Adaptable retail pricing environment and electronic exchange, delivering customized competitor pricing rewards and discounts

• US 10,354,260 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2011
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Safeway Incorporated (Albertsons Cos., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Safeway Incorporated (Albertsons Cos., Inc.)
• Inventors: Thomas, David Edward, Quinn, Jonathan G., Minasi, Michael Robert, Marian, Michelle, Aamir, Mir Mohammad, Pattison, Tamara Ruth
• Primary Examiner(s): Li, Sun M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thuy N
• Application Number:
  US13/072,534
• Publication Number:
  US 20110295670A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,035 Days
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history

Abstract

An individualized discount and reward server includes one or more linked databases storing customer data including at least one retailer account and purchase history associated with the customer. The server including a processor to allocate at least one customized offer to the retailer account using at least the purchase history associated with the customer, the at least one customized offer including a loyalty adjustment changing a general market price point of a retail product in accordance with a competitor price. The processor further displays to the customer, via the interface, a display page including the at least one customized offer and an option for selection of the at least one customized offer. The processor also updates, upon reception of the customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer, the retailer account to indicate selection of the at least one customized offer.

Claims

1. An individualized discount and reward server of a retailer comprising:

a processor and instructions stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium which, when processed by the processor, causes the individualized discount and reward server to;

allocate at least one customized offer to a retailer account using at least a purchase history associated with a customer, the at least one customized offer including a loyalty adjustment changing a general market price point of a retail product to a purchase price at or below a competitor price offered for a competing product by a competitor of the retailer, the competitor located within the geographic location specified in the retailer account, wherein the loyalty adjustment is based on at least the purchase history;

send to a computer system of a consumer packaged good partner, via a network, information that the customer is only willing to buy the retail product at a reduced price;

after the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner receives the information, receive from the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner an agreement to provide funding for the at least one customized offer for the retail product, wherein the retail product is the consumer packaged good partner'"'"'s product, wherein allocate at least one customized offer to the retailer account is based on the agreement;

receive a purchase notification from a point of sale device, the purchase notification including the retailer account associated with the customer;

upon reception of the purchase notification from the point of sale device,

i) divert the purchase notification to a second server which is operated by the retailer and separate from the individualized discount and reward server, and

ii) distribute one or more functions to the second server to prevent the individualized discount and reward server from being slowed down, the one or more functions distributed to the second server including;

instruct the point of sale device to display the at least one customized offer and an option for selection of the at least one customized offer while the customer is purchasing an item;

receive a customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer from the point of sale device; and

update, upon reception of the customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer, the retailer account associated with the customer to indicate selection of the at least one customized offer.

2. The server according to claim 1, the at least one customized offer including the competitor price, the purchase notification further including one or more retail products not including the retail product associated with the at least one customized offer.

3. The server according to claim 1, wherein, upon determination that the competitor price for the retail product has been reduced by the competitor, the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to allocate to the retailer account an updated offer for the retail product at or below the reduced competitor price.

4. The server according to claim 1, wherein the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to:

receive one or more customer inputs specifying a competitor price for an unallocated product, and

allocate, upon verification from one or more linked databases for the specified competitor price, the at least one customized offer being for the unallocated product in accordance with the specified competitor price.

5. The server according to claim 1, wherein the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to redeem the at least one customized offer upon receiving the purchase notification specifying the retailer account associated with the customer and the product, the at least one customized offer redeemed by associating the product with the loyalty adjustment independent of the general market price point associated with the product at a time of reception of the purchase notification.

6. The individualized discount and reward server according to claim 3, the at least one offer comprising the updated offer including the updated competitor price for the retail product, the purchase notification further including one or more retail products not including the retail product associated with the at least one customized offer.

7. An individualized discount and reward system of a retailer, the system comprising:

a first server, a second server, and a point of sale device;

the first server comprising;

one or more linked databases to store customer data associated with a loyalty program of a retailer, the customer data including at least one retailer account and purchase history associated with a customer, the at least one retailer account specifying a geographic location of the retailer;

a processor and instructions stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium which, when processed by the processor, causes the first server of the individualized discount and reward system to;

allocate at least one customized offer to the at least one retailer account using at least the purchase history associated with the customer, the at least one customized offer including a loyalty adjustment changing a general market price point of a retail product to a purchase price at or below a competitor price offered for the retail product by a competitor of the retailer, the competitor located within the geographic location specified in the at least one retailer account, wherein the loyalty adjustment is based on at least the purchase history associated with the customer;

send to a computer system of a consumer packaged good partner, via a network, information that the customer is only willing to buy the retail product at a reduced price;

after the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner receives the information, receive from the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner an agreement to provide funding for the at least one customized offer for the retail product, wherein the retail product is the consumer packaged good partner'"'"'s product, wherein allocate at least one customized offer to the at least one retailer account is based on the agreement;

receive a purchase notification from the point of sale device, the purchase notification including the at least one retailer account associated with the customer;

upon reception of the purchase notification from the point of sale device,

 

i) divert the purchase notification to a second server which is operated by the retailer and separate from the individualized discount and reward server, and

 

ii) distribute one or more functions to the second server to prevent the individualized discount and reward server from being slowed down, the one or more functions distributed to the second server including;

 

instruct the point of sale device to display the at least one customized offer and an option for selection of the at least one customized offer while the customer is purchasing an item;

 

receive a customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer from the point of sale device; and

 

update, upon reception of the customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer, the at least one retailer account associated with the customer to indicate selection of the at least one customized offer.

8. The system according to claim 7, the at least one customized offer including the competitor price, the purchase notification further including one or more retail products not including the retail product associated with the at least one customized offer.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein upon determination that the customer has accepted the at least one customized offer but has not redeemed the at least one customized offer, and the competitor price for the retail product has been reduced by the competitor after the customer accepted the at least one customized offer, the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to allocate to the at least one retailer account an updated offer for the retail product at or below the reduced competitor price.

10. The system according to claim 7, wherein the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to:

receive one or more customer inputs specifying a competitor price for an unallocated product, and

allocate, upon verification from the one or more linked databases for the specified competitor price, at least one customized offer for the unallocated product in accordance with the specified competitor price.

11. The system according to claim 7, wherein the instructions processed by the processor further cause the individualized discount and reward server to redeem the customized offer upon receiving the purchase notification including the at least one retailer account associated with the customer and the product, the customized offer redeemed by associating the product with the loyalty adjustment independent of the general market price point associated with the product at a time of reception of the purchase notification.

12. The system according to claim 9, the at least one offer comprising the updated offer including the updated competitor price for the retail product, the purchase notification further including one or more retail products not including the retail product associated with the at least one customized offer.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer executable instructions that when executed by a processor in an individualized discount and reward server of a retailer causes the individualized discount and reward server of the retailer to:

store, in one or more linked databases, customer data associated with a loyalty program of the retailer, the customer data including at least one retailer account and purchase history associated with a customer, the at least one retailer account specifying a geographic location of the retailer;

allocate at least one customized offer to the retailer account using at least the purchase history associated with the customer, the at least one customized offer including a loyalty adjustment changing a general market price point of a retail product to a purchase price at or below a competitor price offered for a competing product by a competitor of the retailer, the competitor located within the geographic location specified in the at least one retailer account, wherein the loyalty adjustment is based on at least the purchase history associated with the customer;

send to a computer system of a consumer packaged good partner, via a network, information that the customer is only willing to buy the retail product at a reduced price;

after the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner receives the information, receive from the computer system of the consumer packaged good partner an agreement to provide funding for the at least one customized offer for the retail product, wherein the retail product is the consumer packaged good partner'"'"'s product, wherein allocate at least one customized offer to the at least one retailer account is based on the agreement;

receive a purchase notification from the point of sale device, the purchase notification including the at least one retailer account associated with the customer;

upon reception of the purchase notification from the point of sale device;

i) divert the purchase notification to a second server which is operated by the retailer and separate from the individualized discount and reward server, and

ii) distribute one or more functions to the second server to prevent the individualized discount and reward server from being slowed down, the one or more functions distributed to the second server including;

instruct the point of sale device to display the at least one customized offer and an option for selection of the at least one customized offer while the customer is purchasing an item;

receive a customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer from the point of sale device; and

update, upon reception of the customer input indicating selection of the at least one customized offer, the retailer account associated with the customer to indicate selection of the at least one customized offer.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 13, the at least one customized offer including the competitor price, the purchase notification further including one or more retail products not including the retail product associated with the at least one customized offer.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 13, wherein, upon determination that the customer has accepted the at least one customized offer but has not redeemed the at least one customized offer, and the competitor price for the retail product has been reduced by the competitor after the customer accepted the at least one customized offer, the executable instructions executed by the processor further cause the server to allocate to the retailer account an updated offer for the retail product at or below the reduced competitor price.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 13, wherein the executable instructions executed by the processor further cause the server to:

receive one or more customer inputs specifying a competitor price for an unallocated product, and

allocate, upon verification from one or more linked databases for the specified competitor price, at least one customized offer for the unallocated product in accordance with the specified competitor price.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 13, wherein the executable instructions executed by the processor further cause the server to redeem the customized offer upon receiving the purchase notification specifying the retailer account associated with the customer and the product, the customized offer redeemed by associating the product with the loyalty adjustment independent of the general market price point associated with the product at a time of reception of the purchase notification.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 15, the at least one offer comprising the updated offer including the updated competitor price for the retail product.