Method for providing an incentive to buy

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for providing an incentive to buy, comprising the following method steps: - detecting a person's behavior by means of a detection device in the surroundings of the detection device, and - based on the person's detected behavior, automatically triggering a signalling action with respect to the provision of the incentive to buy.

Description

[0001] title

[0002] Procedure for providing a purchase incentive

[0003] Description

[0004] Technical field

[0005] The invention relates to a method for providing a purchase incentive.

[0006] background

[0007] Point-of-sale advertising, especially in supermarkets, has always played a crucial role in the sales success of the products or goods offered there and is intended to create an incentive to buy. In addition to printed advertising on signs and the like, acoustic advertising has also become established for this purpose. It is structured similarly to radio advertising but is played at the point of sale via loudspeaker systems installed there.

[0008] However, such advertising is perceived by many customers as "acoustic background noise" and is largely ignored, even perceived as annoying, so that despite the elaborate production of the advertising, the purchase incentive conveyed by the advertising often falls on deaf ears.

[0009] The invention therefore has the object of creating an improved provision of a purchase incentive.

[0010] Summary of the invention

[0011] This object is achieved by a method according to claim 1. The subject matter of the invention is therefore a method for providing a purchase incentive, comprising the following method steps, namely detecting the behavior of a person by means of a detection device in the environment of the detection device and, based on the detected behavior of the person, automatically triggering a signaling action related to the provision of the purchase incentive.

[0012] The measures according to the invention have the advantage of enabling the automated provision of a perceptible purchase incentive that is reactive to the behavior of the person, i.e., the behavior of a customer or potential buyer, and thus tailored to that behavior. This ensures that, in the case of a potential buyer's obvious disinterest or a potential buyer who is obviously in a hurry, unnecessary purchase incentives are not automatically generated that are fundamentally of no interest to the person concerned. However, the detected indecision of a customer can also be used to trigger them to become aware of a particular product and ultimately purchase it.

[0013] This method can be used, for example, at points of sale, such as markets or supermarkets. The method is preferably applied in the spatial context of a display device intended for presenting products. A typical example of such a display device is a shelf or a display table. The person's behavior is therefore preferably recorded in spatial proximity to the display device.

[0014] The purchase incentive is designed to motivate the customer to purchase a good or product. Due to its significance, the purchase incentive is often designed to have an effect on the person's sensory perception. For this purpose, the purchase incentive can take a variety of forms, which will be discussed in more detail below.

[0015] On the one hand, a commodity or product refers to physical objects that are offered on shelves in a supermarket, for example. However, the terms "goods" or "product" can also refer to services that can be purchased at sales stands in the form of vouchers or tickets, etc.

[0016] Further, particularly advantageous embodiments and developments of the invention emerge from the dependent claims and the following description. The purchase incentive can be provided in various forms. The method is preferably designed such that the automatic triggering of a signaling action relating to the provision of the purchase incentive comprises the emission of at least one of the following signals: an acoustically perceptible signal, a visually perceptible signal, or an olfactory-perceptible signal.

[0017] These signals - individually or in combination with each other, where "together" can mean simultaneous or sequential - make it possible to draw the person's attention to a product and / or, in particular over time, to consolidate the person's attention to a product.

[0018] An optically perceptible signal can be emitted, for example, by a light signal emitting device, in particular by light-emitting diodes, LEDs for short, etc.

[0019] With regard to the visually perceptible signal, however, it has proven particularly advantageous for the visually perceptible signal to be provided by an electronic product and / or price display, preferably a video display, particularly preferably a video shelf rail display. This allows a large amount of information to be provided to the person at once as an image, text, and / or video. The electronic product and / or price display can, for example, have a liquid crystal display (LCD display), also known by its English name "LC display," where "LC" stands for "liquid crystal." Such an LCD display allows the presentation of high-resolution images and / or videos, which, in general but especially for use with video shelf rail displays, enables the presentation of detailed information and the creation of particularly perceptible visual purchase incentives.To provide an energy-efficient electronic product and / or price display, it can, for example, have a screen based on electronic paper (e-paper for short), i.e., in particular, an electrophoretic screen. The electronic product and / or price display can be implemented as electronic shelf labels (ESL for short) and can be attached in front of the corresponding product on a shelf rail (or similar). In the case of a video shelf rail display, virtual ESLs can be displayed on the shelf rail display, with each of these virtual ESLs being assigned to a product, analogous to the real ESLs.In this case, the optically perceptible signal can be displayed on a virtual ESL or beyond the boundaries of the virtual ESL, for example as a lit background of the virtual ESL, within the boundaries of the screen.

[0020] The information provided by means of electronic product and / or price displays is preferably at least partially human-readable.

[0021] Furthermore, it is further advantageous that the optically perceptible signal has a machine-readable code, in particular a two-dimensional code, preferably a QR code, a bar code, or a dynamic code.

[0022] QR code stands for Quick Response Code.

[0023] Such a code allows the person to access further information, particularly about the advertised product, using their mobile device, especially a smartphone, smartwatch, or similar device. For example, the person simply needs to scan the code with the mobile device's camera, whereupon a corresponding app accesses the information provided, or a link encoded in the code opens a website where the information is provided.

[0024] At the same time, the code allows tracking of the information mentioned in the previous paragraph, so that it is possible to track whether and when the displayed code was scanned. This makes it possible to determine whether a purchase incentive has achieved its desired effect.

[0025] The information accessible using the machine-readable code can therefore be intended to simplify the customer's purchasing decision. For example, the information can contain additional product information of interest to the customer, such as cooking or assembly instructions. According to one aspect of the invention, however, the machine-readable code represents discount information, preferably for a specific product.

[0026] On the one hand, this allows for targeted offers to be made to customers. On the other hand, it also enables precise tracking and thus an evaluation of customer purchasing behavior in various scenarios, which can be used to determine, for example, which purchasing incentives actually lead to a purchase.

[0027] Preferably, a discount information database stores which discount information is available for which products, so that, if required, discount information suitable for the presented product is transmitted to the electronic product and / or price display and provided by it as a machine-readable code.

[0028] Preferably, the discount information will only be provided if the behavior of the person recorded makes this seem reasonable, as will be discussed below.

[0029] As mentioned above, discount information provided as a machine-readable code can be scanned using a customer's mobile device and subsequently applied at a cash register terminal to reduce the regular price to the discounted price.

[0030] According to a further aspect of the invention, the machine-readable code represents loyalty program information, in particular loyalty points.

[0031] Similar advantages apply here as with the discount information aspect. However, with loyalty program information, for example, a digital counter records how many loyalty program information items have been scanned, from which a loyalty score can be calculated.

[0032] The previously mentioned acoustically perceptible signal is generated by an audio signal generator, preferably by a loudspeaker, which can be a component of the audio signal generator or implemented separately. The audio signal generator can be configured or used to reproduce advertising or music simultaneously with the specific acoustically perceptible signal. However, the advertising or music is preferably played outside the time period in which the specific acoustically perceptible signal is emitted.

[0033] The audio signal generator can generally be positioned anywhere in the vicinity of the detection device, as long as the generated acoustic signal is sufficiently loud and clear to be heard by the person in the vicinity of the detection device. However, in order to avoid disturbing or confusing persons other than the person for whom the purchase incentive conveyed or triggered by the specific acoustically perceptible signal is intended with unidentifiable "background noise," it has proven advantageous for the acoustically perceptible signal to be emitted only locally in the vicinity of the detection device and / or in the vicinity of the product in question. This can be adjusted, for example, by the volume at which this acoustically perceptible signal is emitted.For this purpose, the audio signal generator is advantageously placed in the vicinity of the detection device and / or the vicinity of the product. Particularly preferably, the audio signal generator is placed on the product presentation device, in particular on the shelf intended for the product in question. Particularly good results can be achieved if the audio signal generator is attached to a shelf rail and / or is designed as a component of an electronic product and / or price display, preferably implemented as a video display, particularly preferably implemented as a video shelf rail display. This allows the person's attention to be drawn to the affected electronic product and / or price display, which, after all, belongs to the affected product, which now suddenly comes into the person's area of ​​heightened attention due to the person's directional hearing ability.

[0034] An even better local limitation of the acoustic signal can be achieved if, in the process, the acoustically perceptible signal is generated by an audio signal generator with directional audio signal output characteristics and is output in a directed manner by this.

[0035] This measure allows, even when many people are present at the point of sale, to specifically transmit an acoustically provided purchase incentive to the person whose behavior is being or was recorded, without irritating the other people or bothering them with additional "acoustic background noise." This results in a person-specific delivery of the acoustically perceptible signal. Ultimately, the acoustically perceptible signal is delivered in a direction-specific manner, focused in the direction indicated by the person for whom the behavior was recorded. Two training methods can be used here.

[0036] According to a first embodiment, the direction-specific signal delivery is achieved by a rigid delivery orientation of a sound-generating element of the audio signal generator. The detection range of the detection device is also adjusted accordingly, so that only the person located within the delivery range of the audio signal generator, where the sound can be delivered if necessary, is detected and their behavior analyzed.

[0037] According to a second embodiment, the output direction can also be variable, for example because the sound generation element of the audio signal generator is mechanically adjustable with regard to its output characteristics or the sound output element is designed for directionally variable (so-called) "beam shaping". In this embodiment, the signal can be directed towards one of the persons in the sound field for whom the recorded behavior makes this appear necessary or sensible.

[0038] For better or more precise focusing of the acoustically perceptible signal, the direction aspect can also be combined with the volume aspect in order to locally or spatially limit the directed, possibly focused, sound emission with regard to its perceptibility.

[0039] The best results can be achieved if the directional audio signal generator is provided on the product presentation device, in particular the shelf, in particular if the audio signal generator is attached to a shelf rail as mentioned, particularly preferably located corresponding to the position of a product for which a purchase incentive is to be conveyed.

[0040] Furthermore, it is advantageous if the olfactory signal is emitted by an odor release device. Such an odor release device has at least one odor reservoir in which an odor is stored, which is released via a release stage into the air in the vicinity of the detection device or in the vicinity of the product presentation device. The measures therefore allow the olfactory signal to be emitted precisely when a person's behavior suggests that a corresponding odor will serve as a purchase incentive, i.e., as motivation for a purchase. The odor is thus released as needed, drastically reducing the consumption of the odor compared to processes in which an odor is released permanently or periodically. The reduced consumption therefore results in both economic and ecological advantages.Analogous to the discussion of the acoustically perceptible signal, in the case of the olfactory perceptible signal, a direction-dependent or direction-variable delivery (e.g. with the help of a nozzle), if necessary also in combination with a variable delivery intensity (e.g. with the help of a controllable pump), which can influence the range of the olfactory perceptible signal in a targeted manner, can be provided.

[0041] The signals mentioned so far are detectable by the person's senses, namely sight, hearing, and smell. However, the signal for providing the purchase incentive can also be implemented as a signal that is detectable by devices. Thus, it has proven advantageous for the automatic triggering of the signaling action related to providing the purchase incentive to involve the emission of at least one radio signal.

[0042] The signal is preferably sent to the person's mobile device, such as a smartphone, smartwatch, tablet, or similar. There, it is then temporarily stored and / or displayed as machine-readable code and / or human-readable content. As previously discussed in the context of the visually perceptible signal, discount information or loyalty program information can be transmitted. Known technologies or standards such as Near Field Communication (NFC), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Zigbee, etc. can be used to provide the radio signal. Analogous to the discussion of the acoustically perceptible signal, a direction-dependent or direction-variable transmission can also be provided in the case of the radio signal, possibly also in combination with a variable transmission power, which can specifically influence the range of the radio signal.

[0043] However, the signal can also be transmitted wirelessly or via cable in addition to being transmitted to a user or customer device, or without being transmitted to a user or customer device. In this case, “internally in the system” means within a system for providing the incentive to purchase, where the system has, for example, electronic product and / or price displays that are controlled by an inventory management system, possibly with the assistance of an ad management system. With the help of the recording device, not only the person’s behavior but also biometric data (in anonymized form) can be recorded and transmitted to a central cash register system that is used to pay for the goods. This cash register system makes the biometric data available at the cash register terminals where the person pays for the goods physically or electronically.At the checkout terminal, the person can also be registered using an additional scanning device. Based on the previously obtained biometric data, it can be checked whether a special purchase incentive should be made available to that person directly at the checkout terminal. This can help motivate the person to purchase a product for which significant interest was previously identified based on the person's recorded behavior, right while checking out—literally "at the last minute."

[0044] Furthermore, it has proven particularly advantageous that the signaling action causes the provision of the purchase incentive to be adapted depending on the person's recorded behavior.

[0045] This enables a targeted provision of the purchase incentive. For example, a purchase incentive is provided for exactly the product in which the person currently appears to be interested and which is automatically determined. The automated determination that the behavior recorded with technical aids appears to indicate or definitely indicates an interest in a product is used as a trigger for a data processing action in order to carry out an adapted technical provision of the purchase incentive through the data processing action. This can, for example, increase the volume during the acoustic playback of an advertisement, as this can further focus the person on the product in question. On the other hand, if behavior remains unchanged, i.e. if indifference is presumed, an initial attention stimulus can be set, which, for example,by emitting a sound or changing the image content for a short period of time. Likewise, in cases of presumed indifference, the currently provided purchase incentive can be maintained by playing a sound or image unchanged until a change in the person's automatically recorded behavior is detected above a previously or dynamically defined threshold.

[0046] The adjustment can therefore take place directly at or near the location where the person is detected, particularly in virtually real time. The adjustment takes place on the device responsible for the local delivery of the acoustic, visual, or olfactory signal. However, the adjustment can also be delayed and at a different location, e.g., at a central facility where the playback content intended to trigger the purchase incentive is automatically adjusted and then transmitted wirelessly or via a wired connection to the device for delivering the respective purchase incentive.

[0047] The method step of detecting the person's behavior is discussed in more detail below. It is advantageous for the detection by the detection device to take place within a detection area defined by the detection device, preferably within a detection area limited by the detection device, particularly preferably within a detection sector spanned on one side of the detection device. Thus, the area in which the person's behavior can be observed is limited.This simplifies the interpretation of behavior because less recorded information needs to be evaluated. This results in the advantages of requiring less computing power, especially at the point of recording; enabling faster interpretation of behavior and thus faster automatic triggering of a signaling action; and avoiding misinterpretations due to people being mistakenly recorded who are actually interested in products other than those being advertised. With the defined detection area, detection can be limited to the presumably relevant area in front of a product.

[0048] It is advantageous for the detection device to detect the product from a position adjacent to it, preferably from a shelf, particularly preferably from a shelf rail. This measure allows the person's behavior to be recorded within a detection range directly in the vicinity of the product location. This allows for precise analysis of behavior during the relevant purchase consideration period, because at this point in time the person is ideally positioned within the detection range of the detection device in front of the shelf, in front of the shelf rail, or in front of the product.

[0049] Particularly advantageously, the detection device is integrated into an electronic product and / or price display having a screen, and the detection by the detection device is limited to a detection area in front of the screen, preferably to a defined detection sector in front of the screen, particularly preferably to a detection sector emanating from the screen. Thus, the detection device can be implemented in a space-saving manner and installed without additional effort compared to the installation of the electronic product and / or price displays, which would otherwise be necessary. On the other hand, the integration into the electronic product and / or price display also has the advantage that the starting point for the detection, i.e. the starting point of the sector-shaped detection area, automatically coincides with the electronic product and / or price display. Such a sector can, for example,have an opening angle of 45°, preferably 30°, particularly preferably 20° or narrower, to ensure detection of only a single person, as limited as possible by the opening angle. The opening angle can also be adjusted depending on the width of the shelf aisle and can be adjusted, for example, manually or automatically (electronically).

[0050] Different sensors can be used to detect a person's behavior. It has proven advantageous for the detection device to use at least one of the following sensors:

[0051] - a radio or light signal sensor - a motion sensor

[0052] - a gaze sensor, preferably camera-based, preferably with integrated artificial intelligence,

[0053] - a gaze-based attention sensor, preferably camera-based, further preferably with integrated artificial intelligence.

[0054] A radio or light signal sensor can, for example, be used to detect the presence and / or movement of a person. This can be done, for example, by measuring the time of flight.

[0055] However, the radio or light signal sensor can also be used to detect the presence or activity of a person's mobile device, such as a smartphone, and thus indirectly record the person's behavior. This can be done, for example, by detecting that a mobile device with "activated Bluetooth," i.e., a Bluetooth device ready for communication, enters the detection area. The mobile device can also be used as a transmitter for a Bluetooth beacon signal for the purposes discussed here.

[0056] In this context, the length of time spent in the detection range can be interpreted as the person's behavior, so that a corresponding signaling action is triggered depending on the length of time spent there. For example, a person may be undecided about which product to buy and therefore stands in front of a shelf within the detection range of the detection device for longer than a certain threshold, such as 20 seconds. Because the person's behavior suggests that they may be positive about a purchase incentive, a signaling action is triggered. In this case, this signaling action could, for example, consist of discount information being transmitted to the person's mobile device via radio signal, providing an incentive to buy one of the available products.This influences the person's decision-making process, which can also reduce the time required for the person to shop. This frees up space in front of the shelf more quickly for the next potential buyer, which can lead to increased sales because a queue of people in front of the shelf is avoided or cleared more quickly.

[0057] For example, the same or different technologies or standards can be used for radio or light signal sensors as for the previously discussed radio signal. The same technical means, such as the same Bluetooth chip, or different technical means can be used to detect a person's behavior using a light signal sensor as for emitting the radio signal.

[0058] The motion sensor can be implemented, for example, using an infrared light sensor or a light barrier, so that it detects when a person enters the detection area or the person's hand moves into a certain area.

[0059] Preferably, the motion sensor, like the gaze direction sensor and the gaze direction-based attention sensor, is implemented camera-based, in particular directly by a camera. In this case, the behavior of the person in the camera's detection range is preferably recorded and evaluated using image recognition, in particular directly in the camera, which is equipped with appropriately powerful hardware and software.

[0060] In the context of the motion sensor, the person is identified in the captured image (or video) data, for example, based on contours (edge ​​detection), and the movement is further interpreted. Furthermore, the person's head, legs, arms, hands, etc., can be identified, and from this, their posture, gestures, or even facial expressions can be determined. The artificial intelligence is preferably trained to interpret these body zones. This makes it possible to determine whether the person is, for example, observing a product, thinking, or just randomly standing in front of the shelf and actually engaged in another activity, such as making a phone call.

[0061] In the context of the gaze sensor, the same technical means can be applied as for the previously discussed motion sensor. With the gaze sensor, the artificial intelligence is trained to recognize the position of the eyes, which allows it to determine where, specifically which product, the person is looking (with a sufficiently high probability). If the camera is placed on or in the shelf and its detection range is aligned to the area in front of the shelf, the person's eyes will be exactly within the camera's detection range when the person is standing in front of the shelf and observing a product, allowing a very accurate interpretation of the detected behavior.If the camera is also integrated into the product and / or price display, this interpretation becomes even more precise, because a glance at a product or the associated product and / or price display essentially involves a glance toward the camera, which is located directly next to the product. It then only needs to be determined whether the gaze is primarily directed toward the camera. Further calculation of which product is in the person's field of vision is therefore no longer necessary.

[0062] Such a gaze sensor can, for example, be used to provide a person with a purchase incentive tailored to the product, for example as a focused or directed acoustic perceptible signal, as soon as the person looks at the corresponding product.

[0063] The gaze-based attention sensor also determines how long a product and / or an electronic product and / or price display and / or an existing purchase incentive, which is provided, for example, with the help of the electronic product and / or price display, is observed. For example, product and price information can be presented in the form of an advertising video as the first purchase incentive, whereby the behavior and, in particular, the attention of the person, is recorded. If the person watches the entire video attentively, a signaling action is automatically triggered that provides the person with a second purchase incentive in the form of discount information, e.g., on the screen of the electronic product and / or price display.

[0064] The gaze-based attention sensor can therefore be used, for example, to detect whether the eyes or face of the person changes only insignificantly while information is being provided, in particular during the playback of an advertisement, i.e. whether the person remains focused, in particular on the screen or the product.

[0065] In addition to the gaze-based attention sensor, the other sensors can also be used, alone or in addition, to determine the person's attention.

[0066] Therefore, it is advantageous that the detection of the person's behavior involves determining the level of their attention and that the triggered signaling action conveys the level of detected attention.

[0067] Thus, as discussed in the context of the gaze-based attention sensor, the presence of heightened attention (e.g., viewing an advertisement in full) can be rewarded with a purchase incentive. However, determining the level of attention can also be used to consolidate attention. For example, if the person is about to shift their attention away from a product, an adapted signal can be delivered to redirect the person's attention back to that product.

[0068] The devices or means intended to emit the above-mentioned signals are therefore designed to interpret the degree of attention conveyed by means of the signalling action and, depending on this, to influence the signal emission in order to adapt the purchase incentive according to the degree of attention.

[0069] The behavior recorded under the influence of the purchase incentive can now be documented and subsequently used to improve the purchase incentives, in particular to automatically improve the purchase incentives.

[0070] For this purpose, it has proven advantageous that the recorded behavior is stored digitally and used for the, particularly future, provision of the purchase incentive, in particular for an automated adaptation of the purchase incentive.

[0071] To automatically adapt the purchase incentive, for example, several purchase incentive data relating to the provision of a defined purchase incentive, for example in the form of images, videos, sounds and / or fragrances, can be stored in a purchase incentive data store and / or generated automatically. This purchase incentive data can be activated in response to the signaling action so that the corresponding purchase incentive is provided. The automatic adaptation of the purchase incentive can therefore, for example, proceed in such a way that an advertising video is played as a purchase incentive and the behavior of the person (or persons) watching the advertising video is recorded. If it is determined that the person (or persons) do not perceive the advertising video or do not follow it attentively, the next advertising video stored in the purchase incentive data store is automatically retrieved and provided in response to the signaling action.The same is, of course, also possible with other purchase incentives. This allows you to automatically determine which purchase incentives resonate with potential customers and which are less successful.

[0072] However, the purchase incentives can also be adjusted at a later date. For this purpose, the information obtained about people's behavior can be used to generate new purchase incentives tailored to the individual. The aforementioned measures thus allow for both qualitative and quantitative, particularly statistical, evaluation of people's behavior.

[0073] The measures mentioned and the associated method according to the invention allow different optimization options when providing the purchase incentive.

[0074] For example, according to a first aspect, the method can be used to monitor how a purchase incentive, such as a visually perceptible advertisement, was perceived, and whether the (target) person actually viewed the advertisement and how the person (apparently) felt while doing so. The method can therefore be used to control the perception of an advertisement in a real retail environment.

[0075] Here, for example, advertising in the form of a promotional video is shown as a first purchase incentive on an electronic product and / or price display, implemented as a video shelf rail, at the point of sale, i.e. in a store. The detection device, which has the various sensors discussed, records the behavior of the person in front of the electronic product and / or price display, which shows the advertisement as the first purchase incentive. The detection device records the person's behavior while viewing the purchase incentive. Artificial intelligence is used to determine whether the person attentively follows or watches the entire promotional video. Once the person has attentively watched the entire promotional video, the signaling action is triggered in response, whereby discount information, for example in the form of a QR code, is displayed on the screen of the electronic product and / or price display as a second purchase incentive.The discount information contains a unique code which, when redeeming the discount information (or QR code), allows conclusions to be drawn as to where and why the discount information was provided. The person can scan the discount information, i.e. the QR code, with their smartphone and then redeem the corresponding discount at the checkout or when paying. When paying, the discount information is automatically recorded by posting it, which purchase incentives led to a sale. This measure allows the seller to review the conversion rates of advertisements or purchase incentives and to improve their concepts. According to a second aspect, the process can also be used, for example, to provide people with a purchase incentive precisely when they are looking at a product.

[0076] For this purpose, for example, the camera of the detection device can be integrated into the electronic product and / or price display and, from the vicinity of the screen, capture the area in front of the electronic product and / or price display. To provide the incentive to buy, an audio signal generator with directional audio signal output characteristics is provided in the vicinity of the shelf, preferably also integrated into the electronic product and / or price display. If a person approaches the shelf and looks at the products on it, this is recorded by the camera. The camera uses artificial intelligence to evaluate where the person is looking and, in particular, whether the person is looking into the camera (or into the vicinity of the camera, where the products assigned to the electronic product and / or price display are located).If the person now looks at a specific product, for example a bottle of beer, a data processing action is triggered as a result of the automatic triggering of the signaling action, whereby an acoustically perceptible purchase incentive is provided via the audio signal generator. In this example, this purchase incentive could be the sound of a beer bottle being opened. Thus, at the moment the person looks at a product, they are provided with an acoustically perceptible purchase incentive that matches the product. Due to the audio signal output characteristics, this incentive is essentially only perceptible to the person captured by the camera. The process thus enables the delivery of advertising individually tailored to the person's behavior, thus offering a unique customer experience.

[0077] In summary, the method or the system in which the method is implemented provides the functionality that allows the effect of an automatically generated purchase incentive—preferably focused on a single potential buyer—and particularly preferably provided in close proximity to a product or at the location of the product—to be automatically verified to determine whether the purchase incentive actually led the potential buyer to purchase the product. The method or system thus provides a technical feedback loop in a store, with the aid of which the marketing effects of the automatically provided purchase incentives can be very precisely and quickly verified, if necessary even in real time, with regard to their sales-promoting effect, and even adjusted.

[0078] Finally, it should be generally mentioned that the electronic devices discussed (ESLs, smartphones, tablet computers, video shelf rails, etc.) naturally contain electronics. The electronics can be discrete or integrated, or even a combination of both. Microcomputers, microcontrollers, and Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs) can also be used, possibly in combination with analog or digital electronic peripheral components. Many of the device functionalities mentioned are implemented – possibly in conjunction with hardware components – with the help of software running on an electronic processor. Devices designed for radio communication usually have an antenna configuration for transmitting and receiving radio signals as part of a transceiver module.The electronic devices can also have an internal electrical power supply, which can be implemented, for example, with a replaceable or rechargeable battery. The devices can also be powered wired, either via an external power supply or via "Power over LAN."

[0079] These and other aspects of the invention are apparent from the figures discussed below.

[0080] Brief Description of the Figures The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying figures using exemplary embodiments, to which, however, the invention is not limited. In the various figures, identical components are provided with identical reference numerals. They show schematically: Fig. 1 shows an application scenario for the method according to the invention in a system for providing a purchase incentive;

[0081] Fig. 2 an electronic product and / or price display in the temporal context of the procedure;

[0082] Fig. 3 a provision of information by the electronic product and / or price display with integrated recording device for recording the behavior of a person over time;

[0083] Fig. 4A shows the method using a flow chart;

[0084] Fig. 4B shows the information provision according to Figure 3 for three process steps of the process according to Figure 4A;

[0085] Fig. 4C shows the involvement of a mobile phone in the method according to Figure 4A for the purpose of checking whether a purchase incentive was successful.

[0086] Description of the embodiments

[0087] Figure 1 shows a first application scenario for the method according to the invention in a system for providing a purchase incentive. Figure 1 shows a section of a shelf aisle—specifically, only a section of the left side of the aisle—of a supermarket in which shelves are set up to present goods or products. For reasons of clarity, only the front shelf rails 1 of the shelves are shown, on which electronic product and / or price displays 2 to 11, hereinafter referred to as ESLs 2 to 11 for short, where ESL stands for "Electronic Shelf Label," are mounted. The ESLs 2 to 11 are connected wirelessly 12 to an access point 13, which in turn is connected via a LAN network 14 to a server 15, on which merchandise management software, ESL management software, and cash register software are processed and the respective functions are provided.The merchandise management software is used to manage the goods and their stocks in the supermarket. The ESL management software is used to manage ESLs 2 - 11, and in particular the information to be displayed with them. The cash register software is used to operate and manage cash register terminals (not shown) so that customers can pay for the goods they have selected in a single payment process. The merchandise management software, the ESL management software, and the cash register software can exchange data with each other so that, for example, a logical connection can be established between a product and one of the ESLs 2 - 11, i.e. a clear assignment can be made between the respective ESL 2 - 11 and the respective product, and, for example, discount information that is displayed and made accessible to a customer using ESLs 2 - 11 is also available or known to the cash register software and can be used during the payment process.

[0088] In the illustration in Figure 1, the customer 16 is reduced to his head 17, which is shown from a bird's eye view, i.e., viewed from directly above the customer 16, because this is sufficient for the discussion of the invention. Also indicated on the head 17 are the ears 18 and 19, the eyes 20 and 21, and the nose 22. A viewing direction arrow 23 indicates the direction in which the customer 16 is looking, which is referred to as the viewing direction.

[0089] Figure 3 shows details of the structure of ESLs 2-11, with ESLs 2-11 being divided into three functional blocks. A first functional block relates to the recording of customer behavior, with this function being provided by a recording device 24. A second functional block relates to the display of product and / or price information, with this function being provided by a display device 25. A third functional block relates to radio communication with access point 13, with this function being provided by a radio device 26.

[0090] The detection device 24 has a camera 27, of which a lens 28 is shown. The camera 27 has image capture electronics 29 and image processing electronics 30. The image capture device 29 has the usual electronic components, such as a CCD sensor (Charge Coupled Device - sensor, not shown) and a first processor or microcontroller (not shown) as well as a digital memory (not shown). With the help of the lens 28, which defines a detection area 31 that is bordered by dash-dotted lines 32, an object located within the detection area 31, such as the customer 16 or their head 17, is imaged onto the CCD sensor, where it is electronically captured and digitized, possibly pre-processed and / or compressed, and at least temporarily stored in the camera 27 for further processing with the help of the digital memory.The image processing electronics 30 is designed and serves to identify and analyze the electronically captured image of the object. In this case, the head 17 is specifically identified with the face of the customer 16, and it is determined whether the face of the customer 16 is aligned with the camera 27. This is essentially determined by the eyes 20 and 21 looking in the direction of the camera 17, which is equated with a focused gaze on the respective ESL 2 - 11. This is interpreted by definition as product-specific, interested behavior of the customer 16. When this situation occurs, the image processing electronics 30 is designed or programmed to transmit a trigger signal S to the display device 25 as a signaling action, so that a data processing reaction is triggered on the display device 25, which will be discussed further below.

[0091] The display device 25 serves to display product and / or price information as well as the aforementioned discount information and has its own processing stage 33, such as a second processor or microcontroller, which is programmed to display the product and / or price information as well as the discount information received via the radio device 26 with the aid of an electrophoretic screen 34, i.e. to control the screen 34, and to handle the internal communication with the radio device 26.

[0092] The radio device 26 is designed to communicate with the access point 13 according to a radio communication protocol and to receive the data provided by the server 15, which represents the product and / or price information or the discount information, and to transmit it to the display device 25. For this purpose, the radio device 26 has its own processing stage 35, such as a third processor or microcontroller, and a transceiver stage 36 connected thereto, which is connected to an antenna configuration 37. The transceiver stage 36 has the common electronic components necessary for receiving and converting the radio signals into electrical signals and vice versa. The processing stage 35 is programmed to implement the radio communication protocol and transmits the received data to the display device 25.It can also be used to query data from the ESL 2 - 11 and transmit it to the server 14 via the access point 13.

[0093] Each ESLs 2 - 11 also has a battery 38, which is provided to provide a supply voltage VCC required for its operation relative to a reference potential GND.

[0094] The display device 25 is further configured to distinguish or differentiate between the display of pure product and / or price information and the discount information, as follows. In the present exemplary implementation, it always displays the product and / or price information, which is supplemented by the discount information upon the occurrence or during the time of the presence of the trigger signal S, as discussed below with reference to Figures 1 and 2.

[0095] The three functional blocks can be connected in series, as shown in Figure 3. However, they can also exchange data and signals with each other via a common data-signal bus. The trigger signal S can thus be present as an analog signal and have the states "on" or "off" or can be interpreted according to its variable (stepped or continuous) value, which can be used, for example, to indicate a customer's dwell time or to indicate their attention or to scale their level of attention, or in other words, to scale their interest. However, the trigger signal S can also be present as a digital representation, such as a command that contains the aforementioned indication of attention or the scaled interest as an argument.

[0096] As can be seen in Figure 1, the customer 16 moves along the path X, which is indicated by a dashed line and on which three positions XI, X2 and X3 are marked for the purposes of demonstrating the invention. At position XI, the customer 16 averts his line of sight slightly to the right, oriented away from the ESLs 2 - 11, which is determined at least with the help of the first ESL 2 and after which no trigger signal S is generated at the first ESL 2. Even if at position X2 the line of sight of the customer 16 is oriented somewhat more towards an orientation running essentially along the shelf rail 1, a situation also exists here which does not cause the two ESLs 3 and 9 to generate the trigger signal S.Only in position X3, in which the customer 16's gaze focuses on the ninth ESL 10, is this detected at the ninth ESL 10, and accordingly, behavior interested in the product placed there is attested, thus generating the trigger signal S, which causes the ninth ESL 10 to display the discount information as an (additional) purchase incentive in addition to the product and / or price information displayed. As soon as the customer 16 averts their gaze again, only the original product and / or price information is displayed at the ninth ESL 10, and the discount information is hidden.

[0097] For the ninth ESL 10, this sequence of a discount-free display of the product and / or price information followed by a display of the product and / or price information containing the discount information, followed by a discount-free display of the product and / or price information, is visualized in Figure 2. In this case, a QR code 39 is prominently displayed as discount information where previously only the price was visible. The price itself is still displayed, but smaller than before and below the QR code. To the left of the QR code, a text is now displayed informing the customer that the price of the advertised product can be discounted by scanning the QR code.As long as the face of the customer 16 is located along path X with focus on the ninth ESL 10 within the detection area 31 of the ninth ESL 10, i.e., between the two time stamps TI and T2 along the time axis t, the QR code 39 is displayed as described (middle image of the ESL 10). Temporarily upstream of the left time stamp TI (left image of the ESL 10) and downstream of the right time stamp T2 (right image of the ESL 10), the QR code 39 is not displayed on the ninth ESL 10. Therefore, in the present implementation, it is irrelevant whether the customer moves quickly past the ninth ESL 10 with their gaze directed toward the ninth ESL 10 or even pauses in front of it.

[0098] Analogous to the display of QR code 39 for a discount on the regular price, a call to action could also be displayed instead of the QR code when rapid movement is detected, such as "get it now." In this case, QR code 39 could only be displayed as discount information once it has been detected that customer 16 is standing in front of the shelf.

[0099] The displayed QR code 39 can be easily scanned by the customer 16 using their mobile phone 40 (see Figure 4C), saved, and redeemed at a store's checkout terminal or during a complete mobile payment transaction via the mobile phone 40. This functionality can be performed using an application, or APP for short, that is processed on the mobile phone 40 and that the customer 16 has previously installed on their mobile phone 40.

[0100] The function of the invention is discussed below in conjunction with Figures 4A, 4B, and 4C. Figure 4A shows the method sequence for the method according to the invention, wherein the method sequence is divided into five method sections VI to V5; Figure 4B shows, as an example for the entirety of ESLs 2-11, the ninth ESL 10 with its information reproduction in the method sections VI to V3 relevant for ESLs 2-11; and Figure 4C shows the involvement of the mobile phone 40 in the method in method steps V2, V4, and V5.

[0101] In Figure 4A, the process starts in block I. In block II, the product and / or price information is displayed by the ESLs 2-11, without the QR code 39 intended as a purchase incentive. In block III, it is checked whether a customer 16 is essentially looking into the camera 27 of the respective ESL 2-11, and, if this is not the case, the system branches to block II, thus leaving the display on the respective ESL 2-11 unchanged.

[0102] However, if it is determined in block III that a customer 16 is looking at the camera 27, i.e. focusing on the respective ESL 2 - 11 (in the context of Figure 1, the ninth ESL 10), the trigger signal S is generated there and in a block IV the display is changed so that the QR code 39 is now also displayed and this type of display is maintained through the loop via block V to block IV as long as the customer focuses on the ESL 10. In block V it is checked whether the customer 16 turns his focus away from the respective ESL 2 - 11. The customer 16 now has the opportunity to react to the purchase incentive and to scan the QR code 39 into the supermarket operator's mobile phone app using his mobile phone 40, wherein it is noted there that a discount of e.g.10% is applied if the customer 16 actually purchases the goods, which is visualized for the mobile phone 40 in process section V2. As soon as the customer 16 turns their attention away from the relevant ESL 2-11 (here, as mentioned, the ninth ESL 10), the product and / or price information is displayed in a block VI for the relevant ESL 2-11 (i.e., the ninth ESL 10) without displaying the QR code 39, which is visualized in process section V3. This essentially ends the process for ESLs 2-11, which is indicated by the loop back to block II.

[0103] However, in the overall context of the goods management process up to the payment process, the method continues in block VII, where the customer 16 uses their mobile phone 40 for a payment transaction. In block VII, a check is carried out to determine whether a QR code 39 is transmitted from the mobile phone 40 to a payment terminal (not shown) during the payment transaction. To do so, the customer 16 holds the mobile phone 40 to the payment terminal, and the discount information—if available—is transmitted via NFC (near-field communication) transmission. If discount information is available for the relevant product, the method continues in block VIII, and the discount information transmitted via QR code 39 is applied, reducing the relevant product price by 10%, which is also displayed on the screen of the mobile phone 40 (see Figure 4C in the context of the fifth process section V5).If no discount information is available for the product in question, the process continues with block IX, where no discount is applied to the price of the product. The sequence of blocks VIII to IX can be run through a single time because, for example, by definition only a single discount can be applied. If multiple discounts can be applied, for example for each product, the sequence of blocks can be run through at least according to the number of discount information items stored in the mobile phone 40 in order to apply all of this discount information. Multiple discount information items (for example, all discount information) can also be transmitted in a single NFC transmission, so that the sequence of blocks VII to IX needs to be run through less often or only once in order to make all of the discount information available at the payment terminal.In this way, it is possible to automatically check whether the product and / or price information provided using ESL 2-11, or more precisely the purchase incentive conveyed using the QR code, contributes to a purchase of the respective product. For example, sales figures increase for those products for which the relevant QR code was specifically displayed when the customer's behavior indicated interest in the product. Using this knowledge, the provision of the purchase incentive can also be adapted and modified over time until the desired marketing success is achieved. The system for providing a purchase incentive has therefore been expanded to include the functionality of checking whether the purchase incentive was successful.

[0104] According to a further, namely second application scenario, the detection device 24 can be combined with an odorant dispensing device, such as an electronically controllable dispenser or dosing dispenser, to form a first combination device. Such an odorant dispensing device is designed to store an odorant, for example, in the form of a liquid concentrate, and to dispense it in a metered manner as needed—for example, using a pump or a device with an equivalent effect. In this combination, the signaling action on the side of the odorant dispensing device causes the odorant, for example, in the form of an aerosol, to be released upon the occurrence of the trigger signal S. The intensity and / or duration can be controlled by the degree of behavior detected with the aid of the detection device.With reference to Figure 1, if the first combination device is integrated into the ESLs 2-11, for example, already at position XI with a targeted aerosol blast from the first ESL 2 an incentive can be created for the customer 16 to subsequently turn towards the shelf or to stop and align themselves with the source of the aerosol blast, which is equivalent to an incentive to purchase the product advertised with the help of the first ESL 2.

[0105] According to a further, namely third, application scenario, the detection device 24 can be combined with a sound emission device to form a second combination device. The sound emission device can be implemented using a piezoelectric loudspeaker. Preferably, the sound emission device is designed for directional sound emission. Directional sound emission can be achieved, for example, using so-called "ultrasonic / ultrasound directional speakers," whereby sound can be emitted in a beam-like manner with a narrow beam opening angle. In this combination, the signaling action on the side of the sound emission device causes sound, e.g., as noise and / or music and / or speech and / or singing, to be emitted when the trigger signal S occurs. The intensity and / or duration can be controlled by the level of behavior or interest detected by the detection device.With reference to Figure 1, if the second combination device is integrated into the ESLs 2-11, for example, at position X2 with a directed sound emission from the seventh ESL 9, an incentive can be created for the customer 16 to subsequently turn towards the shelf or to stop and align themselves with the source of the sound emission, which equates to an incentive to purchase the product advertised with the help of the seventh ESL 9. Since people are good at locating sound in a certain frequency range and the sound emission is also concentrated, i.e. directed, it is easy for the customer 16 to distinguish between the "silent" second ESL 3 and the "loud" seventh ESL 9, even though they are only mounted at different positions, sometimes quite close to one another or one above the other. In the context of Figure 1, for example, the observed view of a product or the associated ESL, as is the case, for example,at position X3, to emit a specific sound, where the sound can, for example, be characteristic of the product. If the product is beer, for example, the eighth ESL 10 could emit a sound similar to that emitted when a beer bottle is opened, which would act as an incentive to buy the beer being advertised using the eighth ESL 10. The directed sound event can also be used as a highlight against an acoustic background, where the acoustic background could, for example, be provided by a large-scale sound system in a shop with radio-like audio advertising.

[0106] The two combination devices discussed above can, of course, also operate without the radio-based or wired display functionality characteristic of ESLs 2 - 11, thus de facto being used as "stand-alone devices." It can also be provided to combine the functionalities of the two combination devices in a third combination device, which then comprises the detection device 24 and the odorant dispensing device and the sound dispensing device. In this third combination device, the detection device can control the two dispensing devices separately from one another and use them in a situation-specific manner, in particular specifically depending on the detection result, in order to convey the respective acoustic or olfactory purchase incentive to be triggered, such as initially discreetly initiating and then dominantly concluding.

[0107] The measures according to the invention can also be used with so-called video shelf rails. With their relatively wide video screens, such video shelf rails cover significantly larger areas of the shelf rail 1 than is the case with ESLs 2 - 11. They often even cover entire shelf rails 1 and are designed to play videos, i.e. display dynamic content. Such videos are, for example, advertising videos for promoting products or videos designed to create a desired impression in the viewing customer or to evoke a desired feeling in the viewing customer. Similar to ESLs 2 - 11, the basic structure of which was explained with the help of Figure 3, the video shelf rails can be supplied wirelessly with video data and other data, such as data that represents the aforementioned purchase incentive, e.g. as a QR code.Sometimes, however, they are powered by a wired connection because this also allows for a simpler energy supply. A combination with the (possibly separate) detection device 24 or a complete integration with it in a single device can be used with the video shelf rail to specifically reward an interested viewer of the video. The detection device 24 can be used to determine whether a customer watches the entire video or turns their attention away before the end. In both cases, the detection device 24 allows for a situation-specific response.

[0108] If the customer watches the entire video, the aforementioned QR code can be displayed as a reward, for example, as a static element towards the end of the video. As soon as the customer then turns their attention away from the video shelf rail, the QR code disappears.

[0109] If it is noticed that the customer is beginning to turn away from the video shelf significantly before the end of the video, a prominent or even discreet invitation to continue watching can be presented. This can be accompanied by the announcement of a QR code that can be used for a discount, but this code is only available on the screen towards the end of the video, once the customer has actually watched the entire video.

[0110] The three combination devices mentioned can, of course, also be provided for ESLs 1-11 or the video shelf rails to provide purchase incentives other than just visual ones. The individual ESLs 2-11 or the individual video shelf rails can all have the same design, i.e., be equipped identically with the respective combination devices, for example, to provide individual, location-specific purchase incentives, or they can all have uniform equipment with regard to the aforementioned combination devices, so that these can then be used selectively, e.g., as needed.

[0111] Finally, it should be noted once again that the figures described in detail above are merely exemplary embodiments that can be modified in a variety of ways by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. For the sake of completeness, it should also be noted that the use of the indefinite articles "a" or "an" does not exclude the possibility that the relevant features may be present multiple times.

Claims

Claims 1. A method for providing a purchase incentive, comprising the following method steps, namely: - recording the behavior of a person by means of a Detection device (24) in the vicinity of the detection device (24) and - based on the person's recorded behavior, an automatic triggering of a signaling action related to the provision of the purchase incentive.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically triggering the signaling action relating to the provision of the purchase incentive comprises issuing at least one of the following signals, namely: + an acoustically perceptible signal, + an optically perceptible signal, + an olfactory signal.

3. Method according to claim 2, wherein the optically perceptible signal is emitted by an electronic product and / or price display (2-11), preferably by a video display, particularly preferably by a video shelf rail display.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the optically perceptible signal comprises a machine-readable code (39), in particular a two-dimensional code, preferably a QR code, a bar code, or a dynamic code.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the machine-readable code (39) represents discount information, preferably for a specific product.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the machine-readable code (39) represents loyalty program information, in particular loyalty points.

7. The method according to claim 2, wherein the acoustically perceptible signal is generated by a directional audio signal generator with directional audio signal output characteristics and is output in a directionally manner by the latter.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the olfactory signal is delivered by an odor delivery device.

9. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein automatically triggering the signal relating to providing the purchase incentive comprises emitting at least one radio signal.

10. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the signaling action causes the provision of the purchase incentive to be adjusted depending on the detected behavior of the person.

11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the detection by the detection device (24) takes place in a detection area defined by the detection device (24), preferably a detection area limited around the detection device (24), particularly preferably in a detection sector spanned on one side of the detection device (24).

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the detection by the detection device (24) takes place from a position adjacent to a product, preferably from a shelf, particularly preferably from a shelf rail.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the detection device (24) is integrated into an electronic product and / or price display (2-11) having a screen (34), and the detection by the detection device (24) is limited to a detection area in front of the screen (34), preferably to a defined detection sector in front of the screen (34), particularly preferably limited to a detection sector emanating from the screen (34).

14. Method according to one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the detection by the detection device (24) is carried out with the aid of at least one of the following sensors, namely: - a radio or light signal sensor - a motion sensor - a gaze sensor, preferably camera-based, preferably with integrated artificial intelligence, - a gaze-based attention sensor, preferably camera-based, preferably with integrated artificial intelligence.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein detecting the behavior of the person comprises determining the level of attention of the person, and wherein the triggered signaling action conveys the level of detected attention.

16. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the recorded behavior is stored digitally and is used for the, in particular future, provision of the purchase incentive, in particular for an automated adaptation of the purchase incentive.

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