METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION OF WAITING TIME OF CUSTOMERS AT CALL CENTERS, CONTACT CENTERS OR INTO INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE (IVR) SYSTEMS

• US 20080195471A1
• Filed: 02/09/2007
• Published: 08/14/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dube, Parijat, Wynter, Laura
• Granted Patent: US 9,767,473 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.36
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/50 Centralised arrangements for answering calls; Centralised arrangements for recording messages for absent or busy subscribers H04M3/487 takes precedence; centralised dictation systems H04M11/10; Centralised arrangements for recording messages

Abstract

A structure and method includes a detector to determine that a caller is waiting for service. A presentation module presents an advertisement to the waiting caller, wherein a compensation is paid to have the advertisement presented to the waiting caller.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a detector to determine that a caller is waiting for service; and

a presentation module to present an advertisement to said waiting caller, wherein a compensation is provided to have said advertisement presented to the waiting caller.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a calculator to calculate an estimated waiting time for said caller.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said calculator divides said estimated waiting time into one or more slots, said advertisement being presented to said caller in a first of said slots, and additional advertisements are presented in subsequent slots.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a selection module to select said advertisement presented to said caller from a plurality of advertisements available for presentation to callers.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said selection module makes a selection based upon a priority.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said priority comprises one or more of:

a probability that a caller will continue waiting throughout a duration of an advertisement slot;

a relative position in time of a first advertisement slot to a second advertisement slot;

a length of said advertisement; and

one or more characteristics of said caller.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein a price that said advertiser pays is based at least in part upon said priority.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said advertisement comprises a first advertisement presented to said caller in a first slot of waiting time and one or more additional advertisements are presented to said caller in subsequent slots of time.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said slots of time have relative priorities based upon relative locations in time.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein a price that said advertiser pays to have said advertisement presented to callers is based at least in part upon said relative priorities.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a memory device storing a plurality of advertisements that can be selectively presented to callers during waiting periods.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a timer that is initiated when said caller is detected as waiting, said timer being stopped when said caller is detected as no longer waiting.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein a waiting time of said caller, as measured by said timer, is stored as waiting time data.

14. A signal-bearing medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform as said apparatus of claim 1.

15. A method of utilizing call waiting time as a source of revenue, said method comprising:

detecting that a caller is waiting for service; and

presenting an advertisement to said waiting caller, wherein a compensation is paid to have said advertisement presented to waiting callers.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein a price that said advertiser pays is based at least in part upon a priority.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said priority comprises one or more of:

a probability that a caller will continue waiting throughout a duration of an advertisement slot;

a relative position in time of a first advertisement slot to a second advertisement slot;

a length of said advertisement; and

one or more characteristics of said caller.

18. A method of managing at least one of a call center, a contact center, and an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system, said method comprising:

detecting that a client is waiting for service; and

presenting an advertisement to said waiting client, wherein a compensation is paid to have said advertisement presented to waiting clients.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein a price that said advertiser pays is based at least in part upon a priority.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said priority comprises one or more of:

a probability that a client will continue waiting throughout a duration of an advertisement slot;

a relative position in time of a first advertisement slot to a second advertisement slot;

a length of said advertisement; and

one or more characteristics of said client.