Method, program and information processing device for collecting customer reviews on product

Abstract

To provide a method, program and information processing device facilitating collection of customer reviews on products.SOLUTION: A method executed by an information processing device 1 includes: a step (ST210) of receiving a customer's posting of a review on a product; a step (ST240) of generating, when posting of one review on one product by one customer is received, posting information including the one review, a customer ID representing the one customer and a product ID representing the one product; a step (ST280) of generating, when posting information is generated for the review posted by the one customer, application information representing that the one customer has applied for one prize contest; and a step (ST405) of determining, by a lottery, one or more customers who are winners of the one prize contest on the basis of a plurality of pieces of application information generated for the one prize contest.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method, a program, and an information processing device for collecting customer reviews of products. [Background technology]

[0002] It is known that other people's opinions and ratings of products have a significant impact on consumer purchasing behavior. For this reason, online shopping e-commerce sites generally provide a function for users to post and view reviews of products purchased by other users. The following patent document discloses a system incorporating a function for outputting product reviews into an e-shopping system. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-059256 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] If e-commerce sites and other similar sites could post more product reviews, it would be easier to stimulate consumer purchasing desire and increase sales. Furthermore, analyzing a large number of reviews would make it easier to develop products that are in high demand among consumers. However, because customers are not obligated to post product reviews, simply accepting reviews on e-commerce sites and other similar sites makes it difficult to increase the number of reviews posted.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its object is to provide a method, a program, and an information processing device that can easily collect customer reviews of products. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A first aspect of the present invention is a method performed by an information processing device that collects customer reviews of products, the method comprising: a post acceptance process that accepts customer submissions of product reviews; a post information generation process that, when a review submitted by a customer for a product is accepted, generates post information including the review, customer identification information identifying the customer, and product identification information identifying the product; an application information generation process that, when post information is generated for a review submitted by the customer, generates application information indicating that the customer has entered a prize contest; and a lottery process that determines by lottery one or more customers who are winners of the prize contest based on the multiple application information generated for the prize, wherein the application information generation process includes generating application information indicating an entry for the prize contest for each of two or more pieces of post information corresponding to two or more products sold by different vendors.

[0007] A second aspect of the present invention is a program including instructions for causing an information processing device to perform a process of collecting customer reviews of products, the process being performed by the information processing device in accordance with the instructions comprising a post acceptance process for accepting reviews of products posted by customers; a post information generation process for, when a review posted by a customer for a product is accepted, generating post information including the review, customer identification information identifying the customer, and product identification information identifying the product; an application information generation process for, when post information is generated for a review posted by the customer, generating application information indicating that the customer has entered a prize contest; and a lottery process for determining by lottery one or more customers who are winners of the prize contest based on the multiple application information generated for the prize, wherein the application information generation process includes generating application information indicating an entry for the prize contest for each of two or more pieces of post information corresponding to two or more products sold by different vendors.

[0008] A third aspect of the present invention is an information processing device that performs a process of collecting customer reviews of products, the information processing device having a processing unit and a memory unit that stores instructions to be executed by the processing unit, and the processing performed by the processing unit in accordance with the instructions includes a post acceptance process that accepts reviews of products posted by customers, a post information generation process that, when a review posted by a customer for a product is accepted, generates post information including the review, customer identification information identifying the customer, and product identification information identifying the product, an application information generation process that, when post information is generated for a review posted by the customer, generates application information indicating that the customer has entered a prize contest, and a lottery process that determines by lottery one or more customers who are winners of the prize contest based on multiple application information generated for the prize, and the application information generation process includes generating application information indicating an entry for the prize contest for each of two or more pieces of post information corresponding to two or more products sold by different vendors.

[0009] A fourth aspect of the present invention is an information processing device that performs processing to collect customer reviews of products, the information processing device having a posting acceptance means for accepting customer submissions of product reviews; a posting information generation means for, when a review submitted by a customer for a product is accepted, generating posting information including the review, customer identification information identifying the customer, and product identification information identifying the product; an application information generation means for, when posting information is generated for a review submitted by the customer, generating application information indicating that the customer has entered a prize contest; and a lottery means for determining by lottery one or more customers who are winners of the prize contest based on the multiple application information generated for the prize, wherein the application information generation means generates application information indicating an entry into the prize contest for each of two or more pieces of posting information corresponding to two or more products sold by different vendors. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a method, a program, and an information processing device that can easily collect customer reviews of products. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a system according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing according to this embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing according to this embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a review submission request email displayed on the customer terminal device. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a review posting web page displayed on the customer terminal device. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the information processing device. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the information processing device. [Figure 8] 8A and 8B are flowcharts illustrating an example of a review evaluation process. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a submission reception process. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a system according to this embodiment. The system shown in the example of Fig. 1 includes an information processing device 1 capable of communicating via a communication network 9 such as the Internet, a plurality of business server servers 3, and a plurality of customer terminal devices 4.

[0013] In the system shown in Fig. 1, an e-commerce site is provided by a business server 3, and reviews of products sold on the e-commerce site are posted by customer terminal devices 4, and the reviews are collected by an information processing device 1. When a review is posted about a product on each e-commerce site, the customer who posted the review is registered as an entrant in a prize draw, and prize winners are determined by lottery from among the entrants.

[0014] In this specification, "goods" broadly refers to anything that can be bought and sold, and is not limited to goods (products, etc.), but also includes, for example, services, rights (securities, etc.), information, content, etc. In this specification, the term "review" broadly refers to words spoken about a product by a customer who is the purchaser of the product, and includes criticism, opinions, evaluations, impressions, commentary, etc., about the product and its seller.

[0015] [Information processing device 1] The information processing device 1 is a device that performs a process of collecting customer reviews of products. The information processing device 1 accepts and stores customer reviews posted on products sold on the e-commerce site of each business server 3, and performs a process of displaying the stored reviews on the web page of the e-commerce site. The information processing device 1 also performs a process of determining prize winners by lottery from review posters (customers), and a process of requesting product purchasers to post reviews. For example, the information processing device 1 is operated by a company or the like that collects customer reviews for a business that provides an e-commerce site on the business server 3.

[0016] For example, the information processing device 1 includes one or more computers. The information processing device 1 shown in the example of FIG.

[0017] The communication unit 11 communicates with other devices (such as the business server 3 and the customer terminal device 4) via the communication network 9. The communication unit 11 includes a device (such as a network interface card) that communicates in accordance with a predetermined communication standard such as Ethernet (registered trademark) or wireless LAN.

[0018] The storage unit 12 stores one or more programs 121 including instructions to be executed by the processing unit 13, data temporarily saved during processing by the processing unit 13, data used in processing by the processing unit 13, data obtained as a result of processing by the processing unit 13, etc. The storage unit 12 may include, for example, a main storage device (RAM, ROM, etc.) and an auxiliary storage device (flash memory, SSD, hard disk, memory card, optical disk, etc.). The storage unit 12 may be composed of one storage device or multiple storage devices. When the storage unit 12 is composed of multiple storage devices, each storage device is connected to the processing unit 13 via a computer bus or any other communication means.

[0019] The processing unit 13 controls the overall operation of the information processing device 1 and executes predetermined information processing. The processing unit 13 includes, for example, one or more processors (such as a central processing unit (CPU), a micro-processing unit (MPU), or a digital signal processor (DSP)) that perform processing according to instructions in one or more programs 121 stored in the storage unit 12. The processing unit 13 operates as a computer by the one or more processors executing instructions in one or more programs 121 stored in the storage unit 12. The information processing device 1 may include a plurality of such computers, and at least a part of the processing according to this embodiment may be executed by the plurality of computers in cooperation with each other.

[0020] The processing unit 13 may include one or more dedicated hardware (such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)) configured to realize a specific function. In this case, the processing unit 13 may execute all of the processes described in this embodiment on a computer, or may execute at least some of the processes on dedicated hardware.

[0021] The program 121 may be recorded, for example, on a computer-readable recording medium (such as an optical disc, a memory card, a USB memory, or other non-transitory tangible medium). The processing unit 13 may read at least a portion of the one or more programs 121 recorded on such a recording medium using a recording medium reading device (such as an optical disc device) or an interface device (such as a USB interface), not shown, and write the read program into the storage unit 12. Alternatively, the processing unit 13 may download at least a portion of the one or more programs 121 from another device connected to the communication network 9 via the communication unit 11, and write the downloaded program into the storage unit 12. The one or more programs 121 include instructions that cause the processing unit 13 to perform at least a portion of the processing according to this embodiment, which will be described later.

[0022] [Storage device 2] The storage device 2 stores various information used in the processing of the information processing device 1. The information processing device 1 and the storage device 2 can communicate with each other via any communication path (such as a LAN, a dedicated line network, or the Internet). For example, the storage device 2 may be included in a file server, database server, or cloud server that accepts access from multiple devices, or may be a dedicated storage device accessible only to the information processing device 1. In the example of FIG. 1, the storage device 2 stores a business database 21, a product database 22, a review request database 23, a customer database 24, a post database 25, and an application database 26. In the following description, database may be abbreviated to "DB."

[0023] The business DB 21 includes a plurality of business information items corresponding to a plurality of business entities involved in the sale of products. Each piece of business information includes information about a single business entity. For example, each piece of business information includes at least some of the following information: Information that identifies the business operator (business operator ID) Name of business operator Business address Information regarding the attributes of businesses (business classification, etc.) (business attribute information) Name of the e-commerce site operated by the business Information about emails sent from businesses to customers (email addresses, etc.)

[0024] The product DB 22 includes a plurality of pieces of product information corresponding to a plurality of products. Each piece of product information includes information about one product. For example, each piece of product information includes at least some of the following information: -Information to identify the product (product ID) Product name (model name, etc.) · Images related to the product · Business ID indicating the business involved in the sale of the product Information regarding product attributes (product classification, etc.) (product attribute information) Information about postings such as product reviews (posting settings information) The posting setting information includes, for example, information regarding a method for requesting posting, restrictions on posting, and the like.

[0025] The review request DB 23 includes multiple pieces of review request information used in a process of requesting customers to post reviews (review request process). One review request process is a process of requesting one customer to post a review for one product, and one piece of review request information includes information used in one review request process. One piece of review request information includes, for example, at least some of the following information: Contact information (email address, etc.) of customers requesting reviews Product ID indicating the product being reviewed Date review request processing will be performed Review request processing status (completed / not completed) Review posting status (posted / not posted)

[0026] The customer DB 24 includes a plurality of pieces of customer information corresponding to a plurality of customers. Each piece of customer information includes information about one customer. For example, each piece of customer information includes at least some of the following information: Information that identifies the customer (customer ID) Customer contact information (e.g., email address) Customer's name (first name, last name, nickname, etc.) Information regarding customer attributes (age, gender, etc.) (customer attribute information)

[0027] The post DB 25 includes multiple pieces of post information related to reviews and the like posted by customers. Each piece of post information includes a review posted by a customer about a single product, and information related to the product provided by the customer (such as an image of the product). Each piece of post information includes, for example, at least some of the following information: - Information indicating the date on which a review or other submission was accepted (posting date) (date information) Product ID indicating the product being reviewed Customer ID indicating the customer who posted the review Customer-submitted reviews Information related to products provided by customers (customer-provided information) (Example 1) Images, videos, etc. related to the product taken by the customer (Example 2) Customer responses to a survey conducted when posting a review

[0028] The application DB 26 includes multiple application information pieces, each of which indicates that a customer has applied for a prize contest. One application information piece indicates that one customer has applied for one prize contest, and is generated when that customer posts a review. One application information piece includes, for example, at least some of the following information: Information that identifies the contest you are applying for (contest ID) Customer ID indicating the customer who applied

[0029] [Business Server 3] The business server 3 is a device that provides an e-commerce site for online shopping, and is operated by a business operator involved in the sale of products. Examples of such a business operator include manufacturers that manufacture or produce products, suppliers that supply products, and vendors that provide products. The business operator that operates the business server 3 is identified by the business ID described above.

[0030] The business server 3 has, for example, a communication unit, a memory unit, and a processing unit similar to the communication unit 11, the memory unit 12, and the processing unit 13 of the information processing device 1 described above, and performs various processes for providing an e-commerce site.

[0031] [Customer terminal device 4] The customer terminal device 4 is a device operated by a customer to whom a product is sold, and is a device equipped with information and communication functions, such as a personal computer, tablet, or smartphone. The customer terminal device 4 has a communication unit, a memory unit, and a processing unit similar to the communication unit 11, memory unit 12, and processing unit 13 of the information processing device 1 described above, as well as an input unit and a display unit. The input unit is a device for inputting instructions from a user (customer) to the processing unit, and includes input devices such as a touch panel, mouse, and keyboard. The display unit is a device for displaying images corresponding to image data generated in the processing unit, and includes display devices such as a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and a projector.

[0032] Here, a description will be given of the operation of the system having the above-described configuration shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a flowchart for explaining an example of processing in the system shown in Fig. 1.

[0033] First, the processing of steps ST100 to ST120 will be described. In the processing of steps ST100 to ST120, review request information about a customer who has purchased a product on an e-commerce site is registered in the review request DB 23.

[0034] ST100: The customer terminal device 4 accesses the e-commerce site provided by the business server 3 and displays product information in accordance with the customer's operation. When a predetermined operation to select and purchase a product (such as clicking a product purchase button) is performed on the e-commerce site, the customer terminal device 4 transmits a product purchase instruction to the business server 3 (ST100).

[0035] ST105: The business server 3, which has received the instruction to purchase the product, executes a settlement process to receive payment from the customer by credit card or the like (ST105). The business server 3 also performs a process to ship the product to the customer who is the purchaser (such as a process to instruct the shipping management department to ship the product).

[0036] ST110: The business server 3 stores a database (customer DB) for managing customer information and a database (purchase history DB) for managing customer purchase histories. When the business server 3 executes a settlement process (ST105) for selling one product in response to a purchase instruction (ST100) from one customer, it registers information indicating that the one customer has purchased the one product in the purchase history DB (ST110).

[0037] ST115: When new purchase history information is registered in the purchase history DB, the business entity server 3 provides the information processing device 1 with purchase information that includes at least information about the product purchased by the customer (such as the product model name) and the customer's contact information (such as an email address) from the purchase history information (ST115). The business entity server 3 extracts the purchase history information newly registered in the purchase history DB at regular intervals (for example, once a day), and provides the information processing device 1 with purchase information corresponding to the extracted purchase history information. Alternatively, the information processing device 1 may provide the information processing device 1 with purchase information corresponding to the new update history information every time new purchase history information is registered in the purchase history DB.

[0038] ST120: When the information processing device 1 acquires purchase information from the business server 3, it generates review request information corresponding to the acquired purchase information and registers it in the review request DB 23 (ST120). For example, when the information processing device 1 acquires one purchase information from the business server 3 of one business, it identifies one product related to the purchase information from among the products registered in the product DB 22 based on product information (such as model name) included in the acquired purchase information and the business ID of the one business. Then, the information processing device 1 generates review request information including the product ID of the identified product and contact information (such as an email address) of the customer in the purchase information, and registers it in the review request DB 23.

[0039] When generating review request information corresponding to purchasing information, the information processing device 1 determines the date of review request processing included in the review request information. For example, the information processing device 1 may use the date of acquiring purchasing information from the information processing device 1 or the date of generating the review request information as the starting date, and determine the date a certain period has passed since the starting date as the review request processing date. If the purchasing information provided by the business server 3 includes the product purchase date (the date the payment process was performed), the product shipping date, the product scheduled shipping date, etc., the information processing device 1 may use that date as the starting date and determine the date a certain period has passed since the starting date as the review request processing date.

[0040] If the method for determining the implementation date of the review request process (e.g., the method for determining the starting date, the number of days from the starting date to the implementation date, etc.) is set in the posting setting information of the product information (product DB 22) corresponding to the product ID of the review request information, the information processing device 1 may determine the implementation date of the review request process according to the setting. For example, if the posting setting information sets the purchase date of the product included in the purchase information to be the starting date and the implementation date of the review request process to be 10 days after the starting date, the information processing device 1 determines the implementation date of the review request process to be 10 days after the purchase date of the product included in the purchase information acquired from the business operator server 3.

[0041] In addition, if the posting setting information for the product information corresponding to the product ID of the review request information is set to determine two or more dates for the review request process, the information processing device 1 may determine two or more dates for the review request process in accordance with that setting.

[0042] Next, the processing of steps ST200 to ST280 will be described. In the processing of steps ST200 to ST280, a notification (such as an email) requesting the customer to post a review is sent to the customer. When the customer is prompted by this notification to post a review, the posting information is registered in the posting DB 25, and the application information is registered in the application DB 26.

[0043] ST200: The information processing device 1 extracts review request information for which the conditions for implementing the review request process are satisfied from the review request information registered in the review request DB 23. For example, the information processing device 1 extracts review request information for which the implementation date of the review request process included in the review request information is before the current date and the implementation status of the review request process indicates "not implemented" from the review request DB 23. The information processing device 1 performs the process of extracting review request information from the review request DB 23 at regular intervals (for example, every day).

[0044] When the information processing device 1 extracts review request information that satisfies the conditions for executing the review request process from the review request DB 23, it sends a notification (email, etc.) requesting the customer to post a review to the customer's contact information (email address, etc.) included in the extracted review request information (ST200). That is, the information processing device 1 generates a notification (email, etc.) requesting the customer to post a review based on the product information and business information related to the product ID of the review request information extracted from the review request DB 23, and sends the generated notification to the customer's contact information (email address, etc.) included in the extracted review request information. When the information processing device 1 has executed the review request process based on one piece of review request information, it changes the execution status of the review request process for that piece of review request information to "executed."

[0045] When the customer terminal device 4 receives the notification of the review posting request from the information processing device 1, the customer terminal device 4 displays the received notification on the display unit.

[0046] FIG. 4 shows an example of a notification from the business server 3 displayed on the display unit of the customer terminal device 4, and shows an example of an e-mail (review posting request e-mail) requesting a customer to post a review. The review posting request e-mail 7 shown in FIG. 4 is an e-mail requesting a customer to post a review of the product "Eau de Toilette ▲▲" purchased by the customer from the e-commerce site "Online Shop XX." It has an area 71 containing the name and image of the product to be reviewed, and an area 72 for entering the rating of the product (number of stars in the example shown). The name of the e-commerce site and the sender's e-mail address in this review posting request e-mail 7 are set based on the business information (business DB 21) corresponding to the product ID in the review request information. Furthermore, the name and image of the product in this review posting request e-mail 7 are set based on the product information (product DB 22) corresponding to the product ID in the review request information.

[0047] ST205: When a customer who has seen the notice (email or the like) requesting a review performs a predetermined operation, the customer terminal device 4 displays a screen for review submission on the display unit.

[0048] For example, when a customer performs a predetermined operation on a screen displaying a received review posting request notification (e.g., email), the customer terminal device 4 requests the information processing device 1 to create a web page for posting a review of a product (a web page for posting a review). In response to the request from the customer terminal device 4, the information processing device 1 generates a web page for posting a review of the product and provides it to the customer terminal device 4. In this case, the information processing device 1 acquires product information about the product from the product DB 22 and generates a web page for posting a review of the product based on the acquired product information. That is, the information processing device 1 generates the web page for posting a review using the product name (e.g., model name), product-related images, and the like included in the product information about the product. Furthermore, if the content of the web page for posting a review (e.g., a questionnaire for the customer) is set in the posting setting information included in the product information about the product, the information processing device 1 generates the web page for posting a review including the set content.

[0049] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a web page for posting a review provided by the information processing device 1. When an evaluation rank for a product is entered in area 72 of the review posting request email 7 shown in Fig. 4 (for example, when a star-shaped figure corresponding to the evaluation rank is tapped), the customer terminal device 4 accesses the information processing device 1, obtains a web page for posting a review as shown in Fig. 5 from the information processing device 1, and displays it on the display unit.

[0050] The review posting web page 8 shown in FIG. 5 has an area 80 in which the name and image of the product to be reviewed are posted, an area 81 for inputting the rating of the product (number of stars in the illustrated example), an area 82 for inputting the title of the review, and an area 83 for inputting the main text of the review. The rating rating (number of stars) input in area 72 of the review posting request email 7 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed as a default in area 81. The review posting web page 8 also has areas for inputting information about the customer, including an area 84 for inputting an email address, an area 85 for inputting the poster's nickname to be posted along with the review, and an area 86 for inputting the customer's age. The review posting web page 8 also has a button 87 for sending the information input in areas 81 to 86 to the information processing device 1 and a button 88 for closing the web page screen.

[0051] When a predetermined operation is performed while displaying a web page for posting reviews such as that shown in Figure 5 (in the example of Figure 5, when button 87 is pressed), the customer terminal device 4 transmits data on the review, etc. (review, rating rank, attributes of the poster, etc.) entered on this web page to the information processing device 1 (ST205).

[0052] ST210: The information processing device 1 receives the data transmitted from the customer terminal device 4 on the review posting screen and accepts the posting of reviews and the like by customers (ST210).

[0053] ST240: When the information processing device 1 receives a review or the like posted by a customer, it generates posted information including the review and registers it in the post DB 25 (ST240). That is, when the information processing device 1 receives a review posted by a customer for a product, it generates posted information including the review, a customer ID indicating the customer, and a product ID indicating the product, and registers it in the post DB 25. In this case, the information processing device 1 generates the posted information so as to include date information indicating the date on which the review was accepted and posted.

[0054] When information related to a product provided by a customer (customer-provided information) is accepted in step ST210, the information processing device 1 generates posted information including the customer-provided information and registers it in the posting DB 25. For example, when an image or video of a product taken by a customer, or a response to a questionnaire by a customer is accepted in step ST210, the information processing device 1 registers the posted information including these in the posting DB 25.

[0055] In addition, when the information processing device 1 generates posting information about a review of a product by a customer, it sets the review posting status to "posted" in the review request information (review request DB23) that requests the customer to post a review of the product.

[0056] ST280: When posting information is generated for a review posted by a customer, the information processing device 1 generates application information indicating that the customer has applied for a prize contest and registers the application information in the application DB 26 (ST280). In other words, when a customer posts a review, an application for the prize contest is automatically made. The information processing device 1 generates application information including a prize ID indicating the prize to be applied for and a customer ID, and registers the application information in the application DB 26.

[0057] In this embodiment, a predetermined entry period may be set for a prize contest. In this case, when a customer's posting information is generated during the entry period set for a prize contest, the information processing device 1 generates entry information indicating that the customer has entered the prize contest. In other words, when a customer's posting information including date information indicating the posting date within the predetermined prize entry period set for a prize contest is generated for a review by the customer, the information processing device 1 generates entry information indicating that the customer has entered the prize contest.

[0058] Furthermore, the information processing device 1 generates entry information indicating an entry for one prize contest for each of two or more pieces of posted information corresponding to two or more products from different sellers (such as products sold on e-commerce sites operated by different businesses). In other words, when reviews are posted for two or more products from different sellers, if the posting dates of the two or more reviews fall within the entry period for one prize contest, the information processing device 1 generates entry information indicating an entry for the one prize contest for the two or more reviews posted. This allows customers to enter one prize contest based on the posted reviews, even if they post reviews for multiple products from different sellers.

[0059] Next, the processing of steps ST300 to ST320 will be described. In the processing of steps ST300 to ST320, a web page of the business entity server 3 including the review posted by the customer is displayed on the customer terminal device 4.

[0060] ST300: The customer terminal device 4 accesses the electronic commerce site provided by the business server 3 and requests the business server 3 for a web page of a product on which a review is posted (ST300).

[0061] ST305: The business entity's server 3 provides the customer terminal device 4 with a web page (code written in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc., image data, etc.) for the product requested by the customer terminal device 4 (ST305).

[0062] ST310: The web page provided by the business server 3 includes information (HTML tags, etc.) for acquiring data for displaying reviews of a specific product from the information processing device 1. Based on the information included in this web page, the customer terminal device 4 requests the data for displaying the reviews from the information processing device 1 (ST310).

[0063] ST315: Upon receiving the request from the customer terminal device 4, the information processing device 1 generates data for displaying reviews of the specific product based on the posted information of the specific product registered in the posting DB 25, and provides the data to the customer terminal device 4 (ST315).

[0064] ST320: The customer terminal device 4, which has acquired the data for displaying the reviews from the information processing device 1, creates a web page for the product including the review description based on the acquired data, and displays it on the display unit (ST320).

[0065] Next, the processing of steps ST330 to ST340 will be described. In the processing of steps ST330 to ST340, the web page of the information processing device 1 including the review posted by the customer is displayed on the customer terminal device 4.

[0066] ST330: The customer terminal device 4 accesses a review viewing website provided by the information processing device 1 and requests the web page of the product on which the review is posted from the information processing device 1 (ST330). This review viewing website posts reviews of various products from different sellers, for example, reviews of products in the same genre sold on different e-commerce sites.

[0067] ST335: The information processing device 1 generates a web page (code written in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc., image data, etc.) for review viewing requested by the customer terminal device 4. At this time, the information processing device 1 generates the web page for review viewing based on posted information registered in the post DB 25 for various products including products from different sellers. The information processing device 1 provides the generated web page to the customer terminal device 4 that sent the request.

[0068] ST340: The customer terminal device 4 displays the review browsing web page provided by the information processing device 1 on the display unit.

[0069] In the examples of steps ST300 to ST320 and steps ST330 to ST340 described above, the customer terminal device 4 accesses the web server of the business server 3 or the information processing device 1 to display the web page, but the device that displays the web page of the web server is not limited to the customer terminal device 4. In other words, any device that can display a web page (for example, a computer with a web browser function) may access these web servers and display the web page provided by the web server.

[0070] Next, the processing of steps ST400 to ST410 will be described. In the processing of steps ST400 to ST410, a lottery is conducted to select winners based on the application information registered in the application DB .

[0071] ST400, ST405: The information processing device 1 determines whether the application period for one prize has ended (ST400), and if it determines that the application period has ended, determines the winners of the prize by lottery (ST405). That is, the information processing device 1 determines one or more customers by lottery based on the application information registered in the application DB 26 for the prize.

[0072] For example, the information processing device 1 randomly selects a predetermined number of pieces of application information from among a plurality of pieces of application information, and determines customers corresponding to the customer IDs included in the selected application information as winners of the prize draw. However, with this method, if the predetermined number of selected pieces of application information includes multiple pieces of application information for the same customer, the number of winners will be insufficient to meet the predetermined number. In this case, for example, the information processing device 1 may further randomly select application information from the remaining unselected pieces of application information for the number of people that is insufficient to meet the predetermined number, and repeat the process of determining customers corresponding to the customer IDs included in the selected application information as winners of the prize draw, until the number of winners reaches the predetermined number.

[0073] ST410: When the prize winners are determined in step ST405, the information processing device 1 performs processing to provide prizes to each of the determined winners. If the prize is electronic money, for example, the information processing device 1 performs processing to transfer a predetermined amount of electronic money from a predetermined site that issues electronic money to a customer's wallet or the like.

[0074] According to the present embodiment described above, when a product review posted by a customer is accepted (ST210), posting information including the posted review is generated (ST240), and application information indicating that the customer who posted the review has entered a prize contest is generated (ST280). One or more customers who will be the winners of a prize contest are determined by lottery based on the multiple application information generated for each prize contest (ST405). This provides an incentive for customers to post reviews, giving them hope that they will win the prize contest, which encourages them to actively post reviews and makes it easier to collect reviews.

[0075] In the above-described embodiment, entry information indicating an entry for a single prize contest is generated for each of two or more pieces of posted information corresponding to two or more products from different sellers (e.g., products sold on e-commerce sites operated by different businesses). That is, when reviews are posted for two or more products from different sellers, if the reviews satisfy the entry conditions for a single prize contest (e.g., the review posting date falls within a specified entry period), entry information indicating an entry for the single prize contest is generated for the reviews. As a result, even if a customer posts reviews for multiple products from different sellers, they are entered into the same prize contest based on the reviews. Therefore, by setting prizes that customers generally desire (e.g., electronic money, gift certificates, etc.), the overall number of customers who are positive about posting reviews can be increased compared to when unique prizes are set for each seller. Furthermore, because reviews of different products and their sellers are entered into the same prize contest, variations in review quality due to the influence of the prize contest can be avoided.

[0076] Furthermore, according to the above-described embodiment, the information processing device 1 provides a web page for review viewing on which reviews of various products from different sellers are posted. That is, even if the products are from different sellers (such as products sold on different e-commerce sites), reviews of these products can be viewed together on one web page. This makes it easier to compare reviews of products from different sellers on the web page, making it easier to decide whether to purchase a product.

[0077] Next, some modifications of the above-described embodiment will be described.

[0078] <Variation 1> Fig. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a modified example of processing in the information processing device 1. This modified example relates to processing when customer-provided information (images, videos, etc. taken by the customer of the product) is posted along with a product review. In the flowchart of Fig. 6, steps with the same reference numerals as those in the flowchart of Fig. 2 indicate the same processing as in Fig. 2.

[0079] In step ST210 of accepting the posting of a review, if customer-provided information (images or videos related to the product being reviewed taken by the customer, responses to a questionnaire by the customer, etc.) is posted, the information processing device 1 also accepts the posting of the customer-provided information along with the review. When the posting of customer-provided information related to the product is accepted in step ST210, the information processing device 1 generates posted information including the posted customer-provided information and registers it in the posting DB 25 (ST240).

[0080] If the posted information generated in step ST240 does not include customer-provided information (No in ST245), the information processing device 1 generates application information in the same manner as in the flowchart of FIG. 2 and registers it in the post DB 25 (ST280). On the other hand, if the posted information generated in step ST240 includes customer-provided information (Yes in ST245), the information processing device 1 generates probability adjustment information in addition to the above-mentioned application information (ST280A). The probability adjustment information is information that adjusts the winning probability in step ST405 (FIG. 2), where a lottery is conducted to select winners. The probability adjustment information is generated to change the winning probability of a single customer depending on whether or not customer-provided information is included in the posted information of that customer. If the probability adjustment information is generated in response to the inclusion of customer-provided information in the posted information of a single customer, the information processing device 1 conducts a lottery to select winners in step ST405 (FIG. 2) so as to increase the winning probability of that single customer.

[0081] For example, in step ST405 (FIG. 2), the information processing device 1 conducts the lottery by randomly selecting a predetermined number of winners' application information from among a plurality of pieces of application information. In this case, the information processing device 1 may generate one or more pieces of application information as probability adjustment information in step ST280A. That is, the information processing device 1 may generate one piece of application information (ST280) when the posted information of a customer does not contain customer-provided information (No in ST245), and may generate two or more pieces of application information (ST280A) when the posted information of a customer contains customer-provided information (Yes in ST245). This increases the probability of winning when the posted information contains customer-provided information compared to when the posted information does not contain customer-provided information.

[0082] Alternatively, the information processing device 1 may generate application information including probability adjustment information indicating whether or not customer-provided information is included in the posted information in steps ST280 and ST280A for generating application information. In this case, the information processing device 1 performs a lottery in step ST405 (FIG. 2) so that the probability of winning varies depending on the probability adjustment information included in the application information. For example, when performing a lottery for a single prize contest, the information processing device 1 extracts multiple application information pieces indicating applications for the single prize contest from the application DB 26 and performs a preliminary lottery in which some application information pieces are randomly selected from the extracted multiple application information pieces. In this preliminary lottery, the information processing device 1 varies the probability of random selection depending on the probability adjustment information included in the application information. That is, the probability of selecting application information pieces including probability adjustment information indicating "customer-provided information included" is made higher than the probability of selecting application information pieces including probability adjustment information indicating "no customer-provided information included." The information processing device 1 randomly selects a predetermined number of winners' application information pieces from the application information selected in the preliminary lottery. Even with this type of lottery method, the probability of winning when customer-provided information is included in the posted information is higher than the probability of winning when customer-provided information is not included in the posted information.

[0083] According to this modification, the probability of winning a prize increases by posting customer-provided information (images, videos, etc. related to the product taken by the customer) along with a review, which can increase the number of customer-provided information posts. This makes it easier to collect useful product-related information (images, etc.) from customers along with their reviews.

[0084] <Variation 2> 7 is a flowchart for explaining a modified example of processing in the information processing device 1. In this modified example, posted reviews are evaluated and the probability of winning a prize is changed depending on the evaluation result. In the flowchart of FIG. 7, steps with the same reference numerals as those in the flowchart of FIG. 2 indicate the same processing as in FIG. 2.

[0085] When the information processing device 1 receives a review (ST210), it evaluates the review according to predetermined evaluation criteria (ST220). In this case, the information processing device 1 generates posted information (ST240B) that includes information similar to the posted information already described and also includes information indicating the evaluation result of the review in step ST220 (evaluation information).

[0086] When the information processing device 1 receives a review post (ST210), it generates probability adjustment information (ST280B) in addition to the application information already described. The probability adjustment information in this variation is information for adjusting the winning probability in step ST405 (FIG. 2) where a lottery is conducted to select winners, and is generated to change the winning probability in accordance with the rating information included in the posted information. For example, the information processing device 1 generates probability adjustment information that adjusts the winning probability so that the winning probability increases when the rating of the review indicated by the rating information is high, and decreases when the rating of the review indicated by the rating information is low. In the processing of step ST405 (FIG. 2), the information processing device 1 conducts a lottery to select winners so that the winning probability of a customer is adjusted in accordance with the probability adjustment information included in the posted information of that customer.

[0087] The winning probability can be adjusted in accordance with the probability adjustment information in the same manner as in the first modified example described above. For example, when the information processing device 1 conducts a lottery by randomly selecting a predetermined number of winners' application information from a plurality of application information, the number of application information generated when the review rating indicated by the evaluation information is high is greater than the number of application information generated when the review rating indicated by the evaluation information is low. Furthermore, when generating application information including probability adjustment information in step ST280B, the information processing device 1 increases the probability that application information including evaluation information indicating a high evaluation will be selected in the preliminary lottery compared to the probability that application information including evaluation information indicating a low evaluation will be selected in the preliminary lottery. Then, the information processing device 1 randomly selects the application information of a predetermined number of winners from the application information selected in the preliminary lottery.

[0088] According to this modification, submitted reviews are evaluated according to predetermined evaluation criteria, and the probability of winning the prize is adjusted according to the evaluation results. This makes it possible, for example, to increase the probability of winning for customers who submit higher-rated reviews, or conversely, to decrease the probability of winning for customers who submit lower-rated reviews. This makes it possible to induce a tendency to submit reviews that encourages the submission of high-quality reviews.

[0089] 8A is a flowchart illustrating an example of the process of step ST220 (FIG. 7) for evaluating the posted reviews. In this example, large language models (LLMs) are used to evaluate the posted reviews.

[0090] First, the information processing device 1 generates a prompt that instructs the large-scale language model to determine whether the review text posted in step ST210 makes sense as a customer's text to the seller of the product (hereinafter, this may be referred to as "first determination") (ST221). For example, the information processing device 1 generates a prompt that includes the posted review text and an instruction statement requesting the large-scale language model to determine whether the review text makes sense as a customer's text to the seller of the product.

[0091] The information processing device 1 provides the prompt generated in step ST221 to the large-scale language model (ST222), and acquires the result of the first determination made by the large-scale language model in response to this prompt (ST223). The large-scale language model may be one that operates in a computer system that can be connected via the communication network 9, for example, or may be one that operates in the information processing device 1.

[0092] The information processing device 1 determines an evaluation of the posted review according to the result of the first determination of the large-scale language model acquired in step ST223 (ST224). That is, when the information processing device 1 acquires the result of the first determination that the posted review is an incomprehensible sentence, it assigns a lower evaluation to the review than when the opposite determination result is acquired.

[0093] As a result, if a customer posts a review that does not make sense to the seller of the product, the review will be evaluated poorly and the chances of winning the prize will be lower. Therefore, it is possible to induce a tendency to post reviews that do not make sense to the seller of the product.

[0094] FIG. 8B is a flowchart for explaining another example of the process in step ST220 (FIG. 7). As in the flowchart of FIG. 8A, reviews are evaluated using a large-scale language model in the example of FIG. 8B.

[0095] The information processing device 1 generates a prompt that instructs the large-scale language model to determine whether the review text posted about a product in step ST210 makes sense as a customer's writing about the product (hereinafter, this may be referred to as "second determination") (ST225). For example, the information processing device 1 generates a prompt that includes the posted review text, information about the product being reviewed (e.g., the product name, product attribute information, etc. included in the product information), and an instruction statement requesting that the review text make sense as a customer's writing about the product being reviewed.

[0096] The information processing device 1 provides the prompt generated in step ST225 to the large-scale language model (ST226), and obtains the result of the first determination made by the large-scale language model in response to this prompt (ST227).

[0097] The information processing device 1 determines an evaluation of the posted review according to the result of the second determination of the large-scale language model acquired in step ST227 (ST228). That is, when the information processing device 1 acquires the result of the second determination that the posted review is a meaningful sentence, it assigns a higher evaluation to the review than when the opposite determination result is acquired.

[0098] As a result, when a review that makes sense as a customer's writing is posted for a single product, the review will be rated highly and the chances of winning a prize will increase. Therefore, it is possible to induce a tendency for review posting to encourage the posting of reviews that make sense as a customer's writing for a single product.

[0099] <Variation 3> FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a modified example of the process (ST210: FIG. 2) of accepting a review submission in the information processing device 1. In FIG.

[0100] When a review of a product is posted, the information processing device 1 acquires posting setting information included in the product information (product DB 22) related to the product (ST211).

[0101] In this variation, the posting setting information includes multiple posting information that determines whether or not multiple reviews by the same customer are permitted. For example, the information processing device 1 sets multiple posting information related to a single product in response to an instruction from a business operator involved in the sale of the single product.

[0102] The information processing device 1 determines whether multiple posting is permitted in the multiple posting information of the posting setting information acquired in step ST211 (ST212). If multiple posting is permitted in the multiple posting information (Yes in ST212), the information processing device 1 accepts the posting of a review (ST214).

[0103] If multiple postings are not permitted for the multiple posting information (No in ST212), the information processing device 1 checks whether there are any previous posts by the same customer (ST213). That is, when a review of a product is posted by a customer, the information processing device 1 searches the posting DB 25 for the review posted by that customer about that product. If the search of the posting DB 25 does not find any relevant posted information (No in ST213), the information processing device 1 accepts the review posting (ST214). On the other hand, if the search of the posting DB 25 finds relevant posted information (Yes in ST213), the information processing device 1 rejects the review posting (ST215). For example, the information processing device 1 transmits a notification to the customer terminal device 4 that is the poster that multiple postings of reviews are prohibited.

[0104] According to this modification, whether or not multiple reviews by the same customer are permitted can be set for each product, making it easier to select an appropriate review collection method for each product. <Variation 4> 10 is a flowchart for explaining a modified example of processing in information processing device 1. In this modified example, when customer information about the review poster does not exist, customer information is acquired from the poster and customer information is generated. In the flowchart of FIG. 10, steps with the same reference numerals as those in the flowchart of FIG. 2 indicate the same processing as in FIG. 2.

[0105] When a review posted by a customer is accepted in step ST210, the information processing device 1 checks whether the customer information of the customer is registered in the customer DB 24 (ST231). For example, the information processing device 1 searches for customer information registered in the customer DB 24 using the poster's contact information (email address, etc.) received from the customer terminal device 4 along with the review as a search key. Alternatively, the information processing device 1 may obtain information associated with the customer (customer ID, etc.) from a cookie stored in the customer terminal device 4 and search for customer information registered in the customer DB 24 using this information as a search key. If the corresponding customer information is registered in the customer DB 24 (Yes in ST231), the information processing device 1 performs the processes from step ST240 onwards (generating posted information and application information).

[0106] When a review posting by a customer is accepted (ST210), if the customer information of the customer is not registered in the customer DB 24 (No in ST231), the information processing device 1 displays a screen on the customer terminal device 4 operated by the customer to prompt the customer to enter customer attribute information (such as the customer's age and gender) (ST232). The information processing device 1 acquires the customer attribute information entered on this screen from the customer terminal device 4 (ST233), generates customer information for the customer including the acquired customer attribute information, and registers it in the customer DB 24 (ST234). After generating the customer information, the information processing device 1 performs the processes from step ST240 onwards (generating posted information and application information).

[0107] According to this modification, attribute information of customers who post reviews can be obtained, making it possible to develop an effective marketing strategy that utilizes customer attribute information.

[0108] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and includes various variations. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications and substitutions to the components of the above-described embodiment within the technical scope of the present invention or its equivalents.

[0109] In the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which a customer submits a review after receiving a request to submit a review via email or the like, but the method of submitting a review is not limited to this example. For example, a customer may submit a review on a product purchase history screen or a screen for viewing a product to be purchased on an e-commerce site.

[0110] In the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which a notification of a request to post a review is sent from the information processing device 1, but in other examples of this embodiment, a notification of a request to post a review may be sent from a device other than the information processing device 1 (such as the business server 3 or another server).

[0111] In the above-described embodiment, an example has been given in which the posted information and the application information are managed in separate databases (post DB 25 and application DB 26), but in another example of this embodiment, the posted information and the application information may be managed in the same database. That is, the posted information and the application information may be included in one record in the database.

[0112] Some of the processing executed by the information processing device 1 described above may be executed by other devices (such as the customer terminal device 4). In this case, it can be said that the processing of the information processing device according to this embodiment is executed by a plurality of computers including the processing unit 13 of the information processing device 1 and processing units (such as processors) of the other devices. [Explanation of symbols]

[0113] 1...information processing device, 11...communication unit, 12...storage unit, 121...program, 13...processing unit, 2...storage device, 21...business operator DB, 22...product DB, 23...review request DB, 24...customer DB, 25...post DB, 26...application DB, 3...business operator server, 4...customer terminal device, 9...communication network

Claims

1. A method performed by an information processing device for collecting customer reviews of a product, comprising: a posting acceptance step of accepting posting of the review on the product by the customer; a posting information generating step of generating, when a posting of one of the reviews by one of the customers for one of the products is accepted, posting information including the one review, customer identification information indicating the one customer, and product identification information indicating the one product; an application information generating step of generating application information indicating that the customer has applied for one prize contest when the posted information is generated for the review posted by the customer; a lottery step of determining, by lottery, one or more customers who are winners of one prize contest based on the plurality of pieces of application information generated for the prize contest; the application information generating step includes generating application information indicating an application for one of the prize contests for each of two or more pieces of posted information corresponding to two or more of the products sold by different vendors; method.

2. the posting acceptance step includes accepting posting of customer-provided information when customer-provided information related to the product to be reviewed provided by the customer is posted; the posting information generating step includes, when the customer-provided information is accepted in the posting accepting step, generating the posting information including the customer-provided information; the application information generation step includes generating probability adjustment information for adjusting the winning probability in the lottery step, the probability adjustment information being for changing the winning probability depending on whether the customer-provided information is included in the posted information; the lottery step includes, when the probability adjustment information is generated in response to the fact that the customer-provided information is included in the posted information of one of the customers, drawing the winners by lottery so as to increase the winning probability of the one customer. The method of claim 1.

3. a review evaluation step of, when a submission of one of the reviews is accepted, evaluating the one of the reviews in accordance with predetermined evaluation criteria; the posting information generating step includes, when the posting of one of the reviews is accepted, generating the posting information including evaluation information indicating a result of the evaluation of the one of the reviews; the application information generation step includes generating probability adjustment information for adjusting the winning probability in the lottery step, the probability adjustment information being for changing the winning probability in accordance with the evaluation information included in the posted information; the lottery step includes drawing the winners by lottery so that the winning probability of one customer is adjusted in accordance with the probability adjustment information included in the posted information of the one customer. The method of claim 1.

4. The review evaluation step includes: generating a first prompt that instructs a large-scale language model to make a first determination as to whether the review text makes sense as a statement from the customer to the seller of the product; providing the generated first prompt to the large-scale language model and obtaining a result of the first determination made by the large-scale language model in response to the first prompt; When the first determination result indicates that the review is an incomprehensible sentence, the rating is lowered compared to when the opposite determination result is obtained. The method of claim 3.

5. The review evaluation step of evaluating the review for one of the products includes: generating a second prompt that instructs a large-scale language model to perform a second determination of whether the review text makes sense as the customer's text for the product; and providing the generated second prompt to the large-scale language model and obtaining a result of the second determination made by the large-scale language model in response to the second prompt; and when the second determination result indicates that the review is meaningful, assigning a higher rating than when the opposite determination result is obtained. The method of claim 3.

6. the posting information generating step includes generating the posting information including date information indicating a posting date on which the review was accepted; the application information generating step includes, when the posted information including the date information indicating the posting date within a prize application period set for one of the prizes is generated for the review of one of the customers, generating application information indicating that the one customer has applied for the one of the prizes; The method of claim 1.

7. the information processing device stores posting setting information for each of the plurality of products; The posting setting information includes multiple posting information that determines whether or not multiple postings of the review by the same customer are permitted, the posting acceptance step includes, when one review is posted by one of the customers for one of the products, refusing to accept the posting of the one review if the posting information including the review by the one customer for the one product has already been stored and if multiple posting is prohibited in the multiple posting information included in the posting setting information for the one product; The method of claim 1.

8. the information processing device stores customer information relating to the customer; The customer information is the customer identification information; customer attribute information relating to attributes of the customer; a customer information generating step of, when the posting of the review by one of the customers is accepted and if the customer information of the one of the customers is not stored, displaying a screen on a terminal device operated by the one of the customers to prompt input of the customer attribute information, acquiring the customer attribute information input on the screen from the terminal device, and generating the customer information of the one of the customers including the acquired customer attribute information; The method of claim 1.

9. a web page providing step of, when a web page including the reviews posted for each of the two or more products from different sellers is requested, generating the web page based on the posted information generated for the two or more products, and providing the generated web page to a requester of the web page; The method of claim 1.

10. A program including instructions for causing an information processing device to perform a process of collecting customer reviews of a product, The processing performed by the information processing device in accordance with the command includes each step of the method described in any one of claims 1 to 9. program.

11. An information processing device that performs processing to collect customer reviews of products, a processing unit; a storage unit that stores instructions to be executed by the processing unit; The processing performed by the processing unit in accordance with the instructions includes each step of the method described in any one of claims 1 to 9. Information processing device.

12. An information processing device that performs processing to collect customer reviews of products, A method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising: Information processing device.

Images