Web-enabled subscription marketing application

• US 7,577,680 B1
• Filed: 08/13/2007
• Issued: 08/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Integrated Marketing Technology Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Integrated Marketing Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Williams, Greg, Tucker, James E, Wolf, Mace
• Primary Examiner(s): Bayat; Bradley B
• Assistant Examiner(s): CARDENAS NAVIA, JAIME F
• Application Number:
  US11/837,986
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 705/10, 707/102
• US Class Current: N/A
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability

Abstract

The present invention provides network based reporting techniques designed to meet the needs of subscription based marketers. Clients access, edit report on, and analyze their subscriber database using the Internet, for example. In a representative embodiment, a plurality of client computers connect to the Internet using a local area network (LAN), for example. The client computers pass security protocols before gaining access to web, application, and database servers. Once connected, the client computers are able to retrieve and display information using a web browser. Database contents are denormalized to provide the capability to generate reports based upon relatively large amounts of information. In addition, the data is transformed into a structure specifically to facilitate and enhance multi-channel subscription marketing activities.

Claims

1. A method of analyzing marketing information comprising:

providing a plurality of marketing subscription information;

transforming a subset of the plurality of direct marketing subscription information into a plurality of transition tables, structured hierarchically, comprising;

using a first set of stored procedures, generating a first lookup table for a lookup database, wherein the first lookup table comprises a first level of a hierarchical structure;

using a second set of stored procedures, generating a second lookup table for a lookup database by propagating at least a portion of information from the first lookup table to the second lookup table, wherein the second lookup table comprises a second level of the hierarchical structure, below the first level; and

using a third set of stored procedures, generating a key table by denormalizing the first and second lookup tables, wherein the key table comprises the first and second levels of the hierarchical structure; and

generating a first report by using the key table.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein information in one or more fields is propagated from the first table to the second table.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

forming a third lookup table by propagating at least a portion of information from the second lookup table to the third lookup table, wherein the lookup database also comprises the third lookup tables, and the generating the key table further comprises denormalizing the third lookup table.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein when generating the first report, at least the first lookup table is not used.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein when generating the first report, at least the second lookup table is not used.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein when generating the first report, the first and second lookup tables are not used.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a request to generate a second report after generating the first report; and

generating the second report by using the key table without referring to the first or second lookup tables.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the second report comprises at least one hyperlink to the first report.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing a web browser interface through which a plurality of reports may be requested; and

when receiving a report request through the web browser interface, generating a report by using the key table.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the key table has not been regenerated between report requests.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

updating the key table via a browser program executing on a client.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

revising the first lookup table; and

regenerating the key table using the revised first lookup table.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the regenerating the key table is performed without regenerating the second lookup table using the revised first lookup table.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

saving the first report in a saved reports table; and

upon receiving a second report request from a client device, generating a second report using the key table, wherein the second report comprises at least one hyperlink to the first report in the saved reports table.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein

saving the first report in a saved reports table;

and

upon receiving a second report request from a client device, generating a second report using the key table, wherein the second report comprises a plurality of hyperlinks, wherein at least one hyperlink is to the first report and at least one hyperlink will cause generating a third report using the key table.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the marketing subscription information is not structured hierarchically.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the generating a first report is in response to a request by a user at a client, coupled through a network to a server where the key table is stored.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein the transition tables are stored in a first database and the first lookup table is stored in a second database, separate from the first database.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the second lookup table is stored in a second database.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein the third set of stored procedures is executed after the first and second set of stored procedures.