Customer relationship management system and method

• US 20020198775A1
• Filed: 02/19/2002
• Published: 12/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/1999
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Ryan, Patrick Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US10/078,642
• Publication Number:
  US 20020198775A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0242 Determining effectiveness of advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements

Abstract

The invention provides in one form a relationship management system comprising a memory in which is maintained an interaction database of interaction data representing interactions customers and merchants, retrieval means arranged to retrieve, based on a set of criteria a promotional group subset of the customers stored in the interaction database a promotion atnalyser arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group; and display means arranged to display a representation of the retrieved interaction data.

Claims

1. A customer relationship management system comprising:

a memory in which is maintained an interaction database of interaction data representing interactions between customers and merchants;

retrieval means arranged to retrieve, based on a set of criteria, a promotional group subset of the customers stored in the interaction database;

a promotion analyser arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group; and

display means arranged to display a representation of the retrieved interaction data.

2. A customer relationship management system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the promotional group subset of the customers comprises at least one target group of customers to which promotional efforts will be directed;

and at least one control group of customers to which promotional efforts will not be directed, the target group and the control group comprising mutually exclusive sets.

3. A customer relationship management system as claimed in claim 2 wherein the promotion uialyser is arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the target group and data representing interactions involving customers in the control group.

4. A customer relationship management system as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the retrieval means is arranged to randomly select the target group and/or control group frzm the promotional group.

5. A customer relationship management system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the promotion iinalyser is arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group during a first time period and a second time period.

6. A customer relationship management system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the display means is further arranged to display a graphical representation of at least one merchant and to superimpose representations of the data retrieved from the interaction database on the representation of the merchant.

7. A customer relationship management system as claimed in claim 6 wherein the merchant operates from one or more commercial premises, the graphical representation comprising a spatial representation of the premises of the merchant.

8. A customer relationship management system as claimed in any one of the preceding clairas wherein the display means is further arranged to display a topological malt showing the origin of customers in merchant customer interactions.

9. A method of managing customer relationships comprising the steps of:

maintaining in a memory an interaction database of interaction data representing interactions between customers and merchants;

retrieving, based on a set of criteria, a promotional group subset of the customers stored in the interaction database;

retreving from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group; and

displaying a representation of the retrieved interaction data.

10. A method as claimed in claim 9 wherein the promotional group subset of the customers comprises at least one target group of customers to which promotional efforts will be directed;

and at least one control group of customers to which promotional efforts will not be directed, the target group and the control group comprising mutually exclusive sets.

11. A method as claimed in claim 10 further comprising the step of retrieving from the interaLction database data representing interactions involving customers in the target group and data representing interactions involving customers in the control group.

12. A method as claimed in claim 10 or claim 11 further comprising the step of retrieving data through random selection of the target group and/or control group from the promotional group.

13. A method as claimed in claim 9 further comprising the step of retrieving from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group during a first time period and a second time period.

14. A method as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 13 further comprising the steps of displaying a graphical representation of at least one merchant and superimposing representations of the data retrieved from the interaction database on the representation(s) of the merchant.

15. A method as claimed in claim 14 wherein the merchant operates from one or more commercial premises, the graphical representation comprising a spatial representation of the premises of the merchant.

16. A method as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 15 further comprising the step of displaying a topological map showing the origin of customers in merchant customer interactions.

18. A computer program as claimed in claim 17 wherein the promotional group subset of the customers comprises at least one target group of customers to which promotional efforts will be directed;

and at least one control group of customers to which promotional efforts will not be directed, the target group and the control group comprising mutually exclusive sets.

19. A computer program as claimed in claim 18 wherein the promotion analyser is arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the target group and data representing interactions involving customers in the control group.

20. A computer program as claimed in claim 18 or claim 19 wherein the retrieval means is arranged to randomly select the target group and/or control group from the promotional group.

21. A computer program as claimed in claim 17 wherein the promotion analyser is arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group during a first time period and a second time period.

17. A customer relationship management computer program comprising:

an interaction database of interaction data representing interactions between customers and merchants maintained in a memory;

retrieval means arranged to retrieve, based on a set of criteria, a promotional group subset oi the customers stored in the interaction database;

promotion analyser arranged to retrieve from the interaction database data representing interactions involving customers in the promotional group; and

display means arranged to display a representation of the retrieved interaction data.

22. A computer program as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 21 wherein the display means is further arranged to display a graphical representation of at least one merchant and to superimpose representations of the data retrieved from the interaction database on the representations of the merchant.

23. A computer program as claimed in claim 22 wherein the merchant operates from one or more commercial premises, the graphical representation comprising a spatial representation of the premises of the merchant.

24. A computer program as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 23 wherein the display means is further arranged to display a topological map showing the origin of customers in merchant customer interactions.

25. A computer program as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 24 embodied on a computer readable medium.