Deep clickflow tracking

• US 7,734,722 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2006
• Issued: 06/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Callidus Software, Inc. (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: Genius.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Thompson, David R., Doan, Khai, Seidl, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): BHATIA, AJAY M
• Application Number:
  US11/417,949
• Publication Number:
  US 20070011340A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,497 Days
• Field of Search: 709/218, 714/38
• US Class Current: 709/218
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking

Abstract

A system and method is disclosed herein for obtaining information from web site use. In one embodiment, the method comprises tracking interactions of a user with web content when the user uses a modified link to enter a website. The modified link is a link in a format that resembles a website address for the website but resolves at a location through which the user'"'"'s interactions can be tracked. The method also includes storing data indicative of tracked interactions in a database.

Claims

1. A method for obtaining information from web site use, comprising:

tracking, at a first server, interactions of a user with web content when the user uses a modified link to enter a website, the modified link in a format that resembles a website address for the website served from a second server, but to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked;

storing data indicative of the tracked interactions in a database;

and determining additional content to inject into requested web content based on the tracked interactions of the user;

and in response to the user using the modified link to request web content, obtaining the requested web content from at least the second server and supplying modified web content from the first server, the modified web content modified from the obtained web content so that one or more links in the obtained web content are replaced with one or more modified links, corresponding to the one or more links, that resemble links to the web content served from the second server but to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, the modified web content further modified by dynamically injecting the additional content from the second database into the modified web content prior to the supplying;

wherein the supplying further comprises;

in response to the user using one of the one or more modified links, a rewriting server obtain web content corresponding to the one or more links being used by the user;

rewriting one or more links within the obtained web content to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, to created modified web content;

and sending the modified web content to the user, the modified web content appearing like a non-modified version of the web content;

determining whether each of a plurality of links in the requested web content is to resolve at the second server or to resolve at a non-consenting third party server;

and rewriting only those links in the obtained web content that are to resolve at the second server, wherein links to web content from non-consenting third parties are not rewritten to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an original link to the website, the original link to resolve at the second server through which unmodified web content is served; and

supplying the modified link.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more links are one or more Universal Resource Locator (URL) links, hypertext markup language (HTML) links, links within embedded JavaScript, links embedded in Macromedia Flash content, Portable Document Format (PDF) files, cookies, Secure Socket Layer (SSL) links, Absolute links.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the storing further comprises:

receiving an indication of a user selection of a modified link within the modified web content; and

recording data to the database, the data indicative of the tracked interactions of the user with the modified web content.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the data includes one or more of:

a requested link, a requested modified link, data indicative of a customer that supplied a link, duration of user traversing the modified web content, a sequence of modified link selection, the user presence on a web site associated with the web content, information about the user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the dynamically injected additional content includes one or more of a coupon, help content, a watermark, on-page chat, a recording, a survey, a script.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

depositing a cookie in a memory of a computer being used by the user to identify the user upon a subsequent request for the web content via a non-modified link.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking further comprises:

receiving a request at the first server for web content from a web browser being used by the user;

forwarding header information, relevant to the web browser type being used by the user, to the second server which serves the web content;

receiving web content from the second server which serves the web content, the web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information; and

supplying, from the first server to the user, modified web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

securing communication between the user and the first server through which the interactions can be tracked with a first Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the first server through which the interactions can be tracked; and

securing communication between the first server through which the interactions can be tracked and the second server through which the web content is served with a second Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the second server through which the web content is served.

10. A system, comprising:

a database;

and a server, wherein the server is to;

track interactions of a user with web content when the user uses a modified link to enter a website, the modified link in a format that resembles a website address for the website served from a second server, but to resolve at a the server through which the server can track the interactions;

store data indicative of the tracked interactions in the database;

and determine additional content to inject into requested web content based on the tracked interactions of the user;

and obtain web content from the second server and supply modified web content from the server in response to selection of a modified link, the modified web content modified from the obtained web content so that one or more links in the obtained web content are replaced with one or more modified links, corresponding to the one or more links, that resemble links to the web content served from the second server but to resolve at the server through which the interactions can be tracked, the modified web content further modified to include dynamically injected additional content from the second database into the modified web content prior to being supplied;

wherein the supplied content further comprises;

in response to the user using one of the one or more modified links, a rewriting server obtaining web content corresponding to the one or more links being used by the user;

rewriting one or more links within the obtained web content to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, to created modified web content;

and sending the modified web content to the user, the modified web content appearing like a non-modified version of the web content;

determining whether each of a plurality of links in the requested web content is to resolve at the second server or to resolve at a non-consenting third party server;

and rewriting only those links in the obtained web content that are to resolve at the second server, wherein links to web content from non-consenting third parties are not rewritten to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprises:

the server to;

receive an original link to the website, the original link to resolve at the second server through which unmodified web content is served; and

supply the modified link.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the one or more links are one or more Universal Resource Locator (URL) links, hypertext markup language (HTML) links, links within embedded JavaScript, links embedded in Macromedia Flash content, Portable Document Format (PDF) files, cookies, Secure Socket Layer (SSL) links.

13. The system of claim 10,

wherein the dynamically injected additional content includes one or more of a coupon, help content, a watermark, on-page chat, a recording, a survey, a script.

14. The system of claim 10, further comprises:

the server to;

deposit a cookie in a memory of a computer being used by the user to identify the user upon a subsequent request for the web content via a non-modified link.

15. The system of claim 10, further comprises:

the server to;

receive a request at the server for web content from a web browser being used by the user;

forward header information, relevant to the web browser type being used by the user, to the second server which serves the web content;

receive web content from the second server which serves the web content, the web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information; and

supply, from the server to the user, modified web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information.

16. The system of claim 10, further comprises:

the server to;

secure communication between the user and the server through which the interactions can be tracked with a first Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the server through which the interactions can be tracked; and

secure communication between the server through which the interactions can be tracked and the second server through which the web content is served with a second Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the second server through which the web content is served.

17. A computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon, which when executed by a machine, causes the machine to perform the operations comprising:

tracking, at a first server, interactions of a user with web content when the user uses a modified link to enter a website, the modified link in a format that resembles a website address for the website served from a second server, but to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked;

storing data indicative of the tracked interactions in a database;

any determining additional content to inject into requested web content based on the tracked interactions of the user;

and in response to the user using the modified link to request web content, obtaining the requested web content from at least the second server and supplying modified web content from the first server, the modified web content modified from the obtained web content so that one or more links in the obtained web content are replaced with one or more modified links, corresponding to the one or more links, that resemble links to the web content served from the second server but to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, the modified web content further modified by dynamically injecting the additional content from the second database into the modified web content prior to the supplying;

wherein the supplying further comprises;

in response to the user using one of the one or more modified links, a rewriting server obtaining web content corresponding to the one or more links being used by the user;

rewriting one or more links within the obtained web content to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, to created modified web content;

and sending the modified web content to the user, the modified web content appearing like a non-modified version of the web content;

determining whether each of a plurality of links in the requested web content is to resolve at the second server or to resolve at a non-consenting third party server;

and rewriting only those links in the obtained web content that are to resolve at the second server, wherein links to web content from non-consenting third parties are not rewritten to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked.

18. The computer-readable storage medium claim 17, further comprising:

receiving an original link to the website, the original link to resolve at the second server through which unmodified web content is served; and

supplying the modified link.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the one or more links are one or more Universal Resource Locator (URL) links, hypertext markup language (HTML) links, links within embedded JavaScript, links embedded in Macromedia Flash content, Portable Document Format (PDF) files, cookies, Secure Socket Layer (SSL) links, Absolute links.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the supplying further comprises:

in response to the user using one of the one or more modified links, a rewriting server obtaining web content corresponding to the one or more links being used by the user;

rewriting one or more links within the obtained web content to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked, to created modified web content; and

sending the modified web content to the user, the modified web content appearing like a non-modified version of the web content.

21. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein links to web content from non-consenting third parties are not rewritten to resolve at the first server through which the interactions can be tracked.

22. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the storing further comprises:

receiving an indication of a user selection of a modified link within the modified web content; and

recording data to the database, the data indicative of the tracked interactions of the user with the modified web content.

23. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the data includes one or more of:

a requested link, a requested modified link, data indicative of a customer that supplied a link, duration of user traversing the modified web content, a sequence of modified link selection, the user presence on a web site associated with the web content, information about the user.

24. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the dynamically injected additional content includes one or more of a coupon, help content, a watermark, on-page chat, a recording, a survey, a script.

25. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, further comprising:

depositing a cookie in a memory of a computer being used by the user to identify the user upon a subsequent request for the web content via a non-modified link.

26. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the tracking further comprises:

receiving a request, at the first server, for web content from a web browser being used by the user;

forwarding header information, relevant to the web browser type being used by the user, to a location which serves the web content;

receiving web content from the second server which serves the web content, the web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information; and

supplying, from the first server to the user, modified web content corresponding to the relevant web browser type information.

27. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 26, further comprising:

securing communication between the user and the first server through which the interactions can be tracked server with a first Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the first server through which the interactions can be tracked; and

securing communication between the first server through which the interactions can be tracked and the second server through which the web content is served with a second Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate of the second server through which the web content is served.