SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETERMINING WHETHER TO OFFER A REWARD AT A POINT OF RETURN

• US 20070156533A1
• Filed: 03/26/2007
• Published: 07/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Retail Equation, Inc. (Bamboo Health, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The Return Exchange Incorporated
• Inventors: Bradshaw, Peter, Hammond, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 8,355,946 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.350
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0223 based on inventory
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0238 at point-of-sale [POS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0247 Calculate past, present or future revenues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute

Abstract

Computerized decision-making systems and methods are described for determining whether to provide one or more rewards, such as a coupon or instant discount, to a customer requesting to make a merchandise return at a store, and, if so, to determine the terms of the reward, such as value, expiration date/time and other terms that may be associated with a coupon. The reward determinations may be implemented in conjunction with a system for authorizing the requested merchandise return transaction. Information about the requested return may be used together with data about the customer'"'"'s past purchase, return transactions, and other customer-related data. In some embodiments, the determinations are based, at least in part, on store-related information and policies. The reward may be printed with a receipt issued to the customer at the point of return and/or may be provided to the customer using a wide variety of other communications technologies.

Claims

1. A computerized system for providing a reward to a customer desiring to return merchandise to a merchant at a point of return, the system comprising:

a processor configured to receive information about a merchandise return by a customer at a merchant'"'"'s point of return, wherein the merchandise return comprises one or more items that the customer desires to return to the merchant;

a database comprising return data wherein the return data comprises information about return history of prior merchandise returns associated with the return of one or more items by customers to merchants; and

a decision engine configured to receive the information about the merchandise return by the customer and further configured to receive the return history from the database, the decision engine configured to determine whether to issue a reward to the customer at the point of return, based at least in part on the information about the merchandise return and based at least in part on the return history, wherein the reward is provided to the customer at the point of return, based at least in part on the information about the merchandise return and based at least in part on the return history.

2. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the reward is customized based on the customer'"'"'s information and based on transaction information about the merchandise return.

3. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the database further comprises information about the consumer'"'"'s profitability to the merchant and wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue the reward based at least in part on the consumer'"'"'s profitability to the merchant.

4. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the database further comprises purchase data and wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue a reward based at least in part on the purchase data.

5. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine at least one of the group consisting of value of the reward, a percentage discount offered by the reward, a dollar discount offered by the reward, an expiration time, an expiration date, at least one eligible product, at least one eligible product category, at least one eligible store location for reward redemption, at least one retailer who is not the merchant, whether or not the reward may be used online or in a physical store or both, and at least one eligible department for reward redemption.

6. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the reward comprises a reward and a return approved indication.

7. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the reward is valid for at least one of the group consisting of a predetermined time period, for less than a day, for exchanges, current purchases and future purchases of merchandise offered by the merchant.

8. The computerized system of claim 1 further comprising a database of merchant return authorization policies and wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue a reward based at least in part on the merchant return authorization policies set by a retailer or a manufacturer.

9. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue a reward based at least in part on at least one of the group consisting of whether the consumer has a receipt, the amount of recent returns, the number of returns in a given period, the geographic distance of the merchant from locations of recent customer returns, the geographic distance of the merchant from the customer'"'"'s home, the customer'"'"'s biometric information, shared data on returns and rewards, customer product preferences, the amount of the merchandise return, the type of items in the merchandise return, the age of the purchase receipt, type of return, customer profitability, seasonal criteria, drivers license, biometric identification data, and customer identifier.

10. The computerized system of claim 1 wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue a reward based at least in part on at least one of the group consisting of SKU identifier of the item being returned, merchant identifier, inventory, merchandise mix, mix of sales by SKU identifier, mix of inventory by SKU identifier, store sales performance, store profitability, average sale amount for the store, average return amount for the store, current reward promotions, current sales promotions, store location, and local demographics.

11. A computerized method for providing a reward to a customer desiring to return merchandise to a merchant at a point of return, the system comprising:

receiving information about a merchandise return by a customer at a merchant'"'"'s point of return, wherein the merchandise return comprises one or more items that the customer desires to return to the merchant;

storing in a database customer return data wherein the customer return data comprises information about return history of prior merchandise returns associated with the return of one or more items by customers to merchants; and

receiving the information about the merchandise return by the customer and further receiving return history from the database;

determining whether to issue a reward to the customer at the point of return, based at least in part on the information about the merchandise return and based at least in part on the return history; and

providing the reward to the customer at the point of return, based at least in part on the information about the merchandise return and based at least in part on the return history.

12. The computerized method of claim 11 wherein the reward is customized based on the customer'"'"'s information and based on transaction information about the merchandise return.

13. The computerized method of claim 11 further comprising:

storing information about the consumer'"'"'s profitability to the merchant; and

determining whether to issue the reward based at least in part on the consumer'"'"'s profitability to the merchant.

14. The computerized method of claim 11 further comprising:

storing information about purchase data; and

determining whether to issue a reward based at least in part on the purchase data.

15. The computerized method of claim 11 further comprising determining at least one of the group consisting of value of the reward, a percentage discount offered by the reward, a dollar discount offered by the reward, an expiration time, an expiration date, at least one eligible product, at least one eligible product category, at least one eligible store location for reward redemption, at least one retailer who is not the merchant, whether or not the reward may be used online or in a physical store or both, and at least one eligible department for reward redemption.

16. The computerized method of claim 11 wherein the reward is valid for at least one of the group consisting of a predetermined time period, for less than a day, for exchanges, current purchases and future purchases of merchandise offered by the merchant.

17. The computerized method of claim 11 wherein the reward comprises a reward and a return approved indication.

18. The computerized method of claim 11 further comprising:

storing merchant return authorization policies; and

determining whether to issue a reward based at least in part on the merchant return authorization policies set by a retailer or a manufacturer.

19. The computerized method of claim 11 wherein determining whether to issue a reward is based at least in part on at least one of the group consisting of whether the consumer has a receipt, the amount of recent returns, the number of returns in a given period, the geographic distance of the merchant from locations of recent customer returns, the geographic distance of the merchant from the customer'"'"'s home, the customer'"'"'s biometric information, shared data on returns and rewards, customer product preferences, the amount of the merchandise return, the type of items in the merchandise return, the age of the purchase receipt, type of return, customer profitability, seasonal criteria, drivers license, biometric identification data, customer identifier, sales price, and discount data sales price and discount data.

20. The computerized method of claim 11 wherein the decision engine is further configured to determine whether to issue a reward based at least in part on at least one of the group consisting of SKU identifier of the item being returned, merchant identifier, inventory, merchandise mix, mix of sales by SKU identifier, mix of inventory by SKU identifier, store sales performance, store profitability, average sale amount for the store, average return amount for the store, current reward promotions, current sales promotions, store location, and local demographics.