System for offering targeted discounts to customers and collecting purchasing behavior data
First Claim
1. A system for presenting customized special offers to customers, the special offers including targeted offers to a customer selected from a plurality of customers, and for collecting purchasing behavior information concerning the customers, the system comprising:
- at least one computer including at least one database containing customer account information providing information on customers which is specific to a particular customer account, the customer account information including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account for products in addition to products being provided with coupon offerings;
said at least one computer also including a database containing special offers including at least one targeted offer which is to be made to customer accounts on the basis of targeted offer targeting parameters, said targeted offer targeting parameters including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account, said prior purchasing behavior including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account for products in addition to products being provided with coupon offerings;
a customer interface in communication with said at least one computer to transfer data therebetween;
said customer interface having means for identifying a customer to allow particular customer account information to be associated with a customer using the customer interface;
said at least one computer receiving information from said means for identifying a customer, to allow said at least one computer to access customer account information contained in said at least one computer and the database containing special offers;
said at least one computer including means for generating a customized customer offer list for that particular customer account which includes at least one said special offer;
at least one offer communicator for communicating said customer offer list to the customer for which it is generated;
at least one check-out at which the customer presents purchased item information indicating items being purchased by the customer;
said at least one computer including means for sending information from the customized customer offer list to the at least one check-out;
said at least one computer further including means for collecting customer purchase information which is indicative of items being purchased by the customer via the check-out;
said at least one computer still further including means for editing said customer account information to reflect items purchased by the customer.
11 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system for presenting customized special offers to customers, the special offers including targeted offers to a customer selected from a plurality of customers, and for collecting purchasing behavior information concerning the customers, the system comprising a computer including a database containing customer account information providing information specific to a particular customer account; the at computer also including a database containing special offers including a targeted offer which is to be made to selected customer accounts on the basis of targeted offer targeting parameters; a plurality of customer cards, each customer card having machine readable card information indicating at least identification of the card with a particular customer account; a customer interface in communication with the computer to transfer data therebetween; the customer interface having a card reader for reading machine readable card information from the customer card; the computer including means for generating a customized customer offer list available to that particular customer account which includes the special offer; an offer communicator for communicating the customer offer list to the customer for which it is generated; a check-out at which the customer presents purchased item information indicating items being purchased by the customer; the check-out including a card reader for reading the customer card; the computer including means for sending information from the customized customer offer list to the check-out; the computer further including means for collecting customer purchase information which is indicative of items being purchased by the customer via the check-out; the computer still further including means for editing the customer account information to reflect items purchased by the customer.
239 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A system for presenting customized special offers to customers, the special offers including targeted offers to a customer selected from a plurality of customers, and for collecting purchasing behavior information concerning the customers, the system comprising:
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at least one computer including at least one database containing customer account information providing information on customers which is specific to a particular customer account, the customer account information including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account for products in addition to products being provided with coupon offerings;
said at least one computer also including a database containing special offers including at least one targeted offer which is to be made to customer accounts on the basis of targeted offer targeting parameters, said targeted offer targeting parameters including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account, said prior purchasing behavior including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account for products in addition to products being provided with coupon offerings;
a customer interface in communication with said at least one computer to transfer data therebetween;
said customer interface having means for identifying a customer to allow particular customer account information to be associated with a customer using the customer interface;
said at least one computer receiving information from said means for identifying a customer, to allow said at least one computer to access customer account information contained in said at least one computer and the database containing special offers;
said at least one computer including means for generating a customized customer offer list for that particular customer account which includes at least one said special offer;
at least one offer communicator for communicating said customer offer list to the customer for which it is generated;
at least one check-out at which the customer presents purchased item information indicating items being purchased by the customer;
said at least one computer including means for sending information from the customized customer offer list to the at least one check-out;
said at least one computer further including means for collecting customer purchase information which is indicative of items being purchased by the customer via the check-out;
said at least one computer still further including means for editing said customer account information to reflect items purchased by the customer. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25)
means for identifying a customer which is a card reader which reads a customer card;
the card reader comprises a bar code reader in communication with the computer, the bar code reader reading the cards in addition to products, the system including means for associating a purchased item with a customer if one of the cards is scanned by the bar code reader in sequence with scanning of products;
means for totaling the costs of purchases, wherein the system includes means for associating a purchased item with a customer if one of the cards is scanned by the bar code reader in sequence with scanning of products, and wherein the system includes means for adjusting the customer'"'"'s total to reflect special offers accepted by the customer, and for suspending the accepted special offers from the customer'"'"'s offer list.
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10. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means for recording that a special offer was not accepted by a customer if the customer does not present a product for which a special offer was available to the check-out within a predetermined amount of time after that customer accessed the customer interface.
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11. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the special offers include broadcast, non-targeted, special offers which are generally available to all customers.
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12. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the check-out includes:
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means for identifying a customer which is a card reader which reads a customer card;
a bar code reader, the system further comprising means for downloading, from the computer to the checkout-out, a list of all products for which special offers exist for at least one customer, means for associating a purchased item with a customer if one of the cards is scanned by the bar code reader in sequence with scanning of a product, means for accessing the computer in response to the bar code reader reading a product included included in the list of all products for which special offers may be available and for determining the special offer available to that customer whose card was scanned at the check-out, for that particular product.
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13. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means for maintaining and for communicating to each customer a running total of savings realized by that customer.
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14. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means for maintaining for each customer a running total of savings realized by that customer, wherein the check-out communicates to each customer a running total of savings realized by that customer.
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15. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means for establishing targeted offer targeting parameters in the form of criteria a customer must meet in order to be eligible for a particular targeted offer, and for determining which customers in the customer account database meet the criteria.
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16. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the customer interface is spaced apart from the check-out.
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17. A system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the offer communicator comprises a printer, wherein the system further comprises means for sending to the printer a predetermined number of special offers available to a particular customer, wherein the predetermined number is the same for all customers who use the customer interface, and wherein the predetermined number of special offers are the highest value special offers available to the particular customer, calculated on the basis of percentage reduction in price.
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18. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising lottery means for randomly selecting customers for prize awards, the lottery means including means for causing the offer communicator to indicate to the customer the prize awarded.
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19. A system in accordance with claim 1 and comprising a plurality of computers associated with a plurality of stores, wherein each customer is associated with a home store which is one of said plurality of stores, and wherein the customer account information for the customers are respectively stored in the computers of their home stores.
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20. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means for preventing a special offer from being communicated by the offer communicator if the product associated with the special offer is out of stock.
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21. A system in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising means defining a frequent shopper program including means for providing points to customers based on usage of the customer interface.
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25. The system of claim 1 wherein said offer list generated for said customer prior to the check-out of said customer.
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22. A system for presenting special offers to customers of a chain of stores, the special offers including customized targeted offers for specific customers, the system comprising:
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a plurality of store level computers, respective store level computers being associated with respective stores, the computers respectively include a database containing customer account information, and a database of special offers including customized targeted offers to be made to selected customer accounts on the basis of targeted offer targeting parameters, said targeted offer targeting parameters including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account, said prior purchasing behavior including prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer account for products in addition to products being provided with coupon offerings;
a supervisory computer networked to the store level computers, the supervisory computer periodically downloading special offers to the store level computers;
a plurality of customer interfaces, respective customer interfaces being located in respective stores and being in communication with the store level computer associated with that store, the interfaces having means for identifying a customer to the store level computer associated with that store;
the store level computers respectively including means for accessing information about the special offers available to the customer from specific customer account information which includes prior purchasing behavior for the particular customer for products in addition to those for which coupon offers are being made;
means for generating a customized list of special offers available to that particular customers;
offer communicator means for communicating respective individualized lists of special offers to customers who access the customer interface, said offer communicator means located separately from store check-out stands. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24)
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Specification