SOCIAL MARKETING INCENTIVES AND REWARDS

• US 20120209674A1
• Filed: 03/07/2011
• Published: 08/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Neystadt, Eugene (John), Karidi, Ron, Tennenholtz, Moshe, Radinsky, Kira, Varshavsky, Roy, Weisfeild, Yitzhak Tzahi
• Application Number:
  US13/041,452
• Publication Number:
  US 20120209674A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.16
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

A social marketing system may reward and incentivize participants, and may also have a fraud detection system. The manager may create social marketing campaigns that may be simulated to determine an expected set of activities, which may be compared to an actual set of activities. A fraud detection system may detect abnormal activity and may bring the activity to a manager'"'"'s attention and may also punish the participants by withholding rewards, lowering the participant'"'"'s reputation, or some other punishment mechanism.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a campaign manager operable on a first computer processor, said campaign manager that;

receives a first social network campaign definition comprising an incentive scheme that defines a transaction completion criteria that is performed by a consumer and a reward compensation that is given to an influencer who communicates within one or more social networks with said consumer regarding a transaction, said first social network campaign definition comprising a traceable object transmitted through an online social network;

determines an outer bounds for said transaction conditions;

creates a first social network campaign comprising said outer bounds for said transaction conditions; and

transmits at least one of said traceable objects to each of a plurality of said influencers;

a monitoring component that;

detects that said transaction completion criteria has been met by a first consumer in a first transaction; and

detects that said transaction completion criteria has been met by a second consumer in a second transaction; and

a fraud monitoring agent that;

analyzes said first transaction to determine that said first transaction is within said outer bounds for said transaction conditions and causes said reward compensation to be performed for said first transaction; and

analyzes said second transaction to determine that said second transaction is outside said outer bounds for said transaction conditions and causes said reward compensation not to be performed for said second transaction.

2. The system of claim 1, said fraud monitoring agent that further:

causes a penalty to be assessed after analyzing said second transaction.

3. The system of claim 2, said fraud monitoring agent that further:

identifies at least one person associated with said second transaction for said penalty.

4. The system of claim 3, said penalty being a reputation penalty.

5. The system of claim 1 further comprising:

a campaign simulator that;

receives said first social network campaign;

receives a first set of parameters for said first social network campaign, said first set of parameters being an expected set of transaction conditions;

simulates said first social network campaign to determine said outer bounds for said transaction conditions.

6. The system of claim 5, said campaign simulator that further:

presents a first set of simulated results to a user;

receives an updated set of parameters from said user; and

simulates said first social network campaign using said updated set of parameters.

7. The system of claim 1, said claim manager that further:

presents a plurality of social network campaigns to a user; and

receives user input that identifies said first social network campaigns.

8. The system of claim 1, said monitoring component that:

determines a message spread factor for said first social network campaign.

9. The system of claim 8, said monitoring component that:

determines a message stickiness factor for said first social network campaign.

10. The system of claim 9, said monitoring component that determines said message spread factor for at least two social networks.

11. A method comprising:

creating a social marketing campaign comprising traceable objects, said social marketing campaign further comprising a reward compensation scheme, said reward compensation scheme being performed after a consumer performs a transaction with a traceable object;

to each of a plurality of influencers, transmitting one of said traceable objects;

tracing a first traceable object from a first influencer to a first consumer, said first consumer having performed a first transaction to determine a first chain of communication between said first influencer and said first consumer;

determining a first expected chain of communication by examining a first social network to which said first influencer belongs; and

comparing said first expected chain of communication with said first chain of communication to determine that said first chain of communication is legitimate and causing said reward compensation scheme to be executed.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

tracing a second traceable object from a second influencer to a second consumer, said second consumer having performed a second transaction to determine a second chain of communication between said second influencer and said second consumer;

determining a second expected chain of communication by examining a second social network to which said second influencer belongs; and

comparing said second expected chain of communication with said second chain of communication to determine that said second chain of communication is not legitimate and causing said reward compensation scheme not to be executed.

13. The method of claim 12, said social marketing campaign further comprising a punishment scheme.

14. The method of claim 13, said punishment scheme being executed for said second influencer.

15. The method of claim 14, said punishment scheme comprising lowering a reputation index for said second influencer.

16. The method of claim 15, said second chain of communication comprising a larger number of people than said second expected chain of communication.

17. The method of claim 15, said second chain of communication comprising at least one person having a known fraudulent identification.

18. A system comprising:

a campaign manager operable on a first computer processor, said campaign manager that;

receives a first social network campaign definition comprising an incentive scheme that defines a transaction completion criteria that is performed by a consumer and a reward compensation that is given to an influencer who communicates within one or more social networks with said consumer regarding a transaction, said first social network campaign definition comprising a traceable object transmitted through an online social network;

receives a set of parameters for said first social network campaign definition, said set of parameters defining an expected set of transaction conditions;

determines an outer bounds for said transaction conditions through simulating communication propagation through said one or more social networks for each of a plurality of influencers;

creates a first social network campaign comprising said outer bounds for said transaction conditions; and

transmits at least one of said traceable objects to said each of a plurality of said influencers;

a monitoring component that;

detects that said transaction completion criteria has been met by a first consumer in a first transaction; and

detects that said transaction completion criteria has been met by a second consumer in a second transaction; and

a fraud monitoring agent that;

analyzes said first transaction to determine that said first transaction is within said outer bounds for said transaction conditions and causes said reward compensation to be performed for said first transaction; and

analyzes said second transaction to determine that said second transaction is outside said outer bounds for said transaction conditions and causes said reward compensation not to be performed for said second transaction.

19. The system of claim 18, said fraud monitoring agent that further:

causes a penalty to be assessed after analyzing said second transaction.

20. The system of claim 19, said fraud monitoring agent that further:

identifies at least one person associated with said second transaction for said penalty.