US 8,412,566 B2 · High-precision customer-based targeting by individual usage statistics

Abstract

A system for distributing limited numbers of promotional offers to individual customers, the promotional offers being targeted to customers based on the customers' individual probabilities of accepting the offers in such a way that each customer can receive a limited number of offers that are estimated to be most likely to be acceptable by the customer. Customer-Based targeting analyzes each customer's past purchasing behavior relative to a master list of promotional offers made available to all customers. From that master list Customer-Based targeting selects a preset limit of promotional offers for each individual customer according to the likelihood that, given the opportunity to select any offers of the master list, each customer would prefer those few offers selected specifically for the customer. Various techniques are disclosed for providing an offer acceptance probability profile tailored for individual customers for use in the Customer-Based targeting technique. Product groupings and market segments are taken into account. Empirical Bayes techniques are applied to the estimation of the offer acceptance profile, and techniques suitable for handling sparse data are applied. Various marketing strategies are incorporated into the system. A graphical technique is provided for adjusting the offer acceptance profile that enables a user to override a system computation and manually set the relative offer acceptance probabilities for an individual user or class of users.

Claims21

Dependent claims

In an electronic system for distributing promotional offers, a method of targeting a plurality of customers from a customer database for distribution of limited quantities of promotional offers, the method comprising:

generating a plurality of scores for said plurality of customers, each said score being associated with one said customer and with one said offer, and each said score measuring a probability that the associated customer will make a purchase in accordance with the associated offer;
identifying, by a computing device in said electronic system, a highest score in said plurality of scores;
determining:
a customer, from said plurality of customers, associated with said highest score, and
a first promotional offer, from said plurality of promotional offers, associated with said highest score;
assigning said first promotional offer to a first personalized offer list for said customer if said first promotional offer satisfies one or more constraints on one or more of the following:
a total number of first promotional offers that are distributable, and
a total number of promotional offers that are distributable to said customer;
successively repeating said identifying, determining and assigning steps for each next highest score until all of the promotional offers in said plurality of promotional offers have been assigned to personalized offer lists;
and
distributing one or more of the promotional offers to one or more of the customers in said plurality of customers.

8 more elements

In an electronic system for distributing promotional offers, a method of adjusting the distribution of limited quantities of promotional offers from a plurality of promotional offers to a plurality of customers comprising:

providing a plurality of measures of acceptance probabilities, wherein the plurality of measures of acceptance probabilities includes, for each combination of a customer of the plurality of customers and a promotional offer of the plurality of promotional offers, a measure of an acceptance probability that the customer will accept the promotional offer, said acceptance probability being indicative of a likelihood said customer will accept the promotional offer in comparison to other customers included in said plurality of customers;
presenting the plurality of measures of acceptance probabilities for an individual customer in a graphical display on said electronic system, wherein said graphical display includes a plurality of graphic elements, one said graphic element being associated with each said measure of acceptance probability provided for said individual customer at least for a highest ranking measure of acceptance probability of said plurality of measures of acceptance probabilities;
enabling adjustment of said measures of acceptance probability for the individual customer by movement of the associated graphic elements;
selecting, by a computing device in said electronic system, a limited quantity of offers from said plurality of offers for distribution to said individual customer, wherein said limited quantity of offers are selected substantially in descending order of said measures of acceptance probabilities for the individual customer as adjusted in said enabling step;
and
distributing at least one of the limited quantity of offers to said individual customer.

3 more elements

In an electronic system for distributing promotional offers, a method of distributing limited quantities of promotional offers to a plurality of customers utilizing a transaction history database comprising an identification of transactions engaged in and an identification of products previously purchased by one or more customers, said method comprising:

deriving a historical purchase probability profile from said transaction history database for at least a portion of the customers in said database and for a plurality of product groupings in said database, said historical purchase probability profile providing for each individual customer and for each individual product grouping a measure of the probability that said individual customer will purchase a product from said individual product grouping;
for a customer included in said portion of the customers, applying a statistical model to said purchase probability profile to determine an estimated probability that said customer will purchase a product from said product groupings, said estimated probability being indicative of a likelihood said customer will purchase said product in comparison to all other customers included in said portion of customers;
selecting, by a computing device in said electronic system, for distribution to said customer an offer associated with a product in said product groupings, wherein said selected offer is associated with a highest estimated probability that said customer will purchase said product in comparison to all other customers included in said portion of customers,
determining whether said selected offer satisfies one or more constraints, wherein one of the one or more constraints is a limitation on a total quantity of promotional offers for said product that are distributable to all customers;
and
in response to said selected offer satisfying the one or more constraints, distributing the selected offer to said customer.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

High-precision customer-based targeting by individual usage statistics

Life of this patent

High-precision customer-based targeting by individual usage statistics

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims21