Managing Merchant Communications

• US 20130325705A1
• Filed: 05/28/2013
• Published: 12/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LivingSocial Incorporated (Groupon Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: LivingSocial Incorporated (Groupon Incorporated)
• Inventors: Laird, Eric, Maggioni, Cara, Lenahan, Kerry, McCann, Timothy
• Granted Patent: US 10,628,880 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0282 Rating or review of business operators or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

A merchant system structures communications among merchants, partners, and customers. The merchant system may include a messaging component that organizes messages so that a manager can quickly navigate and understand the content of incoming messages. The messaging system also may categorize a user'"'"'s profile so that a user may share profile information established at a first merchant with a second merchant.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

providing, from a transaction intermediary, a device of a merchant with access to a merchant message center;

receiving, at the transaction intermediary, a message addressed to the merchant;

identifying, at the transaction intermediary, a resource requirement from the message; and

providing, in the merchant message center and in association with the message, the merchant with information describing the resource requirement in association with the message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the merchant with information describing the resource requirement comprises enabling the merchant to perceive the resource requirement relative to available resources.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising enabling the merchant to accept a propose transaction in the message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the merchant with information describing the resource requirement comprises enabling the merchant to see a category of the message alongside other messages in that category.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein enabling the merchant to see the category of the message includes enabling the merchant to see messages by a prospective timeframe for the appointment.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein enabling the merchant to see the category of the message includes enabling the merchant to see a profile for a customer associated with the message.

17. A system comprising:

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform the method of claim 1.

7. A computer-implemented method comprising:

enabling a customer to interface with a first merchant through a transaction intermediary to participate in an offer-and-redemption system;

receiving indicia of user preferences from the first merchant;

developing a user profile based on the received indicia;

enabling the user to perceive a user profile; and

enabling the user to selectively share one or more portions of the user profile with a second merchant.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein enabling the user to selectively share one or more portions of the user profile with a second merchant comprises:

applying a privacy policy to the user profile; and

prompting the user to select which information from the user profile should be released.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein enabling the user to selectively share one or more portions of the user profile includes enabling the user to specify whether a particular entry of information should be distributed.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers which, upon such execution, cause the one or more computers to perform the method of claim 7.

18. A system comprising:

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform the method of claim 7.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers which, upon such execution, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

providing, from a transaction intermediary, a device of a merchant with access to a merchant message center;

receiving, at the transaction intermediary, a message addressed to the merchant;

identifying, at the transaction intermediary, a resource requirement from the message; and

providing, in the merchant message center and in association with the message, the merchant with information describing the resource requirement in association with the message.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein providing the merchant with information describing the resource requirement comprises enabling the merchant to perceive the resource requirement relative to available resources.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise enabling the merchant to accept a propose transaction in the message.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein providing the merchant with information describing the resource requirement comprises enabling the merchant to see a category of the message alongside other messages in that category.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein enabling the merchant to see the category of the message includes enabling the merchant to see messages by a prospective timeframe for the appointment.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein enabling the merchant to see the category of the message includes enabling the merchant to see a profile for a customer associated with the message.