Affiliate Network Hybrid Tracking System and Method
First Claim
1. A hybrid tracking system for collecting online user behavior and assigning an affiliate commission to an affiliate, the hybrid tracking system comprising a server with a processor, memory, input device, and further comprising:
- an affiliate management module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of registering an affiliate, creating a marketing campaign, and storing a tracking pixel for download to affiliate web pages in response to user input entered through the input device;
a data collection module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of;
(i) obtaining user click and conversion behavior data received by the server from an end user'"'"'s computing device, and (ii) storing the received data in the memory; and
a reporting and analysis module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of (i) displaying conversion data unassociated with an affiliate in an assignment interface, and (ii) updating unassociated conversion data with manually assigned affiliates based on user input through the input device which indicates an affiliate to properly credit for the selected conversions.
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for determining a commission for an affiliate referral is described. Typically, affiliate tracking programs utilize a cookie deposited on an end user'"'"'s computer to collect the data it needs to accurately associate a commission with an affiliate. If the cookie is lost for some reason (e.g. the user deletes cookies), that valuable information is missing, and the system must collect other information to determine the possible source of the referral. Two additional data collection and association pathways may be utilized to ensure that the commissions paid to affiliates are complete and accurate. These additional pathways include eTags and a caching system which enable cookieless tracking techniques. In addition a conversion breakdown report provides the data collection and user interface for an affiliate manager to determine in some circumstance to whom, among several possible affiliates, the commission should be given.
37 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A hybrid tracking system for collecting online user behavior and assigning an affiliate commission to an affiliate, the hybrid tracking system comprising a server with a processor, memory, input device, and further comprising:
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an affiliate management module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of registering an affiliate, creating a marketing campaign, and storing a tracking pixel for download to affiliate web pages in response to user input entered through the input device; a data collection module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of;
(i) obtaining user click and conversion behavior data received by the server from an end user'"'"'s computing device, and (ii) storing the received data in the memory; anda reporting and analysis module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of (i) displaying conversion data unassociated with an affiliate in an assignment interface, and (ii) updating unassociated conversion data with manually assigned affiliates based on user input through the input device which indicates an affiliate to properly credit for the selected conversions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method for assigning an affiliate commission to an affiliate in an affiliate tracking system having a server interacting through a network with a user'"'"'s browser in a computing device, comprising steps of:
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obtaining user click and conversion behavior data received by the server from an end user'"'"'s computing device related to an affiliate marketing campaign; displaying conversion data unassociated with an affiliate from the server in an assignment interface displaying unassigned conversions; updating unassociated conversion data with manually assigned affiliates based on user input through an input device coupled to the server which indicates an affiliate to properly credit for the selected conversions; and determining commissions for affiliate conversions based on the manually assigned affiliates.
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6. A hybrid tracking system for collecting online user behavior and assigning an affiliate commission to an affiliate without using a cookie stored on a user'"'"'s computing device, the hybrid tracking system comprising a server with a processor, memory, input device, and further comprising:
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an affiliate management module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of registering an affiliate, creating a marketing campaign, and storing a tracking pixel for download to affiliate web pages in response to user input entered through the input device; and a data collection module containing program code which when executed by the processor causes the server to perform operations of;
(i) obtaining user click and conversion behavior data received by the server from an end user'"'"'s computing device through the use of a script running on the end user'"'"'s computing device, (ii) cookieless tracking is initiated by;
storing a record in the hybrid tracking system server memory which comprises the obtained user click and conversion behavior data related to the universal resource locator (URL) for the tracking pixel, forming a cache pixel value associated with the record, and sending the cache pixel value to the user'"'"'s computing device, (iii) cookieless tracking continues when a conversion event occurs by;
redirecting a user'"'"'s browser on the computing device to the URL for the tracking pixel, receiving a query from the computing device to determine whether a match to the cache pixel exists in the hybrid tracking system server memory, logging the conversion event as tracked when the match is determined. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A hybrid tracking method for collecting online user behavior and assigning an affiliate commission to an affiliate without using a cookie stored on a user'"'"'s computing device, the hybrid tracking method network performed by a server having a processor and memory operating under the control of program code within a software module and comprising steps of:
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registering an affiliate, creating a marketing campaign, and storing a tracking pixel for download to affiliate web pages in response to user input entered through the input device; obtaining user click and conversion behavior data received by the server from an end user'"'"'s computing device through the use of a script running on the end user'"'"'s computing device, initiating cookieless tracking by storing a record in the server memory, the record comprising the obtained user click and conversion behavior data related to the universal resource locator (URL) for the tracking pixel; forming a cache pixel value associated with the record; sending the cache pixel value to the user'"'"'s computing device; redirecting a user'"'"'s browser on the computing device to the URL for the tracking pixel when a conversion event occurs; receiving a query from the computing device to determine whether a match to the cache pixel exists in the server memory; and logging the conversion event as tracked in the server memory when the match is determined. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification