Systems and methods for creating a rich social media profile

• US 9,953,273 B2
• Filed: 04/12/2012
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Ziemann, Tyler A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gorney, Boris
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, BAO G
• Application Number:
  US13/445,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20130007029A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,203 Days
• Field of Search: 707758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management

Abstract

Disclosed are systems, apparatus, methods and computer-readable media for updating information stored in a database system over a network. In some implementations, first contact data is retrieved from a first virtual portion of a database system, where the first contact data provides first contact information associated with at least one entity. In some instances, the first contact data is compared with second contact data, where the second contact data provides second contact information associated with the at least one entity. In some instances, at least some of the second contact information is retrieved from a social networking system. In various implementations, at least one difference between the first contact data and the second contact data is identified, where the at least one difference is capable of being presented in a user interface displayed at a computer system. In some instances, a selection identifying contact data to store is received.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

retrieving, using a database system, first contact data associated with at least one contact of a contact database of an online social network hosted by the database system, the contact database including a first virtual portion storing private contact data maintained by or on behalf of a first user of the online social network, the first contact data being retrieved from the private contact data, the contact database further including a second virtual portion storing shared contact data contributed by a plurality of users of the online social network, the shared contact data including existing contact data for the at least one contact;

comparing the first contact data with the existing contact data for the at least one contact, the shared contact data of the contact database being accessible and modifiable by the plurality of users of the online social network;

identifying at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the at least one difference being capable of being presented in a user interface displayed at a display device;

assessing, using the database system, credibility information of the first contact data, the credibility information of the first contact data being based on a characteristic of the first contact data, the characteristic of the first contact data being defined at least in part by a first seniority of a first contributor of the first contact data, the first seniority being in a hierarchy of workers of an organization for which the online social network is provided;

assessing, using the database system, credibility information of the existing contact data, the credibility information of the existing contact data being based on a plurality of characteristics of the existing contact data, the characteristics of the existing contact data being defined at least in part by;

a second seniority of a second contributor of the existing contact data, the second seniority being in the hierarchy of workers of the organization, the second seniority being lower in the hierarchy than the first seniority,

a designated reliability of the second contributor,

a response rate of the second contributor, and

a social influence of the second contributor;

comparing the credibility information of the first contact data with the credibility information of the existing contact data;

determining that the first contact data is more credible than the existing contact data based at least in part on the comparison; and

updating the existing contact data with the first contact data based on the determination.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein access to at least some of the existing contact data is managed by a database service provider.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

generating a report capable of being displayed in the user interface, the report providing a summary of the at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the generated report capable of being stored in tangible form.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first contact data includes first contact data items and the existing contact data includes existing contact data items.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first contact data items and the existing contact data items are stored in data fields of at least one record.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein comparing the first contact data with the existing contact data comprises comparing the first contact data items with the existing contact data items.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the at least one difference comprises identifying the at least one difference between the first contact data items and the existing contact data items.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first contact data and the existing contact data include biographical information of the at least one contact.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing the first contact data in the first virtual portion of the database system.

10. A database system comprising:

one or more databases configurable to store contact data capable of being displayed on a device; and

one or more database servers comprising one or more hardware processors, the one or more database servers configurable to;

retrieve first contact data associated with at least one contact of a contact database of an online social network hosted by the database system, the contact database including a first virtual portion storing private contact data maintained by or on behalf of a first user of the online social network, the first contact data being retrieved from the private contact data, the contact database further including a second virtual portion storing shared contact data contributed by a plurality of users of the online social network, the shared contact data including existing contact data for the at least one contact;

compare the first contact data with the existing contact data for the at least one contact, the shared contact data of the contact database being accessible and modifiable by the plurality of users of the online social network;

identify at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the at least one difference being capable of being presented in a user interface displayed at a display device;

assess credibility information of the first contact data, the credibility information of the first contact data being based on a characteristic of the first contact data, the characteristic of the first contact data being defined at least in part by a first seniority of a first contributor of the first contact data, the first seniority being in a hierarchy of workers of an organization for which the online social network is provided;

assess credibility information of the existing contact data, wherein the credibility information of the existing contact data is based on a plurality of characteristics of the existing contact data, the characteristics of the existing contact data being defined at least in part by;

a second seniority of a second contributor of the existing contact data, the second seniority being in the hierarchy of workers of the organization, the second seniority being lower in the hierarchy than the first seniority,

a designated reliability of the second contributor,

a response rate of the second contributor, and

a social influence of the second contributor;

compare the credibility information of the first contact data with the credibility information of the existing contact data;

determine that the first contact data is more credible than the existing contact data based at least in part on the comparison; and

update the existing contact data with the first contact data based on the determination.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein access to at least some of the existing contact data is managed by a database service provider.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the one or more servers are further configured to:

generate a report capable of being displayed in the user interface, the report providing a summary of the at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the generated report capable of being stored in tangible form.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the first contact data includes first contact data items and the existing contact data includes existing contact data items, and wherein the first contact data items and the existing contact data items are stored in data fields of at least one record.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the one or more servers are further configured to identify the at least one difference between the first contact data items and the existing contact data items.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the first contact data and the existing contact data include biographical information of the at least one entity.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the contact database is a component of a multi-tenant database system.

17. A computer program product comprising non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions to be executed by at least one processor, the instructions configured to cause:

retrieving, using a database system, first contact data associated with at least one contact of a contact database of an online social network hosted by the database system, the contact database including a first virtual portion storing private contact data maintained by or on behalf of a first user of the online social network, the first contact data being retrieved from the private contact data, the contact database further including a second virtual portion storing shared contact data contributed by a plurality of users of the online social network, the shared contact data including existing contact data for the at least one contact;

comparing the first contact data with the existing contact data for the at least one contact, the shared contact data of the contact database being accessible and modifiable by the plurality of users of the online social network;

identifying at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the at least one difference being capable of being presented in a user interface displayed at a display device;

assessing, using the database system, credibility information of the first contact data, the credibility information of the first contact data being based on a characteristic of the first contact data, the characteristic of the first contact data being defined at least in part by a first seniority of a first contributor of the first contact data, the first seniority being in a hierarchy of workers of an organization for which the online social network is provided;

assessing, using the database system, credibility information of the existing contact data, the credibility information of the existing contact data being based on a plurality of characteristics of the existing contact data, the characteristics of the existing contact data being defined at least in part by;

a second seniority of a second contributor of the existing contact data, the second seniority being in the hierarchy of workers of the organization, the second seniority being lower in the hierarchy than the first seniority,

a designated reliability of the second contributor,

a response rate of the second contributor, and

a social influence of the second contributor;

comparing the credibility information of the first contact data with the credibility information of the existing contact data;

determining that the first contact data is more credible than the existing contact data based at least in part on the comparison; and

updating the existing contact data with the first contact data based on the determination.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, the instructions further configured to cause:

generating a report capable of being displayed at the user interface, the report providing a summary of the at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the generated report capable of being stored in tangible form.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the first contact data includes first contact data items and the existing contact data includes existing contact data items, and wherein the first contact data items and the existing contact data items are stored in data fields of at least one record.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, the instructions further configured to cause:

storing the first contact data in the first virtual portion of the database system.

21. A system comprising:

a non-transitory data storage medium storing database system software for execution by at least one server of a database system, the database system software operable to cause;

retrieving first contact data associated with at least one contact of a contact database of an online social network hosted by the database system, the contact database including a first virtual portion storing private contact data maintained by or on behalf of a first user of the online social network, the first contact data being retrieved from the private contact data, the contact database further including a second virtual portion storing shared contact data contributed by a plurality of users of the online social network, the shared contact data including existing contact data for the at least one contact;

comparing the first contact data with the existing contact data for the at least one contact, the shared contact data of the contact database being accessible and modifiable by the plurality of users of the online social network;

identifying at least one difference between the first contact data and the existing contact data, the at least one difference being capable of being presented in a user interface displayed at a display device;

assessing credibility information of the first contact data, the credibility information of the first contact data being based on a characteristic of the first contact data, the characteristic of the first contact data being defined at least in part by a first seniority of a first contributor of the first contact data, the first seniority being in a hierarchy of workers of an organization for which the online social network is provided;

assessing credibility information of the existing contact data, the credibility information of the existing contact data being based on a plurality of characteristics of the existing contact data, the characteristics of the existing contact data being defined at least in part by;

a second seniority of a second contributor of the existing contact data, the second seniority being in the hierarchy of workers of the organization, the second seniority being lower in the hierarchy than the first seniority,

a designated reliability of the second contributor,

a response rate of the second contributor, and

a social influence of the second contributor;

comparing the credibility information of the first contact data with the credibility information of the existing contact data;

determining that the first contact data is more credible than the existing contact data based at least in part on the comparison; and

updating the existing contact data with the first contact data based on the determination.