Methods and systems for routing calls

• US 9,292,861 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Issued: 03/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Invoca, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Invoca, Inc.
• Inventors: Spievak, Jason S., Kelley, Colin D., Trandal, David S.
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, QUYNH H
• Application Number:
  US14/847,876
• Publication Number:
  US 20150379562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 196 Days
• Field of Search: 379/265.09, 379/265.01, 379/266.01, 379/266.07, 379/201.01, 379/309
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0202 Market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0246 Traffic
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0275 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/51 Centralised call answering arrangements requiring operator intervention , e.g. call or contact centers for telemarketing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5158 in combination with automated outdialling systems devices for signalling identity of wanted subscriber H04M1/26
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5175 Call or contact centers supervision arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services

Abstract

An online and offline communication processing and tracking using data processing and data/voice networks is described. A phone address from a phone address number pool is automatically assigned to a first entity. A call quality rating is determined and recorded. A call from a caller directed to the phone address is received at a call bridging system coupled to at least one network, wherein the call is associated with call signaling information. Based at least in part on the call quality associated with the caller call, the caller call is assigned to a first location in a call queue. An outbound call is generated from the call bridging system and the inbound and the outbound calls are bridged. One or more parameters of the bridged call are compared to the call quality rating. An indication is recorded regarding the successful bridging of the calls in association with an entity identifier.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a computing device;

a telephony interface configured to be coupled to a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN);

non-transitory media storing instructions readable by the computing device, that when executed by the computing device, cause the computing device to;

cause, at least in part, a first phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a first customer prospect in association with a first media element,

wherein the first phone address is selected from a pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the first phone address with a first persistent unique identifier;

cause, at least in part, a second phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a second customer prospect in association with the first media element,

wherein the second phone address is selected from the pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the second phone address with a second persistent unique identifier;

prior to a display of a second media element to the first customer prospect, determine whether a second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is online;

at least partly in response to a determination that the second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is online, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed on the second computing device of the first customer prospect in association with the second media element;

receive, via the telephony interface, a first call from the first customer prospect directed to the first phone address;

originate, via the telephony interface, a second call directed to a third phone address, wherein the third phone address is selected based at least in part on the received first call to the first phone address; and

bridge, via the telephone interface, the first call and the second call to enable the first customer prospect to communicate with a called party associated with the third phone address,

wherein the first media element, the second media element, or the first media element and the second media element are configured to be displayed to the first customer prospect in a Webpage or within the context of an application.

2. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the first persistent unique identifier is created using a received credential identifying the first customer prospect.

3. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the first phone address comprises a phone address local to the first customer prospect.

4. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the telephony interface comprises an Internet Protocol interface.

5. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a unique persistent identifier associated with the first phone address.

6. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a marketing funnel stage of the first customer prospect, the marketing funnel stage representing an indication of a likelihood that a customer prospect will be a customer for a good or service.

7. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a state of a marketing campaign in which the first customer prospect has been entered.

8. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the system is configured to:

subsequent to the display of the first media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed in association with the first media element on the second computing device of the first customer prospect.

9. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the system is configured to:

subsequent to the display of the first media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed in association with the second media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect.

10. A system, comprising:

a computing device;

a telephony interface configured to be coupled to a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN);

non-transitory media storing instructions readable by the computing device, that when executed by the computing device, cause the computing device to;

cause, at least in part, a first phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a first customer prospect in association with a first media element,

wherein the first phone address is selected from a first pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the first phone address with a first customer prospect identifier;

cause, at least in part, a second phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a second customer prospect in association with the first media element,

wherein the second phone address is selected from a second pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the second phone address with a second customer prospect identifier;

prior to a display of the first media element or a second media element on a second computing device associated with the first customer prospect, determine whether the second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is currently accessible over a communication medium;

at least partly in response to a determination that the second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is currently accessible over a communication medium, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed on the second computing device of the first customer prospect in association with the second media element;

receive, via the telephony interface, a first call from the first customer prospect directed to the first phone address; and

route a second call directed to a third phone address, wherein the third phone address is selected based at least in part on the received first call to the first phone address,

wherein the first media element, the second media element, or the first media element and the second media element comprise Web-based display media elements or are configured to be displayed within the context of an application.

11. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first customer prospect identifier comprises a persistent unique identifier.

12. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first customer prospect identifier comprises a secondary persistent unique identifier received or accessed from a Web service provider or applications provider.

13. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first pool of phone addresses comprises the second pool of phone addresses.

14. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first phone address comprises a toll-free phone address.

15. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the telephony interface comprises an Internet Protocol interface.

16. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a customer prospect identifier associated with the first phone address.

17. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a marketing funnel stage of the first customer prospect, the marketing funnel stage representing an indication of a likelihood that a customer prospect will be a customer for a good or service.

18. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the selection of the third phone address is further based upon a response to a query to determine a state of a marketing campaign in which the first customer prospect has been entered.

19. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the system is configured to:

subsequent to the display of the first media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed in association with the first media element on the second computing device of the first customer prospect.

20. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the system is configured to:

subsequent to the display of the first media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed in association with the second media element on the first computing device of the first customer prospect.

21. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first media element comprises an online merchant promotion.

22. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first customer prospect includes members of a household which share the first computing device, or which share the second computing device, or any combination thereof.

23. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein the first customer prospect comprises members that share at least one identity credential.

24. The system as defined in claim 10, wherein, during a marketing campaign in which the first customer prospect has been entered, the first phone address is not associated with a prospect identifier of another customer prospect for purposed of tracking campaign performance.

25. A system, comprising:

a computing device;

a telephony interface configured to be coupled to a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN);

non-transitory media storing instructions readable by the computing device, that when executed by the computing device, cause the computing device to;

cause, at least in part, a first phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a first customer prospect in association with a first media element,

wherein the first phone address is selected from a first pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the first phone address with a first customer prospect identifier;

cause, at least in part, a second phone address to be displayed on a first computing device of a second customer prospect in association with the first media element,

wherein the second phone address is selected from a second pool of phone addresses;

store in memory an association of the second phone address with a second customer prospect identifier;

prior to a display of a second media element to the first customer prospect, determine whether an application hosted on a second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is currently accessible over a communication medium;

at least partly in response to a determination that the application hosted on the second computing device associated with the first customer prospect is currently accessible over a communication medium, cause, at least in part, the first phone address to be displayed within the application hosted on the second computing device of the first customer prospect in association with the second media element;

receive, via the telephony interface, a first call from the first customer prospect directed to the first phone address; and

route a second call directed to a third phone address, wherein the third phone address is selected based at least in part on the received first call to the first phone address,

wherein the first media element, the second media element, or the first media element and the second media element comprise Web-based display media elements or are configured to be displayed within the context of an application.