System and method for administering a loyalty program and processing payments

• US 8,783,561 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2006
• Issued: 07/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Modiv Media, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Modiv Media (Catalina Marketing Corporation)
• Inventors: Wesley, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): STANFORD, CHRISTOPHER J
• Application Number:
  US11/486,707
• Publication Number:
  US 20080011837A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,930 Days
• Field of Search: 235/379
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/343 Cards including a counter
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/387 Payment using discounts or coupons relating to marketing G06Q30/02
• 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 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0233 Method of redeeming a frequent usage reward
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0238 at point-of-sale [POS]
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/02 by keys or other credit registering devices

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a system and method for administration of a customer loyalty program at a point of sale terminal. The system, in one embodiment, contains a database of customer records for the loyalty program where each customer record contains information about a customer'"'"'s payment device and information about a customer'"'"'s mobile device. The system may locate a customer record in a database based on payment device or mobile device information captured at the point of sale terminal and apply any applicable loyalty program discounts. The system may then forward the payment device information to a third-party payment processor for payment processing. The system may print out a receipt at the point of sale terminal indicating any discounts and containing a promotional message. The system may also send a promotional message to the customer'"'"'s mobile device using the mobile device information stored in the customer'"'"'s record.

Claims

1. A method of identifying a single loyalty program account of a user when the user uses one of a plurality of credit card numbers to pay for transactions at a retailer that provides discounts to the user through the single loyalty program account, the method being implemented by a processing platform having one or more physical processors programmed by one or more instructions to perform the method, the method comprising:

causing, by the processing platform, an association of a single loyalty program account that is related to the user and a plurality of credit card numbers that are related to the user to be stored such that the single loyalty program account is identifiable based on a use of any one of the plurality of credit card numbers, wherein the plurality of credit card numbers comprise a first credit card number that identifies a first credit card account of the user and a second credit card number that identifies a second credit card account of the user;

receiving, by the processing platform, the first credit card number in association with a first transaction;

identifying, by the processing platform, the single loyalty program account based on the first credit card number;

identifying, by the processing platform, a first discount to be applied to the first transaction based on the single loyalty program account;

causing, by the processing platform, the first discount to be applied to the first transaction;

receiving, by the processing platform, the second credit card number in association with a second transaction different from the first transaction;

identifying, by the one or more physical processors, the single loyalty program account based on the second credit card number;

identifying, by the processing platform, a second discount to be applied to the second transaction based on the single loyalty program account; and

causing, by the processing platform, the second discount to be applied to the second transaction.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processing platform, a total amount due for the first transaction;

determining, by the processing platform, an adjusted amount due based on the total amount due for the first transaction and the first discount; and

transmitting, by the processing platform, the adjusted amount due and the first credit card number to the payment processing service for payment using the first credit card account.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, by the processing platform, a mobile device associated with the first credit card number; and

transmitting, by the processing platform, one or more promotions associated with the single loyalty program to the mobile device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein transmitting a message comprises:

sending, by the processing platform, a Short Message Service (SMS) message to the mobile device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein causing the first discount to be applied to the first transaction comprises:

communicating, by the processing platform, the first discount to a point of sale terminal for payment processing by the point of sale terminal.

6. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

obtaining, by the processing platform, a customer profile associated with the first credit card number; and

identifying, by the one or more processors, a promotion based on the customer profile; and

providing the promotion to the user.

7. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the processing platform, an association of the first credit card number with a plurality of different loyalty programs; and

causing, by the platform, the association between the first credit card number and the plurality of different loyalty programs to be stored.

8. A method of identifying a single loyalty program account of a user when the user uses one of a plurality of credit card numbers to pay for transactions at a retailer that provides discounts to the user through the single loyalty program account, the method being implemented at a point of sale computer system of a merchant, the point of sale computer system having one or more processors programmed by one or more instructions to perform the method, the method comprising:

obtaining, by the point of sale computer system, a first credit card number that identifies a first credit account used to pay for a first transaction at the retailer, wherein the first credit card number is issued by a first issuing financial institution, and wherein the first transaction is associated with a first total amount;

transmitting, by the point of sale computer system, the first credit card number to a remote processing platform;

receiving, by the point of sale computer system, from the remote processing platform, a first amount of savings associated with the single loyalty program account of the user, wherein the single loyalty program account is identified at the remote processing platform based on the first credit card number;

determining, by the point of sale computer system, a first amount to be paid based on the first total amount and the first amount of savings;

transmitting, by the point of sale computer system, a payment request to a third party payment processor based on the first credit card number and the first amount to be paid;

receiving, by the point of sale computer system, a payment confirmation from the third party payment processor;

providing, by the point of sale computer system, a first receipt that indicates the first amount to be paid;

obtaining, by the point of sale computer system, a second credit card number that identifies a second credit account used to pay for a second transaction at the merchant, wherein the second credit card number is issued by a second issuing financial institution, and wherein the second transaction is associated with a second total amount;

transmitting, by the point of sale computer system, the second credit card number to the remote processing platform;

receiving, by the point of sale computer system, from the remote processing platform, a second amount of savings associated with the single loyalty program account of the user, wherein the single loyalty program account is identified at the remote processing platform based on the second credit card number;

determining, by the point of sale computer system, a second amount to be paid based on the second total amount and the second amount of savings;

transmitting, by the point of sale computer system, a payment request to the third party payment processor based on the second credit card number and the second amount to be paid;

receiving, by the point of sale computer system, a second payment confirmation from the third party payment processor; and

providing, by the point of sale computer system, a second receipt that indicates the second amount to be paid.

9. A method of enrolling a customer in a loyalty program during a transaction being paid for using a credit card number and associating a plurality of credit card numbers with a loyalty program account, the method being implemented by a processing platform having one or more physical processors programmed by one or more computer program instructions to perform the method, the method comprising:

receiving, by the processing platform, from a merchant, first identification information that identifies a first payment device used to pay for the transaction;

determining, by the processing platform, whether the first identification information is associated with any loyalty program, accounts accessible by the processing platform;

causing, by the processing platform, a first prompt to be displayed at the merchant, wherein the first prompt queries whether to enroll in the loyalty program to thereby create a loyalty program account when the first identification information is not associated with any loyalty program accounts;

receiving, by the one or more physical processors, a response to the first prompt comprising an indication to proceed with an enrollment to create the loyalty program, account;

storing, by the processing platform, an association of the first identification information and the loyalty program account in a customer record in response to the indication to proceed with the enrollment;

causing, by the processing platform, a second prompt that queries whether additional payment devices are to be associated with the loyalty program account;

receiving, by the processing platform, at least second identification information that identifies a second payment device that is to be associated with the loyalty program account;

storing, by the processing platform, an association of the second identification information and the loyalty program account in the customer record, wherein the loyalty program account is subsequently identifiable based on a use of the first payment device and/or the second payment device to pay for a given transaction; and

transmitting, by the processing platform, a confirmation message indicating that the enrollment was successful.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving, by the processing platform, a total amount for the transaction;

identifying, by the processing platform, a discount to be applied to the transaction based on the loyalty program account;

causing, by the processing platform, the discount to be applied to the transaction to produce an adjusted amount due;

generating, by the processing platform, a payment request based on the adjusted amount due; and

transmitting, by the processing platform, the payment request to a payment processing service.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving, by the one or more processors, an identification of a mobile device;

associating, by the one or more processors, the identification of the mobile device with the first identification information or the single loyalty program account; and

transmitting, by the processing platform, a message comprising information related to the single loyalty program account to the mobile device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

communicating, by the processing platform, a request to confirm a desire to enroll in the loyalty program to the mobile device using the identification of the mobile device;

receiving, by the processing platform, a confirmation of the desire to enroll from the mobile device; and

updating, by the processing platform, the customer record to indicate the confirmation of the desire to enroll.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the confirmation of the desire to enroll is received via a Short Message Service (SMS) message.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the confirmation of the desire to enroll is received via a log in to a website associated with the loyalty program.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein transmitting the message to the mobile device comprises:

sending, by the processing platform, a Short Message Service (SMS) message to the mobile device.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the first payment device comprises a credit card or a mobile device.

17. A processing platform for of identifying a single loyalty program account of a user when the user uses one of a plurality of credit card numbers to pay for transactions at a retailer that provides discounts to the user through the single loyalty program account, the processing platform comprising:

a memory configured to store an association of a single loyalty program account that is related to a user and a plurality of credit card numbers that are related to the user, wherein the single loyalty program account is identifiable based on a use of any one of the plurality of credit card numbers, wherein the plurality of credit card numbers comprise a first credit card number that identifies a first credit card account of the user and a second credit card number that identifies a second credit card account of the user;

one or more physical processors programmed with one or more computer program instructions to;

receive the first credit card number in association with a first transaction

identify the single loyalty program account based on the first credit card number;

identify a first discount to be applied to the first transaction based on the single loyalty program account; and

cause the first discount to be applied to the first transaction;

receive the second credit card number in association with a second transaction different from the first transaction;

identify the single loyalty program account based on the second credit card number;

identify a second discount to be applied to the second transaction based on the single loyalty program account; and

cause the second discount to be applied to the second transaction.

18. The processing platform of claim 17, wherein the processing platform is further programmed to:

receive a total amount due for the first transaction;

determine an adjusted amount due based on the total amount due for the transaction and the first discount; and

transmit the adjusted amount due and identifying information that identifies the first credit card number to a payment processing service for payment using the credit card account.

19. The processing platform of claim 17, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

determine a mobile device associated with the first credit card number; and

transmit a message associated with the single loyalty program account to the mobile device.

20. A system for facilitating use of a loyalty program, wherein a plurality of credit card numbers are associated with a single loyalty program account, the system comprising:

at least one point of sale computer system programmed to process payment transactions; and

a processing platform, the processing platform comprising;

a memory configured to store an association of a single loyalty program account that is related to a user and a plurality of credit card numbers that are related to the user, wherein the single loyalty program account is identifiable based on a use of any one of the plurality of credit card numbers, wherein the plurality of credit card numbers comprise a first credit card number that identifies a first credit card account of the user and a second credit card number that identifies a second credit card account of the user;

one or more physical processors programmed with one or more computer program instructions to;

receive, from the at least one point of sale computer system, a first credit card number in association with a first transaction;

identify the single loyalty program account based on the first credit card number;

identify a first discount to be applied to the first transaction based on the single loyalty program account;

calculate an adjusted amount due based on the first discount;

generate a first payment request in a standard format used by a payment processing service, the payment request comprising the adjusted amount due to be paid using the first credit card account; and

transmit the first payment request to the payment processing service;

receive, from the at least one point of sale computer system, a second credit card number in association with a second transaction different from the first transaction;

identify the single loyalty program account based on the second credit card number;

identify a second discount to be applied to the second transaction based on the single loyalty program account;

calculate a second adjusted amount due based on the second discount;

generate a second payment request in the standard format used by the payment processing service, the payment request comprising the second adjusted amount due to be paid using the second credit card account; and

transmit the second payment request to the payment processing service.

21. A method of identifying a single loyalty program, account of a user when the user uses one of a plurality of credit card numbers to pay for transactions at a retailer that provides discounts to the user through the single loyalty program account, the method being implemented by a processing platform having one or more physical processors programmed by one or more instructions to perform the method, the method comprising:

causing, by the processing platform, an association of a single loyalty program account that is related to the user and a plurality of credit card numbers that are related to the user to be stored such that the single loyalty program account is identifiable based on a use of any one of the plurality of credit card numbers, wherein the plurality of credit card numbers comprise a first credit card number that identifies a first credit card account of the user and a second credit card number that identifies a second credit card account of the user;

receiving, by the processing platform, from a retailer, a first payment device identification that identifies a first credit card number of a first credit card account used to pay for a first transaction,

wherein the first credit card number is issued by a first issuing financial institution—

and is to be transmitted by the retailer or the processing platform in a standard format used by a payment processing service to debit the first credit card account at the first issuing financial institution;

identifying, by the processing platform, the single loyalty program account based on the first payment device identification;

identifying, by the processing platform, a first promotion based on the single loyalty program account;

communicating, by the processing platform, the first promotion;

receiving, by the processing platform, from the retailer, a second payment device identification that identifies a second credit card number of a second credit card account used to pay for a second transaction different from the first transaction,

wherein the second credit card number is issued by a second issuing financial institution and is to be transmitted by the retailer or the processing platform in the standard format used by the payment processing service to debit the second credit card account at the second issuing financial institution;

identifying, by the processing platform, the single loyalty program account based on the second payment device identification;

identifying, by the processing platform, a second promotion based on the single loyalty program account; and

communicating, by the processing platform, the second promotion.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the first promotion comprises a discount to be applied to the first transaction, the method further comprising:

causing, by the processing platform, the discount to be applied to the transaction.

23. The method claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the processing platform, a total amount due for the first transaction, wherein causing the discount to be applied to the first transaction comprises;

determining, by the processing platform, an adjusted amount due based on the total amount due and the discount; and

communicating, by the processing platform, the adjusted amount due and information identifying the first payment account to a payment processor for payment using the first payment account.

24. The method claim 22, wherein causing the discount to be applied to the transaction comprises:

communicating, by the processing platform, the discount to the retailer associated with the first transaction, wherein the retailer submits a request to a third party payment processor for processing the payment based on the discount.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

determining, by the processing platform, a mobile device associated with the first payment device identification; and

communicating, by the processing platform, the first promotion to the mobile device.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein communicating the first promotion to the mobile device comprises:

causing, by the processing platform, a Short Message Service text message comprising the first promotion to be sent to the mobile device.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein communicating the promotion to the mobile device comprises:

causing, by the processing platform, a point of sale terminal related to the first transaction to print the promotion, wherein the promotion comprises a message that includes a number of purchases needed to receive an award, a notification of a future promotion, or a message that encourages joining loyalty program.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the first promotion comprises a message that includes a number of purchases needed to receive an award.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the first promotion comprises a notification of a future promotion.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein the first promotion comprises a message that encourages joining a loyalty program.

31. The method of claim 21, wherein the first promotion comprises a coupon and wherein communicating the first promotion to the mobile device comprises:

causing, by the processing platform, the point of sale terminal to print the promotion in association with a receipt.

32. The method of claim 21, wherein the first payment device identification is associated with a payment card or a mobile device.

33. The method of claim 21, wherein the loyalty program is not offered by the issuing financial institution.