Systems and methods for online marketing and advertising on e-mail systems

• US 20070038718A1
• Filed: 10/17/2006
• Published: 02/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Slack Technologies, Inc. (Salesforce.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Advenix
• Inventors: Khoo, Justin, Xu, Ying
• Granted Patent: US 9,076,147 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/02 using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Methods for enhancing e-mail messages to provide preview enhanced e-mail messages that allow e-mail senders to associate customized preview content related to an e-mail message, including graphical images, that can be viewed by recipients directly from an e-mail inbox listing without opening the e-mail message itself. The e-mail messages have associated preview instructions, and have a preview trigger that upon actuation opens a temporary preview window on the inbox view and displays the preview content in accordance with the preview instructions while the preview trigger is actuated. The invention is applicable to web-based e-mail systems as well as to POP-based and proprietary e-mail systems.

Claims

1. A method of enhancing an electronic message in a message listing of a client application receiving messages, the message having an associated preview trigger and preview instructions for preview content related to said message, the method comprising:

opening temporarily, upon actuating said preview trigger, a preview window on said message listing while said preview trigger is actuated; and

displaying said preview content in accordance with said preview instructions within said preview window.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said electronic message comprises an e-mail message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said electronic message is transmitted using a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said displaying preview content comprises obtaining said preview content from a server.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein said obtaining preview content comprises obtaining said preview content from an attachment to said e-mail message.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein said displaying preview content comprises preloading the preview content prior to said actuation of the preview trigger.

7. The method of claim 2 further comprising validating the preview instructions, and inhibiting display of said preview content upon said preview instructions being invalid.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said validating comprises validating the preview instructions after a request by a user for said message listing.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein said validating further comprises one or both of authenticating the identity of a sender of said message and the integrity of said message at a recipient.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein said validating is performed upon one or both of said e-mail message reaching a server of a recipient of said e-mail message, and generating of said message listing for display at said client application.

11. The method of claim 2 further comprising tracking said e-mail message to determine whether said associated preview trigger has been activated by a recipient.

12. The method of claim 2 further comprising tracking one or more of the number of times said preview content has been loaded and the number of times a user has clicked on said preview content.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein the preview content comprises one or more of an image, a rich-media application, audio and video, JavaScript and text.

14. The method of claim 2, wherein said opening of the preview window comprises opening the preview window adjacent an entry of said e-mail message on said message listing having said preview instructions.

15. The method of claim 2, wherein said preview instructions comprise instructions in said e-mail message for obtaining said preview content.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said preview instructions comprise a plurality of identifiers, and wherein said method further comprises obtaining preview content from a server using said identifiers.

17. The method for claim 2, wherein the preview instructions are associated with said e-mail message by a message server that sends e-mail messages to the message receiving application.

18. The method of claim 2, wherein said client application comprises one of a web-based or a standalone e-mail application that is constructed to respond to said preview instructions.

19. The method of claim 2 further comprising enabling interacting with said preview content within said preview window to perform operations selected from the group consisting of opening the e-mail message, launching a web site in a browser, fetching additional content, and loading an object file.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said interacting with said preview content comprises communicating with a server resident on a network.

21. The method of claim 2, wherein said displaying said preview content comprises loading the preview content to the client application using a predictive algorithm that loads preview content based upon one or more factors selected from the group consisting of priority of the preview content, size of the preview content, order of real-time triggering of the preview content, and proximity of unloaded preview content to previously loaded preview content.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said loading comprises loading said preview content upon activation of the preview trigger.

23. The method of claim 2, wherein the preview trigger comprises a script that detects the cursor positioned at a predetermined location relative to one or more elements of the message entry.

24. The method of claim 2 further comprising deactivating display of the preview content upon a cursor moving away from one of the triggering mechanism, or the preview content, or after a predetermined time has elapsed.

25. The method of claim 2 further comprising authenticating said e-mail message before displaying said preview content.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said authenticating comprises generating a digital signature with said preview instructions, and encrypting said digital signature.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein said authenticating comprises authenticating the identity of the sender of said message.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying preview content comprises obtaining said preview content from a server.

29. The method of claim 1 further comprising validating the preview instructions, and inhibiting display of said preview content upon said preview instructions being invalid.

30. The method of claim 1 further comprising tracking said message to determine whether said associated preview trigger has been activated by a recipient.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein said tracking further comprises tracking the number of times said preview content has been loaded.

32. A method of enhancing an e-mail message being sent to an inbox view listing of an e-mail receiving application, the method comprising:

associating with said e-mail message preview content related to said e-mail message;

associating preview instructions with said e-mail message, said preview instructions causing said e-mail receiving application to display said preview content temporarily during actuation of a preview trigger of said e-mail message within a preview window on an inbox listing of e-mail messages.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein said method is performed by an e-mail sending application that sends the e-mail message to said e-mail receiving application.

34. The method of claim 32 further comprising obtaining said preview content and said preview instructions from a server.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein said preview content is uploaded to the server by a sender of said e-mail message, and wherein said associating said preview content and associating said preview instructions are preformed by said server prior to sending the e-mail message to the e-mail receiving application.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein said server comprises a preview server for said preview content and said preview instructions, and the method further comprises supplying said preview instructions to a mail server for sending said e-mail message to said e-mail receiving application.

37. The method of claim 32, wherein said associating said preview content with said e-mail message comprises providing said preview content as an attachment to said e-mail message.

38. The method of claim 32, wherein said associating said preview content with said e-mail message comprises associating an identifier that identifies said preview content with said e-mail message, and obtaining said preview content from a server using said identifier.

39. The method of claim 32 further comprising authenticating said e-mail message to authenticate the validity of said e-mail message and the identity of the sender of the e-mail.

43. The method of claim 32 further comprising validating the preview instructions prior to displaying the preview content.

44. The method of claim 32 further comprising tracking loading of said preview content.

45. The method of claim 32 further comprising tracking triggering of said preview content.

40. A method of enhancing e-mail messages comprising:

uploading preview content to a server;

generating an e-mail message and preview instructions for a recipient e-mail client, said preview content and said preview instructions being related to said e-mail message;

associating said preview content and preview instructions with said e-mail message; and

sending the e-mail message to said e-mail client, said preview instructions instructing said e-mail client, upon actuating a preview trigger of an entry for said e-mail message on an inbox view listing of e-mail messages at said e-mail client, to open temporarily while said preview trigger is actuated a preview window on said inbox view listing and to display said preview content within said preview window.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein said generating, associating and sending steps are performed by one or more servers that are different from said first-mentioned server.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein said uploading comprises providing access to said first-mentioned server by a content provider for managing said preview content.