SALES PROMOTION ASSISTING SYSTEM

• US 20140156377A1
• Filed: 07/18/2012
• Published: 06/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gurunavi, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Gurunavi, Inc.
• Inventors: Tamura, Jun, Eto, Batara, Tsubakiyama, Emi, Kurita, Masaru, Tsuda, Munetoshi
• Granted Patent: US 9,727,888 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.38
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0238 at point-of-sale [POS]

Abstract

Sales promotion assisting systems are disclosed. Such systems include a sales promotion assisting system in which specific incentive is retrieved by passing a portable terminal or the like over a predetermined terminal installed in a store such as an eating and drinking establishment. An incentive can be exchanged for an item or the like of application software such as a game, which can lead to sales promotion.

Claims

1. A system for assisting sales promotions in an eating and drinking establishment, characterized in comprising:

a) a reader installed in the eating and drinking establishment;

b) a first server for executing a process pertaining to an incentive; and

c) a second server for exchanging the incentive for an item in an application service;

d) the first server including;

i) an incentive information storage part for storing visit information and incentive information;

ii) a visit information retrieving part that, due to a user terminal used by a user being brought in contact with or in close proximity to a reader installed in the eating and drinking establishment, retrieves visit information including at least user identifying information and reader identifying information from a user terminal or a reader, stores the visit information in the visit information storage part, and updates the user incentive information; and

iii) an incentive exchange process part for updating the incentive information in the incentive information storage part when information for exchanging the incentive for an item is received from the user terminal and sent to the second server and a notification of exchange process completion is received from the second server; and

e) the second server including;

i) an incentive exchange information retrieving part for retrieving from the first server information pertaining to the item exchanged from the incentive;

ii) an item information storage part for storing item information in the application service for individual users; and

iii) an item exchange process part that, on the basis of information retrieved in the incentive exchange information retrieving part, adds the item exchanged from the incentive to the user information storage part and updates the item, and sends a notification of the exchange process to the first server after the item exchange process has ended.

2. The sales promotion assisting system according to claim 1, wherein, based on the visit information, the visit information retrieving part updates the user incentive information with the incentive corresponding to the eating and drinking establishment where the reader is installed.

3. The sales promotion assisting system according to claim 1, wherein, based on the visit information, the visit information retrieving part updates the user incentive information in accordance with the number of times the user has visited the eating and drinking establishment where the reader is installed.

4. A system for assisting sales promotions in an eating and drinking establishment, comprising:

a) an incentive information storage part for storing visit information received from a reader installed in an eating and drinking establishment, and incentive information;

b) a visit information retrieving part that, due to a user terminal used by a user being brought in contact with or in close proximity to a reader installed in the eating and drinking establishment, retrieves visit information including at least user identifying information and reader identifying information from a user terminal or a reader and stores the information in the visit information storage part, and updates the incentive information of the user; and

c) an incentive exchange process part for receiving from the user terminal information for exchanging the incentive for an item, executing a process of exchanging the incentive and the item by sending the information to a second server for executing an application service that uses the item, and updating the incentive information in the incentive information storage part upon receiving a notification of exchange process completion from the second server.

5. A system for assisting sales promotions in an eating and drinking establishment, comprising:

a) a reader installed in the eating and drinking establishment and

b) a server for executing a process pertaining to an incentive;

the server including;

i) an incentive information storage part for storing information of the incentive for individual eating and drinking establishments and visit information;

ii) first means that, due to a user terminal used by a user being brought in contact with or in close proximity to a reader installed in the eating and drinking establishment, retrieves visit information including at least user identifying information and reader identifying information from a user terminal or a reader, stores the information in the visit information storage part, and updates user incentive information;

iii) second means for extracting the incentive information stored in the incentive information storage part and displaying image information of the items for each of the eating and drinking establishments on the user terminal in accordance with a request from application software in the user terminal;

iv) third means for displaying the eating and drinking establishment visited by the user on the user terminal on the basis of the visit information stored in the incentive information storage part, in accordance with a request from application software in the user terminal; and

v) the image information of the items for each of the eating and drinking establishments being varied according to the incentive information of the eating and drinking establishment in the incentive information storage part.