Contextual presentation of information about prior transactions during browsing of an electronic catalog

• US 20050154651A1
• Filed: 03/07/2005
• Published: 07/14/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bezos, Jeffrey P., Allocca, William W., Subramaniam, Suguna, Lockhart, Walker L., Mohit, Maryam S., Lock, Ericka N.
• Application Number:
  US11/073,508
• Publication Number:
  US 20050154651A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0627 using item specifications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0629 for generating comparisons
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

An electronic catalog system, which may be implemented as a web site or another type of interactive system, presents context-sensitive information to customers about their prior transactions during browsing of an electronic catalog of products. In one embodiment, when a customer accesses a detail page for a particular product, the detail page is supplemented with information, such as status information, about a related order placed by the customer. The related order may be an order for the product represented in the detail page or may be for a related product. Information about related orders may additionally or alternatively be added to other types of pages, such as search results pages and shopping cart pages. In one embodiment, a customer'"'"'s related order information is maintained in a cache during the customer'"'"'s browsing session, and the cache is updated in real time to reflect actions performed by the customer.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of reducing unnecessary transactions associated with products represented in an electronic catalog, the method comprising:

maintaining, in computer storage, transaction history data reflective of transactions conducted by users in association with particular products represented in an electronic catalog;

programmatically identifying a product currently selected by a user for purposes of conducting a new transaction with a business entity associated with the electronic catalog;

accessing the transaction history data associated with the user to detect that the user previously conducted a transaction associated with said product; and

while the product is selected by the user for purposes of conducting the new transaction, transmitting a message to a computing device associated with the user for presentation to the user, said message indicating, at least, that the user previously conducted a transaction associated with the product, wherein the message is transmitted without the user explicitly requesting transaction history information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted to the computing device as part of a shopping cart page that displays contents of an electronic shopping cart of the user, and indicates that a product currently represented in the shopping cart was previously ordered by the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein programmatically identifying a product currently selected by the user comprises identifying a product currently represented in an electronic shopping cart of the user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted to the user as part of a checkout page associated with the user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted to the user on, or in association with, an electronic page that provides functionality for the user to initiate the new transaction.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the message further indicates a fulfillment status of a prior order placed by the user for said product.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein accessing the transaction history data comprises accessing a cache that stores a copy of at least a portion of the transaction history data associated with the user, said cache temporarily storing copies of transaction history data associated with users who are currently accessing the electronic catalog.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted to the computing device for presentation within a pop-up window of a web browser.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the product currently selected by the user is a movie title selected by the user to rent.

10. A message generated according to the method of claim 1, represented in a computer memory.

11. A computer program, comprising executable instructions represented in computer storage, that embodies the method of claim 1.

12. A computer-implemented method of providing account-specific information to users, the method comprising:

receiving, over a computer network, a search query specified by a user, and identifying a set of one or more items that are responsive to the search query;

programmatically accessing order history data associated with the user to identify an order previously placed by the user for an item in said set of one or more items that are responsive to the search query; and

generating a search results page to present to the user in response to the search query, said search results page listing the set of one or more items that are responsive to the search query, and including information reflective of said order previously placed by the user.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the information reflective of said order comprises information about a fulfillment status of the order.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein accessing the order history data comprises accessing a cache that stores a copy of at least a portion of the order history data associated with the user, said cache temporarily storing copies of order history data associated with users that are currently accessing an electronic catalog.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the one or more items that are responsive to the search query are identified, at least in part, by searching a products database for products that are responsive to the search query.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the set of one or more items includes at least one item that was not previously ordered by the user.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the information reflective of said order is provided as a supplement to the search results provided on the search results page.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the method is performed without the user explicitly requesting order history information.

19. A search results page generated according to the method of claim 12, represented in a computer memory.

20. A computer program, comprising executable instructions represented in computer storage, that embodies the method of claim 12.