System and method for real-time updating service provider ratings

• US 7,720,705 B2
• Filed: 06/11/2003
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Service Trading Company, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Service Trading Company, Inc.
• Inventors: Stein, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson Boyce; Akiba K
• Application Number:
  US10/458,381
• Publication Number:
  US 20040044563A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,533 Days
• Field of Search: 705/10, 705/7, 705/1
• US Class Current: 705/7.32
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0203 Market surveys; Market polls

Abstract

Service providers are evaluated and rated according to criteria that includes customer satisfaction with the services provided by the service provider. If the service provider meets and/or exceeds certain predetermined criteria, the service provider is certified, and a list of certified companies together with a satisfaction rating, is posted on an Internet Web site maintained by the rating company for access by the consuming public. A member of the consuming public, wishing to use the service of a certified company, may register his/her credit card with the Rating Company. When the service is rendered, and paid for by the registered credit card, the payment is detected to trigger the sending of Internet e-mail to the consumer to solicit information as to the consumer'"'"'s satisfaction with the service. A response to the Internet e-mail by the Rating Company is used to update on a real-time basis the customer satisfaction of the service provider that provided the service.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving at a rating provider computer node a notification of a transaction between a customer via a customer computer node and a service provider via a service provider computer node using a payment method, the notification being sent to the rating provider computer node via a communication network in response to the transaction being identified by a financial service provider computer node based on a search conducted by the financial service provider computer node based on the payment method, the search being conducted after the transaction has been completed, the payment method being used to register the customer as an evaluator at the rating provider computer node before the payment method is provided to the service provider computer node to consummate the transaction;

sending to the customer via the customer computer node a request for a feedback from the customer regarding the transaction, the sending being performed in response to the notification; and

updating at the rating provider computer node a rating of the service provider based at least in part on the feedback received from the customer via the customer computer node.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the updating is performed in real-time, the method, further comprising:

changing a status of the service provider when the rating of the service provider falls below a predetermined criteria.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification is defined at the financial service provider computer node in response to the financial service provider computer node determining that the customer is registered as the evaluator.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification is associated with at least one of an amount of a payment associated with the transaction between the customer and the service provider or a date of the transaction.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the search is conducted by the financial service provider computer node based on a financial account number associated with the payment method, the financial account number is associated with one of a checking account or a credit card account, the notification includes the financial account number.

6. A method comprising:

sending, from a rating provider computer node, evaluator registration information associated with a plurality of customers to a financial service computer node via a communication network, the financial service computer node being independent from the plurality of customers and a service provider;

receiving from the financial service computer node a value associated with a monetary transaction between a customer from the plurality of customers and the service provider, the monetary transaction being detected at the financial service computer node based on the evaluator registration information;

sending to the customer via a customer computer node a feedback request associated with the monetary transaction based at least in part on the evaluator registration information and the value;

receiving, from the customer via the customer computer node, a feedback associated with the service provider; and

updating a service rating of the service provider based at least in part on the feedback.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the sending includes sending from the rating provider computer node, each customer from the plurality of customers is registered as an evaluator at the rating provider computer node, the monetary transaction is detected at the financial service computer node after the sending.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the value is a merchant number associated with the service provider, the receiving includes receiving a financial identifier associated with the customer, the merchant number and the financial identifier being included in the evaluator registration information, the sending includes sending based on the financial identifier.

9. A method comprising:

registering a customer at a rating provider computer node as an evaluator of a service provided by a service provider based on a financial account number associated with the customer;

receiving, at the rating provider computer node via a communication network, information associated with a transaction between the customer and the service provider from a third party computer node, the third party node being independent from the customer and the service provider; and

sending to a customer computer node associated with the customer via the communication network a feedback request associated with the transaction when the transaction is detected at the third party computer node based on the financial account number, the feedback request being at least partially based on the received information.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the third party computer node is a financial institution node of the service provider.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the transaction is detected at the third party computer node after the registering.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the sending includes sending only when the customer has been registered at the rating provider computer node as the evaluator of the service, the method further comprising:

receiving, from the customer via the customer computer node, feedback associated with the service provider in response to the feedback request; and

updating a service rating of the service provider based at least in part on the feedback.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the receiving includes receiving from the third party computer node when it is determined based on the financial account number that the customer has been registered at the rating provider computer node as the evaluator of the service.