AU2008101061A4 - On-line directory system - Google Patents

Description

30/10/2008 13:54 30/1/208 1:54 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 41 PAGE 04/19 o0 ON-LINE DIRECTORY SYSTEM (N Field of the Invention 'S The present application relates to on-line directory systems, and in particular, to o on-line directory systems that are useful to service providers and clients.

CC) Background of the Invention In personal service industries, such as the hairdressing and other beauty, health care, fitness, travel, food and beverage, legal, accounting industries and the like, the

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o relationship between an individual service provider/professional and the client is 2 particularly important. Often the relationship between the professional and the client is 00 one developed over time and is based on a mutual tust and an intimate understanding by 0 (N In personal service industries, individuals requiring specific personal services may be reluctant to trust this task to a professional with no prior history of servicing their needs. As personal services have significant impact on the personal circumstances of an individual, there is a degree of trust and mu~tual understanding required between the individual and. the professional. As such, the professional--client relationship in such industries is one that is often closer than a conventional business-customer relationship.

In this regard, should a professional cease employment with an employer to take up employment elsewhere, the client will often vvisb to follow the professional to retain their trusted and established professional--client relationship.

In all such industries, the problem. arises when a professional leaves an employer and the client loses contact with the professional. Within the hairdressing industry, for example, this may occur when a professional leaves a salon to work at another salon or to start up their own practice. Often, the professional may wish to contact their existing clients to notify them of such a move, but often, due to incomplete or outdated contact details, contractual agreements with or fiduciary obligations to their former employers etc, they may not be able to contact their existing clients. As such, when the client attempts to make an appointment with the professional at the professional's prior place of employment, they are often disappointed and faced with. the dilenmma of having to locate the professional or begin a new relationship with a new professional, which can be a difficult undertaking.

Any discussion of known or previously proposed or published documents, acts, materials, devices, articles, processes, methods, operations, or the like which has been COMS ID No: ARCS-21 1674 Received by IP Australia: Time (Him) 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/0/0091354 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 51 PAGE 05/19 00 o included in the present specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for Cl the present invention. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters t form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to o) the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this 0) Mn application.

It is an. object of the present invention to provide a system and method for maintaining and/or developing a relationship between a professional and a client within

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o the personal service industries, o Summary of the Invention 00 Throughout this specification the word "comprise", or variations such as 0 "1compnise 3" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated Cl element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.

When the feminine pronoun "he' or "shJei is used in the specification, including in the claims, the term is to be interpreted to include the masculine and, except where the context demonstrates an intention to refer to an individual person, also to include a business, group, or corporation.

According to a first aspect, the present invention provides an on-line directory system comprising: a database for storing at least two service provider profiles and at least two client profiles therein, each client profile including linking data to associate that respective client to at least one service provider profile; a user interface for allowing the service providers and clients to remotely access the database; and a directory operating system operative to control functioning of the directory system by providing functionality so that each service provider can access her own profile to edit and update it; (ii) each service provider can access at least part of the data in each client profile having linking data associating that client with the respective service provider to enable communication by the respective service provider with the linked client; (iii) each client can access her own profile to edit and update it, including to edit and update that client's linking data associating that client to her selected service provider(s); and 2 COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/0/0081354 61-3-99901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 61 PAGE 06/19 00 o(iv) each client can, access at least Part Of all service providers' profiles to identify or verify infonnation in the service providers' profiles.

O The user-interface may further allow for searching of the one or more stored service provider profiles to locate one or more service providers. The user interface may also be fuirther accessible by casual service users non-registered client service users) to search the one or more stored service provinder profiles to locate one or more service providers. The user interface may be a internet-based user interface in the form of a o home page/login page that can support user registration to become a client, searching and o password access by registered client users, as well as casual access for any non-registered 00 users wishing to find and locate a service provider that has afforded them excellent o service in the past or that they may wish to engage after viewing the service provider's profile.

The database may store the one or more service provider profiles in directories or sub grouaps according to tlhe types of services provided. The types of services may be differentiated by industry such as beauty, health care, fitness, legal, accounting and the like.

According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a method for facilitating comamunication between service providers and service using clients comprisingreceiving a profile of each of a number of service providers, each profile including information about the respective service provider's contact details and services provided; storing said profiles in a database, said database being searchable by service users; receiving a client profile including at least contact details of each of a number of service using clients requiring services from one or more service providers having their profiles stored in the database; storing said client profiles in the database; receiving and storing linking data to associate each service using client to at least one service provider whose services are identified by that client to be of interest to that client; and accessing by said service providers at least part of the client profiles of service using clients to facilitate communication by each service provider with service using clients having linking data associating these service using clients with that respective service provider.

3 COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 07/19 00 c The preferred method according to the invention further comprises the step of Q enabling each client to access to edit and update her profile to edit and update the linking O data associating that client to her selected service provider(s).

CC) Preferably each service provider is an individual person and the type of service provided by the service providers is selected from: hairdressing, beauty services, fitness services, and health services.

o The database may have searchable sub groups defined by the nature of services o offered by the service providers, and in this case preferably the method further comprises 00 the step of accessing by the service users the database firstly by defining at least one sub o group of services and secondly by searching service provider profiles within the defined sub group(s).

Brief Description of the Drawings By way of example only, the invention is now described with reference to the accompanying drawings: Fig. 1 is a block diagram representation of an embodiment of a possible database structure of the on-line directory system of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a flowchart of the process of subscribing as a "member" in the database; Fig. 3 is a flowchart of the process of registering as a "client" in the database; and Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing a method for a casual user to use the on-line directory system of the present invention in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description of an Exemplary Embodiment of the Invention Referring to FIG, 1, the database structure of an on-line directory system of the present invention is referred to generally by reference numeral 20. The on-line directory system is in the form of a central server with its directory operating system connected to the database by an appropriate data link. An administrator maintains the central server and database of the directory system, which is remotely accessible by one or more users of the directory system through the Internet. The on-line directory system comprises a user interface in the form of a home page/login page that can support user registration, searching and password access by registered users (called "clients"), as well as casual access for any non-registered user wishing to find and locate a professional who has afforded them the desired service in the past.

4 COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 38/8/282 3:5 61-3-99901 337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 21 PAGE 08/19 00 o As will become apparent below, the on-line directory system of the present 0 invention is intended for use by three types of users. A first type of user is referred to 'S below as a member, and is essentially a professional or service provider registered to the o directory system. The second type of user is referred to as a client and essentially refers 'to an individual or business who registers with the directory system to facilitate on-going communication between themselves and one or more of the members. The third type of user is a casual user and refers to an individual or business who accesses the directory IN system to locate a subscriber or registered member without themselves registering or 2 subscribing to the directory system. Prior to registering with to the directory system of the present invention, a client may already be a customer of one or more of the members.

00 Alternatively, a client may register with the directory system of the present invention in order to locate one or more members providing services of the kind sought.

The database 20 of the on-line directory system is structured into three main blocks represented by dashed lines. Industry block 22 defines the various industries that are applicable to the directory system, with the number of individual industries 23 listed being dependent upon the system providers' specifications of available iudustry directories being offered, and/or upon the number and industry breadth of members of the directory system. The individual industries 23 may be categorised into industries such as hairdressing, beauty, fitness and The like.

Member block 24 stores the profiles of individual members 25 that have registered with the directory system. As will be described in more detail below, individual members 25 are defined as professionals or service providers within one or more of the individual industries 23 specified in the industry block 22. In this regard, each industry 23 may have a dedicated member directory 26 which stores the profiles of the individual members 25 registered as providing services in that industry 23. As is shown, the member directory 26 of industry I1 includes members Mill, M 2 11,M1 which indicate that the members are all service providers within the same industry, 11.

It will be possible for a member to offer services that extend across various specialisations within their industry. In such instances, systems may provide multiple selectable options to a member when registering (or when updating the member's data) so that the member may have various specialisation.- stored (or referenced) within their profile stored in the member directories 26.

COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/8/0081354 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 91 PAGE 09/19 00 Client block 28 stores the profiles of individuals that subscribe to the on-like Cl directory system. Each client profile may be directly linked to directory profiles for one 0 or more individual members 25 to facilitate direct communication between the member o and the client in a manner to be described below.

It will be appreciated that the database 20 will be configured to facilitate searching of individual members 25 to assist clients in locating, tracking and reviewing individual members

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o The manner in which service providers subscribe as members to the on-line o directory system of the present invention is shown in detail in FIG.r 2. Firstly, in step 00 a service provider (SF) chooses to register by selecting the appropriate register/sign-up o option in a internet-based interface provided by or communicating with the server. In Cl step 32, the SP is then presented with a list of industry/service types and is prompted to select the appropriate industry. The types of industries/services may vary between broad business categories, such as health and beauty, trades people, health professionals, business services, travel and hospitality services, etc. and a SP may select one industry only or multiple industries if applicable.

At step 34, the SF is then prompted to enter their details to create their member profile. The directory system provides the SP with a data entry form for entering data such' as the individual's name, contact information, work history, current place of work and, contact details, services offered, location of any related service branches, area of specialisationi, customer policy, referral code, logo, banner, etc. The SP is also able to attach any files such as photographs and the like to assist in personalising their profile.

At step 36, the SP is provided with the terms and conditions for membership and use of the on-line directory system, which may include privacy and sparn conditions.

The SP is then asked to confirm that they have read and understood the terms and conditions of membership. Following such confirmnation, the SP's profile is then submitted by the SP (step 37) where it is saved by the directory system for review and later posting. At step 38, the SP is then prompted for payment of a subscription/joining fee and following payment of the appropriate fee the SP is issued with appropriate identification which indicates that the SP is a member of the on-line directory system (step 39). The member's profile is then posted and becomes accessible.

Since the member is an individual service provider or professional rather than a business or organisation, each member is able to personalise their profile where COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/0/0001354 61-3-99901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERY AE 81 PAGE 10/19 o0 appropriate. To achieve this, a member is able to log ont the drectory system at ay o time to view and edit their profile. The member may create a mailing list from their registered clients to update them of any changes to their profile, as well as providing their Q) registered clients with any promotions, available booking reservations,, etc. Such an arrangement enables personalised interaction between the member and their clients through the on-line directory system.

In another embodiment, the member profile may include a loyalty module that IND facilitates a "loyalty program" between the member and their registered and linked clients. Based on similar loyalty programs, members can provide incentives, such as discounts, free services or goods, etc., to registered clients that engage or promote the o0 member's services, and thus mutually benefiting both the member and registered clients.

0 The database system may include a register in which credits under the loyalty program are accumulated, e.g. upon each engagement of a member's services, to a credit account of each client for later redemption by the respective client.

The on-line directory may also include a "brag book" module that facilitates posting of testimonials from users of their favourie members. These testimonials may be sent to the members who can then choose to read, delete or store received testimonials. Alternatively, the member can incorporate the testimonial into their personalised profile. The "brag-book" may be implemented through a user interface in the form of an on-line journal, such as a blog.

Additional services may also be provided to the subscribing members by the online directory system. Such services may include the creation and ordering of business cards based on the information provided in the member's profile. Members may also be able to report nuisance clients/subscribers to the directory system administrator to resolve any conflict or issues that may arise through such a direct communication arrangement.

The directory system. may also provide regular reports to each of the members to show a variety of statistics, such as number of client logins per month, members by category, profile hits, certification of registered clients and other such statistical data.

The manner in which individuals register as clients to the on-line directory system of the present invention is shown in detail in FIG. 3. Firstly, in step 40, an individual user chooses to register by selecting the appropriate register/sign..up option in an internetbased interface. At step 42, the user is then prompted to enter their details to create their "6client profile". The directory system provides the user with a data entry form for 7 COMS ID No: ARCS-21 1674 Received by IP3 Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/102008 13:54 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 11/19 0 entering data such as the individual's name, contact information, personal particulars, 0 preferred method of contact, secondary method of contact, etc. The user may also be -t presented with a number of general questions to answer to further build-up their "client 0 profile" with information that may be of interest to members.

o At step 44, the user is provided with the terms and conditions for subscription and use of the on-line directory system, which may include privacy and sparm conditions.

The user is then asked to confirm that they have read and understood the terms and IN conditions of membership. Following such confirmation, the user's profile is then submitted by the user (step 45) where it is saved by the directory system for review and later posting. The user is then issued with appropriate identification that indicates that the 00 0 user is a registered client of the on-line directory system (step 46). The client's profile is C then posted and becomes accessible by designated members and the registered client.

Once the user has registered with the directory system, the status of the user changes to "client". The client may be able to create a unique user name and password that allows them to log into the directory system at their convenience. The client is then able to search the profiles of the registered members and create a link to a selected one or more of the members. The client is typically presented with an on-line search form, which enables searching of a variety of fields of the member's profile to identify or locate a member based on their industry.

The client may search on any one or more of the following criteria: area of specialisation; geography/location (eg. suburb, postcode); name (eg. first name, last name); member ID; pricing; and/or industry. The directory system will then display a list of members that satisfy the search criteria chosen. The client may then select the member(s) they wish to link to, after which the details of that member(s) or a data code or link to that member(s) are stored with the client's profile. The client may also indicate whether they wish to receive client-privileged promotions from their linked member(s).

The linked member(s) will then be informed by the directory system of the client's details and the client will be added to the member's mailing list to receive regular updates from the designated linked member.

Once registered, the client is able to edit their profile to update/change their personal details, contact information and/or subscription details as required. All changes that are made to the client's profile are stored by the directory system eliminating the need to send individual updates to each subscribed member and relying upon the member 8 COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/0/0091354 61-3-90901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PG 21 PAGE 12/19 00 updating their records. This ensures that all information stared within the directory CA system is up to date.

0 The on-line directory system of the present invention also has a function to support casual users that do not wish to permanently link to one or more members. In this regard, a casual user is able to access the directory system to perform a search for a registered member. Such a function enables casual users to locate a past service provider, or a service provider that may be recommended to them by a third party, or a service provider in their locality.

o An embodiment showing a manner in which a casual user may utilise the on-line 00 directory system of the present invention is shown in FIG. 4. In step 50, the casuial user 0 accesses the directory system through the internet via the home page/login page. In step 52, the casual user selects an industry from a list of industries provided on the home/login page in Which to search for a member. A search fonn is then presented to the casual user to enable the casual user to search the member profiles of the member directory in the industry chosen. The search form is structured to allow the casual user to search the specific member ID (if known) or to search. for part of a member's name. The search form also enables the search to be limited to a region/location, such as a state/suburb/location so as to further limit the search. Once data is entered, a search of the database is conducted, step 54.

The results of the search are determined in step 56 and if the search has resulted in no member matches the casual user is informed in step 57. An invitation may be made to the casual user for more information to broaden the search, and/or a list of subscribing members best fitting the criteria specified by the user is presented in step 59 to help the casual user to select a member, e.g. a member in the region of the casual user.

If the search resulted in one or more member matches, a list of the member matches is provided to the casual user in step 5 S. Where more than one match is provided, the list may be ordered in accordance with the most relevant Matches. Upon presentation of the list of matching member(s), the casual user decides whether they wish to view further information about one or more of the listed members, step 60 or whether to register as a client and create a link to a member. If the casual user decides not to resister to the directory system, they can download or print the result list or newer data and will then be returned to the home page step 61. Altcrnatively, if the casual user decides to link to one or more of the listed members, they can select the member(s) from 9 COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 61-3-98901337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 13/19 00 the list step 62, and be redirected to the registration page, step 64, to become registered Cl as a client in the manner as described above (FMG. 3).

0 Such a function to cater for casual users provides an additional service to members of the on-line directory system and enables them to generate new clients en through being paid subscribing members.

In addition to non registered casual users, the database system may also facilitate communication wjitb a service user upon a qualified basis. For example, a service user

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o who registers may elect to restrict communications from. service providers, including o linked service providers for example, to decline to accept all unsolicited 00 communications, or to request communications be stored for the user to accept or decline only when next logged on. Likewise, a causal user can elect to register but only on a limited basis, e.g. to have that casual user's latest search strategy stored so as to be alerted when next accessing the database if more subscribing service providers have profiles satisfying the search criteria.

The on-tine directory system of the present invention enhances the service provider-client relationship by providing personalised support and interaction between the service provider and the client. The on-line directory system allows members the ability to keep their linked clients informed about updates to their services and location, and also provides a forum for informing their subscribed clients about special deals on offer and any other ad-hoc information. The service provider can also easily inform their clients if they change employers or contact details by sending out an e-mail or SMS message through the on-line directory system to their mailing list of linked clients, in a simple operation, Registered clients and casual users can of course always locate a member at the latest address or contact details through the directory system.

The details of a preferred method of facilitating communications between member service providers and clients can be readily understood from the preceding description of the system..

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in,) all1 respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

COMS ID No: ARCS-21 1674 Received by P1 Australia: lime 14:52 Date 2008-10-30

Claims (1)

1. 2. A method for facilitating communication between service providers and service using clients comprising: receiving a profile of each of a number of service provider, each profile including information) about the respective service provider's contact details and services provided; storing said profiles in a database, said database being searchable by service users; receiving a client profile including at least contact details of each of a number of service using clients requiring services from one or more service providers having their profiles stored in the database; storing said client profiles in the database; receiving and storing linking data to associate each service using client to at least one service provider wbose services are identified by that client to be of interest to that client; and accessing by said service providers at least part of the client profiles of service using clients to facilitate comm-unication by each service provider with service using I I COMS ID No: ARCS-211674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30 30/10/2008 13:54 30/0/209 13:4 1-3-99901337 PATENT ATTORNEY EERV PG 51 PAGE 15/19 0o clients having linking data associating these service using clients with that respective 0 service provider. o 3 The method according to claim 2 further comprising: enabling each client to access to edit and update her profile to edit and update the linking data associating that client to her selected service provider(s). IND4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein each service provider is an individual person and wherein the type of service provided by the service providers is selected from: hairdressing, beauty services, fitness services, and health services. 00 0S. The method according to claim 2, 3 or 4 wherein said database has searchable sub groups defined by the nature of services offered by the service providers, said method further comprising: accessing by said service users said database firstly by defining at least one sub group of services and secondly by searching service provider profiles within the defined sub group(s). 12 COMS ID No: ARCS-21 1674 Received by IP Australia: Time 14:52 Date 2008-10-30