U.S. patent application number 14/275997 was filed with the patent office on 2014-11-13 for system, methods, and apparatus for interactive advertising.
The applicant listed for this patent is Poynt Inc.. Invention is credited to John Lowe.
Application Number | 20140337178 14/275997 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39201215 |
Filed Date | 2014-11-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140337178 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lowe; John |
November 13, 2014 |
System, Methods, and Apparatus for Interactive Advertising
Abstract
The present invention relates to a system and methodology for
searching and presenting merchant and advertised information to a
user over a wide area network such as the Internet. The system and
method actively links manufacturer and merchant information within
a search query so as to enable a user to conduct more efficient
searching when seeking products or services in a proximity or
geographical area. This Abstract is provided for the sole purpose
of complying with the Abstract requirement rules that allow a
reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the disclosure
contained herein. This Abstract is submitted with the explicit
understanding that it will not be used to interpret or to limit the
scope or the meaning of the claims.
Inventors: |
Lowe; John; (Millarville,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Poynt Inc. |
Concord |
|
CA |
|
|
Family ID: |
39201215 |
Appl. No.: |
14/275997 |
Filed: |
May 13, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11857328 |
Sep 18, 2007 |
8732016 |
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14275997 |
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60826077 |
Sep 18, 2006 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/26.62 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/0256 20130101;
G06F 16/9537 20190101; G06Q 30/0625 20130101; G06Q 30/0277
20130101; G06Q 30/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/26.62 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 30/06 20060101
G06Q030/06; G06F 17/30 20060101 G06F017/30 |
Claims
1. A computer implemented method, comprising: configuring a
computing device to receive a user input from a user requesting
information about a product or service within a proximity;
providing a first output comprising a list of one or more merchants
providing the product or service within the proximity; and
providing a second output comprising one or more brand names under
which the product or service is available within the proximity;
where the first and second outputs are simultaneously displayed to
the user on an instant messaging interface.
2. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the instant
messaging interface is an interface embedded within a web
browser.
3. The computer implemented method of claim 1, where the user can
interact with either the first output or the second output and in
response to the user interaction both the first output and the
second output are updated.
4. The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:
providing an instant messaging session, where: the user input
comprises one or more instant messages; the first output comprises
an instant message provided in response to the user input within
the instant messaging session; and providing a browser window
displayed simultaneously with the instant messaging session, where
the second output is included in the browser window.
5. The computer implemented method of claim 4, further comprising:
providing an Internet bot, where the Internet bot is configured to
interact with the user to elicit the user input.
6. The computer implemented method of claim 5, wherein the Internet
bot comprises a control on the instant messenger interface.
7. The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:
formulating a search query based on the user input; searching at
least one database using the search query, the database comprising
information about the product or service comprising merchants
providing the product or service; and generating the first output
and the second output based on the database search.
8. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the
configuration further comprises a configuration to: receive a
second user input interacting with either the first output or the
second output; and update the first output and the second output
based on the second user input.
9. The computer implemented method of claim 8, wherein: the second
user input comprises a selection of a brand name included in the
second output; updating the first output comprises updating the
list to include one or more merchants in the proximity providing to
product or service under the selected brand name; and updating the
second output comprises providing additional information about the
product or service available under the selected brand name.
10. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein updating
the second output to provide additional information about the
product or service available under the selected brand name
comprises providing a means for the user to request a list of one
or more merchants in the proximity with the product or service
available under the selected brand name in stock.
11. The computer implemented method of claim 8, wherein: the second
user input comprises a selection of a merchant included in the
first output; updating the first output comprises providing
additional information about the selected merchant; and updating
the second output comprises providing a graphical display of a
location of the merchant within the proximity.
12. A system for providing a search for a product or service within
a geographical proximity comprising: an instant messenger user
interface configured to: receive a user input requesting
information about a product or service within a proximity; provide
a first output comprising a list of one or more merchants providing
the product or service within the proximity; and provide a second
output comprising one or more brand names under which the product
or service is available within the proximity; where the first and
second outputs are simultaneously displayed to a user; a search
engine configured to: formulate a search query based at least in
part on the received user input; search a database using the search
query; and generate the first output and the second output based on
the database search; the database comprising: information about a
plurality of merchants, comprising one or more geographic locations
associated with each merchant; and information about a plurality of
brand names associated with a plurality of products and
services.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the instant messaging interface
is an interface embedded within a web browser.
14. The system of claim 12, wherein the user interface is further
configured to: provide an instant messaging session, where the user
input comprises an instant message and the first output comprises
an instant message within the instant messaging session; and
provide a browser window comprising the second output.
15. The system of claim 12, further comprising: an Internet bot,
wherein the Internet bot communicates with the user in the instant
messaging session and provides information to the search
engine.
16. The system of claim 15, wherein the Internet bot comprises a
control on the instant messenger interface.
17. The system of claim 12, where: the user interface is further
configured to: receive a second user input interacting with either
the first output or the second output; and provide an updated first
output and an updated second output; and the search engine is
further configured to: formulate a second search query based on the
second user input; search the database using the second search
query; and generate the updated first output and the updated second
output based on the database search.
18. A computer implemented method comprising: providing an instant
messaging session with an instant messaging interface; providing an
Internet bot configured to interact with a user of the instant
messaging session; configuring a computing device to receive a user
input comprising an instant message directed to the Internet bot
within the instant messaging session, where the user input includes
a request for information about a product or a service within a
proximity; providing a first output formulated as an instant
message from the Internet bot directed to the user, where the first
output includes a list of one or more merchants providing the
product or service within the proximity; and providing a second
output comprising one or more brand names under which the product
or service is available within the proximity; where the first and
second outputs are simultaneously displayed to the user.
19. The computer implemented method of claim 18, wherein the
instant messaging interface is an interface embedded within a web
browser.
20. The computer implemented method of claim 18, wherein the
Internet bot comprises a control on the instant messenger
interface.
21. The computer implemented method of claim 18, where the user can
interact with either the first output or the second output and in
response to the user interaction both the first output and the
second output are updated.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Patent Application No. 60/826,077, filed Sep. 18, 2006, entitled
"Interactive Advertising System," the entire contents of which are
hereby incorporated by reference herein, for all purposes. This
application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.
11/857,328, filed Sep. 18, 2007, titled "System, Methods, and
Apparatus for Interactive Advertising" (now U.S. Pat. No.
8,732,016, issued May 20, 2014), the entire contents of which are
hereby incorporated by reference herein, for all purposes.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to a system and methodology
for searching and presenting merchant and advertised information to
a user over a wide area network such as the Internet. The system
and method actively links manufacturer and merchant information
within a search query so as to enable a user to conduct more
efficient searching when seeking products or services in a
geographical area.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] Utilizing the Internet as a marketing medium has rapidly
evolved and has steadily become accepted by manufacturers and
merchants. Internet advertising is now a multi-faceted activity
that continues to progress towards a comprehensive mirroring of the
multitude of traditional promotional, marketing and advertising
channels that have been used by manufacturers and merchants.
[0004] The Internet delivers a wide variety of content formats on a
number of protocol based platforms and is used in all facets of
corporate, product and service marketing. Such protocols include
but are not limited to "instant messaging" protocols and browser
based protocols.
[0005] An Internet marketing area that is of particular interest
and relevance to merchants and manufacturers in promoting their
goods and services is the Internet search. The Internet search, as
a marketing service, is based on manufacturers and merchants paying
for listings or paying for an improved position in a results page
of listings that are given to Internet Search Engine users. Search
engines that search the entire Internet for results ("whole
internet search engines") do not require manufacturers and
merchants to pay for appearing in the results of a search. These
search engines utilize algorithms to estimate the relevance between
the search term entered by the user ("keyword") and any Internet
content. The search results are delivered as a list of links to
Internet pages, based on the ranking that each web page is given by
the algorithm. Manufacturers and merchants typically have a web
page, in order to appear in the search engine results.
[0006] Some manufacturers and merchants, who have web sites, engage
the services of search engine marketing firms, who use knowledge of
search engine algorithms to improve their clients' search engine
ranking, with the intention of placing the manufacturer's or
merchant's web page link closer to or at the top of the search
results.
[0007] As a compliment to or alternative to whole internet search
engines, marketing firms are able to place "sponsored" or
"featured" placement service provided by whole internet search
engines. These services allow manufacturers and merchants to
purchase positions in the user's search results. These "featured"
or "sponsored" listings are typically delivered in a "sponsored
link" or "featured listing" portion of the search results page
(typically placed at the top, bottom or right hand side of the
search results page). These placements are made through algorithms
that relate the user's keyword to the areas that are relevant to
the manufacturer or merchant. Manufacturers and merchants may also
purchase placements in searches for particular keywords.
[0008] Not all search engine marketing services are provided by
whole internet search engines. Many search engine operators are
selling a position in an internal database and delivering the
results through the Internet. These search engines typically target
a particular section of Internet users or users looking for a
particular product or service ("vertical search engines").
[0009] Not all search engines that are not whole internet search
engines are vertical search engines. The leading global search
engines have released localized versions of their service, with
algorithms that are focused on delivering search results based on
proximity to the user. These local search engines use some form of
geographic locator such as a map, zip code, latitude/longitude
position or other geocode identifier to identify a user's location
and then deliver information that identifies a group of merchants
that are located within the selected local area. Typically, search
results are delivered through plotting on a map interface, with
associated links and "sponsored" links listed above, below or
beside the map graphic. These search engines compete with search
engines services that are provided by Local Directory Services
operators. Typically, local directory services search engine
services deliver results through a combination of "sponsored" link
placements and general results for the market area. Some directory
service operators' search engines provide users with a proximity
search feature, which delivers results ranked on proximity to the
user's inputted location.
[0010] Today, the Internet search generally only allows a user to
search based on a keyword or a proximity axis. However, an Internet
search usually does not allow a user to approach a search from
multiple perspectives, while maintaining information across
numerous search axes.
[0011] It is known and understood that consumers approach a
purchase decision from a variety of perspectives. As a result,
there has been need for the consumer/user: to approach a purchase
decision from a wide number of decision axes to gather all or some
of the available Internet content to gather information in a
variety of content formats to gather all the information in a
single Internet activity session.
[0012] An example of an earlier technology to partially solve the
above needs is described in another of Applicant's applications
(U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/667,915 and
corresponding PCT application (both incorporated herein by
reference)). Applicant's other application describes a system and
method enabling the presentation of goods and services data
(hereinafter "merchant information") to a user where the merchant
information is ordered in relevance based on the location of the
user. In this system, a user seeking merchant information queries
the system to locate relevant merchant information based on a user
location determined either by the system or entered by the user.
Upon being presented with a list of relevant merchant information,
the user may then obtain additional information with respect to
that merchant including a URL link to the merchant's website and/or
driving directions, as may be requested.
[0013] While Applicant's other system is highly effective in
locating relevant merchant information, the presentation of the
information, as with whole internet search engines, presents only a
limited amount of information on which a user will base a decision
to choose one path over another to obtain further information. In
particular, Applicant's other system does not readily enable a user
to access relevant manufacturer information that may assist the
user in locating the most relevant merchant for supplying a
particular product or service.
[0014] For example, if a user has prior knowledge that they want
information to direct them to the nearest shop selling televisions,
the user may search for a known shop name referred to generically
within this description as "Television Store." "Television Store"
may have numerous locations in a geographical area and the user may
merely be seeking the nearest "Television Store" location. With the
other system, the user would search for "Television Store" and the
system would return a list of the nearest "Television Store"
locations based on their distances to the user. To a certain level,
this can be extremely valuable information to a user and can
greatly improve the efficiency of a search compared to previous
technologies.
[0015] At another level, and in another search, the user may have
less knowledge about the specific store they want to find and
instead is seeking information about televisions in general, hoping
to locate a number of stores that sell televisions. In this
situation, the Applicant's other system will present a number of
different stores by name (ordered on the basis of proximity). By
drilling down through the list of stores, with possible diversions
to a specific store's listed website, the user may make a decision
as to what store appears to be the most attractive to visit.
[0016] However, this searching methodology is somewhat inefficient
for certain searches in that the quantity of information visually
or graphically displayed to the user is limited and is generally
presented in a non-graphical format. That is, at the primary search
level, the user is presented only with text information relating
distances, store names and addresses and it is only by actively
selecting a listed store that additional information may be
presented by opening a separate window for a separate website.
Thus, pursuing a particular path may yield highly irrelevant
information as the quantity of relevant information presented that
suggests to a user to pursue one path is limited. That is, the
user's selection of a particular path may be based solely on
proximity leading to search results producing non-useful results if
the nearest stores do not carry the desired products.
Alternatively, a user's selection of a particular path may be based
solely on a user's prior knowledge of known stores such that
equally relevant paths are not pursued. Still further, opening and
closing numerous websites is both time-consuming and confusing to a
user and often leads to diversions that causes a user to give up on
the initial search purpose.
[0017] Accordingly, there has been a need for a system that
overcomes the preceding problems and provides more efficient and
dynamic searching functions to users where the likelihood and speed
by which a user obtains relevant information is increased. More
specifically, there has been a need for a system that actively
links the merchant data (i.e., the location of a merchant) with
manufacturer data (i.e., the types of products that are sold by
that merchant) wherein a user's interaction with one component of
the system dynamically updates another component of the system with
relevant information.
SUMMARY OF EMBODIMENTS
[0018] In accordance with the invention, an interactive advertising
system deployed over a wide area network, such as the Internet is
provided, the interactive advertising system comprising: an input
module (IM) enabling a user to enter query commands of a query into
the interactive advertising system; a results module (RM) for
displaying type 1 query results from the query; an activity module
(AM) for displaying type 2 query results from the query; a
processing module (PM) for receiving the query commands, processing
the query commands to produce type 1 and type 2 query results and
providing the type 1 and type 2 query results to the results and
activity modules respectively; wherein the AM further enables user
interaction with the AM as AM commands such that the PM upon
receiving AM commands interprets and updates the type 1
results.
[0019] In various embodiments, additional functionality may be
incorporated into the interactive advertising system including any
one of or operative combination of the following functionalities:
wherein the PM upon receiving AM commands interprets and updates
the type 2 results; wherein the PM determines type 1 results on the
basis of user proximity; wherein type 1 results include both
advertiser and non-advertiser merchants ranked in order of
proximity to the user; wherein type 1 results includes distances of
each advertiser and non-advertisers merchant to the user; wherein
type 2 results include any one of or a combination of information
relating to merchant brand names, merchant product lines, merchant
products, merchant pricing, merchant stock data and graphical maps;
wherein the PM receives and interprets data from the instant
messaging and browser protocols in response to user input and
interacts with an advertiser's database to obtain and display type
1 and type 2 results in the RM and AM respectively; wherein the IM
and RM and AM are based on any one of or a combination of an
instant messaging protocol, a browser protocol, a short messaging
service (SMS) protocol and multiple messaging service (MMS)
protocol; wherein the PM is operatively connected to at least one
advertiser's database, or alternatively advertising information is
stored in an associated database; wherein the PM requests and
receives information from the advertiser's database based on AM
commands and the PM concurrently updates the type 1 results;
wherein the AM enables a user to drill down through a hierarchy of
brand and product information and that at each level in the
hierarchy the PM updates the RM; wherein at a first level, the RM
displays brand names from different advertisers; wherein the
relative prominence of each advertiser's brand name may be
determined by an online bidding process managed by the PM; wherein
the AM may enable a user to drill down through a hierarchy of
product information and that at each level in the hierarchy the PM
updates the RM with respect to those merchants having corresponding
brands, product lines, products and stock; wherein an advertiser
may update their advertising information within their database
without interaction with the PM; wherein a user's interaction with
the AM excludes merchants not carrying the selected advertiser
information from being displayed in the RM; and, wherein the PM
orders type 1 results on the basis of user selection of any one of
or a combination of ranking-by-price, ranking-by-proximity or
ranking by price and proximity.
[0020] In a further embodiment, the invention provides an
interactive advertising system comprising: a processing module for
operative interaction with a instant messaging protocol and an
Internet browser protocol, the processing module enabling a user to
selectively interact with each protocol during an instant messaging
session wherein the instant messaging session allows a user to
query and obtain product information based on proximity to the user
and the query thereby creates and manages a corresponding Internet
browser session displaying any one of or a combination of brand,
product line, and product information relevant to the query. The
processor module may further enable a user's interaction with the
Internet browser session to update the instant messaging
session.
[0021] One embodiment provides for a method that configures a
computing device to receive an input from a user requesting
information about a product or service within a proximity or
geographical area. In this embodiment the computing device is
configured to provide an output in the form of a list of one or
more merchants that provide the product or service within the
proximity. The computing device then provides a second output that
comprises one or more brand names under which the product or
service is available within that proximity. In this embodiment
these outputs are simultaneously displayed to the user on an
instant messenger interface.
[0022] In another embodiment, the system provides a method of
enabling a user to interact with an interactive advertising system
comprising the steps of a) providing an instant messaging session
enabling a user to enter query commands of a query into an instant
messaging session and for displaying query results from the query;
b) providing a simultaneous browser session for displaying brand
and product information relevant to the query; and, c) updating
each of the instant messaging session and browser session based on
a user's selective interaction with each of the instant messaging
and browser sessions.
[0023] In yet further embodiments, additional steps may be
incorporated into the interactive advertising system including any
one of or operative combination of the following steps: wherein
step a) includes displaying results from the query on the basis of
user proximity; wherein step a) includes displaying advertiser and
non-advertiser merchants ranked in order of proximity to the user;
and, wherein step b) includes displaying any one of or a
combination of merchant brand names, merchant product lines,
merchant products, merchant pricing, merchant stock data and
graphical maps.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] The invention will be more fully understood by referring to
the following Detailed Description of Specific Embodiments in
conjunction with the Drawings, of which:
[0025] FIG. 1 is a typical search and results display in accordance
with the prior art;
[0026] FIG. 2 is a typical display showing an input window, results
window and activity display in accordance with the invention;
[0027] FIG. 3 is a typical display showing initial search results
and linked brand information in the activity window in accordance
with one embodiment of the invention;
[0028] FIG. 4 is a typical display showing search results and
linked brand product line information in the activity window in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention;
[0029] FIG. 5 is a typical display showing search results and
linked brand product information in the activity window in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention;
[0030] FIG. 6 is a typical display showing search results, linked
brand product information and a link to determine merchant stock in
the activity window in accordance with one embodiment of the
invention;
[0031] FIG. 7 is a typical display showing search results showing
merchants having stock in the results window and corresponding
linked brand product information in the activity window in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention;
[0032] FIG. 8 is a typical display showing search results showing
merchants having stock in the results window and corresponding
linked brand product information and pricing information in the
activity window in accordance with one embodiment of the
invention;
[0033] FIG. 9 is a typical display showing specific merchant
information in the results window and a map to the merchant in the
activity window in accordance with one embodiment of the
invention;
[0034] FIGS. 10A, 10B and 10C are flowcharts showing a method of
the invention in accordance with one embodiment; and
[0035] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the interaction
between an Instant messaging session, a browser session, a
processing module, one or more advertiser databases and a user in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention.
[0036] It will be recognized that some or all of the Figures are
schematic representations for purposes of illustration and do not
necessarily depict the actual relative sizes or locations of the
elements shown. The Figures are provided for the purpose of
illustrating one or more embodiments of the invention with the
explicit understanding that they will not be used to limit the
scope or the meaning of the claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS
[0037] In the following paragraphs, the present invention will be
described in detail by way of example with reference to the
attached drawings. While this invention is capable of embodiment in
many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will
herein be described in detail specific embodiments, with the
understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an
example of the principles of the invention and not intended to
limit the invention to the specific embodiments shown and
described. That is, throughout this description, the embodiments
and examples shown should be considered as exemplars, rather than
as limitations on the present invention. Descriptions of well-known
components, methods and/or processing techniques are omitted so as
to not unnecessarily obscure the invention. As used herein, the
"present invention" refers to any one of the embodiments of the
invention described herein, and any equivalents. Furthermore,
reference to various feature(s) of the "present invention"
throughout this document does not mean that all claimed embodiments
or methods must include the referenced feature(s).
[0038] As shown in FIG. 1 and in accordance with the prior art, a
search and display system on a computer screen 8 is shown as known
within "instant messaging" sessions on the Internet. The typical
display of the prior art includes an input window (IW) 10 and a
results window (RW) 12 allowing a user, when conducting a search,
to enter search data in the input window 10 wherein the results of
the search are displayed in the results window 12. Results
displayed in the results window are referred to herein as type 1
results.
[0039] As shown in FIGS. 2-10A/B/C, in accordance with the
invention, a further activity window (AW) 14 is included for
displaying associated advertiser information relevant to the search
results displayed in the results window 12. The information
displayed within the RW may be text, graphics, sound, and/or video
and may include company logos, trademarks, maps and other
promotional information and is generally referred to herein as type
2 results. As described herein, the RW allows a user to interact
with the RW wherein the results of the user's interaction with the
RW will cause the type 1 results displayed in the RW to be updated.
Similarly, a user's interaction with the RW will cause the type 2
results displayed in the AW to be updated.
[0040] In one embodiment, the invention provides an interactive
advertising system comprising: a processing module for operative
interaction with a instant messaging protocol and an Internet
browser protocol, the processing module enabling a user to
selectively interact with each protocol during an instant messaging
session wherein the instant messaging session allows a user to
query and obtain product information based on proximity to the user
and the query thereby creates and manages a corresponding Internet
browser session displaying any one of or a combination of brand,
product line, and product information relevant to the query. The
processor module may further enable a user's interaction with the
Internet browser session to update the instant messaging session.
Further, as is known in the art, this browser session may include a
session on a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) browser on a
hand-held electronic device such as a cell phone or PDA.
[0041] One feature of various embodiments is that they provide a
method that configures a computing device to receive an input from
a user requesting information about a product or service within a
proximity or geographical area. In this embodiment the computing
device is configured to provide an output in the form of a list of
one or more merchants that provide the product or service within
the proximity. The computing device then provides a second output
that comprises one or more brand names under which the product or
service is available within that proximity. In this embodiment
these outputs are simultaneously displayed to the user on an
instant messenger interface. Alternatively, this functionality may
be displayed on two or more areas drawn on a web browser
interface.
[0042] Another feature of various embodiments, is that user
interaction is with an instant messenger and displays are done
within an instant messaging protocol. In some of these embodiments,
the instant messenger is a software module embedded into a web
browser. In other embodiments, the instant messenger is a program
with an interface distinct of a web browser.
[0043] The functionality of the system is described by a
representative search example which is illustrated in FIGS.
10A-10C.
[0044] A user wishing to purchase a television accesses the system
and enters a search input in the form of query criteria (Box 100)
into input window 10 (illustrated in previous Figures). The query
criteria (for example, find "television") are processed by a search
engine 102 accessing a database 104 interacting with both merchant
and advertiser records. The search engine 102 returns and displays
(Box 106) a) proximity based search results for display in the
results window 12 and b) advertiser information for display in the
activity window 14.
[0045] As shown in FIG. 3, the proximity based search results may
list, for example, 6 stores selling televisions. The activity
window, based on the search criteria and search engine algorithm,
displays various advertised brands of products that are relevant.
The relative size and prominence of various brand names that may be
displayed in the AW 14 will generally be determined on the basis of
paid advertising, wherein size and position within the AW 14 can be
bought based on various criteria. In addition, other information or
pathways may be available by displaying brand product categories.
In our television example, such brand product categories may be
categories such as "LCD," "Plasma," "Projection" or
"Accessories."
[0046] At decision point 108 (FIG. 10A), a user may then select
(click) a particular Brand shown in the AW 14. If, for example,
Brand 1 is selected, the RW 12 (Box 112) is updated by process 110
to list those merchants selling Brand 1 as shown in FIGS. 4 and
10A.
[0047] At decision point 114 (FIG. 10B), by selecting Brand 1,
additional levels of brand product lines, brand products and brand
specifications and/or information may also be followed by process
116 as shown in FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 10B.
[0048] In FIG. 4, Brand 1 was selected, resulting in the RW 12
being updated to show three stores carrying Brand 1. In FIG. 5,
Brand Product Line 2 was selected, resulting in the RW 12 being
updated to show 2 stores carrying Brand Product Line 2. In FIG. 6,
Brand Product 3 from Brand Product Line 2 was selected, resulting
in the RW 12 being updated to show the same two stores carrying
Brand Product 3. The drill down loop (Boxes 120,120a, 120b) further
allows a user to navigate to a specific Brand Product.
[0049] When a specific Brand Product is displayed (Box 120), the
user may select to display stock and price information with respect
to that Product. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the user, having
identified that two stores carry the desired product has the option
of determining if the product is in stock in those stores. Those
stores having stock are displayed in the RW 12 (Box 124) as shown
in FIGS. 7 and 10B as determined by process 122.
[0050] The user may then choose to obtain pricing information (Box
126) on the product selected from the merchants indicated as having
stock as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 10B at process 128. Pricing
Information is displayed (Box 130) for merchants indicated as
having stock. The user may then select a particular merchant (Box
132) to enter a process to obtain more detailed information about a
merchant (Box 134) which then displays merchant address/contact
information in the RW and map information in the AW (Box 136). In
some embodiments the system is additionally configured to allow a
user to purchase a desired product through the interface.
[0051] Alternatively, at Box 120, the user may select pricing
information on a product through process 138 which displays
merchant prices (Box 140) for the selected product. Following this
path, a user may decide (Box 142) to determine if a merchant has
the selected product in stock by process 122. Thereafter, a user
may progress to displaying detailed merchant information as
described above.
[0052] In various embodiments, the system is deployed as a combined
instant messaging and browser session wherein the results window
and input window are enabled using an instant messaging protocol
and the activity window is enabled using an internet browser
protocol enabling the user to interact with both protocols on one
screen.
[0053] More specifically, a user 50 in initiating a search, as
described above and shown in FIG. 11, will initially interact with
the instant messaging protocol 52 to access a "bot" identity (for
example, imlocal@msn.com (an "MSN" contact identity)) through the
instant messaging protocol. The bot identity is a software or
processor module having algorithms for directing a user's
interaction with the instant messaging protocol to an intended or
directed result. In Internet programming Bots are well known in the
art and the specific programming details are omitted here for
convenience. For example, a user in establishing a "conversation"
with the bot may be directed to a result as shown in the following
representative conversation after the user has contacted the
bot:
[0054] Bot: Welcome! What are you looking for today?
[0055] User: Televisions
[0056] Bot: Where are you?
[0057] User: Calgary.
[0058] Bot: What is your postal code?
[0059] User: xyz
[0060] Bot: Here is a list of stores that sell televisions close to
you. The screen on the right allows you to obtain information about
different brands, different product lines and products. Select any
brand for more information.
[0061] User: (Selects Brand X from Activity Window)
[0062] Bot: These are the stores that sell Brand X. You can obtain
product line, product information, product pricing and availability
from the screen on the right.
[0063] User: (Drills down to Product X by browser interaction
within Activity Window and Results Window is con-currently updated
based on the user interaction)
[0064] Bot: Would you like to obtain pricing information for this
product from the listed stores?
[0065] User: Yes.
[0066] Bot: The prices of Product X at these stores is shown. Would
you like to determine which stores have Product X in stock?
[0067] User: Yes.
[0068] Bot: The availability of Product X at these stores is shown.
If you would you like directions to any one of these stores, click
on the store.
[0069] The preceding "conversation" is representative of a basic
interaction between the user, an instant messaging protocol and a
browser protocol. It is understood that variations in the bot
programming may be implemented to enable a variety of functional
interactions between the user and the system of the invention that
will lead to a multitude of results depending on a user's
input.
[0070] During the conversation, the bot will continually interact
with the browser to update the browser based on input received from
the user's interaction with the instant messaging session. In
addition, the bot will update the instant messaging side based on
input received from the browser based on the user's interaction
with the browser protocol.
[0071] In a further embodiment, the relative ranking of an
advertiser as displayed at Box 112 may be determined by a bidding
process in which the advertiser has the opportunity to improve the
ranking of their brand, products or services through an offer to
pay a higher fee relative to a competitor's brand, products or
services. Such bidding may be conducted by an open or closed
auction controlled and managed by the processing module 54.
Alternatively, fixed fee amounts may be utilized to ensure
prominence in association with specific keywords or keyword
combinations.
[0072] The database 104 may be operatively linked to the vendors
and manufacturer's web databases, thereby allowing a vendor to
continually update stock and price information and a manufacturer
to continually update their advertising information. The data links
that are established to be able to do this may be through either
RSS or XML feeds or other feeds that enable tightly coupled systems
to talk to one another. In alternate embodiments vendor updates may
be entered into database 104 via batch updates.
[0073] It is understood that the preceding description is
representative of one general methodology of linking merchant and
manufacturer information and that the actual displays and
programming may be varied as would be understood by those skilled
in the art. Moreover, the functionality described herein can be
applied to almost all products and services that are commonly
advertised using the Internet.
[0074] Thus, it is seen that a system, method and apparatus for
interactive advertisement are provided. One skilled in the art will
appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other
than the above-described embodiments, which are presented in this
description for purposes of illustration and not of limitation. The
specification and drawings are not intended to limit the
exclusionary scope of this patent document. It is noted that
various equivalents for the particular embodiments discussed in
this description may practice the invention as well. That is, while
the present invention has been described in conjunction with
specific embodiments, it is evident that many alternatives,
modifications, permutations and variations will become apparent to
those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the foregoing
description. Accordingly, it is intended that the present invention
embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as fall
within the scope of the appended claims. The fact that a product,
process or method exhibits differences from one or more of the
above-described exemplary embodiments does not mean that the
product or process is outside the scope (literal scope and/or other
legally-recognized scope) of the following claims.
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