Dynamic pricing for physical stores

• US 9,697,531 B1
• Filed: 09/20/2013
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Square Inc (Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.))
• Inventors: Bourget, Erik William
• Primary Examiner(s): Singh, Gurkanwaljit
• Application Number:
  US14/032,585
• Time in Patent Office: 1,383 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0206 Price or cost determination based on market factors

Abstract

Techniques of dynamic pricing for physical stores are described. A server handling purchase transactions of multiple physical stores can aggregate sales data on goods and services and determine a pattern. The server can determine that sales of an item of goods or services at a particular physical store deviate from the pattern at a particular time. Upon determining that sales price of the item significantly correlates to the deviation, the server can determine a suggested price for correcting the deviation. As an experiment, the server can conduct an experiment of selling the item at the suggested price at the particular time for a given time period. The server can present results of the experiment to an operator of the physical store.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a payment processing system, from one or more merchant devices located at a physical store, price information, and sales information of a merchandise item sold at the physical store, the sales information including a quantity of the merchandise item being sold over a time period at the physical store;

determining, at the payment processing system, based on the sales information, that a sales variance occurs in a time slot within the time period, the sales variance including a dip or spike in the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot, the dip or spike being a deviation from a statistical average that exceeds a threshold amount;

in response to determining the sales variance occurs in the time slot within the time period, predicting, at the payment processing system, based on the price information, that increasing or decreasing a price of the merchandise item to an adjusted price in the time slot will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change by a delta quantity value that at least partially offsets the sales variance;

adjusting, by the payment processing system, via the one or more merchant devices associated with the physical store, the price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price for a duration of the time slot;

receiving, at the payment processing system, a first indication of sales of the merchandise item at the adjusted price during the duration of the time slot;

determining, at the payment processing system, whether a change in a quantity of the merchandise item sold during the duration of the time slot corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value; and

providing, by the payment processing system, to at least one device of the one or more merchant devices, a second indication of whether the change in quantity corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value, the second indication for display on a display device,

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices at the payment processing system, and

wherein the one or more merchant devices are programmed to;

display at least one of the price or the adjusted price for the merchandise item; and

receive customer account information regarding payment for the merchandise item.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the sales variance occurs in a time slot comprises determining, based on the sales information, that the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot deviates, by at least a threshold amount, from at least one of:

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in one or more comparable physical stores, or

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the physical store in at least one other time slot within the time period.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein adjusting the price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change comprises:

determining, based on a probabilistic model, that a variable most strongly correlated to the dip or spike is the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot; and

determining the adjusted price based on a magnitude of the dip or spike and a degree of correlation between the price and the dip or spike.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the adjusted prices comprises:

providing an option of rejecting the adjusted price; and

providing an option of automatically determining time-based prices of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store using the one or more computing devices.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising, upon receiving a selection of the option of automatically determining time-based prices of the merchandise item:

determining a time-based price schedule of selling the merchandise item at the physical store based on a location of the physical store; and

automatically adjusting, by the one or more computing device, the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store according to the time-based price schedule.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising:

providing a suggestion, from the payment processing system, to the one or more merchant devices, on adjusting the price of the merchandise item and suggestions on adjusting prices of a group of merchandise items including the merchandise item as packaged information for display in a dashboard on a user device.

7. A system, comprising:

one or more computing devices;

a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions operable to cause the one or more computing devices to perform operations comprising;

receiving, at a payment processing system, from one or more merchant devices located at a physical store, price information, and sales information of a merchandise item sold at a physical store, the sales information including a quantity of the merchandise item being sold over a time period at the physical store;

determining, at the payment processing system, based on the sales information, that a sales variance occurs in a time slot within the time period, the sales variance including a dip or spike in the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot, the dip or spike being a deviation from a statistical average that exceeds a threshold amount;

in response to determining the sales variance occurs in the time slot within the time period, predicting, at the payment processing system, based on the price information, that increasing or decreasing a price of the merchandise item to an adjusted price in the time slot will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change by a delta quantity value that at least partially offsets the sales variance;

adjusting, by the payment processing system, via the one or more merchant devices associated with the physical store the price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price for a duration of the time slot;

receiving, at the payment processing system, a first indication of sales of the merchandise item at the adjusted price during the duration of the time slot;

determining, at the payment processing system, whether a change in a quantity of the merchandise item sold during the duration of the time slot corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value; and

providing, by the payment processing system, to at least one device of the one or more merchant devices, a second indication of whether the change in quantity corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value, the second indication for display on a display device,

wherein the one or more merchant devices being programmed to;

display at least one of a price or the adjusted price for the merchandise item; and

receive customer account information in payment for the merchandise item.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein determining that the sales variance occurs in a time slot comprises determining, based on the sales information, that the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot deviates, by at least a threshold amount, from at least one of:

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in one or more comparable physical stores, or

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the physical store in at least one other time slot within the time period.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein predicting that adjusting price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change comprises:

determining, based on a probabilistic model, that a variable most strongly correlated to the dip or spike is the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot; and

determining the adjusted price based on a magnitude of the dip or spike and a degree of correlation between the price and the dip or spike.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein providing the adjusted price further comprises:

providing an option of rejecting the adjusted price; and

providing and option of automatically determining time based prices of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store using the one or more computing devices.

11. The system of claim 10, the operations comprising, upon receiving a selection of the option of automatically determining time based prices of the merchandise item:

determining a time based price schedule of selling the merchandise item at the physical store based on a location of the physical store; and

automatically adjusting, by the one or more computing device, the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store according to the time based price schedule.

12. The system of claim 7, the operations comprising:

providing a suggestion on adjusting the price of the merchandise item and suggestions on adjusting prices of a group of merchandise items including the merchandise item as packaged information for display in a dashboard on a user device.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more computing devices to perform operations comprising:

receiving, at a payment processing system, from one or more merchant devices located at a physical store, cost information, price information, and sales information of a merchandise item sold at a physical store, the sales information including a quantity of the merchandise item being sold over a time period at the physical store;

determining, at the payment processing system, based on the sales information, that a sales variance occurs in a time slot within the time period, the sales variance including a dip or spike in the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot, the dip or spike being a deviation from a statistical average that exceeds a threshold amount;

in response to determining the sales variance occurs in the time slot within the time period, predicting, at the payment processing system, based on the price information and the cost information, that increasing or decreasing a price of the merchandise item to an adjusted price in the time slot will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change by a delta quantity value that at least partially offsets the sales variance, including determining that the adjusted price is greater than or equal to a cost of the merchandise item;

adjusting, by the payment processing system, via the one or more merchant devices associated with the physical store to adjust the price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price for a duration of the time slot;

receiving a first indication of sales of the merchandise item at the adjusted price during the duration of the time slot;

determining, at the payment processing system, whether a change in a quantity of the merchandise item sold during the duration of the time slot corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value;

providing, by the payment processing system, to at least one device of the one or more merchant devices, a second indication of whether the change in quantity corresponds to the predicted delta quantity value, the second indication for display on a display device, and

providing the adjusted price to an operator of the physical store of the merchandise item during the time slot,

wherein the one or more merchant devices being programmed to;

display at least one of the price or the adjusted price for the merchandise item; and

receive customer account information in payment for the merchandise item.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein determining that the sales variance occurs in a time slot comprises determining, based on the sales information, that the quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the time slot deviates, by at least a threshold amount, from at least one of:

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in one or more comparable physical stores, or

a quantity of the merchandise item being sold in the physical store in at least one other time slot within the time period.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14, wherein predicting that adjusting the price of the merchandise item to the adjusted price will cause the quantity of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot to change comprises:

determining, based on a probabilistic model, that a variable most strongly correlated to the dip or spike is the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store in the time slot; and

determining the adjusted price based on a magnitude of the dip or spike and a degree of correlation between the price and the dip or spike.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein adjusting the adjusted price further comprises:

providing an option of rejecting the adjusted price; and

providing an option of automatically determining time based prices of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store using the one or more computing devices.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, the operations comprising, upon receiving a selection of the option of automatically determining time based prices of the merchandise item:

determining a time based price schedule of selling the merchandise item at the physical store based on a location of the physical store; and

automatically adjusting, by the one or more computing device, the price of the merchandise item being sold at the physical store according to the time based price schedule.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, the operations comprising:

providing a suggestion on adjusting the price of the merchandise item and suggestions on adjusting prices of a group of merchandise items including the merchandise item as packaged information for display in a dashboard on a user device.