INTEGRATED MERCHANT OFFER PROGRAM AND CUSTOMER SHOPPING THROUGH ONLINE BANKING STATEMENT OFFERS

• US 20110238499A1
• Filed: 06/02/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Bank of America Corp.
• Original Assignee: Bank of America Corp.
• Inventors: Upton, Michael W., Blackhurst, Jason
• Application Number:
  US13/152,049
• Publication Number:
  US 20110238499A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.53
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention include a merchant offer program application, which is downloaded onto or accessed through a customer computer, and that works in connection with the customer'"'"'s accounts at an institution. The merchant offer program application monitors the content in which the customer is interested (i.e. through account transaction history, wish list, website content, etc.). The merchant offer program provides offers that are available for the product in which the customer is interested on an interface, such as an online banking transaction history interface. The offers are associated with the same, similar, or related products to the products associated with the transactions listed on the interface. The customer may select the offer and have the offer (i.e. discount) applied automatically when the customer enters a transaction for the product associated with the offer in the future.

Claims

1. A system for providing merchant offers, comprising:

a memory device;

a communication device; and

a processing device operatively coupled to the memory device and the communication device, wherein the processing device is configured to execute computer-readable program code to;

access account information for a customer from one or more customer accounts at an institution;

determine an offer for the customer based at least in part on the account information from the institution; and

provide the offer to the customer at a customer computer system through an account interface.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the account interface is an online banking account interface.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the account interface comprises a transaction history of one or more customer accounts;

and wherein providing the offer to the customer comprises associating the offer with a previous transaction in the transaction history.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the offer is for the same, similar, or related product as a product associated with the previous transaction.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein determining the offer for the customer is further based at least in part on content information related to content in which a customer is interested.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to receive information that the customer wants to use the offer with a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to associate the offer with the one or more customer accounts, wherein the offer is applied or will be applied to a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future with the one or more customer accounts.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to apply the offer to the one or more customer accounts.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to apply the offer at a point of sale to a transaction.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to apply the offer at a time after a transaction is processed at a point of sale.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to remove the offer from the account interface when a limit on the offer is met.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to send a notification to the customer after the customer enters into a transaction, wherein the notification identifies the offer that is or will be applied to the transaction.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to:

receive the offer from a merchant;

receive limits from the merchant that the merchants is placing on the offer;

wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers; and

add the offer to one or more offers for one or more merchants in a merchant offer program.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is further configured to execute computer-readable program code to certify a merchant before the institution will receive offers from the merchant.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the offer is for a discount, a coupon, a promotion, an add-on sale, an upsell, a rebate, an advertisement, or marketing information related to content in which the customer may be interested.

17. A computer program product for a merchant offer program system, the computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code portions embodied therein, the computer-readable program code portions comprising:

an executable portion configured for accessing account information for a customer from one or more customer accounts at an institution;

an executable portion configured for determining an offer for the customer based at least in part on the account information from the institution; and

an executable portion configured for providing the offer to the customer at a customer computer system through an account interface.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the account interface is an online banking account interface.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the account interface comprises a transaction history of one or more customer accounts;

and wherein the executable portion configured for providing the offer to the customer comprises associating the offer with a previous transaction in the transaction history.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein the offer is for the same, similar, or related product as a product associated with the previous transaction.

21. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the executable portion configured for determining the offer for the customer is further based at least in part on content information related to content in which a customer is interested.

22. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for receiving information that the customer wants to use the offer with a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future.

23. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for associating the offer with the one or more customer accounts, wherein the offer is applied or will be applied to a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future with the one or more customer accounts.

24. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for applying the offer to the one or more customer accounts.

25. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for applying the offer at a point of sale to a transaction.

26. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for applying the offer at a time after a transaction is processed at a point of sale.

27. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for removing the offer from the account interface when a limit on the offer is met.

28. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers.

29. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured sending a notification to the customer after the customer enters into a transaction, wherein the notification identifies the offer that is or will be applied to the transaction.

30. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising:

an executable portion configured for receiving the offer from a merchant;

an executable portion configured for receiving limits from the merchant that the merchant is placing on the offer, wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers; and

an executable portion configured for adding the offer to one or more offers for one or more merchants in a merchant offer program.

31. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising an executable portion configured for certifying a merchant before the institution will receive offers from the merchant.

32. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the offer is for a discount, a coupon, a promotion, an add-on sale, an upsell, a rebate, an advertisement, or marketing information related to content in which the customer may be interested.

33. A method for using an integrated merchant offer program for customer shopping, the method comprising:

accessing account information for a customer from one or more customer accounts at an institution;

determining, through the use of a processing device, an offer for the customer based at least in part on the account information from the institution; and

providing the offer to the customer at a customer computer system through an account interface.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the account interface is an online banking account interface.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the account interface comprises a transaction history of one or more customer accounts;

and wherein providing the offer to the customer comprises associating the offer with a previous transaction in the transaction history.

36. The method of claim 35 wherein the offer is for the same, similar, or related product as a product associated with the previous transaction.

37. The method of claim 33, wherein determining the offer for the customer is further based at least in part on content information related to content in which a customer is interested.

38. The method of claim 33, further comprising receiving information that the customer wants to use the offer with a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future.

39. The method of claim 33, further comprising associating the offer with the one or more customer accounts, wherein the offer is applied or will be applied to a transaction that has occurred in the past or will occur in the future with the one or more customer accounts.

40. The method of claim 33, further comprising applying the offer to the one or more customer accounts.

41. The method of claim 33, further comprising applying the offer at a point of sale to a transaction.

42. The method of claim 33, further comprising applying the offer at a time after a transaction is processed at a point of sale.

43. The method of claim 33, further comprising removing the offer from the account interface when a limit on the offer is met.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers.

45. The method of claim 33, further comprising sending a notification to the customer after the customer enters into a transaction, wherein the notification identifies the offer that is or will be applied to the transaction.

46. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

receiving the offer from a merchant;

receiving limits from the merchant that the merchant is placing on the offer, wherein the limits relate to the offer time, offer amount, offer discount, or offer target customers; and

adding the offer to one or more offers for one or more merchants in a merchant offer program.

47. The method of claim 33, further comprising certifying a merchant before the institution will receive offers from the merchant.

48. The method of claim 33, wherein the offer is for a discount, a coupon, a promotion, an add-on sale, an upsell, a rebate, an advertisement, or marketing information related to content in which the customer may be interested.