Virtual sales personnel

• US 6,070,149 A
• Filed: 07/02/1998
• Issued: 05/30/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Activepoint Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Activepoint Incorporated
• Inventors: Shevchenko, Vadim, Tavor, Onn, Avraham, Gila Ben
• Primary Examiner(s): MacDonald, Allen R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): CRECCA, MICHELE S
• Application Number:
  US09/109,726
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 705/35, 705/1, 705/10, 706/47, 706/46, 706/11, 706/12
• US Class Current: 705/26.7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

A method for enabling users over a network or over the WWW to interact with an interactive sales representative system for providing sales guidance. The system offers the user products, services, or ideas (the "products") according to parameters collected from the user. The system guides the customer to retrieve the desired products. If the system does not have a product matched to the customer requirements, preferably it will operate a mechanism for suggesting alternatives which are the closest to the customer requirements. The system will execute various sales tools and techniques to help and assist the customer and to convince the customer to purchase a product. By guiding the customer to the target product, the system will shorten the search cycle for the customer as well as find better matched products. The system will provide market advisory, suggest, recommend, discuss (in written form and optionally voice form), comment, advise the customer regarding the products. The system might advise the customer in any other aspects as well (such as providing personal feedback). The system adds graphics, animation, 3D, movie clips, voice and other effects to make the session enjoyable for the customer. The system is capable of executing various tools and techniques to improve its sales capabilities and bring better sales results.

Claims

1. A virtual sales representative for assisting a customer in the selection of a purchase product from an e-shop built by a merchant, the customer having interests, the e-shop offering a plurality of available products within at least one department, the virtual sales representative comprising:

(a) an e-shop file containing;

(i) a set of questions for presenting to the customer, said questions relating to the available products and the interests of the customer, said questions associated with responses from the customer, said set of questions having a changeable order;

(ii) a set of comments for presenting to the customer, said comments relating to said responses of the customer, said set of comments having a changeable order;

(iii) a set of informational messages for presenting to the customer, said informational messages relating to the at least one department, said set of informational messages having a changeable order;

(iv) a set of actions for helping the customer, said set of actions having a changeable order;

(v) a first set of rules governing the selection of said questions, said comments, and said informational messages, said first set of rules governing whether one of said questions, comments, and informational messages, is to be presented to the customer, and, if so, which of said questions, comments, and informational messages, is to be presented to the customer, said first set of rules containing logical operators;

(vi) a second set of rules governing the respective orders of said questions, said comments, and said informational messages, said second set of rules containing logical operators;

(vii) a third set of rules governing the selection of said actions for helping the customer, said third set of rules containing logical operators,

(b) a virtual shop designer, for automatically generating and organizing said sets of rules, questions, comments, and informational messages through chat-like interaction with the merchant;

(c) a detection engine for receiving responses from the customer to said questions and sensing the behavior patterns of the customer, said detection engine having an output, said detection engine operative to;

(i) applying said second set of rules to determine the respective orders of said questions, said comments, and said informational messages;

(ii) processing said third set of rules according to said logical operators;

(iii) receiving behavioral data about the customer;

(iv) determining whether said behavioral data is sufficient to prove at least one rule of said third set of rules;

(v) selecting and initiating an action from said set of action; and

(vi) activating said sales engine unit,

(d) an alternative-offering mechanism for offering alternatives to the customer, said alternative-offering mechanism operative to applying said second set of rules to determine the respective orders of said questions, said comments, and said informational messages; and

(e) sales engine unit operative to;

(i) processing said first set of rules according to said logical operators;

(ii) processing said second set of rules according to said logical operators;

(iii) receiving said responses from the customer and determining whether said responses from the customer are sufficient to prove a rule of said first set of rules;

(iv) selecting a product from the available products to recommend to the customer;

(v) selecting a question from said set of questions for presenting to the customer;

(vi) selecting a comment from said set of comments for presenting to the customer; and

(vii) selecting an informational message from said set of informational messages for presenting to the customer;

(viii) selecting a closest rule from said first set of rules;

(ix) determining if said closest rule can be proven by responses from the customer, and if so, presenting the customer with a product associated with said closest rule, and if not, exempting said closest rule from said first set of rules and determining if a next closest rule can be selected from said first set of rules.

2. The virtual sales representative of claim 1, wherein said alternative-offering mechanism is further operative to presenting convincing text to the customer for convincing the customer to change his interests to be compatible with the available products, and wherein said alternatives are to be used instead of said interests.

3. The virtual sales representative of claim 1, wherein said sales engine unit is further operative to selecting a department from the at least one department for presenting to the customer.

4. The virtual sales representative of claim 1, wherein said e-shop file further contains a set of preferred products preselected by the merchant from the available products.

5. The virtual sales representative of claim 1, further operative to taking an order for a product from the customer.

6. The virtual sales representative of claim 5, further operative to receiving credit card information from the customer.