Local Advertising Responses

• US 20110066498A1
• Filed: 09/13/2010
• Published: 03/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Loiwal, Navneet, Wojcicki, Susan, Huang, Jingxin, Hashim, Smita
• Granted Patent: US 8,751,308 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.55
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0246 Traffic
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0253 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0257 User requested
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices

Abstract

A computer-implemented method managing telephonic connections is disclosed. The method includes transmitting from a computer server system, for display on an electronic communication device, an advertisement from an advertiser; receiving from the electronic communication device a request to be connected telephonically with the advertiser; automatically playing a predetermined audio message after connecting telephonically with the advertiser; and connecting the electronic communication device telephonically with the advertiser after playing the predetermined audio message.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for managing telephonic connections, the method comprising:

transmitting from a computer server system, for display on an electronic communication device, an advertisement from an advertiser;

receiving from the electronic communication device a request to be connected telephonically with the advertiser;

automatically playing a predetermined audio message after connecting telephonically with the advertiser; and

connecting the electronic communication device telephonically with the advertiser after playing the predetermined audio message.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising mapping an identifier from the advertisement to a telephone number for the advertiser and dialing the telephone number.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the identifier comprises an intermediate private telephone number that is dialed from the user device and bridged to the advertiser.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising maintaining a pool of intermediate telephone numbers, assigning the intermediate telephone numbers temporarily to advertisements while the advertisements are active on the computer server system, and reassigning the telephone numbers to other advertisements while the other advertisements are active on the computer server system.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the telephone numbers are reassigned to the other advertisements after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the telephone numbers were previously active.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined audio message includes text that identifies an organization that operates the computer server system.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined audio message includes text that identifies the advertisement.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined audio message includes text that identifies the advertiser.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising, in conjunction with playing the predetermined audio message, providing electronic information associated with the predetermined audio message to a computer system associated with the advertiser through a back-channel data connection.

10. A computer-implemented method for responding to user queries, the method comprising:

receiving at an advertising server system information about content requested by a user of a computing device;

providing for display on the computing device an advertisement from an advertiser, wherein the advertisement is selected to correspond to the information about the content request by the user;

receiving a user selection of the advertisement; and

in response to the user selection of the advertisement, providing to the computing device code for an alternative landing page that is not served by the advertising server system.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the alternative landing page comprises information selected from a group consisting of user reviews concerning the advertiser, a map to a facility associated with the advertiser, and a click-to-call object that when selected by the user causes the user to be connected telephonically with the advertiser.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

identifying a current geographic location of the user; and

selecting information associated with the advertisement or the advertiser that pertains to the current geographic location of the user;

wherein the alternative landing page comprises at least a portion of the selected information.

13. A computer-implemented system, comprising:

a server interface to receive requests from users of computing devices and to provide responses for use by the user of the computing devices;

an advertisement server system programmed to select advertisements in response to user requests, and to provide calling information in response to user selections in the advertisements; and

a telephonic connection server system arranged to receive the calling information from the advertisement server system, to play a whisper message to a target of a call identified by the calling information, and to connect the user with the target for telephonic conversation.

14. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the telephonic connection server system includes a map that correlates internal intermediate telephone numbers received from the advertising server system to public telephone numbers of advertisers for connecting the user with the target.

15. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the advertisement server system is further programmed to manage a pool of intermediate telephone numbers that are arranged to be assigned temporarily to advertisements while the advertisements are active on the computer server system, and reassigned to other advertisements while the other advertisements are active on the computer server system.

16. The computer-implemented system of claim 15, wherein the advertisement server system is further programmed to reassign the telephone numbers to the other advertisements after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the telephone numbers were previously active.

17. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the whisper includes text that identifies an organization that operates the computer server system.

18. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the whisper includes text that identifies the advertisement.

19. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the whisper includes text that identifies the advertiser.

20. The computer-implemented system of claim 13, wherein the advertisement server system is further programmed to provide code for an alternative landing page that is not served by the advertising server system.