JP3648194B2 - Product management server and product information collection method - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a product management server for notifying a seller-side terminal of product information required by a customer who purchases a product, Product information collection method It is about.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, from the customer's terminal, access the product inventory server, enter the name of the product you want to purchase from the customer's terminal, search the store where this product exists as inventory, and search results A search service for transmitting a message from a server to a customer terminal is being used. By using this search service, it is possible for the customer to know which store the necessary product can be purchased from.
By the way, sales analysis of merchandise is performed on the side of the merchant using POS. In other words, the seller has grasped the amount of the sold product by the data based on the POS, and has grasped the best seller of the product.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, according to the above-described conventional technology, even if the customer can grasp the information of the store having the stock, if the stock of the product that he / she wants to purchase cannot be found, the product is required in the store. Was not reflected, and therefore, the product had to wait for the product to arrive at the store.
[0004]
In addition, in POS, it is possible to manage the products sold and manage the number of stocks according to the sales performance. This is based on the inventory management based on the sales performance of the products displayed at the storefront. It is not possible to manage products that are not sold in stores and that the customer wants to purchase. In other words, in the sales analysis, when analyzing what is being sold, it is an analysis of the “sold product”, and unless it is arranged in the store, what kind of product has its needs and how much there is. I couldn't figure out and couldn't predict the products that would sell if they were displayed at the store.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and its purpose is a product information management server that can grasp a request from a customer for a product that does not have stock in a store, Product information collection method Is to provide.
Further, the present invention provides a merchandise information management server capable of reflecting a customer's request on the seller side, Product information collection method The purpose is to provide.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a product management server in a product management system in which a customer side terminal, a seller side terminal that sells products, and a product management server are connected, the customer side Receiving means for receiving product information, which is information for specifying a product, transmitted from a terminal, an inventory information database for each store for storing inventory information, which is information relating to the stock of the store, and the receiving means receive Based on the product information, the detection means for detecting whether there is a stock of the product corresponding to the product information from the inventory information database by store, and in the detection result of the detection means, when there is no stock of the product, The product information as latent needs information Potential needs information database to be stored and latent needs information stored in the potential needs information database Latent potential information transmission control means for transmitting to the terminal on the seller side.
[0007]
In the commodity management server according to the present invention, the latent needs information transmitting unit transmits the latent needs information to the seller side terminal via the customer side terminal.
[0008]
Moreover, the present invention provides the product management server described above, The latent needs information database is The latent needs information is stored in association with product category information for classifying product information. And The store-specific inventory information database stores store category information corresponding to products handled by the store for each store information that is information for specifying the store of the seller, and the latent needs information transmission control means includes: The store category information corresponding to the product category information of the latent needs information to be transmitted is read from the latent needs information database, and the store information associated with the store information corresponding to the read store category information is the inventory information for each store The latent need information is transmitted to the terminal on the seller side based on the read store information from the database.
[0009]
Further, according to the present invention, in the above-described commodity management server, the latent needs information is converted into the latent needs information based on the inventory information stored in the store inventory information database and the latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database. Stock notification means for notifying the terminal on the customer side that inquired about the stock of the product that the stock of the product has been received when the stock of the corresponding product is received, To do.
[0011]
The present invention is also a product information collection method in a product management system in which a customer side terminal, a seller side terminal that sells products, and a product management server are connected, wherein the product management server is connected to the customer side Product information which is information for specifying a product transmitted from the terminal of the product, and based on the received product information, whether or not there is a stock of the product corresponding to the product information Detected based on store information, which is information related to the stock of the product, and in the detection result, if there is no stock of the product, the product information as latent needs information The latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database is stored in the latent needs information database. The data is transmitted to the terminal on the seller side.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a product management system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing the configuration of a product management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
In this figure, the merchandise management system includes mobile phones 10-1 to 10-n serving as customer terminals, merchant terminals 20-1 to 20-m selling merchandise, and merchandise management server 1. The network 30 is connected.
In the merchandise management server 1, the communication unit 101 receives merchandise information, which is information for specifying merchandise, transmitted from the mobile phones 10-1 to 10-n via the network 30. Further, the communication unit 101 transmits product information as latent needs information to the seller's terminal when there is no product stock (details will be described later). Moreover, various information is transmitted / received via the network 30 with respect to the mobile telephones 10-1 to 10-n and the store terminals 20-1 to 20-m. The communication unit 101 corresponds to the above-described receiving unit and latent needs information transmitting unit.
[0013]
The store-specific stock information database 102 stores store information for specifying a store of a seller and stock information related to the stock of the store in association with each other. Here, the information stored in the store-specific stock information database 102 is stored as shown in FIGS.
The merchandise information shown in FIG. 2 is associated with the merchandise name, merchandise category information that is information for classifying merchandise, and the number of merchandise in stock, and is stored for each store.
The store information shown in FIG. 3 is associated with store ID, store category information corresponding to the product handled by the store, store location information indicating the store location, and related information including various information about the store such as telephone numbers and business hours. Is remembered.
This product information and store information are associated with each other by store ID.
[0014]
Based on the product information received by the communication unit 101, the commodity search unit 103 detects whether or not there is a stock of products corresponding to the product information from the store-specific stock information database 102. Further, the commodity search unit 103 stores the product information in the latent needs information database 104 as latent needs information when there is no stock of products in the detection result. This commodity search unit 103 corresponds to the above-described detection means. Here, in the case of a stock inquiry for a product not registered in the store-specific stock information database 102, it is detected that there is no stock.
[0015]
The latent needs information database 104 stores product category information and latent needs information in association with each other as shown in FIG. Furthermore, the latent needs information database 104 includes a customer ID of a customer who has requested a product inquiry, and an inventory notification unit described later. 106 Thus, inventory notification information indicating whether or not the inventory notification has been notified is stored in association with the latent needs information.
Customer information database 107 Stores the customer ID for identifying the customer, the contact information such as the customer's e-mail address, telephone number, facsimile, etc., the customer name, and the customer information such as the address.
[0016]
Further, the commodity search unit 103 reads out the store category information corresponding to the product category information of the latent needs information to be transmitted from the latent needs information database 104 when the product is out of stock in the detection result of the detection means, and reads The store information associated with the store information corresponding to the store category information is read from the store-specific inventory information database 102, and based on the read store information, potential needs of the terminals 20-1 to 20-m on the merchant side are read. It has a latent needs information transmission control unit 105 that transmits information.
[0017]
Further, the latent needs information transmission control unit 105 transmits the latent needs information to the mobile phone 10-n which has requested the product inquiry when the product is not in stock in the detection result of the detection unit, and When there is a stock, based on the location information transmitted from the mobile phone 10-n and the store information having the stock, the store information having the stock is rearranged so as to be closer to the location of the mobile phone 10-n. And transmit to the mobile phone 10-n. Note that store information may be transmitted only in store information within a predetermined area from the position of the mobile phone 10-n. The predetermined area may be within a certain distance.
The latent needs information transmission control unit 105 corresponds to the above-described latent needs information transmission unit.
[0018]
Inventory notification section 106 Is based on the inventory information stored in the store-specific inventory information database 102 and the latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database 104, when stock of products corresponding to the latent needs information is received. The customer's terminal that inquired about the inventory of the product is notified that the inventory of the product has been received.
[0019]
Returning to FIG. 1, the store terminals 20-1 to 20-m receive the latent needs information from the merchandise management server 1 or receive from the merchandise management server 1 via the mobile phone 10-n. Have
The mobile phones 10-1 to 10-n are terminals on the customer side. Based on the input from the customer, the product management server 1 transmits the product information of the product that the store wants to know and the location information indicating the current location of the mobile phone to the product management server 1. . Note that the location information may be transmitted by the user inputting the address of the current location in a predetermined input field, and information regarding the location of the base station to which the mobile phone 10-1 is currently connected is located. You may make it transmit to the merchandise management server 1 as information. This terminal on the customer side is used by a customer (consumer) who searches for the inventory of products to be purchased.
[0020]
Next, the operation of the product management system described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Here, it is assumed that information regarding the inventory of each store is transmitted from each store terminal 20-1 to 20 -m to the product management server 1 and stored in advance in the store-specific inventory information database 102.
First, the customer accesses the homepage of the product management server 1 by the mobile phone 10-1 and inputs the location information and the product information “product F” in order to check the product that the customer wants to know in which store the product F is in stock. Then (step S1), the mobile phone 10-1 transmits this position information and product information to the product management server 1 (step S2).
[0021]
When the location information and the product information are transmitted from the mobile phone 10-1, the product management server 1 uses the commodity search unit 103 to determine whether or not there is a stock of the product corresponding to the product information. And inventory is checked (step S3). In this detection result, if the number of stocks of the product F is “0” in each store and there is no stock, the commodity search unit 103 uses the product information “product F” as latent needs information and corresponds to the product F in the store information. Then, the stored product category information “magazine” is read out and stored in the latent needs information database 104 in association with the product information “product F”. And the merchandise management server 1 transmits this latent need information and a detection result that is a notification that a store with a stock of the corresponding merchandise was not found to the mobile phone 10-1 by the communication unit 101 ( Step S4).
[0022]
When the mobile phone 10-1 receives the detection result and the latent need information from the merchandise management server 1, the mobile phone 10-1 displays the detection result on the screen and outputs a sound through a speaker (step S5). Store in the memory (step S6). Here, for example, a display as shown in FIG. 6 is output on the screen of the mobile phone 10-1.
[0023]
When the customer who carries the mobile phone 10-1 enters the store where any one of the store terminals 20-1 to 20-m is installed, the store terminal 20-m receives the latent needs information. The latent needs information stored in the mobile phone 10-1 is read by the unit 201 (step S7) and stored in the storage unit of the store terminal 20-m. Then, the control unit 202 compares the received category information of the latent needs information with the store category information stored in advance in its own store terminal, and stores it continuously if it matches, and if it does not match, the latent needs information Is discarded.
As a result, the seller of the store terminal 20-m can grasp the status of inquiries about products that are not in stock based on the latent needs information stored in the storage unit of the store terminal 20-m. Can be done effectively.
[0024]
On the other hand, the commodity search unit 103 detects the position of the mobile phone 10-n based on the location information transmitted from the mobile phone 10-n and the store information having the stock when the product is in stock in the detection result. The store information having stock is rearranged so as to be in the closest order (step S8) and transmitted to the mobile phone 10-n (step S9).
[0025]
Thereby, an output as shown in FIG. 7 is performed on the screen of the mobile phone 10-1 that has received the detection result from the product management server 1 (step S10).
In this way, the customer can grasp the information of the store having the inventory of the product.
Next, in the store of the store terminal 20-m that has received the latent needs information, when the product F arrives and there is a request for updating the stock information (step S11), the stock information after the product F arrives is stored in the store terminal 20 -M, and is stored in the store-specific stock information database 102 of the management server 1, and the stock information is updated (step S12). The inventory notification unit 106 compares the information in the store-specific inventory information database 102 with the information stored in the latent needs information database 104 at regular intervals, and sets the latent needs information for which the inventory notification “not notified” is set. It is detected whether or not the corresponding product information is stored in the store-specific stock information database 102 as stock. And when it is memorize | stored in the inventory information database 102 according to a store as a stock (step S13), after setting this inventory information to "notified", it is matched with the latent needs information of this "product F". Contact information of customer ID “ARM218” is stored in customer information database 107 Based on the read contact information, the mobile phone 10-1 with the customer ID “ARM218” is notified that “product F” has been received (step S14). At this time, the stock notification unit 106 transmits the store location information, store name, related information, and the like of the store where the product F arrives to the mobile phone 10-1 together with the notification of the arrival of the “product F”.
[0026]
In the embodiment described above, when the latent needs information is transmitted from the mobile phone 10-1 to the latent needs information receiving unit 201, for example, it is connected by short-range wireless such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or infrared, or wired. Send. This transmission may be performed when entering the store, or may be performed when the customer is waiting for the settlement of products at the cash register or during the settlement.
[0027]
According to the embodiment described above, the merchandise management server 1 transmits the latent need information to the terminal 20-m on the seller side via the terminal 10-1 on the customer side. Since it is possible to grasp that the customer who has inquired about the store actually visited the store, the number of products in stock can be managed in accordance with the number of customers who visited the store. Accordingly, it is possible to prepare the number of products sold in anticipation of the number of customers who have inquired about the inventory of the products.
In addition, when the stock arrives, the stock notification unit 106 notifies the customer that the stock has been received, so that the user can grasp where the product to be purchased is sold.
[0028]
Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the embodiment described above, the latent needs information is transmitted from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal 20-m via the mobile phone 10-1, but in this embodiment, from the store terminal 20-m. A case of transmitting from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal 20-m based on the transmission request for the latent needs information will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Here, a case where there is an inquiry about the product F in FIG. 2 will be described.
[0029]
8, in steps S21 to S23, as in steps S1 to S3 in FIG. 5, the inventory check is performed based on the product information “product F” and the position information transmitted from the mobile phone 10-1. Done. When the commodity F is not in stock, the commodity search unit 103 of the commodity management server 1 uses the communication unit 101 to notify the mobile phone 10-10 of the detection result that is a notification that the store where the commodity F is in stock is not found. 1 (step S24). Accordingly, the detection result is output as shown in FIG. 6 on the screen of the mobile phone 10-1 that has received the detection result (step S25).
[0030]
Next, the commodity search unit 103 of the merchandise management server 1 associates the merchandise information of the merchandise F whose inventory is not found in the detection result with the merchandise information as the latent needs information and the merchandise category information “magazine”. Store in the information database 104. Then, the latent needs information transmission control unit 105 of the commodity search unit 103 obtains the store ID “002” in which the store category information “magazine” corresponding to the product category information of the latent needs information is set from the latent needs information database 104. Read (step S26). Then, based on the read address of the store terminal with the store ID “002”, the latent need information transmission control unit 105 of the commodity search unit 103 sends the latent need information to the terminal on the seller side (for example, the store terminal 20-m). And product category information are transmitted (step S27).
[0031]
Store terminal 20-m When the latent needs information and the product category information are received from the product management server 1, the received latent needs information and the product category information are stored (step S28). As a result, the store terminal 20-m is notified that the customer has inquired about the stock of the product F but there is no stock.
Thus, since the latent needs information corresponding to the store category information preset in the store terminal is transmitted from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal 20-m, the seller can handle the order he / she handles. It is possible to grasp only necessary latent information on necessary products, and it is possible to effectively order and display future products based on customer inquiries.
[0032]
In the second embodiment described above, only the product F that has been inquired is transmitted as latent needs information from the product management server 1 to the store terminal 20-m. However, the latent needs information is transmitted to the store terminal. However, it is not limited to this. For example, forms other than the above-described embodiment include the following forms.
[0033]
A) The latent needs information is stored in the product management server 1, and the stored latent needs information is stored in the store category information of each store at regular intervals (for example, every hour, every day, every week, etc.). Send to matching store terminals. As a result, the seller can grasp the degree of attention to the customer's product within a certain period, and therefore can grasp the trend of necessity of the product.
[0034]
B) In the above A), even if the store category information and the product information of each store do not match, all the latent needs information within a certain period is transmitted to the store terminal. As a result, when there is a plurality of potential needs information about “fur hats”, a dealer handling magazines collects magazines featuring fur hats as merchandise and displays them at the store. It is possible to sell magazines featuring fur hats to customers who have inquired about “hats”.
[0035]
C) An access code is set for each latent need information stored in the latent needs information database 104, and only the access code is transmitted from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal. Then, based on the access code transmitted from the store terminal, the latent need information stored in the latent need information database 104 is transmitted to the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal, and a transmission log of the latent needs information is stored. . Based on this transmission log, the seller is charged for the latent needs information according to the number of accesses to the latent needs information database 104, and the distribution fee for the latent needs information is received from the seller. As a result, it is possible to easily obtain information on the inventory of products desired by customers, and it is possible for sales agents to grasp the trends and trends of products that customers need and promote product sales. Become. In addition, for the operator of the product management server 1, it is possible to collect a consideration in managing the latent needs information and obtain a profit.
[0036]
D) By transmitting latent needs information from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal by any one of the methods A, B, and C, and managing the number of customers who need the merchandise at the store terminal, The latent needs information is transmitted from the merchandise management server 1 to the store terminal via the mobile phone. As a result, it becomes possible for the seller to grasp the number of customers who need the product and to manage the inventory amount of the product while grasping the overall trend and trend of the product.
[0037]
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the customer-side terminal is the mobile phone 10-1 to 10-n has been described. However, the customer-side terminal is a terminal that can communicate via a network. For example, PHS, PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) may be used. Further, a fixed device such as a computer may be used in combination with a movable mobile phone. In this case, position information and product information may be input from a computer, and the search result may be transmitted to a mobile phone that is a pre-registered contact.
In addition, when there is a stock inquiry for a product not registered in the store-specific stock information database 102, the commodity search unit 103 detects that there is no stock. In this case, the administrator of the product management server 1 The category for the product may be investigated and set by inputting from an input device such as a mouse or a keyboard. Moreover, you may make it transmit as latent needs information to all the shop terminals, without setting merchandise category information.
[0038]
In addition, the functions of the communication unit 101, the commodity search unit 103, the latent needs information transmission control unit 105 of the product management server 1 in FIG. 1, the latent needs information reception unit 201 of the store terminals 20-1 to 20-m, and the control unit 202 A function and a program for realizing the functions of the mobile phones 10-1 to 10-n are recorded in a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded in the recording medium is read into a computer system and executed. The product inventory may be managed by Here, the “computer system” includes an OS and hardware such as peripheral devices.
[0039]
Further, the “computer system” includes a homepage providing environment (or display environment) if a WWW system is used.
The “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, and a CD-ROM, and a storage device such as a hard disk built in the computer system. Furthermore, the “computer-readable recording medium” dynamically holds a program for a short time, like a communication line when transmitting a program via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. In this case, a volatile memory in a computer system serving as a server or a client in that case, and a program that holds a program for a certain period of time are also included. The program may be a program for realizing a part of the functions described above, and may be a program capable of realizing the functions described above in combination with a program already recorded in a computer system.
[0040]
The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes design and the like within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention.
[0041]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, product information that is information for specifying a product is received, and whether or not there is a stock of the product corresponding to the product information is detected from the store-specific stock information database. In the detection result, when the product is not in stock, the product information is transmitted to the terminal on the seller side as latent needs information. This enables the merchant to understand the requirements, but the merchant is not in stock at the store, but can pick up the product based on the customer's inventory inquiry and display the product effectively. The increase can be achieved.
In addition, a request for a product that is not in stock for the customer can be reflected on the seller side.
[0042]
In addition, according to the present invention, since the latent needs information is transmitted to the terminal on the seller side via the terminal on the customer side, the seller actually asks the customer who made an inquiry about the product his own Since it is possible to know that the customer has visited the store, the number of customers who have made inquiries about the inventory of the product based on the number of visits of this customer, forecasting the number of sales when the product has inventory that is not in stock. Accordingly, it is possible to manage the number of inventory in anticipation of the number of products sold.
[0043]
In addition, according to the present invention, since the latent needs information corresponding to the store category information preset in the store terminal is transmitted from the product management server to the store terminal, the seller handles the order he / she handles. It is possible to grasp only necessary latent information regarding necessary products, and thereby, it is possible to easily perform work related to inventory management of products.
[0044]
Further, according to the present invention, when the stock is received, the stock notification means notifies the customer's terminal that the stock has been received, so where the user wants to purchase the product. As a result, it is possible to obtain an effect of improving loyalty to customers.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing the configuration of a product management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of product information stored in a store-specific stock information database 102;
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of store information stored in a store-specific stock information database 102;
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of information stored in a latent need information database 104;
FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the merchandise management system.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen output on a mobile phone screen.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen output on a mobile phone screen.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the product management system in the second embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 commodity management server 10-1 to 10-n mobile phone
20-1, 20-m Store terminal 30 Network
101 Communication Department 102 Inventory Information Database by Store
103 Commodity search section 104 Potential needs information database
105 Potential Needs Information Transmission Control Unit 201 Potential Needs Information Reception Unit
202 Control unit

Claims (5)

A product management server in a product management system in which a terminal on a customer side and a terminal on a seller side that sells products and a product management server are connected,
Receiving means for receiving product information, which is information for specifying a product, transmitted from the customer side terminal;
A store-specific stock information database that stores stock information that is information related to the stock of the store;
Based on the product information received by the receiving means, detecting means for detecting whether there is a stock of products corresponding to the product information from the store-specific inventory information database;
In the detection result of the detection means, when there is no inventory of the product, a latent needs information database that stores the product information as latent needs information ;
Latent needs information transmission control means for transmitting latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database to the terminal on the seller side;
A product management server characterized by comprising:   The merchandise management server according to claim 1, wherein the latent needs information transmission control unit transmits the latent needs information to the seller side terminal via the customer side terminal. The latent needs information database stores the latent needs information in association with product category information for classifying product information ,
The store inventory information database stores store category information corresponding to products handled by the store for each store information that is information for specifying the store of the seller,
The latent needs information transmission control means reads store category information corresponding to the product category information of the latent needs information to be transmitted from the latent needs information database, and stores the store information corresponding to the read store category information. 3. The product according to claim 1, wherein the store information is read from the store-specific inventory information database, and the latent needs information is transmitted to the terminal of the seller based on the read store information. Management server . Based on the inventory information stored in the store-specific inventory information database and the latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database, when stock of products corresponding to the latent needs information is received, Inventory notification means for notifying the terminal on the customer side that inquired about the availability of the product that the stock of the product has been received;
The merchandise management server according to claim 1, wherein the merchandise management server comprises: A product information collection method in a product management system in which a terminal on a customer side and a terminal on a seller side that sells products and a product management server are connected,
The product management server includes:
Receiving product information which is information for specifying a product transmitted from the customer side terminal;
Based on the received product information, detect whether there is a stock of products corresponding to the product information based on store information that is information on the store inventory of the seller,
In the detection result, when the product is not in stock, the product information is stored in the latent needs information database as latent needs information,
The product information collecting method , comprising: transmitting the latent needs information stored in the latent needs information database to the terminal on the seller side.

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