High-precision customer-based targeting by individual usage statistics

• US 10,528,975 B2
• Filed: 03/12/2013
• Issued: 01/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inmar-Youtech LLC
• Original Assignee: Inmar-Youtech LLC
• Inventors: Quatse, Jesse T., Karhinen, Anssi, Wasserman, Eric G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Li, Sun M
• Application Number:
  US13/797,517
• Publication Number:
  US 20130268356A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,492 Days
• Field of Search: 705 141, 705 1452, 75 141
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0211 Determining the effectiveness of discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0254 based on statistics

Abstract

Electronic systems for promotional offers are disclosed. An illustrative electronic system may include a computing device and a storage medium. The storage medium may contain one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to generate scores for customers from a customer database for distribution of limited quantities of promotional offers. Each score may be associated with one customer and one promotional offer, and each score may measure a probability that the associated customer will make a purchase in accordance with the associated offer. The programming instructions may further cause the computing device to identify a highest score, determine a customer associated with the highest score, determine a promotional offer associated with the highest score, assign the promotional offer to a personalized offer list for the customer if the promotional offer satisfies one or more constraints.

Claims

1. An electronic system for electronic distribution of promotional offers to customers for the promotional offers, the electronic system comprising:

a computing device; and

a non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium in operable communication with the computing device, wherein the computer-readable storage medium contains one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to;

receive, using a network connection device, data related to a plurality of customer shopping histories from at least one merchant entity;

store, in a customer database, the data related to the plurality of customer shopping histories;

calculate a plurality of scores for a plurality of customers from the plurality of customer shopping histories for distribution of limited quantities of promotional offers included in a master list of promotional offers, each score being associated with one customer and one promotional offer, and each score measuring a probability that the associated customer will make a purchase in accordance with the associated offer,

identify a highest score in the plurality of scores,

determine a customer, from the plurality of customers, associated with the highest score,

determine a first promotional offer, from the promotional offers, associated with the highest score,

determine whether the highest score exceeds a threshold score, and when so, determine a second promotional offer from the promotional offers, the second promotional offer being for a second product having a higher purchase price than a first product associated with the first promotional offer,

assign one of the first promotional offer and the second promotional offer to a first personalized offer list for the customer based upon whether the highest score exceeds the threshold score and if the one of the first and second promotional offers is within a limit of promotional offers that are distributable to the customer,

repeatedly identify, determine, and assign each next highest score until all of the promotional offers have been assigned to a personalized offer list; and

transmit a plurality of the personalized offer lists to a channel adaptor for conveyance to electronic devices associated with the plurality of customers, wherein the channel adaptor is configured to adapt each of the plurality of the personalized offer lists from a common format to a given specific format from among a plurality specific formats, the given specific format being determined based upon a respective specific format capability of each electronic device.

2. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the promotional offers relate to a plurality of products organized in taxonomic groupings, and wherein the one or more programming instructions that cause the computing device to calculate a plurality of scores comprise one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

calculate each score associated with one or more of the offers based on a grouping probability corresponding to a probability that a customer will purchase any product in an associated taxonomic grouping.

3. The electronic system of claim 2, wherein a score is based on the grouping probability, and wherein the offer associated with the score is for a product included in the associated taxonomic grouping.

4. The electronic system of claim 2, wherein a score is based on the grouping probability, and wherein the offer associated with the score is for a product not included in the associated taxonomic grouping.

5. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the one or more constraints include a limit on a number of offers delivered to any individual customer, and further comprising one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

assign each customer no more than a number of offers equal to the limit.

6. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the promotional offers relate to a plurality of products organized in a plurality of taxonomic product groupings, and wherein the one or more programming instructions that cause the computing device to calculate a plurality of scores comprise one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

provide a product grouping probability profile that associates, with each product grouping, a measure of a probability that a customer will purchase a product from the product grouping; and

calculate a score for each combination of customer and promotional offer from the measure of the probability associated with each product grouping containing a product subject to the promotional offer.

7. The electronic system of claim 6, wherein the one or more programming instructions that cause the computing device to provide a product grouping probability profile comprise one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

access a transaction history database for at least a substantial portion of the plurality of customers, wherein the transaction history database associates with each customer of the substantial portion an identification of transactions engaged in by the customer and an identification of products previously purchased by the customer in each of the transactions;

provide a transaction summary data structure that, for each customer, associates a total number of transactions the customer has engaged in and a number of transactions associated with each product grouping;

calculate an average number of product groupings per transaction from the transaction summary data structure for at least a portion of the customers; and

derive the measure of probability associated with each product grouping from the average number of product groupings per transaction for the associated product grouping.

8. The electronic system of claim 6, further comprising one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

normalize the product grouping probability profile for an individual customer to reflect a relative probability of the individual customer purchasing from a product grouping with respect to an average probability for a customer to purchase from the product grouping.

9. The electronic system of claim 6, further comprising one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

apply preprogrammed targeting criteria embodying a marketing strategy to the product grouping probability profile to provide a profile of offer scores.

10. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes at least one targeting product grouping and a promoted product grouping linked to the at least one targeting product grouping, and the promotional offers are only for customers having a high probability of acceptance from the at least one targeting product grouping.

11. The electronic system of claim 10, further comprising one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to:

provide a taxonomy of the product groupings, wherein the at least one targeting product grouping is defined in reference to the taxonomy.

12. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes a MoveStock strategy.

13. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes an UpSell strategy.

14. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes a CrossSell strategy.

15. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes a Reward strategy.

16. The electronic system of claim 9, wherein the marketing strategy includes a BrandChange strategy.

17. An electronic system for electronic distribution of promotional offers to customers for the promotional offers, the electronic system comprising:

a computing device; and

a non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium in operable communication with the computing device, wherein the computer-readable storage medium contains one or more programming instructions that, when executed, cause the computing device to;

receive, using a network connection device, data related to one or more customer shopping histories from at least one merchant entity;

store, in a transaction history database, the data related to the one or more customer shopping histories;

derive from the transaction history database comprising, a historical purchase probability profile for at least a portion of the one or more customers in the database and for a plurality of product groupings in the database, the historical purchase probability profile providing for each individual customer and for each individual product grouping a measure of the probability that the individual customer will purchase a product from the individual product grouping;

apply, for a customer included in the portion of the customers, a statistical model to the purchase probability profile to determine an estimated probability that the customer will purchase a product from the product groupings, the estimated probability being indicative of a likelihood the customer will purchase the product in comparison to all other customers included in the portion of customers;

select for the customer a first offer associated with a first product in the product groupings, wherein the first offer is associated with a highest estimated probability that the customer will purchase the product in comparison to all other customers included in the portion of customers;

determine whether the highest estimated probability exceeds a threshold probability, and when so, select a second offer, the second offer being for a second product and having a higher purchase price than a first product associated with the first offer,

determine whether the selected one of the first and second offers is within a determined limit on a total quantity of promotional offers to the customer; and

transmit the selected one of the first and second offers to a channel adaptor for conveyance to an electronic device associated with the customer such that each customer included in the plurality of customers is electronically provided with a limited number of offers that are estimated to be most likely to be acceptable by the customer, wherein the channel adaptor is configured to adapt the selected one of the first and second offers from a common format to a given specific format from among a plurality of specific formats, the given specific format being determined based upon a respective specific format capability of each electronic device.

18. The electronic system of claim 17, wherein the statistical model is an empirical Bayesian statistical model.

19. The electronic system of claim 17, wherein one or more of the product groupings includes only one product.