Personalized discount keys for enterprise online stores

• US 9,275,396 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2012
• Issued: 03/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP SE
• Inventors: Sachs, Marco, Scheuermann, Pascal
• Primary Examiner(s): DIXON, THOMAS A
• Application Number:
  US13/476,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20130311263A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,380 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to computer-implemented methods, software, and systems for generating and using discount keys associated with a particular sales person in association with sales within an enterprise online store. One example process includes operations for (i) identifying a discount key at a sales system associated with a prospective sale negotiated between a sales person and a prospective customer, (ii) determining at least one item associated with the identified discount key, (iii) determining at least one discount associated with the determined items associated with the identified discount key, (iii) facilitating completion of the prospective sale at the sales system for the prospective customer based on the at least one determined discount associated with the at least one determined item, and (iv) associating the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with a sales account for the sales person.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, the method comprising:

identifying a discount key at a sales system provided by a prospective customer, the discount key exclusively associated with a prospective sale previously negotiated between a sales person and a prospective customer, the discount key associated with the prospective sale based on a unique identifier associated with the discount key, the discount key generated by a discount key generator in response to completion of the previously negotiated prospective sale by a prospective sale system located remote from and disparate to the sales system, the discount key generator associated with the prospective sale system and remote from the sales system, wherein the discount key is associated with discount key data at the prospective sale system, and wherein the discount key data is remotely accessible by the sales system;

determining at least one item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

determining at least one discount associated with the at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

facilitating completion of the prospective sale at the sales system for the prospective customer based on the at least one determined item and the at least one determined discount associated with the at least one determined item based on the identified discount key, wherein facilitating completion includes;

determining that the at least one discount associated with at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key is an authorized discount, wherein determining that the at least one discount is an authorized discount includes using the unique identifier associated with the discount key by the sales system to remotely access discount key data stored at the prospective sale system; and

in response to determining that the at least one discount is the authorized discount, populating an empty shopping cart at the sales system with the at least one item at the associated discount price associated with the identified discount key; and

associating the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with a sales account for the sales person associated with the prospective sale, wherein associating the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with the sales account for the sales person comprises updating the sales account for the sales person by crediting the completed sale to the sales person.

2. The method of claim 1, where the identified discount key is encoded, further comprising decoding the identified discount key prior to determining the at least one item and the at least one discount associated with the at least one determined item.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the decoded discount key includes a set of information associated with the prospective sale.

4. The method of claim 2, where the identified discount key is encoded as a barcode or a QR code, wherein decoding the identified discount key includes reading contents of the barcode or the QR code.

5. The method of claim 2, where the identified discount key is encoded via encryption, where decoding the identified discount key includes decrypting the encrypted discount key.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the discount key is associated with a reference identifier to a specific discount record at the sales system, the method further comprising:

accessing the specific discount record associated with the discount key in the sales system in response to identifying the discount key; and

using at least a portion of the specific discount record to determine at least a portion of the prospective sale information associated with the discount key.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the discount key includes at least a subset of the following:

at least one item associated with the negotiated sale;

at least one discounted price associated with at least one of the items associated with the negotiated sale;

a set of sales person-specific information; and

a set of prospective customer data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the discount key is generated in response to negotiations between the sales person and the prospective customer at a retail store location remote from the sales system.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising fulfilling the completion of the prospective sale via operations performed by the sales system.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the discount key is generated, in response to a request to generate the discount key by the sales system, remotely from the location of the sales person.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the sales person is located remotely from the prospective customer.

12. A system comprising:

one or more computers associated with a sales system;

a computer-readable medium coupled to the one or more computers having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

identifying, at the sales system, a discount key provided by a prospective customer, the discount key exclusively associated with a prospective sale previously negotiated between a sales person and a prospective customer, the discount key associated with the prospective sale based on a unique identifier associated with the discount key, the discount key generated by a discount key generator in response to completion of the previously negotiated prospective sale by a prospective sale system located remote from and disparate to the sales system, the discount key generator associated with the prospective sale system and remote from the sales system, wherein the discount key is associated with discount key data at the prospective sale system, and wherein the discount key data is remotely accessible by the sales system;

determining at least one item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

determining at least one discount associated with the at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

facilitating completion of the prospective sale at the sales system for the prospective customer based on the at least one determined item and the at least one determined discount associated with the at least one determined item based on the identified discount key, wherein facilitating completion includes;

determining that the at least one discount associated with at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key is an authorized discount, wherein determining that the at least one discount is an authorized discount includes using the unique identifier associated with the discount key by the sales system to remotely access discount key data stored at the prospective sale system; and

in response to determining that the at least one discount is the authorized discount, populating a shopping cart associated with the sales system with the at least one item at the associated discount price associated with the identified discount key; and

associating the completion of the prospective sale with a sales account for the sales person associated with the prospective sale, wherein associating the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with the sales account for the sales person comprises updating the sales account for the sales person by crediting the completed sale to the sales person.

13. The system of claim 12, where the identified discount key is encoded, further comprising decoding the identified discount key prior to determining the at least one item and the at least one discount associated with the at least one determined item.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the decoded discount key includes a set of information associated with the prospective sale.

15. The system of claim 13, where the identified discount key is encoded as a barcode, wherein decoding the identified discount key includes reading contents of the barcode.

16. The system of claim 13, where the identified discount key is encoded via encryption, where decoding the identified discount key includes decrypting the encrypted discount key.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the discount key is associated with a reference identifier to a specific discount record at the sales system, the one or more computers further performing operations comprising:

accessing the specific discount record associated with the discount key in the sales system in response to identifying the discount key; and

using at least a portion of the specific discount record to determine at least a portion of the prospective sale information associated with the discount key.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the discount key includes at least a subset of the following:

at least one item associated with the negotiated sale;

at least one discounted price associated with at least one of the items associated with the negotiated sale;

a set of sales person-specific information; and

a set of prospective customer data.

19. A computer program product encoded on a non-transitory storage medium, the product comprising computer readable instructions for causing one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

identify a discount key provided by a prospective customer, the discount key exclusively associated with a prospective sale previously negotiated between a sales person and a prospective customer, the discount key associated with the prospective sale based on a unique identifier associated with the discount key, the discount key generated by a discount key generator in response to completion of the previously negotiated prospective sale by a prospective sale system located remote from and disparate to the sales system, the discount key generator associated with the prospective sale system and remote from the sales system, wherein the discount key is associated with discount key data at the prospective sale system, and wherein the discount key data is remotely accessible by the sales system;

determine at least one item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

determine at least one discount associated with the at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key and the prospective sale based on the identified discount key;

facilitate completion of the prospective sale at the sales system for the prospective customer based on the at least one determined item and the at least one determined discount associated with the at least one determined item based on the identified discount key, wherein facilitating completion includes;

determining that the at least one discount associated with at least one determined item associated with the identified discount key is an authorized discount, wherein determining that the at least one discount is an authorized discount includes using the unique identifier associated with the discount key by the sales system to remotely access discount key data stored at the prospective sale system; and

in response to determining that the at least one discount is the authorized discount, populating a shopping cart associated with the sales system with the at least one item at the associated discount price associated with the identified discount key; and

associate the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with a sales account for the sales person associated with the prospective sale, wherein associating the completion of the prospective sale at the sales system with the sales account for the sales person comprises updating the sales account for the sales person by crediting the completed sale to the sales person.