Systems and methods for determining user actions

• US 20050055269A1
• Filed: 09/04/2003
• Published: 03/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Jindal, Deepak, Roetter, Alex
• Application Number:
  US10/653,899
• Publication Number:
  US 20050055269A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.530
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history

Abstract

A system tracks user actions associated with a displayed advertisement. The system may generate a cookie in response to a user action, such as an ad click, and transmit the cookie to the user. The cookie may be associated with a particular advertiser. The system may then determine whether other actions performed by the user resulted from the advertisement.

Claims

1. A method for tracking user actions, comprising:

identifying a user action;

generating a cookie in response to the user action, the cookie being associated with an advertiser;

transmitting the cookie to the user; and

receiving the cookie from the user in response to an other action by the user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a conversion based at least in part on the receipt of the cookie, the conversion corresponding to at least one of a purchase, a registration, a sign-up, a page view and a download.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving information in response to the other action by the user, and wherein the identifying a conversion further comprises;

identifying the conversion based on receipt of the information and receipt of the cookie.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the information comprises an image request, the method further comprising:

providing an image in response to the image request.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user action corresponds to a selection of an advertisement associated with the advertiser and the other action corresponds to a conversion associated with the advertiser.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating a cookie comprises:

including an identifier associated with the advertiser in the cookie'"'"'s path

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

comparing, at the user'"'"'s device, the identifier associated with the advertiser in the cookie'"'"'s path to an identifier included on a post conversion page of the advertiser; and

transmitting, by the user'"'"'s device, the cookie when the identifiers match.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing'"'"'software to the advertiser, the software configured to be;

appended to at least one web page of the advertiser, and

executed when the at least one web page is retrieved.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving information when the software appended to the at least one web page is executed.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining that a conversion resulted from an advertisement based on whether the cookie was received and the received information.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the received information comprises at least one of a value and an activity type.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the other action corresponds to at least one of a purchase activity, a registration activity, a page view activity and a download activity, the method further comprising:

identifying a conversion; and

determining whether the conversion resulted from an advertisement associated with the advertiser based on receipt of the cookie.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

including at least one of an expiration date and a time stamp with the cookie; and

determining whether a conversion resulted from an advertisement associated with the advertiser based at least in part on whether the cookie received from the user has expired.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request for conversion tracking by the advertiser; and

providing software to be included on the advertiser'"'"'s web site.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the software includes at least one of a value field and a label field associated with a conversion and the value field and label field may be set by the advertiser.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a unique identifier for the advertiser, wherein the unique identifier is included with the cookie.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a conversion ratio for the advertiser based at least in part on a number of conversions associated with the advertiser, each conversion being associated with at least one of a purchase activity, a registration activity, a sign-up activity, a page view activity and a download activity.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the generating a conversion ratio includes:

determining a number of times an advertisement associated with the advertiser has been displayed or selected,

determining a number of conversions resulting from the displayed advertisement, and

generating a conversion ratio based on the number of times the advertisement was displayed or selected and the number of conversions.

19. A system for detecting user actions, comprising:

means for generating a cookie in response to a user action associated with an advertisement provided to the user; and

means for determining that a conversion resulted from the advertisement.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

means for receiving the cookie in response to an other user action; and

means for receiving information in response to the other user action, wherein the means for determining determines that a conversion resulted from the advertisement based on receipt of the cookie and the received information.

21. A computer-readable medium that stores instructions executable by at least one processor to perform a method for tracking user actions, the computer-readable medium comprising:

instructions for generating a cookie in response to a first user action, the cookie being associated with an advertiser;

instructions for receiving the cookie from the user in response to a second action by the user; and

instructions for determining whether a conversion resulted from the advertisement based at least in part on receipt of the cookie.

22. A server comprising:

a memory; and

a processor configured to;

receive at least one cookie in response to a user action, the cookie being associated with an advertiser,

store the at least one cookie in the memory,

receive a conversion indication associated with the advertiser, and

determine whether the conversion resulted from an advertisement associated with the advertiser based at least in part on the stored cookie.

23. The server of claim 22, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a plurality of cookies associated with the advertiser,

receive a plurality of conversion indications associated with the advertiser, and

determine a conversion ratio associated with the advertiser based at least in part on the plurality of cookies and the plurality of conversion indications.

24. A method for enabling tracking of users'"'"' actions, comprising:

providing a conversion tracking option to an advertiser;

receiving a selection from the advertiser, the selection indicating that the advertiser wishes to enable tracking of users'"'"' actions for at least one account associated with the advertiser; and

enabling tracking for the at least one account.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

generating an identifier associated with the at least one account, wherein the identifier is inserted in a cookie path associated with tracking users'"'"' actions with respect to the advertiser.

26. A method for tracking user actions, comprising:

providing an ad to a user;

receiving an ad click associated with the ad;

generating a cookie in response to the ad click;

transmitting the cookie to the user;

receiving information in response to a user action, the information indicating that the user performed a conversion associated with an advertiser; and

determining whether the conversion resulted from the ad.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the generating a cookie comprises:

including an identifier associated with the advertiser in the cookie'"'"'s path.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

receiving the cookie in response to the user action, and wherein the determining comprises;

determining whether the conversion resulted from the ad based at least in part on receipt of the cookie.

29. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

receiving a plurality of cookies in response to ad clicks associated with the advertiser;

receiving a plurality of conversion indications associated with the advertiser; and

determining a conversion ratio based at least in part on the plurality of received cookies and the plurality of received conversion indications.

30. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

receiving the cookie from the user when the user performs the conversion.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising;

preventing the cookie from being transmitted by the user when a conversion not associated with the advertiser is performed.

32. The method of claim 30, further comprising:

preventing the cookie from being transmitted by the user when a conversion not associated with any advertiser is performed.

33. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

receiving the cookie from the user only when the user performs a conversion associated with the advertiser.

34. A method, comprising:

selecting an ad associated with an advertiser;

receiving a cookie in response to the selection;

performing a conversion associated with the advertiser;

determining whether an identifier associated with the cookie matches an identifier on a web page associated with the conversion; and

transmitting the cookie when the identifiers match.