JP2002521755A - Method and apparatus for obtaining consumer data in exchange for consumer rewards via networked resources - Google Patents

Abstract

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A method and apparatus for obtaining consumer data in exchange for a consumer reward, including a scanner, a personal computer, a monitor, a mouse, and a laser printer installed at a point of sale. The consumer selects an item on the display, enters a kiosk surrounding the purchased device, and scans a machine-readable code on one or more tags attached to the item. Once the consumer data has been inserted by the consumer into the displayed registration form, it is transmitted to the data management center via the Internet for storage, query, analysis, and distribution. Provide reward data via the Internet. Reward data is printed by a laser printer and provided to consumers.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This patent application is filed on Jul. 23, 1998, co-pending US Provisional Application No.
No. 0 / 093,902 to claim its priority.

[0002] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for obtaining consumer data in exchange for consumer reward via the Internet.

[0003]

[Prior art]

Typically, competition between manufacturers in the shoe and garment industries is very severe. Often, the purchase of such items has been guided by the manufacturer and the consumer's perception of the item. Advertising agencies promote products to increase demand for them,
They are forced to continually pursue new and innovative ways to improve customer loyalty and interest in their target markets.

[0004] Thus, once purchased, cost-effective devices and methods that can increase demand for products and maintain customer loyalty are of great advantage to manufacturers.

To consistently achieve these goals, manufacturers must provide detailed and up-to-date customer demographics, as well as specific items, including demand, distribution network flows, supplies, and sales prices. Must have access to information about the product. The demand for this type of accurate information is very high. Such information is of crucial importance to many related industries, such as clothing industry employee associations, textile importers and manufacturers, as well as raw material and labor providers. The major problem with obtaining this information is that, after making a purchase, consumers do not want to be willing to provide accurate and detailed information about themselves, their lifestyle, and the purchase.

[0006] Thus, an apparatus and method for providing comprehensive and accurate information about a consumer who will eventually become a consumer and the particular product or item purchased is an advantage for the manufacturer of the item and for those working in related industries. Is good.

[0007] Due to the increasing popularity, convenience and success of the nationwide chain of "superstores", the livelihood of smaller stores is at stake. Factors such as discounts and efficiencies created by the large volumes of goods delivered to consumers make it difficult for small stores to compete with large chains. Efforts for smaller stores to co-market with each other or co-market with stores in similar situations can be complex, costly, and generally ineffective.

[0008] Thus, an apparatus and method that facilitates co-marketing and other alliances between businesses in a cost-effective manner would be extremely advantageous for such businesses.

[0009]

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

In addition, as the cost of shoes and clothing increases, so must the discounts on selling prices by means of providing coupons and other discounts. The increasing value of such discounts, while redeeming such discounts, may increase the benefits of fraudulent acts that multiply the discounts and significantly reduce the profits of the manufacturer, defeating the purpose of providing such discounts.

[0010] Thus, an apparatus and method that enhances security against fraudulent acts of redeeming discounts would be advantageous to providers of such rewards.

[0011]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

According to the present invention, there is provided a method and apparatus for obtaining consumer data in exchange for a consumer reward, comprising a scanner, a personal computer, a monitor, a mouse, and a laser printer. The consumer selects an item on the display and carries the item to a cashier to complete the purchase. The consumer then enters a kiosk or other definable area surrounding the device and scans a machine-readable code or barcode on one or more tags attached to the item. Scanning the barcode associated with the item provides the item data to the personal computer. A registration form is then displayed on the monitor, on which the consumer completes the demographic data by inserting his data. Consumer data, including product data and demographic data, is transmitted to a data management center via the Internet for storage, query, analysis, and distribution.

Further, in accordance with the present invention, the benefit of playing a game on a personal computer is provided to the consumer in exchange for the burden of scanning the shoes and completing the registration form. Upon receiving consumer data over the Internet, optionally including game results or outcomes, the data management center provides the device with reward data over the Internet. Reward data is printed by a laser printer and provided to consumers. The consumer receives information for downloading software diskettes or software from the Internet that allows the consumer to play more games and earn more rewards elsewhere, such as at the consumer's home.

Further in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a method and apparatus for obtaining consumer data at a location remote from a point of sale in exchange for a consumer reward.

[0014]

Embodiment

First Embodiment FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of an apparatus 10 for obtaining consumer data in exchange for a consumer reward according to the present invention, which is installed at a point of sale such as a shoe retail store. ing.
The apparatus 10 includes a scanner 12, a keyboard 18, a workstation or personal computer (PC) 14, a monitor 16, a joystick, a mouse or pointing tool 20, and a laser printer 22. The consumer selects a pair of shoes on display 24 and carries the shoes to a cashier to complete the purchase. Thereafter, the consumer enters a kiosk or other definable area with the device 10.

When entering the kiosk, the scanner 1 connected to the personal computer 14
2, the consumer can use a machine-readable symbol (eg, a bar code) on one or more tags attached to the product, such as a pair of shoes (or on a symbol embedded in the product itself). to scan. Scanning of symbols such as barcodes associated with the shoe will result in product-specific data such as manufacturer, style, product name, model, size, store of purchase, date of purchase, as well as any other information encoded on the tag. Information is provided to the personal computer 14. A registration form is then displayed on the monitor 16 on which the consumer can use the attached keyboard 18 and mouse 20 to display demographic data such as age, occupation, salary, hobbies, name, and address; Complete with additional purchase and product data that may not be on the tag, such as purchase price, factors that contributed to the final selection, product preferences, etc. Consumer data, including product data and demographic data, is transmitted to a data management center 28 via a computer link, such as the Internet 30, for storage, collation, analysis, and distribution. The personal computer 14 can automatically label the data with temporal data such as the date and time of purchase.

[0016] In return for the burden of scanning the product and completing the registration form,
The consumer is provided with the benefit of playing a game on the personal computer 14 using the keyboard 18, joystick or mouse 20, and monitor 16. Consumer data, including optional game outcomes or results,
Upon receipt via the Internet 30, the data management center 28 provides the device 10 with reward data via the Internet 30. This reward data can take the form of a coupon for the next purchase at the same store or another store. The coupon is printed by the laser printer 22 and provided to the consumer. The reward may inform the consumer of the printed matter (eg, coupon) of the laser printer 22, an identification card or royalty card, or where to enter his or her registration information or identification code to obtain additional rewards. Visual information and / or
Or it can be provided as audible information. Optionally, the consumer has the information to download the software diskette or software from the Internet, which allows the consumer to play more games and earn more rewards elsewhere, such as the consumer's home. Receive.

The reward may also be in the form of providing access to a content site 32 containing information related to the purchased merchandise, such as a professional athlete's fan club supporting the particular style of shoes purchased. Can also be taken. Here, the content site 32 may obtain additional consumer data from the consumer via the Internet 30 to qualify for a fan club, ticket to a sporting event at a reduced price, a product recognized by the team, or a team. Providing additional reward data, such as the upcoming season.

The data management center 28 functions as a centralized repository for consumer data. Data management center 28 collects, processes, analyzes, markets, distributes, or resells consumer data or provides it to interested parties or entities, such as manufacturers. In this way, important and accurate consumer data can be collected at points of sale where consumer interest has peaked.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the present invention of an apparatus 10 for obtaining consumer data in exchange for a consumer reward, which is installed away from a point of sale, such as a consumer's home. Is shown. Substantially the same configuration and procedure as described above with respect to the first embodiment, except that scanner 12 is optional, since many consumers do not have access to such input devices. The same applies to the second embodiment. To provide the merchandise data to the data management center 28 and gain access to rewards, the consumer does not scan the shoes, but instead, via a keyboard, the alphanumeric characters appearing on the tags. Enter coded information. Second
In an embodiment, the consumer is provided with information for accessing an Internet site, including a registration form at the point of sale for purchasing his or her product. Consumer rewards, such as games and coupons, encourage consumers to participate in the registration process, even after purchases have been made away from the point of sale, so using the second embodiment, Important and accurate consumer data can be collected.

FIG. 3 illustrates the steps of using the first embodiment of the device 10 shown in FIG.
4 is a relational flow diagram associated with a party or service that performs a particular step, such as a consumer, the Internet, a data management center, or a content site. First, a consumer selects shoes, or goods, and buys them at a cashier. The consumer then takes the item to the kiosk and scans one or more tags that provide item data to the data management center via the Internet. The consumer then completes the registration form that appears on the monitor by entering the appropriate response on the keyboard.

Completion of the registration form provides demographic data to the data management center via the Internet. Next, the consumer selects a game on the device and plays the game,
The game result is provided to the data management center via the Internet. The data management center monitors, records, processes, analyzes and distributes consumer data, including merchandise data, demographic data, and game results, to interested parties or entities, such as manufacturers. The data management center optionally determines the appropriate reward data based on the outcome of the game (ie, whether the consumer has won or lost) and sends the reward data to the device via the Internet. And U.S. Patent Application Nos. 60 / 058,153 and 09/075, which are incorporated herein by reference.
238, the data management center optionally performs encryption, and the device provides a security reward document, coupon, or certificate as "secure document" reward data.

As a further form of reward, consumers are provided access to a content site that contains information associated with the purchased merchandise. This access may require the entry of additional consumer data that is monitored, recorded, processed, analyzed, resold, or distributed by the content site. Reward data is transmitted to the device to provide further rewards to the consumer. Consumers get access to additional rewards, for example, Internet sites and games in the form of Internet site addresses displayed on diskettes or monitors.

FIG. 4 is substantially similar to that of FIG. 3, except that the steps following the purchase of the item are performed at a location remote from the point of sale, such as the consumer's home. Is a relational flow diagram relating the steps using the second embodiment of the device 10 shown in Figure 1 to the party or service performing the steps. In addition, since the consumer is unlikely to have a scanner, product data can optionally be read from a tag and entered as alphanumeric via a keyboard.

The rewards offered as incentives to participate in providing consumer data include games, credits for the next game, gift certificates, lotteries, lotteries, tickets to sporting events, team souvenirs , Team-supported products, training camps, sports equipment, proof of participation, toys, coupons, identification cards, loyalty or membership cards, giveaways, networked resource chat groups, and the like.

The means of communication between the device of the present invention and a data management center or content site may be the Internet or alternative networked alternatives known in the art.

Products tagged according to the present invention include clothes, sports equipment, toys, musical instruments,
Or any type of item that is sold, leased, rented, or transferred or transported. The present invention can also be used in connection with selling services by providing consumers with tags when purchasing services.

[0027] The apparatus and method of the present invention enable co-marketing of multiple retail providers by linking rewards generated by purchasing goods in one store to discounts on goods in another store. To

FIG. 5A shows two tags attached to a pair of shoes, and FIG. 5B shows two tags attached to a shirt. The size of the tag is disproportionately large for the item to show the details of the tag. Universal product code (UPC) tag 34 typically includes a machine readable code, such as a one-dimensional code that provides manufacturer identification and product identification information. The additional tag, tag 36, has the same complexity, or 2
Using higher complexity machine readable codes, such as dimensional barcodes, to convey additional information, such as the serial number of an item as an individual item, rather than just the model or style name of a class of item, Can be attached to goods. In addition to the machine readable codes provided on the tags, alphanumeric representations of these codes are provided for use by the scanner as in the second embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. Enables entry of coded information when not possible. Further details regarding machine readable code are disclosed in U.S. Patent Application No. 5,504,322, which is incorporated herein by reference.

The scanner is a bar code scanner, a scanning wand, as shown in FIG. 6, where the consumer places his or her feet while wearing shoes with tags, ie, goods.
Any type of scanner capable of scanning machine readable symbols, such as a scanner activated by a trip pedal or a set of boots on device 10. Also, the scanner can be installed at any height and location and still fall within the scope of the present invention. The device 10 shown in FIG. 6 is adapted for a consumer sitting at the point of sale and includes a monitor 16, a keyboard 18, a mouse 20, a joystick 21, a laser printer 22, and a scanner 12.

As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the tag can be attached to the item or embossed into the fibers, rubber, or material of the item.

Information provided to the consumer regarding access to additional rewards may be provided via a diskette containing software that allows access to additional Internet and networked resource sites, or to a display, cashier, or It can be provided to consumers via cut-away sheets provided with the product at the kiosk.

In machine readable code, it is possible to encode the computer's resource location (ie, URL) on the Internet, which can be used to exchange appropriate information. To easily connect to the desired server. In this case, the scanner sends the U
The RL is read and the decrypted URL is used to cause the computer to access the appropriate network resources.

Although the present invention has been shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiments, the forms and details described above may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention and within the scope that can be conceived by those skilled in the art. It is within the scope of the present invention that various other changes, exclusions, and additions can be made.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a first embodiment of an apparatus for obtaining consumer data in exchange for a consumer reward installed at a point of sale according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the device shown in FIG. 1 installed remotely from the point of sale.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a relationship illustrating a method for using the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a relational flow diagram illustrating a method for using the apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5A illustrates a tag attached to a product for use in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 5B shows a tag attached to a product for use in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a kiosk surrounding the device of the present invention shown in FIG.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (81) Designated country EP (AT, BE, CH, CY, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, IE, IT, LU, MC, NL, PT, SE ), OA (BF, BJ, CF, CG, CI, CM, GA, GN, GW, ML, MR, NE, SN, TD, TG), AP (GH, GM, KE, LS, MW, SD, SL, SZ, UG, ZW), EA (AM, AZ, BY, KG, KZ, MD, RU, TJ, TM), AE, AL, AM, AT, AU, AZ, BA, BB, BG, BR , BY, CA, CH, CN, CU, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, GB, GD, GE, GH, GM, HR, HU, ID, IL, IN, IS , JP, KE, KG, KP, KR, KZ, LC, LK, LR, LS, LT, LU, LV, MD, MG, MK, MN, MW, MX, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RU, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, TJ, TM, TR, TT, UA, UG, UZ, VN, YU, ZA, ZW (72) Inventor Hill, John United States 33901 Florida, Fo To Myers, Second Street 2201, Suite 600 (72) Inventor Thuif, Jennifer United States 33901 Florida, Four Myers, Second Street 2201, Suite 600

Claims (18)

[Claims] 1. A method for obtaining data relating to a purchase of an item by a consumer, the method comprising: a) providing a machine readable symbol associated with the item to be purchased, the machine readable symbol being encrypted. Wherein the symbol comprises information about the item purchased; b) reading the machine readable symbol using an input device associated with a local computer; c) the item purchased. Storing data containing information about the item; d) executing a program on a local computer configured to request information associated with a purchase of the item from a consumer; e) a consumer. Entering the requested information into a local computer; and f) storing the requested information entered by the consumer. A method comprising: 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises the step of providing a reward to the consumer in exchange for entering the requested information. The method. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the reward award includes a permission to play a game on a computer. 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the reward reward provides a consumer with the ability to access certain content associated with the purchased item. Method. 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the reward award includes a coupon to enable the consumer to obtain additional goods and services at a discounted price. . 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the information about the purchased item includes a product name. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the information about the purchased item includes a size of the item. 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the information about the purchased item includes a color of the item. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the machine readable symbols are bar code symbols. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the bar code symbol comprises:
The method, wherein the method is imprinted on a tag associated with the item. 11. The method of claim 9, wherein the bar code symbol comprises:
The method, wherein the method is imprinted on the item. 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the bar code symbol comprises:
The method, wherein the method is imprinted on a package associated with the item. 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the data including the information about the purchased item is stored on a remote computer coupled to a local computer via a computer network. Said method. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the machine readable symbols are suitable access information to enable a local computer to automatically connect to a remote computer via a computer network. The method comprising: 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the access information includes a URL of a remote computer. 16. A system for obtaining data regarding a purchase of an item by a consumer, the item having an encrypted machine readable symbol with information about the item purchased, the system comprising: a) A local computer with means for reading machine readable symbols and means for providing data containing information about the purchased item to a remote computer; and b) interconnecting the local computer via a computer network. And a means for receiving and storing data containing information about the purchased item; and for receiving and storing information entered by the consumer. Means and reward rewards in exchange for the consumer to enter the requested information The system characterized in that it comprises a fit means. 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the local computer is associated with a point of sale terminal. 18. The system according to claim 16, wherein the local computer is located away from the point of sale terminal.