Commercial activity support system

Abstract

To obtain recommendation information with a wider field of view for further development of commercial activities.SOLUTION: A commercial activity support system includes one or more processors configured to execute information presentation processing for presenting information to a target user, and one or more storage devices configured to store user preference information indicating a preference for a product or a service for each user. The information presentation processing includes acquiring user group information indicating a user group grouped from a viewpoint different from the preference, recognizing a potential user belonging to the same user group as the target user based on the user group information, determining recommendation information indicating a product or a service recommended to the target user in consideration of both the preference of the target user and the preference of the potential user based on the user preference information, and presenting the recommendation information to the target user via a communication terminal operated by the target user.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a commercial activity support system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an information processing device that transmits information to a user's information terminal. The information processing device selects product recommendation information for a user based on the user's movement route within a physical store. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2019 / 064380 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] According to the method described in Patent Document 1, recommended information for a user is determined based on the preferences or behavior of the user. This method is somewhat narrow-minded in that it focuses on only one user. For further development of commercial activities, improvements are needed in determining recommended information for users. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A commercial activity support system according to the present disclosure includes one or more processors and one or more storage devices. The one or more processors are configured to execute an information presentation process for presenting information to a target user. The one or more storage devices are configured to store user preference information indicating preferences for products or services for each user. The information presentation process includes acquiring user group information indicating user groups grouped based on a perspective different from the preferences, recognizing potential users who belong to the same user group as the target user based on the user group information, determining recommended information indicating products or services to be recommended to the target user based on the user preference information, taking into account both the preferences of the target user and those of potential users, and presenting the recommended information to the target user via a communication terminal operated by the target user. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present disclosure, recommended information is determined taking into consideration not only the preferences of a target user but also the preferences of potential users who belong to the same user group as the target user. User groups are grouped based on a perspective other than preferences. This allows for more comprehensive recommended information to be obtained compared to when only the preferences of the target user are considered. It is expected that target users who are presented with such recommended information will consider not only themselves but also potential users when purchasing products or services. This will contribute to the further development of commercial activities. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an overview of a commercial activity support system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining basic details of an information presentation process according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram for explaining specific details of information presentation processing according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0009] 1. Overview of the Commercial Activity Support System FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an overview of a commercial activity support system 10 according to this embodiment.

[0010] The commercial activity support system 10 is a system that supports the commercial activities of a store S (physical store) used by a user U. The store S is, for example, a tenant store (e.g., a grocery store, a general merchandise store, a restaurant) that rents a section of a facility and operates in that space. Examples of such facilities include commercial facilities (e.g., shopping malls, commercial buildings), etc. The user U is a consumer of the goods or services provided by the store S. The user U is, for example, a resident of the urban area or city where the store S is located.

[0011] The commercial activity support system 10 provides commercial activity support that benefits both the store S and the user U. Specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 supports the commercial activities of the store S by presenting "recommended information Ir" to the user U. This recommended information Ir is information indicating products or services that are recommended to the user U (target user Ut) to whom the information is to be presented, from among the products or services handled by the store S. The commercial activity support system 10 can also be said to be an information presentation system that presents the recommended information Ir to the target user Ut.

[0012] The commercial activity support system 10 includes a communication device 11, one or more processors 12 (hereinafter simply referred to as processors 12), and one or more storage devices 13 (hereinafter simply referred to as storage devices 13). The communication device 11 is capable of communicating with the payment service system 20, the store management system 30 of each store S, and the communication terminal 40 via a communication network.

[0013] The processor 12 executes various processes. Examples of the processor 12 include a general-purpose processor, a specific-purpose processor, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). The storage device 13 stores various information required for various processes. Examples of the storage device 13 include a volatile memory, a non-volatile memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), and a solid state drive (SSD).

[0014] The processor 12 may execute a computer program. The computer program is stored in the storage device 13. Alternatively, the computer program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The functions of the commercial activity support system 10 may be realized by cooperation between the processor 12 executing the computer program and the storage device 13.

[0015] To allow user U to pay for goods or services, store S uses a payment service provided by payment service system 20. A database containing various data related to the payment service (e.g., transaction data for goods or services, product master data) is stored in the storage device of payment service system 20. The payment service system 20 executes the process related to user U's payment for goods or services, for example, as follows: When user U makes a payment, payment service system 20 authenticates user U (e.g., facial recognition) using a camera installed in the store S. Once authentication is complete, payment service system 20 accepts user U's payment operation via communication terminal 40, which is an in-store tablet. Once payment is complete, payment service system 20 transmits the user U's payment result to store management system 30 of store S. Furthermore, payment service system 20 transmits purchase data to commercial activity support system 10. The purchase data is information about the goods or services for which payment has been completed. Furthermore, the purchase data received by commercial activity support system 10 is stored in storage device 13.

[0016] The store management system 30, for example, manages product orders to wholesalers and product arrivals. The store management system 30 also transmits and receives various types of information to and from the commercial activity support system 10, as will be described later.

[0017] The communication terminal 40 is a terminal device operated by the user U. Examples of the communication terminal 40 include a storefront tablet installed in the store S, a mobile terminal (for example, a smartphone) of the user U, and the like.

[0018] The commercial activity support system 10 (processor 12) executes an "information presentation process" that presents information to the target user Ut. The information presented by the information presentation process includes the above-mentioned "recommended information Ir." The recommended information Ir is presented to the target user Ut via the communication terminal 40. In the example of the commercial activity support system 10 shown in FIG. 1, the processor 12 executes the information presentation process that involves processing related to the provision of a "request voting service." In this way, support for commercial activities by the commercial activity support system 10 may be performed in conjunction with the request voting service.

[0019] Details of the information presentation process are explained in Section 2 below. Here, an overview of the request voting service is first explained. The request voting service is a service that starts with voting and handles everything from gathering information about the needs of consumers (target users Ut) to guiding them to visit the store and make a purchase. The flow of the request voting service is as follows.

[0020] First, "store S registers candidate products for arrival in commercial activity support system 10." Specifically, candidate products are, for example, candidates for products that store S is considering arriving in the near future (e.g., next month). The store management system 30 of the store S transmits information about the candidate products for arrival to commercial activity support system 10. The commercial activity support system 10 stores the received information about the candidate products for arrival in storage device 13. In addition, the information about candidate products for arrival obtained by commercial activity support system 10 from store S in this way may be obtained in the form of, for example, a new product candidate list.

[0021] Next, "the commercial activity support system 10 displays the candidate products for arrival on the communication terminal 40." Specifically, for example, when the target user Ut makes a payment for a product or service at the store S, the commercial activity support system 10 transmits information about the candidate products for arrival to the communication terminal 40 (e.g., an in-store tablet) and causes the communication terminal 40 to display the information. More specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 causes the communication terminal 40 to display information about a plurality of candidate products for arrival.

[0022] Additionally, in the example of information presentation involving the request voting service, the plurality of candidate products for arrival (plurality of candidate products or services recommended to the target user Ut) displayed on the communication terminal 40 as described above corresponds to the above-mentioned recommendation information Ir. That is, in this example, the commercial activity support system 10 determines the recommendation information Ir so as to display a plurality of candidates to be recommended to the target user Ut in the new product candidate list. For this determination, the purchase data provided by the payment service system 20 may be used.

[0023] Next, "the consumer (target user Ut) votes for the desired item from among the displayed candidate items for arrival." Specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 requests the target user Ut via the communication terminal 40 to vote for their preferred item from among the multiple candidate items for arrival displayed on the communication terminal 40. In other words, the commercial activity support system 10 requests the target user Ut to vote for their preferred item from among the multiple candidates. In response to the request, the target user Ut operates the communication terminal 40 to vote for the candidate item for arrival that they desire. For reference, the voting results of other users U may also be displayed on the screen of the communication terminal 40 operated by the target user Ut.

[0024] Next, "the commercial activity support system 10 feeds back the voting results and sales forecast to the store S." Specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 acquires the voting results (request results) of the target user Ut from the communication terminal 40, and transmits the acquired voting results to the store management system 30 of the store S. In other words, the commercial activity support system 10 feeds back the voting results for multiple candidate products to be stocked (multiple candidates) to the store S.

[0025] Furthermore, the commercial activity support system 10 calculates a sales forecast for each of the candidate products for arrival based on the number of votes from each user Ut for the candidate product. As an example, the sales forecast can be made using a prediction model (statistical model) based on machine learning. The sales forecast provided to the store S in this way becomes one of the factors that the store S considers when deciding on product replacement. For example, the store S can review the product lineup on display.

[0026] Next, "the commercial activity support system 10 notifies the user U of the new arrival information." Specifically, when a candidate product for arrival that the target user Ut voted for arrives in store S, the store management system 30 transmits new arrival information of the product to the commercial activity support system 10. The commercial activity support system 10 notifies the target user Ut of the received new arrival information via the communication terminal 40 (e.g., the mobile terminal of the target user Ut) (e.g., product replacement notification). This notification encourages the target user Ut to visit the store S and the target user Ut to purchase the newly arrived product. In this way, the commercial activity of the store S is supported by the commercial activity support system 10.

[0027] In the example where store S provides the service, the "items to be received" in the above description of the request voting service are replaced with "services to be introduced," and the "list of new product candidates" is replaced with "list of new service candidates."

[0028] 2. Information presentation processing 2-1. Basic Content 2 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the basic contents of the information presentation process according to the present embodiment. In addition to the above-mentioned recommendation information Ir, the storage device 13 of the commercial activity support system 10 stores "user preference information Ip."

[0029] The user preference information Ip is information that indicates the preferences for products or services for each user U. The commercial activity support system 10 generates and accumulates the user preference information Ip based on various past histories of the target user Ut to whom information is presented. Examples of the various histories include the purchase history, browsing history, behavior history, voting history, etc. of the user U.

[0030] As already explained, the recommended information Ir is information indicating products or services recommended to the target user Ut. Basically, as shown in Fig. 2, the commercial activity support system 10 determines the recommended information Ir based on the preferences of the target user Ut obtained by referring to the user preference information Ip of the target user Ut.

[0031] In addition, in the example of information presentation involving a request voting service (see FIG. 1), the information displayed on the voting screen of the communication terminal 40 corresponds to the recommended information Ir. As described with reference to FIG. 1, the commercial activity support system 10 may determine the recommended information Ir so as to display a plurality of candidates narrowed down from a new product candidate list (or a new service candidate list) prepared by the store S.

[0032] 2-2. Information presentation considering user groups The method of determining the recommended information Ir based only on the preferences of the target user Ut (see FIG. 2) can be said to be narrow-minded. Therefore, in this embodiment, the following new method is introduced to determine the recommended information Ir.

[0033] 3 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the specific details of the information presentation process according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the commercial activity support system 10 takes into consideration not only the user preference information Ip but also the following "user group information Ig" in order to determine the recommended information Ir.

[0034] The user group information Ig is information indicating a user group G that is grouped based on a viewpoint different from the above-mentioned preferences. Examples of specific methods for acquiring the user group information Ig will be described later in Section 2-2-1.

[0035] The commercial activity support system 10 executes a process of recognizing potential users Up who belong to the same user group G as the target user Ut, based on the user group information Ig. As a result, one or more people may be recognized as the potential user Up. The commercial activity support system 10 acquires the preferences of the recognized potential user Up. More specifically, for example, the above-mentioned user preference information Ip includes information on the preferences of the potential user Up. The commercial activity support system 10 acquires information on the preferences of both the target user Ut and the potential user Up, based on the user preference information Ip, in order to determine the recommended information Ir.

[0036] Then, in this embodiment, the commercial activity support system 10 determines the recommended information Ir, i.e., information indicating products or services to be recommended to the target user Ut, taking into consideration both the preferences of the target user Ut and the preferences of the potential user Up. A specific example of how to take into consideration both preferences when determining the recommended information Ir will be described later in Section 2-2-2. The commercial activity support system 10 presents the recommended information Ir determined in this manner to the target user Ut via the communication terminal 40.

[0037] 2-2-1. Specific example of user group information Ig (First example) In the first example, the potential user Up is a cohabitant of the target user Ut. Therefore, in the first example, the user group information Ig includes first user group information Ig1 that indicates the cohabiting user group G.

[0038] More specifically, information about housemates is registered in advance in a resident database, for example. The resident database may be stored in the storage device 13. Alternatively, the resident database may be a database owned by a system external to the commercial activity support system 10 (for example, a resident database for the urban area or city where the store S is located). The first user group information Ig1 is stored in advance in the storage device 13 as information based on the resident database.

[0039] In the information presentation process according to the first example, the commercial activity support system 10 acquires first user group information Ig1 from the storage device 13. Then, based on the acquired first user group information Ig1, the commercial activity support system 10 recognizes (identifies) a user U who lives with the target user Ut as a potential user Up.

[0040] (Second example) In the second example, the potential user Up is a relative of the target user Ut. Therefore, in the second example, the user group information Ig includes second user group information Ig2 that indicates a user group G that has a kinship relationship within a predetermined range. The predetermined range of kinship is, for example, blood relatives within the second or third degree of kinship, spouses, and relatives by affinity within the first or second degree of kinship.

[0041] More specifically, the information on relatives is registered in advance in the resident database, similar to the information on cohabitants. The second user group information Ig2 is stored in advance in the storage device 13 as information based on the resident database.

[0042] In the information presentation process according to the second example, the commercial activity support system 10 acquires second user group information Ig2 from the storage device 13. Then, based on the acquired second user group information Ig2, the commercial activity support system 10 recognizes (identifies) a user U who is a relative of the target user Ut as a potential user Up.

[0043] (Third example) In the third example, the potential user Up is a person who acts together with the target user Ut in the store S. Therefore, in the third example, the potential user Up includes third user group information Ig3 indicating a user group G who acts together with the target user Ut in the store S.

[0044] More specifically, the third user group information Ig3 can be acquired, for example, as follows: In an example where the store S is a restaurant, the commercial activity support system 10 determines that multiple users U present at the same table belong to the same user group G, and acquires the third user group information Ig3 indicating the user group G. This determination can be made, for example, based on reservation information for the restaurant, or based on face recognition technology that utilizes analysis of video captured by a camera 50 (see FIG. 1) installed in the store S.

[0045] In addition, in an example where the store S is a retail store such as a grocery store, the commercial activity support system 10 acquires video captured by the camera 50. The commercial activity support system 10 then detects each user U in the store S based on the video and monitors the behavior of each detected user U. This behavior monitoring can be performed using, for example, a well-known behavior recognition technology that uses a machine learning model. The commercial activity support system 10 acquires third user group information Ig3 based on the behavior of each user U in the store S. More specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 determines that multiple users U who are behaving together in the store S belong to the same user group G, and acquires third user group information Ig3 that indicates the user group G.

[0046] In the information presentation process of the third example, the commercial activity support system 10 recognizes (identifies) one or more users U who are acting together with the target user Ut in the store S as potential users Up based on the third user group information Ig3 acquired as described above.

[0047] (others) The potential user Up may be, for example, the following person: User U who moved into a building in the same city or town where store S is located within a specified period including the date of moving into the building of the target user Ut in the same city or town -User U who started using the Request Voting Service within a specified period including the day on which the target user Ut started using the Request Voting Service If the target user Ut works in the town or city where the store S is located, then the target user Ut works in the same town or city. ·User U who works in the same company as the target user Ut ·User U who has the same birth month or zodiac sign as target user Ut User U who lives in the same building as the target user Ut

[0048] 2-2-2. How to consider the preferences of target users and potential users When determining the recommended information Ir, the preferences of the target user Ut and the preferences of the potential user Up may be taken into consideration, for example, as follows.

[0049] (First example) In the information presentation process according to the first example, the commercial activity support system 10 determines the recommended information Ir based on the user preference information Ip so as to present products or services that match both the preferences of the target user Ut and the potential user Up. More specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 selects products or services that match both the preferences of the target user Ut and the potential user Up as products or services to be recommended to the target user Ut. In other words, the commercial activity support system 10 does not select products or services that are disliked by either the target user Ut or the potential user Up. To enable such selection, the preference (degree of preference) of each user U for a product or service may be quantified, for example, in the form of a preference score. The preference score is calculated, for example, in the range of 0 to 100, with a higher preference score indicating a higher degree of preference. The method for calculating the preference score is not particularly limited, and may be based, for example, on the user preference information Ip (e.g., the user U's purchase history, browsing history, and behavior history). For example, the preference score of a certain product is calculated so that it increases as the number of purchases of the product increases. To determine the recommended information Ir, the commercial activity support system 10 selects, for example, a product or service whose preference scores of both the target user Ut and the potential user Up are equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. In other words, if the preference score of either the target user Ut or the potential user Up is less than the threshold, the commercial activity support system 10 does not select a product or service having that preference score for determining the recommended information Ir.

[0050] (Second example) In the information presentation process according to the second example, the commercial activity support system 10 selects one of the target user Ut and the potential user Up as the "first user" based on the user group information Ig (e.g., Ig1, Ig2, or Ig3), and selects the other of the target user Ut and the potential user Up as the "second user." Then, the commercial activity support system 10 determines "first recommendation information Ir1" and "second recommendation information Ir2" based on the user preference information Ip. The first recommendation information Ir1 is information indicating products or services that match the preferences of the first user. The second recommendation information Ir2 is information indicating products or services that match the preferences of the second user. Then, the commercial activity support system 10 presents both the first recommendation information Ir1 and the second recommendation information Ir2 to the target user Ut as recommendation information Ir.

[0051] Furthermore, in the information presentation process according to the second example, the commercial activity support system 10 may present the recommended information Ir to the target user Ut so that the preferences of the first user are prioritized over the preferences of the second user. Specifically, the commercial activity support system 10 may present the first recommended information Ir1 and the second recommended information Ir2 to the target user Ut so that the first recommended information Ir1 is more prominent than the second recommended information Ir2. For example, in a parent-child user group G, if the first user is the child and the second user is the parent, the commercial activity support system 10 may present the recommended information Ir so that the preferences of the child are more prominent than the preferences of the parent. In another example, in a married couple user group G, if the first user is the wife and the second user is the husband, the commercial activity support system 10 may present the recommended information Ir so that the preferences of the wife are more prominent than the preferences of the husband. To make the first recommendation information Ir1 more noticeable than the second recommendation information Ir2, the commercial activity support system 10 may, for example, display the first recommendation information Ir1 larger than the second recommendation information Ir2 on the screen of the communication terminal 40. Alternatively, the commercial activity support system 10 may, for example, display the first recommendation information Ir1 on the screen of the communication terminal 40 in a color that is more noticeable than the second recommendation information Ir2.

[0052] 3.Effects As described above, according to the commercial activity support system 10 of this embodiment, recommended information Ir is determined taking into consideration not only the preferences of the target user Ut but also the preferences of potential users Up who belong to the same user group G as the target user Ut. The user group G is grouped based on a perspective other than preferences. This allows for a broader range of recommended information Ir to be obtained compared to when only the preferences of the target user Ut are considered. It is expected that the target user Ut who is presented with such recommended information Ir will purchase products and services while considering not only himself but also the potential user Up. This will contribute to the further development of commercial activities.

[0053] Furthermore, as described above, in the example of the commercial activity support system 10 that supports the commercial activities of the store S with a request voting service, the recommendation information Ir may indicate multiple candidates to be recommended to the target user Ut. The information presentation process may include requesting the target user Ut to vote for their favorite one from among the multiple candidates. As a result, the accuracy of the request voting service is further improved. This is expected to lead to the development of the commercial activity support system 10 that provides the request voting service, and ultimately to further development of commercial activities.

[0054] Furthermore, as described above, the processor 12 of the commercial activity support system 10 may acquire a new product candidate list or a new service candidate list from the store S. In the information presentation process, the processor 12 may determine recommendation information Ir to indicate the plurality of candidates recommended to the target user Ut from the new product candidate list or the new service candidate list. The processor 12 may then feed back the results of voting on the plurality of candidates to the store S. As a result, the accuracy of the request voting service is further improved. This is expected to lead to the development of the commercial activity support system 10 that provides the request voting service, and ultimately to further development of commercial activities. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 10 Commercial activity support system, 11 Communication device, 12 Processor, 13 Storage device, 20 Payment service system, 30 Store management system, 40 Communication terminal, 50 Camera

Claims

1. one or more processors configured to execute an information presentation process to present information to a target user; one or more storage devices configured to store user preference information indicating preferences for products or services for each user; Equipped with The information presentation process includes: acquiring user group information indicating a user group grouped based on a viewpoint different from the preference; Recognizing potential users who belong to the same user group as the target user based on the user group information; determining recommendation information indicating products or services to be recommended to the target user based on the user preference information and taking into consideration both the preferences of the target user and the preferences of the potential user; presenting the recommended information to the target user via a communication terminal operated by the target user; Contains Commercial activity support system.

2. The commercial activity support system according to claim 1, the user group information includes first user group information indicating the user group living together; the first user group information is stored in advance in the one or more storage devices; The information presentation process includes: obtaining the first user group information from the one or more storage devices; Recognizing a user who lives with the target user as the potential user based on the first user group information; Further includes Commercial activity support system.

3. The commercial activity support system according to claim 1, the user group information includes second user group information indicating the user group having a kinship relationship within a predetermined range; the second user group information is stored in advance in the one or more storage devices, The information presentation process includes: obtaining the second user group information from the one or more storage devices; Recognizing users who are relatives of the target user as the potential users based on the second user group information; Further includes Commercial activity support system.

4. The commercial activity support system according to claim 1, the user group information includes third user group information indicating the user group that acts together with the target user in the store; The information presentation process includes: acquiring the third user group information; Recognizing, based on the third user group information, a user who acts together with the target user in the store as the potential user; Further includes Commercial activity support system.

5. The commercial activity support system according to claim 4, The information presentation process includes: monitoring the behavior of each user in the store based on images captured by a camera installed in the store; acquiring the third user group information based on the behavior of each of the users in the store; Further includes Commercial activity support system.

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