Streamlined data entry paths using individual account context on a mobile device

• US 10,089,638 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2013
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Rohde, Sonke, Villamor, Craig, Gupta, Akhilesh, Anderson, Grant, Schroeder, Jason, Issacs, Charlie, Taschek, John Walter, Gillmor, Steve, Jashnani, Girish
• Primary Examiner(s): Gills, Kurtis
• Application Number:
  US14/016,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20140081702A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,859 Days
• Field of Search: 705 729
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data

Abstract

The technology disclosed relates to rapidly logging sales activities in a customer relationship management system. It also relates to simplifying logging of sale activities by offering a streamlined data entry path that as immense usability in a mobile environment. The streamlined data entry path can be completed by triple-action, double-action, or single-action. In particular, the technology disclosed relates to automatically identifying and selecting entities that are most likely to be selected by a user. The identification of entities as most likely to be selected is dependent at least upon access recency of records of the entities, imminence of events linked to the entities, and geographic proximities of the entities to the user. It further relates to automatically identifying and selecting sales activities that are most likely to be performed by the user. The identification of sales activities as most likely to be performed is dependent at least upon position of the sale activities in a sales workflow and time elapsed since launch of the sales workflow.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

querying a cache for one or more most-recently-used (MRU) entities corresponding to a mobile device;

providing a streamlined, triple-action data entry path using a server in communication with the mobile device that

automatically identifies entities as most likely to be selected for sales activity logging according to the queried one or more MRU entities;

transmits for display data that identifies the most likely entities and an interface that accepts selection among the most likely entities by a first action;

receives a selection of a particular entity responsive to the first action, identifies a list of sales activities that fits on a single screen of the mobile device, and transmits for display the list of sales activities with an interface that accepts selection among the sales activities by a second action;

receives a sales activity selection responsive to the second action, and transmits for display a comment entry screen with at least some ghost text that a user has an option to revise; and

receives the ghost or revised ghost text responsive to a third action; and

updating a customer relation management system with the selected particular entity, the selected sales activity, and the received ghost or revised ghost text.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein

the data entry path further receives implicit context-aware information including location of the mobile device, user token, time of logging, or a combination thereof, the method further comprising:

updating the customer relation management system to further include the implicit context-aware information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein identification of entities as most likely to be selected for sales activity logging is dependent upon at least one of:

access recency of records of the entities;

imminence of events linked to the entities; and

geographic proximities of the entities to the user.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

sensing the imminence of events linked to the entities by identifying windows of time scheduled for the events, wherein the windows of time are identified by;

periodically checking electronic calendars; and

determining whether the events are within thresholds of time that specify imminence of the events.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

calculating the geographic proximities of the entities to the user by finding coincidences of location between the entities and the user, wherein the coincidences of location are found by;

periodically checking a geographic location of the user; and

determining whether the user is proximate to geographic locations of the entities based on thresholds of proximities.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the access recency of records of the entities is determined in dependence upon presence of records of the entities in a list of most recently accessed programs, files, and documents.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

logging data for sales activities without manual entries using templates that include default and dynamic ghost text modifiable by the user.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the default ghost text supplies pre-assigned values applicable to all entities and sales activities of a given type.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the dynamic ghost text supplies context-aware values specific to a selected entity and sales activity.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of sales activities includes registering electronic check-ins at events linked to the entities.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of sales activities includes logging summaries of events linked to the entities.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of sales activities includes logging follow-up tasks linked to the entities.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of sales activities includes creating memorandums linked to the entities.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of sales activities includes logging communications with the entities.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

posting, on online social networks of the user, representations of data with which the customer relation management system is updated.

16. A method, comprising:

querying a cache for one or more most-recently-used (MRU) entities corresponding to a mobile device;

providing a streamlined, double-action data entry path using a server in communication with the mobile device that

receives implicit context-aware information from the mobile device including at least a location of the mobile device and a user token;

automatically identifies entities as most likely to be selected for sales activity logging according to the queried one or more MRU entities;

transmits for display data that identifies the most likely entities and an interface that accepts selection among the most likely entities by a first action;

receives a selection of a particular entity responsive to the first action, and automatically performs a sales activity against the entity, wherein the sales activity is identified as most likely to be executed;

transmits for display across an interface data that identifies the performed sales activity;

transmits for display a comment entry screen with at least some ghost text that a user has an option to revise; and

receives the ghost or revised ghost text responsive to a second action; and

updating a customer relation management system with the selected particular entity, the performed sales activity, received ghost or revised ghost text along, and the implicit location of the mobile device, dependent on the user token.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein identification of the sales activity as most likely to be executed is dependent at least upon position of the sale activity in a sales workflow and time elapsed since launch of the sales workflow.

18. A method, comprising:

querying a cache for one or more most-recently-used (MRU) entities corresponding to a mobile device;

providing a streamlined, single-action data entry path using a server in communication with the mobile device that

receives implicit context-aware information from the mobile device including at least a location of the mobile device and a user token;

automatically selects an entity that is identified as most likely to be contacted, used, or acted upon according to the queried one or more MRU entities;

transmits for display across an interface data that identifies the selected entity;

automatically performs a sales activity against the entity, wherein the sales activity is identified as most likely to be executed;

transmits for display across an interface data that identifies the performed sales activity;

transmits for display a comment entry screen with at least some ghost text that a user has an option to revise; and

receives the ghost or revised ghost text responsive to a first action; and

updating a customer relation management system with the selected particular entity, the performed sales activity, received ghost or revised ghost text along, and the implicit location of the mobile device, dependent on the user token.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein identification of the entity as most likely to be contacted, used, or acted upon is dependent upon at least one of:

access recency of records of the entity;

imminence of events linked to the entity; and

geographic proximities of the entity to the user.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein identification of the sales activity as most likely to be executed is dependent at least upon position of the sale activity in a sales workflow and time elapsed since launch of the sales workflow.