ATM customer marketing system

• US 7,379,896 B1
• Filed: 12/27/2002
• Issued: 05/27/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Diebold Nixdorf, Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Diebold Incorporated (Diebold Nixdorf, Incorporated)
• Inventors: Koran, Ken, Lee, Anthony, DiFrango, Ron, Shimek, Gregory, Gill, Robert Bradley, McCoy, Donald, St. George, Peter, MEEK, JAMES, Singer, Irek, Symonds, Robert D., Jiang, Changning, Hemlick, William
• Primary Examiner(s): CUFF, MICHAEL A
• Application Number:
  US10/331,065
• Time in Patent Office: 1,978 Days
• Field of Search: 705/16, 705/26, 705/14, 705/43
• US Class Current: 705/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1085 involving automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0212 Chance discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0239 Online discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0242 Determining effectiveness of advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/20 Automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/201 Accessories of ATMs
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/211 Software architecture within ATMs or in relation to the ATM network

Abstract

A marketing system includes a plurality of automated transaction machines (74, 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86). The automated transaction machines operate to carry out financial transactions with associated host computers (90, 94, 100, 104). Marketing presentations are stored on and output from the transaction machines responsive to messages exchanged with a market message server (110) which is connected to the automated transaction machines through a network (108). The connection to the automated transaction machines, which provides delivery of the market presentation materials and which causes the output of presentations, is generally independent of the messages associated with authorizing financial transactions. Some described embodiments of the invention enable presenting marketing campaigns to users of the transaction machines. The marketing campaigns may include sequences of presentations that are output on a targeted basis to particular users.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

(a) developing at least one marketing campaign including at least one marketing presentation adapted to be presented to users of ATMs during at least one transaction session at at least one ATM;

(b) storing in data stores located at a plurality of cash dispensing ATMs, data corresponding to at least one marketing presentation included in the at least one marketing campaign;

(c) correlating data corresponding to a first individual user with a first marketing campaign through operation of at least one computer;

(d) subsequent to step (c), presenting at least one marketing presentation included in the first marketing campaign to the first individual user in a transaction session conducted by the first individual user at an ATM;

(e) determining through operation of the at least one computer, prior to the commencement of a subsequent transaction session conducted by the first individual user at an ATM, at least one subsequent marketing presentation not presented in step (d) that is to be presented to the first individual user during the subsequent transaction session.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (c) the at least one computer comprises at least one marketing computer, wherein step (d) comprises communicating data corresponding to the first user to the at least one marketing computer, wherein the marketing computer is a computer other than a financial transaction computer with which the ATM communicates to carry out a financial transaction for the first user during the at least one transaction session.

3. The method according to claim 2 wherein in step (c) the first user is associated with a first marketing campaign during a transaction session.

4. The method according to claim 3 wherein in step (c) the first user is associated with the first marketing campaign responsive to a financial institution at which the first user has an account used to conduct the financial transaction.

5. The method according to claim 4 wherein in step (c) the first user is associated with the first marketing campaign responsive to the financial institution being other than an institution owning the ATM.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (a) the at least one marketing campaign is adapted to be presented to users of terminals, including ATMs, wherein a first marketing campaign comprises a sequence including a plurality of marketing presentations adapted to be presented to a user at a terminal during a plurality of transaction sessions, and wherein step (d) comprises presenting at least one marketing presentation in the sequence to a first user during each of a plurality of transaction sessions conducted by the user at least one ATM.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein the sequence includes at least one user query, and wherein in step (d) at least one next marketing presentation in the sequence is presented to the first user during a subsequent transaction session responsive to a response of the first user to the at least one user query.

8. The method according to claim 1 and further comprising

(f) presenting the at least one subsequent marketing presentation determined in step (e) to the first individual user in the subsequent transaction session conducted by the first individual user at an ATM.

9. The method according to claim 8 wherein the least one subsequent marketing presentation is included in the first marketing campaign, and wherein (b) includes storing in data stores located at a plurality of ATMs, data corresponding to the at least one subsequent marketing presentation.

10. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (b) data corresponding to the at least one marketing presentation is selected for storage in each ATM based on configuration of each ATM.

11. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (a) at least one marketing presentation corresponds to a coupon printable at the ATM.

12. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (c) the at least one computer comprises at least one marketing computer, and wherein in step (b) the data corresponding to the marketing presentation is downloaded from the at least one marketing computer to each ATM.

13. The method according to claim 12 wherein step (a) comprises developing a plurality of marketing campaigns, and step (b) comprises selectively downloading presentations included in each marketing campaign to the plurality of ATMs responsive to at least one of a location and a configuration of each ATM.

14. The method according to claim 13 wherein step (b) further comprises downloading to at least one ATM, data corresponding to time data, wherein the time data is adapted to cause at least one of enabling or disabling output from the ATM of at least one marketing presentation, wherein in step (d) at least one marketing presentation is enabled or disabled from being presented from the at least one ATM responsive to the time data.

15. The method according to claim 12 and further comprising prior to step (d), downloading agent software from the at least one marketing computer to the ATM, wherein the agent software is operative to cause the ATM to present the at least one marketing presentation.

16. The method according to claim 15 and further comprising:

reporting to the at least one marketing computer through operation of the agent software, data corresponding to marketing presentations in a data store at the ATM.

17. The method according to claim 15 and further comprising:

reporting to the at least one marketing computer through operation of the agent software, at least one user response to at least one query included in marketing presentations output by the ATM.

18. The method according to claim 17 wherein in step (a) the at least one marketing campaign is adapted to be presented to users of terminals, including ATMs, and further comprising:

determining through operation of the at least one marketing computer responsive to the at least one user response input by the first user to at least one query, at least one further marketing presentation to be presented to the first user in a next transaction session at a terminal, wherein the at least one further marketing presentation is determined prior to commencement of the next transaction session.

19. The method according to claim 15 and further comprising:

reporting to the at least one marketing computer through operation of the agent software, data indicative that the at least one marketing presentation has been presented to the first user.

20. The method according to claim 12 and further comprising prior to step (d), downloading instructions corresponding to a modification in states from the at least one marketing computer to the ATM.

21. The method according to claim 20 wherein in step (d) the modification in states is operative to cause the ATM to present at least one marketing presentation.

22. The method according to claim 21 wherein the modification in states is operative to cause the ATM to send the at least one marketing computer data indicative that the at least one marketing presentation has been presented to the first user.

23. The method according to claim 1 wherein step (e) is subsequent to step (d).

24. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (a) the at least one marketing campaign is adapted to be presented to users of terminals, including ATMs, wherein in step (c) the at least one computer comprises at least one marketing computer, and wherein step (a) comprises operating the at least one marketing computer to output through at least one output device other than an ATM, a visual representation of an ATM user interface and at least one marketing presentation in the at least one marketing campaign.

25. The method according to claim 24 and wherein in step (a) the visual representation includes a visual representation of function keys included adjacent to an ATM screen.

26. The method according to claim 24 wherein the at least one marketing campaign includes at least one user query, and wherein step (a) further includes associating at least one ATM function key with a response to the at least one user query.

27. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (c) the at least one computer comprises at least one marketing computer, wherein in step (d) the ATM comprises a cash dispenser adapted to dispense cash from the ATM, and wherein in step (d) the ATM is remotely located from the at least one marketing computer.

28. The method according to claim 1 wherein in step (d) the ATM comprises a cash dispenser adapted to dispense cash from the ATM, and wherein in step (c) correlating occurs during a transaction session conducted by the first individual user at the ATM.