Providing directed content to anonymous customers

• US 7,975,917 B2
• Filed: 10/16/2009
• Issued: 07/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OL Security LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Business Global LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Clark, Todd, Fox, Ethan, O'Neill, David J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze; Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US12/580,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20100032482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 634 Days
• Field of Search: 235/383, 235/375, 235/381, 235/440, 235/462.45, 235/487, 705/14, 705/20, 705 26- 28
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A method includes electronically identifying a first item that a customer intends to purchase while the customer is shopping and electronically providing content to the customer in response to the identifying to entice the customer to purchase a second, different item.

Claims

1. A method performed by a computer system, the method comprising:

reading, via a device associated with the computer system, a first tag associated with a first item that a customer has selected for purchasing;

reading, via the device, a second tag associated with a second item substantially simultaneously with the reading the first tag;

selecting, by a processor of the computer system, the first item or the second item;

using, by the processor, the selected first item or second item for identifying content and

presenting, by an output device of the computer system, content to the customer in response to the reading, the content identifying a third item relating to the selected first item or second item.

2. The method of claim 1, where the content includes at least one of:

an indication that the third item is on sale;

information about a location of the third item;

information about a relationship between the third item and the selected first item or second item;

or

a coupon relating to the third item.

3. The method of claim 1, where the first item or the second item is selected based on at least one of:

a margin of the first item and a margin of the second item;

a price of the first item and a price of the second item;

or

an amount of promotion of the first item and an amount of promotion of the second item.

4. The method of claim 1, where the third item is selected based on at least one of:

a history of past purchases associated with the selected first item or second item and the third item;

or

information about past purchases of the third item received from retail locations that sell the third item.

5. The method of claim 1, where the presenting includes displaying the content to the customer.

6. The method of claim 1, where the presenting includes audibly providing the content to the customer.

7. The method of claim 1, where the presenting includes printing a coupon associated with at least one of the selected first item or second item or the third item.

8. The method of claim 1, where the device is located within a retail establishment and where the computer system is located externally from the retail establishment.

9. The method of claim 1, where the content is identified by accessing a database that stores information relating product codes representing items for sale to information about the items for sale.

10. The method of claim 9, where the information about the items for sale includes information about related items for sale.

11. The method of claim 9, where the reading a first tag causes the first tag to transmit a product code associated with the first item to the device.

12. The method of claim 9, where the information about the items for sale is updated based on information received from a retail server associated with a particular retail location.

13. The method of claim 1, where the device includes the output device.

14. A system comprising:

a mobile sensor device;

a server device; and

an output device;

where the mobile sensor device;

reads tags associated with items for sale in a retail location;

receives product codes from the read tags; and

sends the received product codes to the server device;

where the server device;

receives the product codes from the mobile sensor device;

selects a particular product code if multiple product codes are received substantially simultaneously; and

identifies content relating to a particular item to provide to the output device based on the selected product code; and

where the output device;

receives identified content relating to the particular item from the server device; and

outputs the content relating to the particular item.

15. The system of claim 14, where the mobile sensor device includes the output device.

16. The system of claim 14, where the server device is located externally to the retail location.

17. The system of claim 14, where the server device selects a particular product code based on at least one of:

margins associated with the received product codes;

prices associated with the received product codes;

or

amounts of promotion associated with the received product codes.

18. The system of claim 14, where the content relating to the particular item includes at least one of:

an indication that the particular item is on sale;

information about a location of the particular item;

information about a relationship between the particular item and an item associated with the selected particular product code;

or

a coupon relating to the particular item.

19. The system of claim 14, where the output device outputs the content relating to the particular item by at least one of:

displaying the content;

audibly providing the content;

or

printing the content.

20. One or more memory devices storing instructions executable by one or more processors, the one or more memory devices comprising:

one or more instructions to receive, from a sensor device located in a retail location, a first tag associated with a first item for sale at the retail location;

one or more instructions to receive, from the sensor device, a second tag associated with a second item for sale at the retail location;

one or more instructions to select the first item or the second item, based on at least one of a price of the first item and a price of the second item, a margin of the first item and a margin of the second item, or an amount of promotion of the first item and an amount of promotion of the second item;

one or more instructions to identify content to present to a customer, the content identifying a third item relating to the selected first item or second item; and

one or more instructions to cause the identified content to be provided to the customer.

21. A computer readable medium storing instructions executable by a computer system processor, the instructions causing the processor to perform the steps of:

reading, via a device associated with the computer system, a first tag associated with a first item that a customer has selected for purchasing;

reading, via the device, a second tag associated with a second item substantially simultaneously with the reading the first tag;

selecting, by the processor of the computer system, the first item or the second item;

using, by the processor, the selected first item or second item for identifying content; and

presenting, by an output device of the computer system, content to the customer in response to the reading, the content identifying a third item relating to the selected first item or second item.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the content includes at least one of:

an indication that the third item is on sale;

information about a location of the third item;

information about a relationship between the third item and the selected first item or second item;

or

a coupon relating to the third item.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the first item or the second item is selected based on at least one of:

a margin of the first item and a margin of the second item;

a price of the first item and a price of the second item;

or

an amount of promotion of the first item and an amount of promotion of the second item.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the third item is selected based on at least one of:

a history of past purchases associated with the selected first item or second item and the third item;

or

information about past purchases of the third item received from retail locations that sell the third item.

25. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the presenting includes displaying the content to the customer:

26. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the presenting includes audibly providing the content to the customer.

27. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the presenting includes printing a coupon associated with at least one of the selected first item or second item or the third item.

28. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the device is located within a retail establishment and where the computer system is located externally from the retail establishment.

29. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the content is identified by accessing a database that stores information relating product codes representing items for sale to information about the items for sale.

30. The computer readable medium of claim 29, where the information about the items for sale includes information about related items for sale.

31. The computer readable medium of claim 29, where the reading a first tag causes the first tag to transmit a product code associated with the first item to the device.

32. The computer readable medium of claim 29, where the information about the items for sale is updated based on information received from a retail server associated with a particular retail location.

33. The computer readable medium of claim 21, where the device includes the output device.