Method, system, and computer program product for linking customer information

• US 20070192122A1
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Published: 08/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Liberty Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. (American Express Company)
• Inventors: Mata, Ann Shelley, Routson, Nicholas K., Weissman, Mary E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,306,986 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/211 Schema design and management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/01 Customer relationship services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/265 Personal security, identity or safety

Abstract

In a business where a database tracks customers and manages customer accounts, a method and system correctly link accounts with customers. The method entails reading customer information for a first customer and for a second customer, and then utilizing personal identification information obtained from other sources to determine if the first customer is the same as the second customer. If the first customer and the second customer are the same person, the first customer and the second customer are identified as being the same unique person. Accounts associated with the two customers are identified as belonging to the same unique person. Viewed another way, the method and system of the present invention takes an existing database of personal identification information, and cross-references that database against other sources of personal identification information to identify persons who appear to be separate persons, but who are actually one and the same individual.

Claims

1. A method of linking customer accounts, comprising:

(a) collecting internal customer account data into a consolidated database;

(b) searching an external database for personal identification information related to the internal customer account data; and

(c) analyzing the internal customer account data and the personal identification information to create a linkage between customer accounts.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying at least one customer account in the consolidated database; and

identifying at least one unique customer in the consolidated database.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein step (b) comprises searching the external database for personal identification information which corresponds to the at least one unique customer.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the personal identification information which corresponds to the at least one unique customer is determined using a matching criteria and a filtering criteria, wherein the matching criteria and the filtering criteria are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the at least one unique customer in the consolidated database.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein step (c) comprises:

(i) assigning a unique persistent ID to each unique customer;

(ii) assigning to each customer account the persistent ID of the unique customer associated with the account.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein step (c) comprises:

(i) analyzing the consolidated database according to an initial set of linking rules;

(ii) making an initial linkage recommendation for multiple customer accounts based on step (i);

(iii) analyzing the initial linkage recommendation according to a secondary set of linking rules;

(iv) making a secondary linkage recommendation for multiple customer accounts based on step (iii); and

(v) producing a final account and customer identification linkage based on step (iv).

7. The method of claim 6, wherein step (c) further comprises:

(vi) performing manual linkages or delinkages between multiple customer accounts.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein step (c)(vi) comprises:

establishing a linkage hierarchy, wherein the manual linkages or delinkages override the secondary linkage recommendation, and the secondary linkage recommendation overrides the initial linkage recommendation.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein step (c)(ii) comprises:

(1) identifying a set of customers as a single unique customer, wherein each customer in the set of customers was previously identified as being unique;

(2) recommending that all customers in the set be consolidated into a single unique customer; and

(3) recommending that all customer accounts associated with the customers in the set be linked with the single unique customer.

10. The method of claim 6, where step (c)(iii) comprises at least one of a step of matching customer accounts having an exact match on a name and social security number associated with the customer accounts and having no generation code conflict between the customer accounts, or a step of matching customer accounts having an exact match on a name and address associated with the customer accounts and having no generation code conflict or social security number conflict between the customer accounts.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein step (c)(v) comprises:

establishing a hierarchy of linkage recommendations, wherein the secondary linkage recommendation overrides the initial linkage recommendation.

12. A method of linking customer accounts belonging to a customer, comprising:

(a) reading a personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account;

(b) searching a database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer;

(c) determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer; and

(d) linking the first account to the second account.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein step (a) further comprises collecting internal customer accounts into a consolidated database.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein step (b) comprises searching an external database.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein step (c) comprises analyzing the personal identification information according to a set of linking rules.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the linking rules are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, or the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein a hierarchy exists among the rules in the set of linking rules, wherein a determination made by a linking rule higher in the hierarchy overrides a determination made by a linking rule lower in the hierarchy.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein step (d) comprises:

(i) assigning a unique persistent ID to the unique customer;

(ii) assigning to the first account and to the second account the unique persistent ID of the unique customer.

19. The method of claim 12 further comprising performing manual linkages or delinkages between multiple customer accounts.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein step (b) further comprises searching the database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer, and wherein step (c) further comprises determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer.

21. A system for linking customer accounts belonging to a customer, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory in communication with the processor, the memory storing a plurality of processing instructions for directing the processor to;

read a personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account;

search a database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer;

determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer; and

link the first account to the second account.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the instructions to read a personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account further comprise instructions to direct the processor to collect internal customer accounts into a consolidated database.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the instructions to search a database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to direct the processor to search an external database.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the instructions to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to direct the processor to analyze the personal identification information according to a set of linking rules.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the linking rules are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, or the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein a hierarchy exists among the rules in the set of linking rules, wherein a determination made by a linking rule higher in the hierarchy overrides a determination made by a linking rule lower in the hierarchy.

27. The system of claim 21, wherein the instructions to link the first account to the second account comprise instructions to direct the processor to:

assign a unique persistent ID to the unique customer; and

assign to the first account and to the second account the unique persistent ID of the unique customer.

28. The system of claim 21 further comprising instructions to direct the processor to accept input from a human operator, whereby the human operator performs manual linkages or delinkages between multiple customer accounts.

29. The system of claim 21, wherein the instructions to search a database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to direct the processor to search the database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer, and

wherein the instructions to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to the processor to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer.

30. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having control logic stored therein for causing a computer to link customer accounts belonging to a customer, said control logic comprising:

first computer readable program code means for causing the computer to read a personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account;

second computer readable program code means for causing the computer to search a database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer;

third computer readable program code means for causing the computer to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer; and

fourth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to link the first account to the second account.

31. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein said first computer readable program code means further comprises:

fifth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to collect internal customer accounts into a consolidated database.

32. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein said second computer readable program code means further comprises:

sixth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to search an external database.

33. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein said third computer readable program code means further comprises:

seventh computer readable program code means for causing the computer to analyze the personal identification information according to a set of linking rules.

34. The computer program product of claim 33, wherein the linking rules are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, or the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer.

35. The computer program product of claim 33, wherein a hierarchy exists among the rules in the set of linking rules, wherein a determination made by a linking rule higher in the hierarchy overrides a determination made by a linking rule lower in the hierarchy.

36. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein said fourth computer readable program code means further comprises:

eighth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to assign a unique persistent ID to the unique customer;

ninth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to assign to the first account and to the second account the unique persistent ID of the unique customer.

37. The computer program product of claim 30, further comprising tenth computer readable program code means to accept input from a human operator, whereby the human operator performs manual linkages or delinkages between multiple customer accounts.

38. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein said second computer readable program code means further comprises eleventh computer readable program code means for causing the computer to search the database for personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer, and

wherein said third computer readable program code means further comprises twelfth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the personal identification information for the first customer, the personal identification information for the second customer, the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer, and the personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer.