Methods and systems for creating online unified contact and communication management (CM) platform

• US 9,953,465 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2016
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seema Subrao Shenoy, Subrao Venugopal Shenoy
• Original Assignee: Seema Subrao Shenoy, Subrao Venugopal Shenoy
• Inventors: Shenoy, Subrao Venugopal, Shenoy, Seema Subrao
• Primary Examiner(s): Keller, Michael A
• Application Number:
  US15/184,851
• Publication Number:
  US 20160371654A1
• Time in Patent Office: 677 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1097 Task assignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/01 Customer relationship services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 1/14 with apparatus adapted for use with individual cards
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/026 using e-messaging for transporting management information, e.g. email, instant messaging or chat
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5064 Customer relationship management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5077 wherein the managed service relates to simple transport services, i.e. providing only network infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5093 wherein the managed service relates to messaging or chat services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4555 Directories for electronic mail or instant messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72451 according to schedules, e.g. using calendar applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/655 Combination of telephone service and social networking messaging within social networks H04L51/52
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 : Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077

Abstract

Sales people (agents) get engaged with a lot of contacts from past, present and future prospects that manifests on multiple contact platforms. They end up having their contacts and calendars split in multiple places including communication and messages leading to inefficiencies, loss of business and delayed response time to the end customer. Customer Relationship Management today is still a one dimensional tool, one that featured Email as the core for direct agent-client relationship. CRM should be redefined and relabeled as Communication Management to open up the idea that relationships with clients are developed across multiple platforms though multiple channels. As will be understood by reading below, the invention accomplishes this in an elegant manner. The phrases Communication Management in the main patent title and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) have the same semantics in this document.

Claims

1. An online unified contact and communication management platform having one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable medium containing program instructions that cause said one or more processors to:

create and store user profiles associated with individual users, including individual user calendars in a database stored in non-transitory memory;

securely access a plurality of first user accounts associated with a first user on a plurality of social networking platforms via a computer network;

selectively import and store information associated with each of a plurality of contacts from the accessed first user accounts in an associated first user profile,

wherein the plurality of contacts are associated with the first user accounts and are found by searching through the social networking platforms, through the unified contact and communication management platform, or both, and

wherein contacts found by searching through the social networking platforms or through the unified contact and communication management platform can be selectively authorized to contact the first user account associated with the first user profile on the respective social networking platform; and

selectively aggregate and update information for the plurality of imported contacts from the accessed accounts for the first user;

selectively set at least one automatic notification for at least one contact based on a contact related status update via a secondary communication;

securely export contact information for the first user contacts to a plurality of selected accounts at a plurality of social networking platforms using email, instant messaging, social networks, or integrated telephony;

securely import and store a plurality of first user calendars from one or more online accounts at a plurality of social networking platforms accessed by the first user via the network;

securely export selected calendar information from the database to a first user selected and authorized account on one of a plurality of social networking platforms using email, instant messaging, social networks, or integrated telephony; and

wherein the online unified contact and communication management platform enables the first user to send and receive instant messages with the one or more imported contacts via the network, and

wherein the platform can automatically transmit messages during a plurality of first user scheduled and timed micro-blog events to imported contacts via the network on the imported contacts'"'"' social media platform of origin, based on selective first user groupings, providing targeted campaigns based at least on the first user scheduling the timed micro-blog events during the targeted campaigns using the first user calendar.

2. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, wherein contacts and calendars are imported using software plug-in enabled on user'"'"'s systems or browsers.

3. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, wherein the imported contacts are automatically grouped into social groups or made part of an existing social campaign.

4. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, further configured to authorize, provide and save social media searches.

5. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, wherein imported contact or calendar information from one social media source on a first social networking platform can be further used to cross-reference and search user profiles automatically from at least one other social media sources on at least one or more other social networking platforms concurrently and store cross-referenced information found by the search in the database.

6. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, further configured to selectively import and synchronize contacts via the network using rules.

7. The online unified contact and communication management platform of claim 1, further provides user communication with the plurality of social networking platforms via the network.

8. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 1, wherein imported contacts are selectively grouped into one or more social groups or assigned to one or more new or existing social campaigns.

9. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 8, wherein the one or more social groups or one or more new or existing social campaign is targeted to recruitment.

10. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 8, wherein the one or more social groups or one or more new or existing social campaign is targeted to sales.

11. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 8, further comprising:

selectively transmitting at least one message to contacts in the one or more social groups or assigned to the one or more new or existing social campaign based on a timing element.

12. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 1, further comprising:

a transaction management platform coupled with the network and comprising at least one compliance database operable to receive information authentication and authorization information for users and contacts.

13. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 1, further comprising:

a financial management platform coupled with the network and comprising at least one money database operable to receive information authentication and authorization information for users and contacts.

14. The online unified contact and communication platform of claim 1, further comprising at least one interface operable to provide custom searching, reviewing and creating online flyers for a plurality of properties.