Method and apparatus for delivering consumer promotions

• US 5,915,243 A
• Filed: 08/29/1996
• Issued: 06/22/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Worldwide Creative Techniques, LLC
• Original Assignee: Smolen, Daniel T.
• Inventors: Smolen, Daniel T.
• Primary Examiner(s): MacDonald, Allen R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel, Jagdish
• Application Number:
  US08/705,142
• Time in Patent Office: 1,027 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/14, 705/27, 348/12, 348/13, 379/92.01
• US Class Current: 705/14.19
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0217 involving input on products or services in exchange for incentives or rewards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

A method and apparatus for offering promotions to a consumer on the basis of a dynamic information profile for that consumer. The dynamic information profile is formed by creating an initial information profile for the consumer, selecting questions for the consumer based on the information profile, presenting the questions to the consumer, collecting the responses to the questions, and updating the information profile using the responses to the questions. Promotions can be offered to a consumer based upon the entire information profile or a portion of the information profile.

Claims

1. A method of offering a promotion to a user, based on information about the user contained in an information profile, and the user and the information profile being identified by a code, the method comprising the steps of:

obtaining the code for the user;

retrieving the information profile of the user identified by the code;

searching a question database comprising a plurality of questions and at least one profile consideration for each of the plurality of questions and selecting a profile consideration based on the information profile;

transmitting the question corresponding to the selected profile consideration to the user;

receiving an answer to the question transmitted to the user;

modifying the information profile based on the answer;

searching a promotions database comprising a plurality of promotions and at least one selection criteria for each of the plurality of promotions and selecting a selection criteria based on the modified information profile; and

submitting an offer to the user for the promotion corresponding to a selected selection criteria.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the steps of receiving an acceptance to the offer, and sending to the user a promotion document corresponding to the promotion of the selection criteria.

3. An apparatus for offering a promotion to a user, based on information about the user contained in an information profile, and the user and the information profile being identified by a code, the method comprising the steps of:

means for obtaining the code for the user;

means for retrieving the information profile of the user identified by the code;

means for searching a question database comprising a plurality of questions and at least one profile consideration for each of the plurality of questions and selecting a profile consideration based on the information profile;

means for transmitting the question corresponding to the selected profile consideration to the user;

means for receiving an answer to the question transmitted to the user;

means for modifying the information profile based on the answer;

means for searching a promotions database comprising a plurality of promotions and at least one selection criteria for each of the plurality of promotions and selecting a selection criteria based on the modified information profile; and

means for submitting an offer to the user for the promotion corresponding to a selected selection criteria.

4. An apparatus for offering a promotion to a user based on information contained in an information profile, the user and the information profile being identified by a code, the apparatus comprising:

an input device that allows the user to input the code;

a computer system that retrieves the information profile of the user identified by the code from a profile database;

a search engine that searches a question database, the question database comprising a plurality of questions and at least one profile consideration for each of the plurality of questions, search engine selecting a profile consideration based on the information profile;

a transmitter that transmits the question corresponding to the selected profile consideration to the user;

a receiver for receiving an answer to the question transmitted to the user;

updating program for modifying the information profile based on the answer;

a search engine that searches a promotions database, the promotions database comprising a plurality of promotions and at least one selection criteria for each of the plurality of promotions, the search engine selecting a selection criteria based on the modified information profile; and

a submitter for submitting an offer to the user for the promotion corresponding to the selected selection criteria.

5. A method of creating and modifying an information profile for a user, the method comprising the steps of:

creating an information profile for the user;

searching a question database comprising a plurality of questions and at least one profile consideration for each of the plurality of questions and selecting a first profile consideration based on the information profile;

transmitting a first question corresponding to the selected first profile consideration to the user;

receiving a first answer to the first question transmitted to the user;

modifying the information profile asked on the first answer to create a modified information profile;

searching the question database and selecting a second profile consideration based the modified information profile;

transmitting a second question corresponding to the selected second profile consideration to the user;

receiving a second answer to second question transmitted to the user; and

modifying the modified information profile based on the second answer to create a refined information profile.

6. A method of creating and refining an information profile for a user, the method comprising the steps of:

creating an information profile for the user;

searching a question database comprising a plurality of questions and at least one profile consideration for each of the plurality of questions and selecting a profile consideration based on the information profile;

transmitting a question corresponding to the selected profile consideration to the user;

receiving an answer to the question transmitted to the user; and

modifying the information profile based on the answer to create a refined information profile.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising the steps of:

searching a promotions database comprising a plurality of promotions and at least one selection criteria for each of the plurality of promotions and selecting a selection criteria based on the refined information profile; and

offering to the user the promotion corresponding to a selected selection criteria.