 12. Again, any selected items
are automatically entered into the consumer's final shopping
list.
[0041] When the consumer has finished selecting from the offer
browser 22, the shopping list index 26, the recipe index 30 and the
supermarket special index 34, he or she may elect to go the final
list 40. Prior to generation of the final list, the consumer will
be required to enter a valid Internet address for electronic mail
(E-mail), and to select a supermarket in his or her area, as
indicated in block 42. Once the final list has been generated, the
consumer may elect to leave the system through an exit page 44,
which may have links to other areas of the system. As also shown in
FIG. 1, the consumer may also elect to go to a help page 46, which
is accessible from any of the other principal blocks shown in the
overview, as indicated by the connections to the main menu 20 and
the log-in block 16. The functions described briefly in this
overview should become clearer as each is discussed below in more
detail.
[0042] The Log-in Page:
[0043] On first accessing the system of the invention, the consumer
encounters the Log-in page, which provides a starting point for
each online session. The Log-in page contains a log-in process, as
indicated in the flowchart of FIG. 2. A log-in page is presented to
the consumer, as indicated in block 80, and the consumer completes
an on-screen form and presses (clicks on) a "submit" key, as
indicated in block 82. There may be other on-screen buttons
available to the user, such as a "help" button 84 and a button 86
to select that E-Mail be sent to the system administrator. At
Log-in time, the user is required to enter his or her ZIP code or
other postal code, since many of the features of the system are
location-dependent. If the postal code entry is determined to be
invalid, in block 90, a rejection message is posted on the user's
screen, as indicated at 92. If the entry is valid, a restriction
process 94 may be performed, then the session is started, as
indicated at 96, and the system proceeds to present the main menu
to the user, as indicated in block 98.
[0044] The restriction process 94 is shown in more detail in FIG.
3. The ZIP or postal code is passed to the process from a calling
program, such as the Log-in program, as indicated in block 100.
Then the ZIP or postal code is checked for validity, in block 102.
Initially, the system may not be in operation in all postal codes,
and this validity check restricts access to those consumers with
appropriate postal codes. Moreover, not all ZIP or postal codes are
necessarily valid or in use. In addition, the ZIP code determines
what offers are transmitted to consumers, based on the market areas
they reside in. If the postal code is invalid, a rejection message
is transmitted to the user, as indicated in block 104.
[0045] Optionally, the restriction process also checks the Internet
address of the user, referred to as the Internet Protocol (or IP)
address, as indicated in block 106. If the IP address is not
acceptable, a rejection notice is transmitted to the user, as
indicated in block 108. If the IP address is found to be valid,
return is made to the calling Log-in program to complete the
restriction process, as indicated at 110. Another possibility
occurs when there is some doubt, but not certainty, concerning the
user's IP address. A trace route is optionally performed on the
user's IP address, as indicated in block 112, and the validity is
checked once more, as indicated in block 114. If the IP address is
this time found to be valid, an IP address table of valid addresses
is updated, as shown in block 116, before exiting the process. If
the block 114 finds the IP address still invalid, an advisory
message is sent to the system administrator, as indicated in block
118, before updating the valid IP address table and exiting the
process.
[0046] A "help" page is accessible from the Log-in page and from
other pages in the system. Its purpose is provide a high-level
flowchart to the user, together with associated narrative
information, to explain the major functions of the system and how
they interrelate in a single session. The "help" page also provides
the benefits of the system and functions as an enticement for the
user to register.
[0047] The Main Menu:
[0048] As one might expect, the main menu provides the user with a
central page from which all the major functions of the system can
be reached. As shown in FIG. 4, the main menu is entered from the
Log-in page, indicated at block 120, and provides a main menu and
offer index, as indicated in block 122. The main menu screen gives
the user at least eight different functions that are selected by
pointing and clicking on an appropriate button or icon. The
functions include:
[0049] Select the recipe center (block 124),
[0050] Select supermarket specials (block 126),
[0051] Select help (block 128),
[0052] Select E-Mail to the system administrator (block 130),
[0053] Select the shopping list maker (block 132),
[0054] Select an offer from an index of offers (block 134),
[0055] Select going to an offer browser (block 136), and
[0056] Select final list processing (block 138).
[0057] The final list is a composite of all prior activities of the
user during the current online session. In the offer browser, the
user may select an offer from a matrix of offers (the offer index),
and the selected offer is then added to the final list for this
session. In the shopping list maker, the user selects specific
items that he or she intends to purchase during the next store
visit. These items are added to the final list. The recipe center
allows the user to select one or more recipes from an offered list.
The ingredients needed in the recipes are also added to the final
list. The supermarket specials button allows the user to choose any
of a number of advertised specials and add these to the final
list.
[0058] Offer Browser:
[0059] The offer browser contains advertised offers submitted by
product manufacturers. As shown in FIG. 5, the offer browser is
entered from the main menu, via block 140, and opens with an
individual offer page 142. The offer page contains details of an
offer, along with a number of control buttons. The user may select
prior or next offers, as indicated in block 144, or may select a
coupon based on the offer, as indicated in block 145, the coupon
being added to the session record as indicated in block 147. Each
offer may have a number of sub-offer options associated with it,
including:
[0060] adding the coupon to the final list,
[0061] entering a sweepstakes competition automatically,
[0062] displaying a rebate form, for completion and adding to the
final list,
[0063] displaying information about the product involved in the
offer,
[0064] mailing information about the product involved in the
offer,
[0065] playing an audio message related to the offer, [0066]
mailing a sample of the product involved in the offer, [0067]
displaying a recipe associated with the product involved in the
offer, and [0068] presenting a questionnaire associated with the
offer.
[0066] Offers can be "clipped" by the user only once per session,
and validity checking ensures that each offer enters the session
file, and final list, only once. FIG. 5 shows the principal
functions that may be performed in the offer browser, including: a
help button 46', a view supermarket specials button 146, a view
recipe center button 148, a view shopping list maker 150, a return
to main menu button 152, and a button 154 to select a sample,
mailed information or sweepstakes entry. The latter button
initiates generation of a report containing the customer
information and is sent to a fulfillment center, as indicated in
blocks 156 and 158. Other options shown in FIG. 5 include a link to
recipe button 160, actuation of which results in creation of a
recipe page (block 162), which is sent to the user or customer
(block 164), and also results in the recipe and coupons being added
the final list (block 166). Another function is to link to the
display of additional offer or product information, as indicated in
blocks 168 and 170. Also shown is a link to obtain a rebate (blocks
172, 174 and 176), a link to select audio information (blocks 178
and 180) and a link to the final list 181. Finally, there is a link
182 to a questionnaire that the consumer may complete, and an
associated link 183 to an order offer.
[0067] Supermarket Specials:
[0068] Another main menu function is to provide linkage to a
supermarket specials page. Information for this page is provided by
participating supermarket retailers and is limited by supermarket
shopping area determined from the user's ZIP or postal code.
[0069] As shown in FIG. 6, a user of this feature first enters a
supermarket special directory page 184, i.e. a directory of
supermarkets in his or her shopping area. The user selects a
supermarket, as indicated in block 185, and then may select items
included in the current list of special offers by the selected
supermarket, as indicated in block 186. Each selected item is added
to the session record and, subsequently, to the final list, as
shown in block 188, and then the process returns to the main menu,
as indicated in block 190. If the user elects not to take advantage
of any of the supermarket specials, the user has the option to exit
to other functions in the system, as shown in blocks 192, 194, 196,
198 and 199.
[0070] Recipe Center:
[0071] FIG. 7 shows the recipe center functions, which are
displayed when the user enters the recipe center from the main menu
or elsewhere, as indicated in block 200. The user in this page may
elect to go to the recipe page (block 202) and clip a recipe from
the displayed list of recipes (block 204). A selected ("clipped")
recipe will be added to the information in the session record
(block 206), for eventual inclusion in the final list, and then
recipe center process is terminated by a return to the main menu
(block 208). If no recipe is selected, the user may exit the recipe
center as shown in blocks 210, 212, 214 and 216. Each recipe page
section contains recipe ingredients and instructions, as well as
coupon offers for various ingredients or recipe mixes. When the
recipe is added to the final list, the associated coupons are also
included.
[0072] Shopping List Maker:
[0073] The shopping list maker is entered, as indicated in block
220, from the main menu, or from any of various other screens. The
user may select a store department (block 222), such as meat,
produce, and so forth, then select from displayed items sold in
that department, as indicated in block 224. The selected items are
added to the session record, as indicated in block 226, before a
return is made to the main menu, as indicated in block 228. Items
may be selected for adding to the shopping list whether or not any
of the items is subject to a manufacturers' or supermarket special
offer. Optionally, manufacturer and retailer offers may be
displayed in the appropriate sections to alert the user of specials
available.
[0074] Household Registration:
[0075] A more specific registration procedure is provided
immediately before the consumer enters the phase of final list
generation. At log-in, the only information needed to go forward
with the session was the consumer's ZIP or postal code. At this
stage, before generation of the final list, registration requires a
valid E-mail address. Optional information includes a first name
and a last name of the consumer, a street address, city and state,
and selected demographic information including the number of
persons in the household, age categories of persons in the
household, and number of pets, if any, in the household. The
primary purpose of the registration is customer identification,
with a secondary purpose of demographic analysis.
[0076] FIG. 9 shows the registration process, which is similar to
the Log-in process of FIG. 2, and identical reference numeral are
used where appropriate. During the registration process, the
customer's E-mail address is verified for correct syntax, as shown
in block 90. The first time the customer registers, the E-mail
address is used to create a unique household identification (id.),
as shown in blocks 230 and 232. Subsequently, the user's household
id. is used to reference prior registration information. The next
steps are to record or update the consumer information, as
indicated in block 234, and to proceed to final list generation, as
indicated in block 236.
[0077] Final List Generation:
[0078] FIG. 10 shows the principal functions performed when the
user enters the final list generation phase, as indicated in block
250. The system builds the final list, as indicated in block 252,
using the session record that has accumulated items selected by the
user, as indicated in block 254. The final list is displayed to the
user, as indicated in block 256, and the user may then exit to the
main menu (block 258) or go to an exit page (block 260), which may
have links to other shopper savings opportunities. The final list
generation phase also contains hyperlinks to sites established by
individual manufacturers and retailers. Finally, the system
displays a "thank you" message and ends the session, as indicated
in block 262.
[0079] When the user enters the final list generation phase, he or
she will have to make a selection from a list of supermarkets in
the immediate shopping area. All the coupons printed will be
specific to this selected supermarket, and invalid everywhere
else.
[0080] The final list will contain everything that the consumer has
selected during the current session, including shopping list items,
supermarket specials, a shopping list of recipe ingredients of
selected recipes, including any special offers, and may also
provide a recipe page giving the ingredients and preparation
instructions for each selected recipe, rebate forms complete with
customer information, a summary of offers selected, and coupons in
redeemable format. Information encoded onto each coupon will
include the product code, the consumer's household id., an offer
code, an expiration date, a serial number, a valid supermarket id.,
and the consumer's name.
[0081] Dynamic Coupon Creation:
[0082] Unlike coupons printed for distribution by mail or printed
on an in-store printer, the coupons distributed over the Internet
in accordance with the present invention, are created in real time
to include information provided by the consumer at his or her
remote location. Thus each coupon image is generated dynamically to
include this consumer-supplied information, which is required
principally for security reasons. As explained earlier, each coupon
contains not just a product code and coupon conditions, but also
the consumer's name or household id., the retailer id. where the
coupon must be redeemed, and a coupon sequence number for added
security. Merging all this information into a graphical image in a
real time mode for transmission over the computer network posed
additional challenges for implementation of the invention.
[0083] More specifically, the input information that has to be
incorporated into each coupon includes:
[0084] The consumer's name and the location coordinates for
location on the coupon,
[0085] The coupon expiration date and its coordinates,
[0086] The logo of the system and its coordinates,
[0087] The product offer icon and its coordinates,
[0088] The amount of savings and its coordinates,
[0089] The terms for receiving savings amount and its
coordinates
[0090] The legal text and its coordinates,
[0091] The redemption text and its coordinates,
[0092] The coupon sequence number and its coordinates,
[0093] The bar code numbers and their coordinates,
[0094] The supermarket designation and its coordinates, and
[0095] The coupon size and border parameters.
[0096] FIG. 11 shows a typical coupon format and FIG. 12 summarizes
the functions performed in creating the coupon dynamically. Block
270 lists the input items obtained from the consumer: the consumer
name, the coupon selection and the supermarket selection. Block 272
lists the input items that are obtained from the system: the
consumer's household id., the coupon expiration date, the system
logo, the product image, the savings amount image, the terms of the
offer, the legal text, the redemption text, the coupon sequence
number, the bar code numbers and the coupon border and sizes. Of
these, only a few are static, i.e. unchanging from coupon to
coupon, such as the system logo and the coupon border and size. The
rest are dynamic and dependent on the specific offer selected by
the consumer, or dependent on information supplied by the consumer.
The expiration date is dynamic in the sense that it is keyed to the
coupon issue or print date.
[0097] The first step in the coupon creation process, indicated in
block 274, is to create the coupon background from the coupon size
coordinates, to create an image that will be the background of the
coupon. The image is created using the standard format known as the
graphics image format (GIF). An important feature of the invention
is that the printed coupons preferably include a complex background
pattern to reduce the potential of fraudulent creation or
modification of the coupons. Several intricate background patterns
are stored in advance for use in this step of the coupon creation
process. The background pattern for current use is selected from
the pre-stored patterns on a regular or random basis. The coupon
offer information shown in FIG. 11 is printed over the background
to render unauthorized creation, modification or duplication more
difficult. Basically, the creation of the background includes the
steps of first creating a "canvas" for the coupon, such as a
one-color background on which the other image elements will be
overlaid; then evaluating the coupon components (the retailer,
product, text messages and so forth); then selecting a background
image based on random or pre-set parameters; and applying the
background image to the canvas. Selection of the background pattern
may be based, in part, on the content of the coupon. For example,
different background images may be used for different
manufacturers, different products, or even different consumers. The
background image is a complex pattern of relatively light
intensity, so as not to interfere with scanned bar codes on the
coupon. The pattern may contain textual characters, or a repetitive
design, or may be of a variable and seemingly random nature, as
depicted in FIG. 11. The complexity and varied nature of the
background image makes unauthorized alteration or creation of
coupons extremely difficult, because alteration of any of the
coupon components, such as price, bar code or text, will also
visibly disturb the background image. Although counterfeit coupons
may not always be detected in a retail store, the presence of the
background pattern makes it likely that they will be detected at
some later stage of coupon redemption.
[0098] Next, in block 276, the coupon border is created using the
border parameters to outline the background with a border of
selected width and color. Next, as indicated in block 278, the
graphics images in the inputs are placed on the background using
the location images provided in the hypertext markup language
(HTML).
[0099] Next, as indicated in block 280, the text input items,
including the bar codes, are placed on the background image using
the location parameters provided in the HTML format. Each text
character, including ASCII characters and the bar-code numerical
quantities, is converted to a graphical image using internally
stored font files. Finally, the composite image of the coupon
obtained from the preceding steps is merged with other output data
and is output to the consumer's computer, as indicated in block
282.
[0100] Transmitting Incentives without Physical Coupons:
[0101] An alternative arrangement for distributing purchasing
incentives over the Internet is illustrated in FIG. 13. This figure
shows an incentive distribution server computer 300 and a user's
personal computer 302 connected together through a computer
network, indicated by the network cloud 304. The server 300 has an
associated storage device 306 on which are stored multiple
advertisements and promotions. The system as described thus far
operates in much the same way as the system described above with
reference to FIGS. 1-11. A user 308 logs on to the server 300
through the network 304 and selects from a variety of offers stored
on the storage device 306 by manufacturers and retailers. However,
instead of transmitting the coupons to the user computer 302, the
server 300 functions in accordance with one of the following
options:
[0102] (a) The server 300 transmits purchase incentive data to an
in-store server 310 in the supermarket selected by the user 308,
which gives the user an appropriate discount automatically when he
or she presents items for checkout and a point-of-sale checkout
scanner 312, with appropriate identification recognized by the
in-store server 310. Promotions or discounts are given to the
customer, as indicated at 314. The server 300 may also send an
advisory message to the customer to confirm the existence of the
promotion.
[0103] (b) The server 300 transmits the image of a token 316 of
some kind to the user's computer 302. The token defines the coupon
offer, preferably in coded form, such as in bar codes, but is not
recognizable as a coupon. The token may, for example, be an encoded
confirmation number. The user 308 presents the token 316 at the
store he or she has selected, and receives the appropriate discount
or promotion automatically.
[0104] Generation and Delivery of Focused Incentives:
[0105] The invention may be further enhanced by employing
individual purchase histories of individual customers, as depicted
in FIG. 14. The shopping behavior of customers is routinely tracked
in connection with the generation of in-store incentives in the
form of discount coupons printed as the customer pays for his or
her purchases, as shown in blocks 400 and 402. Each customer's
purchasing behavior is tracked only if the customer provides some
form of unique identification during the purchase transactions,
such as a check-cashing card, a credit card, a magnetically encoded
check, or other form of identification. The purchase of any of a
number of selected items can then be associated with a specific
customer id., as indicated in block 404, and a system administrator
maintains a database of customer purchase histories, as indicated
in block 406. When the customer visits the store, a focused
incentive may be printed based on a selected event in the
customer's past shopping behavior, as indicated in block 408. In
accordance with this aspect of the present invention, a customer
who has logged in to the system (block 410) is asked to supply the
customer id. used for in-store purchases (block 412). The customer
id. may be a check-cashing card number, or other form of
identification that allows the system to access the customer's
purchasing history, and then select a purchasing incentive based on
some aspect of the customer's prior shopping history, as indicated
in block 414. This incentive is transmitted to the customer, as
indicated in block 416, in the form of an Internet message, for
retrieval when the customer next accesses the Web site or checks
for electronic mail (E-mail). The incentive message informs the
customer that one or more specific offers are available and may be
received at the checkout stand when the prerequisite products are
purchased. Alternatively, a paper coupon may be transmitted to the
customer's computer site and printed for later presentation in the
store.
[0106] Customers who volunteer the necessary linkage in the form of
their customer id. may be rewarded in some manner. The customer id.
may be requested only once and then used for all subsequent
sessions in which the customer logs in to the system. Once the
linkage is established, the consumer purchase history data or
targeted incentives needed to support this capability of the
invention are periodically transferred from the shopper purchase
history system to the on-line system of the present invention.
[0107] Delivery of Incentives by E-mail:
[0108] As shown in FIG. 15, the system of the invention also has
the capability to deliver targeted or untargeted incentives to
consumers through their online E-mail addresses on the Internet or
another computer network. Retail stores, indicated by block 500,
gather purchase data and either the retailers or an independent
system administrator accumulates the consumer purchase history in a
database, indicated at 502. The database 502 is developed as a
result of consumers being uniquely identified on each visit to the
store, by use of a frequent shopper card, a credit card or some
other form of identification.
[0109] Targeted purchase incentives are generated from the consumer
purchase history database 502, as indicated in block 504. The
system administrator also maintains a consumer database 506, which
identifies consumers by their E-mail addresses. Alternatively, the
consumer database 506 may be integrated with the consumer purchase
history database 502. The consumer database 506 receives data
primarily from the system administrator's Web site, indicated at
block 508, which, in turn, receives a consumer's E-mail address
from each consumer's computer, indicated at 510. The consumer
database 506 may also receive E-mail addresses from independent
consumer E-mail address lists, indicated in block 512.
[0110] Using E-mail address information from the consumer database
506 and targeted incentive information based on the consumer's
purchase history, from database 502, the system of the invention
formats an E-mail message to the consumer, as indicated in block
514, and transmits it to the consumer's computer 510 through the
consumers E-mail "post office," as indicated in block 516. The
purchasing incentives are delivered to the consumer by electronic
mail for subsequent printing of a coupon, or simply in the form of
a token of some kind to be taken to the store. This approach allows
producing targeted, time phased incentives based on the consumer's
actual buying patterns and preferences, and delivering them in the
home prior to the consumer's shopping trip.
[0111] The same delivery mechanism can also be used to deliver
untargeted or less targeted incentives from manufacturers,
indicated at 518. The manufacturers may, for example, generate
weekly offers, as shown in block 520, which the system delivers to
selected consumers. Selection of consumers may be based on a
customer profile or on demographic information maintained by the
system administrator and selected by the manufacturer. For example,
the manufacturer may identify the type of household it would like
to target and the incentive would be delivered to designated
consumers in the consumer database 506 who meet the profile
qualifications.
[0112] Another aspect of the invention permits the delivery via
E-mail of general messages or incentives to consumers who meet
selected non-demographic criteria, such as those who have not
recently visited the Web site, or those who have not selected or
redeemed online purchase incentives during a recent selected
period. In such cases, a special promotion might be delivered to
the consumer to encourage more active participation. Untargeted
messages or notices can also be broadcast to large numbers of
consumers to encourage them to visit a specific retail store, or to
purchase a specific manufacturer's product, or to visit the Web
site.
[0113] Personal Page:
[0114] Another feature of the invention is the more direct
targeting of incentives using a "personal page" for each consumer
who wants one established. As indicated in FIG. 16, when the
consumer has logged in to the system and is about to sign off,
through the final list generation or checkout phase 600, he or she
may be asked to complete a marketing questionnaire 602. The
questionnaire requests selected personal or demographic
information, which the consumer may elect to volunteer once the
benefits of establishing a "personal" Web page have been explained.
If the consumer elects not to provide the information, the system
provides a normal exit and log out procedure. However, if the
required information is provided, the system sets up a personal
page for the consumer, as indicated in block 604, and establishes a
personal database 606, also for the individual consumer. The
personal page displays a screen of information that is
consumer-specific in many respects but will, of course, contain
some data that is supplied to all consumers who have personal
pages. The page is preferably personalized with the consumer's name
and may also contain the shopping list, if any, already generated
by the consumer in the current online session. Significantly, the
personal page will also contain offers and incentives targeted to
the specific consumer, as further explained below. When the
personal page is first set up, the system generates an E-mail
message to the consumer to advise him or her of the address for
gaining access to the personal page, as indicated at 608.
[0115] Subsequently, when the consumer visits the personal page, as
indicated at 610, he or she has an opportunity to select personal
preferences as to the content of the page, as indicated in block
612. On each visit to the personal page, the consumer may be asked
additional questions concerning demographics, personal purchase
preferences, and so forth, as indicated at 614, the responses being
used to update the personal database 606, as indicated by line 616.
From the personal page, the consumer may elect to follow a link 618
back to the system main menu 620.
[0116] All of the steps depicted in FIG. 16 pertain to setting up
the personal page for a consumer and gathering information from the
consumer for establishing and updating the personal page. When
visiting the personal page, the consumer may select any of the
incentives or offers displayed, and these will be incorporated into
the consumer order in the same manner as described above.
[0117] FIG. 17 depicts how the personal database 606 for each
consumer is automatically updated based on consumer purchases and
on changes to available incentives. The functions shown are
typically performed periodically, such as every day or week, but
can also be performed in real time. The consumer purchase history
502, which was discussed with reference to FIG. 15, is generated
and updated from various sources pertaining to the shopping
activities of all identifiable consumers. In-store loyalty programs
based on past purchasing activity are one source of such data. Any
online shopping activity is another source. Data from the consumer
purchase history database 502 and from a database 622 of available
incentives are joined together and used to generate incentives to
be displayed on each consumer's personal page. The personal page
contents are updated, as indicated in block 624, the personal
database 606 is updated to reflect these changes, and the consumer
is notified by E-mail, as indicated in block 626, that the personal
page has been updated. The consumer can then go to the personal
page and view the updated personal page.
[0118] Use of the personal page permits manufacturers and retailers
to focus incentives on specific consumers, based on demographic
data and prior purchasing data in the consumer's personal database
606. Consumers who have consented to have the personal page
established, are much more likely to respond favorably to incentive
offers in their areas of interest, and manufacturers are more
likely to provide higher value offers when they are targeted to
specific consumers of interest to the manufacturers.
[0119] "Token and Voucher" Instead of Coupon:
[0120] A potential difficulty with distributing coupons through a
computer network is that manufacturers and retailers may perceive
such a system as being more prone to fraud than conventional coupon
distribution methods. The concern, of course, is that users may
alter the content of coupon images (e.g., the coupon value), or
print a coupon image repeatedly, or compose a fraudulent coupon
from scratch. Printing coupons with a complex background pattern,
as discussed above, renders unauthorized coupon modification or
creation more difficult, but a potential for fraud still exists.
Generating a "token" instead of coupon, as described above with
reference to FIG. 13, also reduces the risk of fraud. Another
technique similar to this is depicted in FIG. 18. A token 316 is
generated by the user's computer 302 after interaction with the
distribution server 300. The user chooses from incentive offers as
described above, but instead of a coupon the computer 302 generates
the token 316.
[0121] The token 316 includes coded information, e.g., bar-coded
information, establishing that the user visited the network site
and selected one or more promoted items. Although the token is
described in this specification as being in printed form, including
bar-coded information, clearly other forms of the token may be
preferred as different technologies develop. For example, the token
may be encoded onto a user's identification card, using either
magnetic stripe recording or "smart card" technology. For this
aspect of the invention, the physical form of the token is of no
consequence, since it is used only to establish that the user
visited the computer network site and selected one or more promoted
items. At about the same time that the token is generated, the user
also receives a shopping list that identifies the promoted items
that were selected during the site visit, as well as any other
selected items. Although the token is not a coupon and has no value
per se, it is a trigger mechanism that the user/consumer can
present at a qualified retail store, to receive a voucher for a
cumulative cash discount based on the promoted items purchased by
the consumer.
[0122] When the user 308 takes the token to the selected store and
makes purchases 630, the purchased items and the token are all
scanned by the point-of-sale checkout scanner 312 and a voucher 632
is generated, based on the user's purchase of qualifying items.
Each purchase in the user's order that matches weekly offers that
have been predefined in the advertisements and promotions database
306 and have been selected by the user, are listed on the voucher
632. The voucher 632 provides a cumulative cash discount to the
user (either immediately or on a subsequent store visit, no matter
which items are purchased in the subsequent visit). The voucher
also contains a bar-coded price look-up (PLU) code, which requires
the store checker to enter a "price," i.e. the total voucher
amount, in order to process the voucher and apply the discount to
the user's order.
[0123] The token and voucher program provides advantages for all
parties to each transaction. First, for manufacturers there is
increased security for promotions introduced by computer networks
such as the Internet. Instead of printing potentially reproducible
monochrome coupons that are effectively redeemable for cash, the
user's home computer generates a token that has to be taken to a
store at which the qualifying products must be purchased by user
before a cash voucher is generated. Since the token system ensures
that the discounted products are purchased, the manufacturer pays
only for positive results for each incentive offered. Moreover, the
system avoids the inherent negative connotations of coupons.
[0124] Similarly, for the retailer, handling and redemption
problems associated with black and white coupons generated by
computer users are eliminated. The retailer also benefits because,
one version of the system requires the user to return to the store
to present the voucher. Consumers who are also Internet subscribers
benefit because the system should allow for the distribution of
more incentives, and incentives of higher value, over the Internet.
The system also reduces the consumer paperwork because multiple
coupons do not have to be clipped, printed and taken to the store.
Only a single token is needed to make the required purchases and
obtain a voucher for a cumulative cash discount, redeemable either
immediately or at the next store or chain visit.
CONCLUSION
[0125] It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the present
invention represents a significant advance over other systems for
distributing purchasing incentives and other shopping aids via
computer network. In particular, the system and method of the
invention provide for incentive distribution in such a way that the
opportunities for fraudulent generation or use of coupons is
minimized, since each coupon uniquely identifies the consumer to
whom is was issued and the retail store or chain in which it can be
redeemed. The invention also uses a novel technique for dynamically
creating coupon images for transmission over a computer network. In
an alternative embodiment of the invention, physical coupons are
not printed at all, but coupon data are either transmitted directly
to the retail store, or is sent to the consumer in the form of a
token instead of a coupon. In addition to the transmission of
purchasing incentives over a computer network, the present
invention also provides a medium for transmitting other consumer
planning aids, such as shopping list selections, recipe selections,
rebate offers, and product information, over the network. In a
further extension of the invention, if the customer provides an
identification number used in payment for in-store purchases, more
focused incentives can be transmitted to the customer based on his
or her prior shopping history. It will also be appreciated that,
although a limited number embodiments of the invention have been
described in detail for purposes of illustration, various
modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and
scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention should not be
limited except as by the appended claims.
* * * * *