Sales support system

Abstract

To provide a sales support system capable of sufficiently securing profits on a store side.SOLUTION: A sales support system 1 for supporting sales of on-line commodities includes a reception unit for accepting either selection of participation in a purchase queue for enabling commodity purchase after the elapse of a prescribed period or instant purchase of the commodity from a user, a determination unit for determining a privilege to be given to each participant on the basis of the confirmed number of participants in the purchase queue, and a notification unit for notifying each participant of privilege information related to the determined privilege.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sales support system that supports the online sale of various products. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a sales relay system equipped with an electronic shop server that has a counting means for counting the reserved quantities of products that are purchased for each product traded at an online shop within a specified period, and a storage means for storing sales prices that are preset to become lower the larger the quantity, for each of the products. With this sales relay system, the sales price becomes lower the larger the reserved quantity, which stimulates consumers' purchasing desire and promotes sales. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2001-331716 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the case of the above-mentioned conventional sales relay system, it is expected that the sales volume of goods will increase, but since it is accompanied by a reduction in the selling price, there is a risk that the store will not be able to secure a sufficient profit.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its main object is to provide a sales support system that can ensure sufficient profits for the store. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, one aspect of the sales support system of the present invention is a sales support system that supports online sales of products, and includes a reception unit that receives from a user a choice between joining a purchase queue in which the product can be purchased after a predetermined period of time has passed, or purchasing the product immediately, a determination unit that determines a benefit to be granted to each participant in the purchase queue based on the confirmed number of participants, and a notification unit that notifies the participants of benefit information related to the determined benefit.

[0007] In the above aspect, the entertainment device may further include a first providing unit that provides the user with a plurality of different bonus contents that are preset according to the number of participants in the purchase queue.

[0008] In the above aspect, the contents of the benefit may be set based on a predicted rate of participation in the purchase queue.

[0009] In the above aspect, the content of the benefit may be set based on the gross profit margin of the product.

[0010] In the above aspect, the determination unit may determine a benefit to be granted to each of the participants based on the order in which the participants join the purchase queue.

[0011] In the above aspect, the system may further include a second providing unit that provides the contents of the purchase queue in which each user participates to other users.

[0012] In addition, in the above aspect, the system may further include a third providing unit that provides information to users who are not in the purchasing queue, in response to a request from a participant in the purchasing queue, to encourage the user to join the purchasing queue.

[0013] In addition, in the above aspect, the system may further include a prediction unit that predicts the confirmed number of participants in the purchase queue based on a predicted value of the participation rate of the purchase queue, and a fourth provision unit that provides each user with prediction information including the predicted confirmed number of participants. Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to promote online product sales while ensuring profits for the store. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a sales support system and its connected devices. [Diagram 2] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of a store database. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of a membership database. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of a product database. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of a queue database. [Figure 6] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for a benefit setting process. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a benefit setting screen. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a discount rate proposal screen. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for a purchase request acceptance process. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a product purchase screen. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a queue detail screen. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a special benefit screen. [Figure 13] 11 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure for an other person's participation status providing process. [Figure 14] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure of a participation invitation process. [Figure 15] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for a benefit determination process. [Figure 16] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for a queue forecast providing process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments are merely examples of methods and devices for embodying the technical idea of ​​the present invention, and the technical idea of ​​the present invention is not limited to the following. The technical idea of ​​the present invention can be modified in various ways within the technical scope described in the claims.

[0017] In the sales support system of this embodiment, when purchasing a product online, the user can select either immediate purchase, which allows the product to be purchased immediately, or joining a purchase queue, which allows the product to be purchased after a predetermined period of time has passed. This creates significant benefits for both the buyer and the seller.

[0018] (System Configuration) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a sales support system and its connected devices according to this embodiment. The sales support system 1 according to this embodiment is a computer system that supports online product sales. The sales support system 1 communicates with user terminals 2, 2, ... via the Internet 101. The sales support system 1 also functions as an SNS (social networking service) server, and realizes a posting function, an action function for a post, a following function, and the like.

[0019] The user terminal 2 is an information terminal used by each member who purchases products and by staff of each store selling products, and examples of such terminals include personal computers, smartphones, tablet terminals, and smart watches. The user terminal 2 acquires information provided by the sales support system 1 using a general-purpose Internet browser and a dedicated application, and displays the information on the display unit. In this embodiment, each member uses a dedicated application and Internet browser, and staff of each store uses an Internet browser.

[0020] The sales support system 1 is composed of a computer equipped with a control unit including a CPU, RAM, and ROM, and a storage unit, and each process described below is executed by this control unit. The storage unit of the sales support system 1 is provided with the following databases: a store database (DB) 11, a member database (DB) 12, a product database (DB) 13, and a purchase queue database (DB) 14. The following describes these databases in detail.

[0021] (A) Store DB11 The store DB11 is a database that stores information about stores that sell products. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of this store DB11. As shown in FIG. 2, the store DB11 stores at least a store ID for identifying each store, as well as the name, contact information, and attributes of the store. In the example shown in FIG. 2, an email address is shown as the contact information, but other contact information such as a telephone number may also be used. Store attributes stored in the store DB11 include various items such as industry / business type, number of employees, sales, date of establishment, and number of products handled.

[0022] (B) Member DB12 The member DB 12 is a database that stores information about members who enjoy various services provided by the sales support system 1. A user who wishes to use various services provided by the sales support system 1 becomes a member by registering in advance according to a prescribed procedure. Various information provided by the member to the sales support system 1 at the time of registration is stored in the member DB 12. This information can be updated as appropriate in response to requests from members, etc.

[0023] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of member DB 12. As shown in Fig. 3, member DB 12 stores at least a member ID for identifying each member, as well as the member's name, contact information, and attributes. In the example shown in Fig. 3, an email address is shown as the contact information, but other contact information such as a telephone number may also be used. Member attributes stored in member DB 12 include a variety of items such as age, sex, address, family structure, and occupation.

[0024] Furthermore, the member DB 12 stores information indicating a joining queue, which is a purchase queue in which the member has already joined. When a member requests to join a purchase queue in a purchase request reception process described later, information indicating the purchase queue is stored. In the example shown in Fig. 3, a queue ID described later is used as the information.

[0025] Furthermore, the member DB 12 stores information indicating followers who follow the member in the SNS provided by the sales support system 1. In the example shown in Fig. 3, the member ID of the follower is used as the information.

[0026] (C) Product DB13 The product DB 13 is a database that stores information about products for sale. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of this product DB 13. As shown in Fig. 4, the product DB 13 stores at least a product ID for identifying each product, the name of the product, the store that sells the product, and the number of products in stock.

[0027] Furthermore, the product DB13 stores the gross profit margin of the product and the predicted value of the participation rate in the purchase queue for that product. Here, the participation rate in the purchase queue means the ratio of the number of purchases made by joining the purchase queue to the total number of purchases. In the case of this embodiment, there are two modes of product purchase: immediate purchase and purchase via a purchase queue. Therefore, the smaller the number of purchases made via immediate purchase, i.e., the greater the number of purchases made via a purchase queue, the higher the participation rate in the purchase queue.

[0028] As described below, the participation rate of the purchase queue and the gross profit rate of the product are provided by each store and stored in the product DB 13. However, the sales support system 1 may automatically calculate the participation rate and the gross profit rate based on the attributes of the store and / or the attributes of the product.

[0029] (D) Purchase queue DB14 The purchase queue DB14 is a database that stores information about purchase queues that become available for product purchase after a predetermined period of time has passed. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of this purchase queue DB14. As shown in Fig. 5, the purchase queue DB14 stores at least a queue ID for identifying each purchase queue, information for identifying products that can be purchased in that purchase queue, the number of participants, the deadline for participation, and the member ID of each participant. Here, the number of participants is obtained by a purchase request acceptance process described below, and the deadline is set by the store.

[0030] Furthermore, the purchase queue DB 14 stores information regarding benefits set for each purchase queue. For each purchase queue, multiple levels of benefits (three levels in this embodiment) are set, ranging from large to small benefits for the purchaser. When the number of participants is large, a benefit with a large benefit is given to each participant, and when the number of participants is small, a benefit with a small benefit is given to each participant.

[0031] The contents of the benefits are set by each store. For example, if a store operates various facilities, the benefits may be discount coupons or tickets that can be used at those facilities. In addition, the benefit may be a discount on the sales price, in which case the discount rate at each stage is set through the benefit setting process described below.

[0032] Furthermore, the purchase queue DB 14 stores the acquisition conditions for a member to acquire each benefit. Each acquisition condition is defined by a range of a predetermined number of participants for each benefit. Therefore, in this embodiment, the benefit is granted according to the number of participants in the purchase queue.

[0033] (System Operation) The sales support system 1 executes the following processes. (1) A reward setting process for setting rewards in the purchase queue (2) Purchase request acceptance process to accept product purchase requests from members (3) Benefit determination process to determine the content of the applicable benefits (4) Processing to provide each member with the status of other members’ purchase queue participation (5) A join invitation process that invites a particular member to join a purchase queue. (6) A queue forecast providing process for providing a prediction of the participation of each member in the purchase queue. Each of these processes will be described in detail below.

[0034] (1) Benefit setting process The sales support system 1 cooperates with the user terminal 2 operated by the store staff to set the benefits to be given to the participants in the purchase queue. The process executed by the sales support system 1 at this time is a benefit setting process. This benefit setting process will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0035] The store staff accesses the sales support system 1 using an Internet browser installed in the user terminal 2, and requests to set a privilege for the purchase queue. In response to this, the sales support system 1 transmits privilege setting reception information to the user terminal 2 for displaying a privilege setting screen for receiving the privilege setting (S101).

[0036] The user terminal 2 displays a benefit setting screen on the display unit based on the benefit setting reception information received from the sales support system 1. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the benefit setting screen. As shown in Fig. 7, the benefit setting screen has an input field 21 for inputting the sales price and gross profit margin of the product to be sold, and a predicted value of the participation rate in the purchase queue of the product, and a send button 211 for sending the information input in the input field 21. The gross profit margin and participation rate can be arbitrarily selected from a predetermined number of levels using a pull-down menu.

[0037] The person in charge uses the user terminal 2 to input into the input field 21. Here, the person in charge inputs the actual values for the price and gross profit margin of the product, and for the participation rate, inputs values predicted according to past experience and the actual performance values of similar products provided by the operator side of the sales support system 1. Regarding the gross profit margin and participation rate, values automatically calculated by the sales support system 1 based on attributes of the store and / or attributes of the product may be displayed as reference information in each field.

[0038] After the input to the input field 21 is completed, the person in charge presses the send button 211. Thereby, information including the selling price, gross profit margin, and participation rate of the input product is sent from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1.

[0039] Returning to FIG. 6, when the sales support system 1 receives information including the selling price, gross profit margin, and participation rate of the product (S102), it calculates the maximum value of the discount rate corresponding to the benefits in the purchase queue using each piece of information (S103). At this time, the sales support system 1 calculates the maximum value of the discount rate using the following formula 1. D = Ar / S (N - 1 / N) ··· Formula 1 However, D is the discount rate, Ar is the gross profit margin, S is the participation rate (0 < S < 1), and N is the growth rate of purchasers (N > 1). For the growth rate N of purchasers, a predetermined value (for example, 120%, etc.) is set according to the price of the product, etc.

[0040] Next, the sales support system 1 identifies discount rates at multiple levels (4 levels in this embodiment) based on the calculated maximum value of the discount rate, and transmits discount rate proposal information indicating them to the user terminal 2 (S104). For example, when the maximum value of the discount rate is 20%, the sales support system 1 identifies 20% and 15%, 10%, and 5% which are decreased by 5% from it as the proposed discount rates, and transmits the discount rate proposal information indicating these discount rates.

[0041] The multiple discount rates may be determined based on the selling price of the product. For example, the discount rate may be determined based on different criteria depending on whether the selling price of the product is equal to or higher than a predetermined value. More specifically, if the selling price of the product is equal to or higher than a predetermined value, the maximum discount rate may not be used and only values ​​lower than the predetermined value may be determined, or the reduction may be greater than 5%.

[0042] The user terminal 2 displays on the display unit a discount rate proposal screen for displaying each discount rate indicated in the discount rate proposal information received from the sales support system 1. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the discount rate proposal screen. As shown in Fig. 8, the discount rate proposal screen is provided with a display field 22 for displaying the product price, gross profit margin, and participation rate previously input, a display field 23 for displaying the four-stage discount rate identified as described above, and a registration button 212 for registering the discount rate as a special benefit. In the display field 23, the four-stage discount rate is displayed separately in sections, and each discount rate can be selected by the person in charge.

[0043] The discount rate proposal screen also displays messages ((a) through (d) in the figure) explaining the positioning of each discount rate displayed in display field 23. The content of these messages may be changed depending on the product's sales price, the attributes of the store, etc.

[0044] The person in charge, while referring to the contents of the above message, identifies three discount rates to be set as a special benefit from among the four discount rates, and uses the user terminal 2 to press the area in which those discount rates are displayed. This selects the three discount rates. In this state, when the person in charge presses the register button 212, discount rate selection information indicating the three selected discount rates is sent from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1.

[0045] Returning to Fig. 6, when the sales support system 1 receives the discount rate selection information (S105), it registers the three discount rates indicated in the discount rate selection information in the purchase queue DB 14 (S106). As a result, the discount rates on the selling price of the product are set as benefits.

[0046] In the above-mentioned benefit setting process, the conditions for obtaining each benefit are not set, but the conditions for obtaining each benefit may be set together with each benefit. In this case, the store staff may specify any of the conditions for obtaining (the range of the number of participants), or may appropriately select from the conditions for obtaining that are predetermined by the sales support system 1 based on the attributes of the store and / or the attributes of the product.

[0047] (2) Purchase request processing When a benefit is set for a purchase queue as described above, the product related to the purchase queue can be purchased. The process for accepting a purchase request from a member after that is called a purchase request acceptance process. This purchase request acceptance process will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

[0048] When a member wishes to purchase a product, he or she accesses the sales support system 1 using a dedicated application and an internet browser installed in the user terminal 2, and makes a request to purchase a specific product. In response to this, the sales support system 1 transmits product purchase acceptance information to the user terminal 2 for displaying a product purchase screen that accepts the purchase of the product (S201).

[0049] The user terminal 2 displays a product purchase screen on the display unit based on the product purchase reception information received from the sales support system 1. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the product purchase screen. As shown in Fig. 10, the product purchase screen displayed on the display unit 20 of the user terminal 2 shows a product image, description, sales price, and ratings from each member (stars in the figure). In addition, this product purchase screen is provided with an instant purchase button 213 for instantly purchasing the product, and a queue join button 214 for joining the purchase queue.

[0050] The member selects whether to immediately purchase the product at the displayed selling price or to join a purchase queue where he or she can enjoy certain benefits. For example, if the member wants to obtain the product as quickly as possible, the member selects immediate purchase. On the other hand, if it is okay if it takes time and the member wants to purchase the product after enjoying the benefits, the member selects joining the purchase queue. Depending on the result of this selection, the member presses either the immediate purchase button 213 or the join queue button 214. As a result, product purchase request information for requesting the purchase of the product is transmitted from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1. This product purchase request information includes information indicating whether the immediate purchase button 213 or the join queue button 214 was pressed.

[0051] Returning to Fig. 9, when the sales support system 1 receives product purchase request information (S202), it determines whether immediate purchase or joining the queue has been selected based on the product purchase request information (S203). If it determines that immediate purchase has been selected ("immediate purchase" in S203), the sales support system 1 executes the payment process for the purchase of the product (S204) and transmits payment completion information indicating that the process has been completed to the user terminal 2 (S205). In this case, the product will be shipped to the member as quickly as possible.

[0052] Furthermore, in step S203, if it is determined that joining the queue has been selected ("join the queue" in S203), the sales support system 1 transmits queue detail information to the user terminal 2 for displaying a queue detail screen showing details of the purchase queue for the product (S206). This queue detail information is generated using each piece of information stored in the purchase queue DB 14, etc.

[0053] The user terminal 2 displays a queue details screen on the display unit based on the queue detail information received from the sales support system 1. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the queue details screen. As shown in Fig. 11, the queue details screen displayed on the display unit 20 of the user terminal 2 is provided with a display field 24 that displays the contents of three levels of benefits that can be obtained when joining the purchase queue and the conditions for obtaining the benefits, a participation confirmation button 215 for confirming participation in the purchase queue, and a cancel button 216 for canceling the participation.

[0054] In the example shown in Fig. 11, it is shown in the display field 24 that when the number of participants is 10 or less, 11 to 20, and 21 or more, respectively, 10%, 15%, and 20% discount benefits can be obtained. Note that instead of directly showing the content of the benefit in the display field 24, for example, only the letters "Benefit 1", "Benefit 2", and "Benefit 3" may be displayed selectably, and when the letter is selected, the content of the benefit is displayed. There is no particular limitation on the display form as long as the content of the multiple different benefits set according to the number of participants in the purchase queue can be understood by the member.

[0055] Also, on the queue details screen, an icon 25 indicating a member who has joined the purchase queue and a message 26 saying "Invite a friend" are selectably displayed. This icon 25 is used in the process of providing the participation status of others, which will be described later, and the message 26 is used in the process of encouraging participation, which will be described later.

[0056] Other information displayed on the queue details screen includes the number of people currently in the queue, the number of days remaining until the deadline, the total number of people who have previously been in the queue to purchase the same product, and the current number of items in stock.

[0057] The member decides whether or not to join the purchase queue after referring to the contents and acquisition conditions of each benefit, as well as the number of people currently in the purchase queue, and presses the participation confirmation button 215 if he or she wishes to join, or the cancel button 216 if he or she wishes not to join. As a result, participation necessity information indicating whether or not the member wishes to join the purchase queue is transmitted from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1. This participation necessity information includes information indicating whether the participation confirmation button 215 or the cancel button 216 was pressed.

[0058] 9, when the sales support system 1 receives the participation necessity information (S207), it determines whether the selection was made between "confirm participation" and "cancel" based on the participation necessity information (S208). If it is determined that the selection was made "cancel" (NO in S208), the sales support system 1 ends the process.

[0059] On the other hand, when it is determined in step S208 that the participation confirmation has been selected (YES in S208), the sales support system 1 transmits participation completion information indicating that participation in the purchase queue has been completed to the user terminal 2 (S209). The user terminal 2 that has received this participation completion information displays information indicating that participation in the purchase queue has been completed on the display unit 20.

[0060] Next, the sales support system 1 adds 1 to the number of participants stored in the purchase queue DB 14 (S210). This updates the number of participants to the latest value. The sales support system 1 determines whether or not this latest number of participants corresponds to a predetermined value, in other words, whether or not the current participation is in a predetermined order (S211). Note that this predetermined order is preset by the store or the operator of the sales support system 1.

[0061] If it is determined in step S211 that the participation is not in a specific order (NO in S211), the sales support system 1 ends the process. On the other hand, if it is determined that the participation is in a specific order (YES in S211), the sales support system 1 transmits special benefit information to the user terminal 2 for displaying a special benefit screen indicating that a special benefit will be given (S212), and ends the process.

[0062] The user terminal 2 displays a special benefit screen on the display unit based on the special benefit information received from the sales support system 1. This special benefit screen is displayed as a pop-up screen on the queue detail screen shown in FIG. 11. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the special benefit screen. As shown in FIG. 12, the special benefit screen displays a message indicating that the current participation is in a specific order (in this example, "10th") and that a special benefit (in this example, "100 yen off") will be given as a result. When a special benefit is given to a member in this way, information indicating this is stored in the member DB 12.

[0063] When a participant joins the purchase queue as described above, the contents of the benefits to be given to the participant are not yet determined. After that, when the deadline for participation arrives, the contents of the benefits are determined according to the number of participants at that time. This determination is performed by the benefit determination process described below.

[0064] (3) Benefit confirmation process After each member joins the purchase queue through the above-mentioned purchase request acceptance process, when the purchase queue reaches its deadline, the contents of the benefits are finalized. The process executed at this time is the benefit determination process. This benefit determination process will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

[0065] 13, the sales support system 1 refers to the purchase queue DB 14 to identify a purchase queue that has reached its deadline, and sets this as the purchase queue to be processed (S301). Next, the sales support system 1 identifies the final number of participants in the purchase queue based on the purchase queue DB 14 (S302), and identifies the benefits to be granted based on the number of participants (S303).

[0066] Next, the sales support system identifies each participant by referring to the member DB 12 (S304), and transmits to the identified participant benefit information indicating the benefit content identified in step S303 (S305). The member to whom the benefit information is to be transmitted receives this information using the user terminal 2, and can confirm the benefit content that he or she has acquired. After that, the benefit is applied, and the product is shipped to the member.

[0067] As described above, in this embodiment, the member can choose between immediate purchase and joining a purchase queue depending on the urgency of obtaining the product and the attractiveness of the benefit. In this way, the member can appropriately select the purchasing mode of the product, which increases the willingness to purchase the product and, as a result, promotes sales. On the other hand, for the store, by offering the benefit, an increase in the sales volume of the product can be expected, and by having some of the sales be immediate purchases that do not entail the benefit, sufficient profits can be expected without relying solely on low-margin, high-volume sales.

[0068] (4) Processing to provide other people’s participation status In the above-mentioned purchase request reception process, a member who is considering whether or not to join the purchase queue while referring to the queue details screen may want to check the purchase queue participation status of other members who are already in the purchase queue as reference information. The process executed at this time is the other members' participation status providing process. This other members' participation status providing process will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

[0069] When a member viewing the queue details screen wishes to check the participation status of other members in the purchase queue, the member selects a specific icon 25 from among the icons 25 displayed on the queue details screen. This selects a specific participant from among the participants already participating in the purchase queue that the member is considering. At this time, participant selection information for identifying the selected participant is transmitted from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1.

[0070] 14, when the sales support system 1 receives participant selection information (S401), it refers to the member DB 12 to identify the purchase queue in which the selected participant participates (S402). Next, the sales support system 1 extracts various information on the identified purchase queue, the product related to the purchase queue, and the store selling the product from the purchase queue DB 14, the product DB 13, and the store DB 11, respectively, and transmits participation queue information including this information to the user terminal 2 (S403).

[0071] The user terminal 2 displays the participation queue information received from the sales support system 1 on the display unit. This allows the member to check the details of the purchase queue in which the participant selected by the member has already joined (including the number of participants in the purchase queue, the deadline, the contents of the benefit, the product name, the number of items in stock, and the name of the sales store). If the contents of the purchase queue in which another member has joined are of interest to the member, the member will actively consider joining the purchase queue in which a person with similar tastes and preferences has joined. As a result, participation in the purchase queue is promoted.

[0072] In the above description, the contents of the purchase queue in which other members who have already joined the purchase queue are participating are provided to a member who is considering whether or not to join the purchase queue, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the sales support system 1 may provide other members with the contents of the purchase queue in which a specific member has joined. In this case, examples of the specific member include a member who has participated in the purchase queue a predetermined number of times or more, and a member who has a predetermined number of followers on SNS or more.

[0073] (5) Participation invitation process In the above-mentioned purchase request reception process, a member who has decided to join the purchase queue while referring to the queue details screen may wish to inform other members of the contents of the purchase queue. The process executed at this time is the participation invitation process. This participation invitation process will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0074] When a member viewing the queue details screen wants to encourage other members he or she knows to join the purchase queue, that is, when he or she wants to invite the other members to join the purchase queue, the member selects the message 26 "Invite friends" displayed on the queue details screen. As a result, invitation request information indicating that an invitation request has been made is transmitted from the user terminal 2 to the sales support system 1.

[0075] 15, when the sales support system 1 receives invitation request information (S501), it extracts the followers of the member from the member DB 12 and identifies them as members to be invited (S502). Note that, although the followers of the member are automatically identified as invitation targets here, this is not limited thereto, and any other member may be identified as an invitation target by the member, or a follower of the member who is being followed may be identified as an invitation target.

[0076] Next, the sales support system 1 transmits invitation queue information, which is information about the purchase queue displayed on the queue details screen, to the member identified as the invitation target (S503). The member to whom the invitation queue information is to be transmitted receives this information using the user terminal 2 and refers to the information about the purchase queue. This enables the member to know the contents of the purchase queue that the member he or she follows is encouraging others to join. As a result, participation in the purchase queue is promoted.

[0077] (6) Queue forecast provision processing Since members can obtain better benefits the more people in the purchase queue, they are interested in how many people will ultimately join each purchase queue. The process of providing such members with a forecast of the number of people joining each purchase queue is the process of providing a forecast of the number of people joining the purchase queue. The process of providing a forecast of the number of people joining the queue will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 16.

[0078] 16, the sales support system 1 identifies a purchase queue to be processed (S601), and identifies the current number of participants in the purchase queue and the number of days remaining until the deadline by referring to the purchase queue DB 14 (S602).The sales support system 1 also identifies the predicted number of products in stock and the participation rate for the products in the purchase queue by referring to the product DB 13 (S603).

[0079] Next, the sales support system 1 predicts the final number of participants using the current number of participants and remaining days in the purchase queue identified as above, and the predicted values ​​of the stock quantity and participation rate of the product related to the purchase queue (S604). For example, the sales support system 1 calculates how many of the stock will be purchased through the purchase queue based on the stock quantity and the predicted value of the participation rate, and sets the sum of this number and the current number of participants as the predicted value of the final number of participants. In this case, if the remaining days are less than a predetermined number, it may be determined that the predicted value will not be reached, and the predetermined value may be subtracted from the predicted value.

[0080] Next, the sales support system 1 refers to the purchase queue DB14 to identify the content of the benefit to be granted according to the predicted final number of participants (S605), and transmits queue forecast information including the content of the benefit, the predicted final number of participants, and the content of the products related to the purchase queue to each member (S606).

[0081] Each member can receive queue forecast information using the user terminal 2 and check the prediction regarding joining the purchase queue. This is expected to encourage each member to consider joining the purchase queue, thereby promoting participation in the purchase queue.

[0082] (Other embodiments) In the above embodiment, the sales support system 1 has a function as an SNS server, but this is not limited to this, and the sales support system 1 may be configured to execute each of the above-mentioned processes in cooperation with another SNS server.

[0083] In the above embodiment, the posting function, the action function for the posting, and the following function are given as examples of the SNS function, but various other functions are conceivable. For example, a function for members participating in the same purchase queue to communicate with each other can be given. In this case, the sales support system 1 may refer to the purchase queue DB 14 to identify the participants, and create a group in which only the identified participants can communicate. This allows the participants to interact with each other, and effectively prevents the participants from dropping out of the purchase queue (canceling) midway. Also, a member who is considering joining the purchase queue may be allowed to join the group as a guest. This promotes participation in the purchase queue. [Explanation of symbols]

[0084] 1. Sales Support System 11 Store Database 12 Membership Database 13 Product Database 14 Purchase Queue Database 2. User terminal 20 Display section 101 Internet

Claims

1. In a sales support system that supports online product sales, a reception unit that receives a selection from a user of either joining a purchase queue that allows the user to purchase a product after a predetermined period of time has elapsed or purchasing the product immediately; A determination unit that determines a reward to be given to each participant in the purchase queue based on the confirmed number of participants in the purchase queue; a notification unit that notifies the participant of benefit information related to the determined benefit; A sales support system equipped with:

2. a first providing section that provides the user with a plurality of different bonus contents that are preset according to the number of participants in the purchase queue; The sales support system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

3. The reward content is set based on a predicted rate of participation in the purchase queue. The sales support system according to claim 2.

4. The contents of the benefit are set based on the gross profit margin of the product. The sales support system according to claim 2.

5. The determination unit determines a benefit to be granted to the participant based on the order of joining the purchase queue. The sales support system according to claim 1.

6. a second providing section for providing the contents of the purchase queue in which each user participates to other users; The sales support system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

7. a third providing section that provides information encouraging users who are not in the purchase queue to join the purchase queue in response to a request from a participant in the purchase queue; The sales support system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

8. a prediction unit for predicting the final number of participants in the purchase queue based on a predicted value of the participation rate of the purchase queue; a fourth providing unit that provides each user with prediction information including the predicted final number of people; The sales support system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

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