Ordering method utilizing instant messaging

• US 20070016490A1
• Filed: 08/22/2006
• Published: 01/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shadow Enterprises Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Shadow Enterprises Incorporated
• Inventors: Nowak, Keith
• Granted Patent: US 7,451,102 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• 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 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces

Abstract

A system and method for a consumer to order goods and/or services from a vendor through use of an instant messaging service. The consumer initiates an instant message communication link between the consumer and the vendor by using the vendor'"'"'s screen name which has been added to the consumer'"'"'s list of contacts and sending an initiating message. Software resident on the vendor'"'"'s computer responds to initiation of the instant message communication link by supplying a list of good and/or services to the consumer. The consumer can order from the list of goods and/or services while concurrently communicating with the vendor. An order identification number is created each time an order is placed which includes information from the consumer'"'"'s screen name, the vendor'"'"'s screen name and software generated information. The order identification number uniquely identifies the order and is used only once.

Claims

1. ) A method performed by a computer system comprising the steps of:

storing a vendor'"'"'s list of goods and/or services in a data base accessible by the computer system;

establishing an instant message communication channel between a user and the vendor;

both user and vendor identified by unique screen names,

presenting the list of goods and/or services to the user in response to establishment of the instant message communication channel whereby the user can order selected items from the list of goods and/or services, while concurrently communicating with the vendor; and

generating an order identification number in response to each order placed by the user, which order identification number references information from the user'"'"'s screen name, the vendor'"'"'s screen name and information generated by the computer system, said order identification number identifying the specific order being processed by said user and used only for that specific order.

2. ) The method of claim 1 further comprising arranging for the ordered goods or services to be put in the possession of the user.

3. ) The method of claim 1 further comprising declining to accept an order for goods or services from an individual user if the individual user'"'"'s order is not accompanied by a valid order identification number.

4. ) The method of claim 1 wherein the user has a screen name that is included in the instant message received by the vendor, wherein the computer system data base includes user accounts each having at least one associated screen name, and wherein the computer system automatically establishes a user account for the user upon receipt of the receipt of the received instant message if the data base does not already include an account associated with said screen name.

5. ) The method of claim 1 wherein said order identification number includes associating a screen name with the order identification number and wherein the method further comprises determining the user'"'"'s screen name as a function of the order identification number that was generated by the computer system when instant message communication channel was established.

6. ) The method of claim 5 wherein the computer system includes a user account record associated with the user'"'"'s screen name, the account record having information about the user, and the method further comprises using the screen name to identify the user account record and to retrieve information about the user from the identified user account.

7. ) The method of claim 5 wherein the method further comprises using the user screen name to transmit at least one further instant message to the user about said order for goods or services received from the user.

8. ) The method of claim 1 wherein said order identification number includes associating the user'"'"'s screen name with the order identification number and wherein the method further comprises using the user'"'"'s screen name contained in a further instant message received from the user to identify the previously created order and causing a further order identification number of a newly created order record to be delivered to the user.

20. ) A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein the software provided to the vendor is integrated with Point-Of-Sale (POS) software used by the vendor.

22. ) The invention of claim 20 wherein the hyperlink includes an order identifier for an order record that was created for the user in response to receipt of said received instant message from the user, and wherein the computer system generates the order identifier when the user clicked on the hyperlink.

24. ) The method of claim 22 further comprising declining to accept an order for goods or services from an individual user who attempts to access the website using a URL in the hyperlink unless said individual user'"'"'s attempted access also includes an order identifier of an order record associated with said individual user.

26. ) The method of claim 24 wherein the computer system includes a database that includes a user account record associated with the user'"'"'s screen name and wherein the method further comprises using the screen name to identify the user account record and to retrieve information about the user from the identified user account record.

9. ) A method for a consumer to order goods and/or services from a vendor through the use of an instant messaging service, the instant messaging service including software available to the consumer that allows the consumer to create a list of contacts identifying to whom the consumer wishes to communicate with via the instant message service, the method of comprising the steps of:

requiring a vendor of goods and/or services to register with an instant messaging service and provide to the instant messaging service a vendor name for use by the consumer, the vendor name uniquely identifying the vendor;

providing the vendor name to the consumer to allow the consumer to add the vendor name to the list of contacts created by the consumer;

initiating an instant message communication link between the consumer and the vendor through use by the consumer of the vendor name on the consumer'"'"'s contact list;

providing software to the vendor which responds to initiation of the instant message communication link by supplying a list of goods/or services to the consumer from which the consumer may select, the list of goods and/or services being supplied from the vendor who provided said vendor name to said instant messaging service;

displaying the list of goods and/or services for the consumer; and

,

permitting the consumer to select items from the list of goods and/or services while concurrently communicating with the vendor via the instant message communication link.

10. ) A method in accordance with claim 9 further including the steps of sending a message from the vendor to the consumer confirming that the vendor has received the list of selected items.

11. ) A method in accordance with claim 10 further including the step of sending delivery or pick up information to the consumer in conjunction with the confirming message.

12. ) A method in accordance with claim 9 wherein the software provided to the vendor alerts the vendor each time the consumer communicates the list of selected items to the vendor.

13. ) A method in accordance with claim 12 wherein the list of good and/or services available from the vendor is stored on a server and said software provided to the vendor communicates with the server to supply the list of goods and/or services to the consumer.

14. ) A method in accordance with claim 13 wherein the consumer can store on the server a selected subset of the list of goods and/or services, which subset can be supplied to the consumer by the software provided to the vendor and the consumer can select items from the subset.

15. ) A method in accordance with claim 13 wherein said vendor is a restaurant and said list of goods and/or services includes a menu along with pricing information for the items on the menu.

16. ) A method in accordance with claim 15 wherein the items selected by the consumer and communicated to the vendor can be printed by the vendor at the vendor'"'"'s location.

17. ) A method in accordance with claim 16 wherein the consumer can make changes to the selected items communicated to the vendor subsequent to an initial communication of selected items.

18. ) A method in accordance with claim 9 wherein a plurality of consumers can communicate essentially simultaneously with the vendor to select items from the vendor'"'"'s list of goods and/or services and wherein a single consumer can communicate essentially simultaneously with a plurality of vendors to select items from said plurality of vendors.

19. ) A method in accordance with claim 9 further including the step of requiring the consumer to provide contact information to the vendor, the software provided to the vendor capable of rejecting an order from a consumer based on the provided contact information.

21. ) A method performed by a computer system, the method comprising the steps of;

responsive to an instant message received from a user, causing an instant message to be transmitted to the user that contains a hyperlink to a website from which the user can order goods or services, receiving an order for goods or services from the user at the website, and thereafter transmitting at least one further instant message to the user pertaining to said order.

23. ) The method of claim 21 wherein the goods or services ordered by the user are added to the created order record.

25. ) The method of claim 21 wherein the user has a screen name that is included in the received instant message, wherein the order record has at least one associated screen name, and wherein the method further comprises determining the user'"'"'s screen name based on the order identifier received by the computer system when the user accessed the website.