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US 2014/0172527 A1Published application
System for implementing a network-based user referral program
AssigneeAmazon.com, Inc.
InventorsJeffrey P. Bezos, Sheldon J. Kaphan, Ellen L. Ratajak, Thomas K. Schonhoff
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system for implementing a referral program includes a referral tracking system capable of tracking referrals of users from participant sites to a merchant site, and capable of determining whether such referrals result in purchases. The referral program participants may select particular catalog items to recommend, and may provide encoded links on their sites to the corresponding catalog pages of the merchant site. The system may include a report generation system that provides the participants with activity reports regarding the referral and purchase activity attributable to such links.
Claims20
A system, comprising:
- a first server system that hosts a first site in a first network domain, the first site comprising an electronic catalog that includes item detail pages corresponding to respective catalog items, the item detail pages associated with corresponding uniform resource locators, said first site including functionality for users to select and purchase catalog items;
- a second server system that hosts a second site in a second network domain, the second site associated with a referral program participant, the second site comprising a page that includes a user-selectable link to an item detail page of the first site, the item detail page corresponding to a particular catalog item, the link comprising a uniform resource locator corresponding to the item detail page, the uniform resource locator comprising an identifier of the catalog item and an identifier of the referral program participant, the page additionally including information provided by the referral program participant about the catalog item, said information being distinct from content included on the item detail page;
- and
- a referral tracking system that is responsive to user selection of the link by recording a referral event in association with the identifiers of the referral program participant and catalog item, the referral tracking system additionally configured to determine whether the referral event results in a purchase transaction on the first site.
1 more element
A system that hosts a site of a referral program participant, the system comprising:
- a server that comprises computer hardware, said server configured to provide network-based access to pages of the site of the referral program participant;
- and
- non-transitory computer storage that stores a page of the site, the page including an item-specific referral link to a catalog page of an electronic catalog hosted by a merchant site that is separate from the referral program participant site, said catalog page corresponding to a particular catalog item, the referral link comprising a destination uniform resource locator that includes an identifier of the catalog item and an identifier of the referral program participant, the page of the referral program participant site additionally including information provided by the referral program participant about the catalog item, said information being distinct from content included on the catalog page.
Non-transitory computer storage having stored thereon executable code that directs a computing system to perform a process that comprises:
- detecting a first referral event in which a user follows a first referral link on a first site of a first referral program participant to a catalog page of a merchant site;
- generating a first shopping cart entry associated with the first referral event, wherein generating the first shopping cart entry comprises recording an identifier of the first referral program participant and an identifier of a first catalog item selected by the user for purchase;
- detecting a second referral event in which said user follows a second referral link on a second site of a second referral program participant to a catalog page of the merchant site;
- generating a second shopping cart entry associated with the second referral event, wherein generating the second shopping cart entry comprises recording an identifier of the second referral program participant and an identifier of a second catalog item selected by the user for purchase;
- and
- executing a single check-out transaction in which the user purchases at least the first and second catalog items on the merchant site, wherein executing the single check-out transaction comprises (1) using the first shopping cart entry to credit an account of the first referral program participant for the purchase of the first catalog item, and (2) using the second shopping cart entry to credit an account of the second referral program participant for the purchase of the second catalog item.
3 more elements
Non-transitory computer storage having stored thereon executable code that directs a computing system to perform a process that comprises:
- transmitting instructions to a referral program participant for generating item-specific referral links to item detail pages of a merchant site that hosts an electronic catalog, said instructions enabling the referral program participant to generate item-specific referral links that are encoded with an identifier of the referral program participant;
- recording a referral event in which a user follows an item-specific referral link from a site of the referral program participant to an item detail page of the merchant site, said item-specific referral link comprising an identifier of a particular catalog item and an identifier of a referral program participant, wherein recording the referral event comprises recording the identifiers of the catalog item and the referral program participant in association with an identifier of the user;
- determining, based on monitored actions of the user on the merchant site, whether the referral event results in a purchase transaction by the user;
- when the referral event results in a purchase transaction, crediting an account of the referral program participant;
- and
- generating an activity report for the referral program participant, the activity report indicating how many referral events resulted from the item-specific referral link and how many item purchases resulted from the referral events.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.