ONLINE TECHNIQUES FOR PROVIDING OFFERS BASED ON SOCIAL ACTIVITY

• US 20140114770A1
• Filed: 10/18/2012
• Published: 04/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Excalibur IP, LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rao, Supreeth Hosur Nagesh
• Application Number:
  US13/655,244
• Publication Number:
  US 20140114770A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.66
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Techniques for providing offers for products/services associated with a topic to users based on a measure of conversion determined for the users are described. The measure of conversion for each user may be indicative of a probability that the user will purchase item(s) associated with a particular topic. The measure of conversion may be based on social activity associated with the user and social activity associated with other users that have formed a social connection with the user. Offers associated with the particular topic are presented to the user in response to determining that the measure of conversion of the user for the topic reaches a predetermined threshold and/or matches further criteria.

Claims

1. A method for presenting one or more offers to a user, comprising:

for each of a plurality of topics;

determining a measure of influence that social activity has on a user for the topic,

determining a measure of interest of the user for the topic, and

determining a measure of conversion of the user for the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is indicative of a probability that the user will purchase an offer associated with the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is based on the measure of influence and the measure of interest; and

for one of the plurality of topics;

determining whether the measure of conversion reaches a predetermined threshold; and

presenting one or more offers associated with the topic in response to determining that the measure of conversion reaches the predetermined threshold.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the measure of influence for each topic comprises:

determining one or more social activities that are performed by one or more other users that have a social connection with the user, wherein the one or more social activities are associated with the topic; and

determining a level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users, wherein the measure of influence is based on the one or more social activities and the level of interaction.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the one or more social activities comprises:

associating each of the one or more social activities with a respective weighting factor, wherein the measure of influence is further based on the respective weighting factor of each of the one or more social activities.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users comprises:

determining an amount of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users,

wherein the level of interaction is based on the amount of social activity.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users comprises:

determining a type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users that occurs more than any other type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users,

wherein the level of interaction is based on the type of social activity.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the measure of interest of the user for each topic comprises:

determining a frequency at which each of one or more social activities is performed by the user, wherein each of the one or more social activities are associated with the topic,

wherein the measure of interest of the user for each topic is based on the frequency.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the measure of influence and the measure of interest are determined over a predetermined time period that is prior to when the one or more offers are to be presented to the user.

8. A system for presenting one or more offers to a user, comprising:

an influence determiner configured to, for each of a plurality of topics, determine a measure of influence that social activity has on a user for the topic;

an interest determiner configured to, for each of the plurality of topics, determine a measure of interest of the user for the topic;

a conversion determiner configured to, for each of the plurality of topics, determine a measure of conversion of the user for the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is indicative of a probability that the user will purchase an offer associated with the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is based on the measure of influence and the measure of interest;

a threshold determiner configured to, for one of the plurality of topics, determine whether the measure of conversion reaches a predetermined threshold; and

an offer provider configured to, for at least one of the plurality of topics, present one or more offers associated with the topic in response to a determination that the measure of conversion reaches the predetermined threshold.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the influence determiner comprises:

an activity determiner that determines one or more social activities associated with each topic that are performed by one or more other users that have a social connection with the user;

an interaction determiner that determines a level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users; and

an influence calculator that determines the measure of influence for a topic based on the determined one or more social activities for the topic and the determined level of interaction.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the activity determiner comprises:

a weight associator that associates each of the one or more social activities with a respective weighting factor, wherein the influence calculator determines the measure of influence based on the determined one or more social activities for the topic, the determined level of interaction, and the respective weighting factor of each of the one or more social activities.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the interaction determiner comprises:

a social activity measurer that measures an amount of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users; and

an interaction calculator that determines the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users based on the amount of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the interaction determiner comprises:

a social activity classifier that determines a type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users that occurs more than any other type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users; and

an interaction calculator that determines the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users based on the type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users that occurs more than any other type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the interest determiner comprises:

a frequency determiner that determines a frequency at which each of one or more social activities that are associated with the topic is performed by the user; and

an interest calculator that determines the measure of interest of the user for each topic based on the determined frequency

14. The system of claim 8, further comprising:

a time determiner that determines a predetermined time period that is prior to when the one or more offers are to be presented to the user;

wherein the influence determiner determines the measure of influence and the interest determiner determines the measure of interest over the predetermined time period.

15. A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having computer readable program code embodied in said medium for enabling a processing unit to present one or more offers to a user, the computer readable program code comprising:

first computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to, for each of a plurality of topics, determine a measure of influence that social activity has on a user for the topic;

second computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to, for each of the plurality of topics, determine a measure of interest of the user for the topic;

third computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to, for each of the plurality of topics, determine a measure of conversion of the user for the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is indicative of a probability that the user will purchase an offer associated with the topic, wherein the measure of conversion is based on the measure of influence and the measure of interest;

fourth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to, for at least one of the plurality of topics, determine whether the measure of conversion reaches a predetermined threshold; and

fifth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to, for one of the plurality of topics, present one or more offers associated with the topic in response to a determination that the measure of conversion reaches the predetermined threshold.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first computer readable program code comprises:

sixth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine one or more social activities associated with each topic that are performed by one or more other users that have a social connection with the user;

seventh computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine a level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users; and

eighth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine the measure of influence for a topic based on the determined one or more social activities for the topic and the determined level of interaction.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the seventh computer readable program code comprises:

ninth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to associate each of the one or more social activities with a respective weighting factor, wherein the first computer readable program code enables the processing unit to determine the measure of influence based on one or more social activities for the topic, the determined level of interaction, and the respective weighting factor of each of the one or more social activities.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the seventh computer readable program code comprises:

ninth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to measure an amount of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users; and

tenth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users based on the amount of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the seventh computer readable program code comprises:

ninth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine a type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users that occurs more than any other type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users; and

tenth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine the level of interaction that the user has with the one or more other users based on the type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users that occurs more than any other type of social activity that the user has with the one or more other users.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the second computer readable program mode comprises:

sixth computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine a frequency at which each of one or more social activities that are associated with the topic is performed by the user; and

seventh computer readable program code that enables the processing unit to determine the measure of interest of the user for each topic based on the determined frequency.