Apparatus for providing service on basis of information about coupon and method thereof

Abstract

According to the present disclosure, disclosed is a method for providing information by an electronic device, the method comprising the steps of: obtaining an input related to the use of a service from a customer; confirming information about a coupon provided to the customer on the basis of one or more pieces of information related to the customer; configuring a page for the use of the service on the basis of the information about the coupon; and providing the page to the customer, wherein the one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of account information of the customer, information about a time point at which the customer last purchased an item, or information about the time elapsed from the time point at which the customer last purchased the item.

Description

Device and method for providing services based on coupon information

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a device and method for providing a service based on coupon information. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to an electronic device and method for verifying coupon information provided to a customer, constructing a page for service use based on the coupon information, and providing the customer with the page.

[0002] With the advancement of electronic technology, e-commerce has become a distinct form of shopping. Customers can purchase items online without having to visit a physical shopping mall or market, and items purchased online are delivered to the customer's requested delivery address.

[0003] Looking at the e-commerce process, customers can browse items for sale through a computer or other Internet-connected terminal, review detailed information about items of interest, and then decide whether to purchase them.

[0004] Meanwhile, when purchasing items through e-commerce, flexible services can be provided, taking into account specific customer information, such as offering flexible discounts or dynamically determining the item price itself. However, there have been issues with providing these benefits, such as customers not being clearly aware of the available benefits, which hinders effective promotion of customer satisfaction and sales. For example, there have been cases where customers were unaware of the discounts available on certain items and therefore did not purchase them. Furthermore, there have been cases where customers failed to recognize the discounts they received when purchasing an item.

[0005] In this regard, reference may be made to prior literature such as KR101578147B1 and KR101664034B1.

[0006] The problem to be solved by the present embodiment is to provide an electronic device and a method thereof, which obtains input related to the use of a service from a customer, confirms information on a coupon provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer, configures a page for the use of the service based on the information on the coupon, and provides the page to the customer, and the one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of the customer's account information, information on the time when the customer last purchased an item, and information on the time elapsed from the time when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

[0007] The technical tasks to be achieved by this embodiment are not limited to the technical tasks described above, and other technical tasks can be inferred from the following embodiments.

[0008] A method for providing information in an electronic device according to one embodiment includes: obtaining input related to use of a service from a customer; confirming information on a coupon provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer; configuring a page for use of the service based on the information on the coupon; and providing the page to the customer, wherein the one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of account information of the customer, information on when the customer last purchased an item, and information on time elapsed from when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

[0009] According to one embodiment, the step of configuring a page for using the service may include a step of including information about the coupon in a part of the page.

[0010] According to one embodiment, the step of configuring a page for using the service may include the step of checking whether one or more items including information on the page are eligible for the coupon; and, if at least one item among the one or more items is eligible for the coupon, the step of including information on the coupon in a portion of the page.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the one or more items may include at least some items that satisfy a set condition among a plurality of items whose information the page includes.

[0012] According to one embodiment, the step of determining whether the coupon is applicable may include the steps of: checking, with respect to a first item included in the one or more items, one or more candidate coupons to which the first item can be applied; checking, for each of the one or more candidate coupons, benefit information that the customer will obtain by applying the coupon to the first item; and, based on the benefit information for each of the one or more candidate coupons, determining whether it is appropriate to apply the coupon to the first item.

[0013] According to one embodiment, if there is at least one item to which the coupon is applied among the one or more items, the electronic device may display information of the coupon together when displaying information of the item to which the coupon is applied.

[0014] According to one embodiment, the method for providing the information may further include: obtaining an input from the customer for moving to another page; configuring the other page based on information of the coupon, if the coupon has not expired and the other page is related to use of the service; and providing the other page to the customer.

[0015] According to one embodiment, the step of configuring a page for using the service includes the step of configuring the page to include a user interface related to use of the coupon, and the user interface may include information about the coupon.

[0016] According to one embodiment, when receiving the customer's input corresponding to the user interface, the method for providing the information may further include a step of providing information on one or more items to which the coupon is applied at the time of purchase.

[0017] According to one embodiment, when receiving the customer's input corresponding to the user interface, the method for providing the information may further include a step of providing detailed benefit information related to the coupon.

[0018] According to one embodiment, if an input including an intention to use the coupon is obtained from the customer, and the customer does not withdraw the intention, the electronic device can reconfigure the page so that information about the coupon is not included on the page and provide the page to the customer.

[0019] An electronic device for providing information according to an embodiment includes a transceiver, a memory for storing instructions, and a processor, wherein the processor is connected to the transceiver and the memory, and obtains an input related to use of a service from a customer, verifies information on a coupon provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer, configures a page for use of the service based on the information on the coupon, and provides the page to the customer, wherein the one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of account information of the customer, information on when the customer last purchased an item, and information on time elapsed from when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

[0020] Specific details of other embodiments are included in the detailed description and drawings.

[0021] According to the present disclosure, a device and method for providing a service based on coupon information can effectively lead to increased customer satisfaction and increased item sales by ensuring that customers are clearly aware of the benefits that can be provided during e-commerce.

[0022] The effects of the invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

[0023] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing a system that provides a service based on coupon information according to one embodiment.

[0024] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of each device in a system that provides a service based on coupon information according to an embodiment.

[0025] FIG. 3 is a drawing for exemplarily explaining a customer interface related to the use of a coupon according to one embodiment.

[0026] FIG. 4 is a drawing for exemplarily explaining a method for providing detailed benefit information related to a coupon according to an embodiment.

[0027] FIGS. 5 and 6 are drawings for exemplarily explaining a method of configuring an item search page and an item detail page based on coupon information according to one embodiment.

[0028] FIG. 7 is a diagram for exemplarily explaining a method for configuring a shopping cart page and a checkout page based on coupon information according to one embodiment.

[0029] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for providing a service based on coupon information in an electronic device according to an embodiment.

[0030] Figure 9 is an exemplary diagram of the configuration of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0031] The terms used in the embodiments have been selected from widely used and common terms, taking into account the functions of the present disclosure. However, these terms may vary depending on the intentions of those skilled in the art, precedents, the emergence of new technologies, etc. Furthermore, in certain cases, terms may be arbitrarily selected by the applicant, in which case their meanings will be described in detail in the relevant description. Therefore, the terms used in this disclosure should not be defined simply as names of terms, but rather based on the meanings of the terms and the overall content of the present disclosure.

[0032] When a part of the specification is said to "include" a component, this does not exclude other components, but rather implies the inclusion of other components, unless otherwise specifically stated. Furthermore, terms such as "part" and "module" used in the specification mean a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0033] The expression “at least one of a, b, and c” described throughout the specification may encompass ‘a alone’, ‘b alone’, ‘c alone’, ‘a and b’, ‘a and c’, ‘b and c’, or ‘all of a, b, and c’.

[0034] The "terminal" mentioned below may be implemented as a computer or portable terminal that can connect to a server or other terminal via a network. Here, the computer includes, for example, a notebook, desktop, laptop, etc. equipped with a web browser, and the portable terminal may include, for example, a wireless communication device that guarantees portability and mobility, and may include all types of handheld-based wireless communication devices such as communication-based terminals such as IMT (International Mobile Telecommunication), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), W-CDMA (W-Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), smartphones, tablet PCs, etc.

[0035] Below, embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail with reference to the attached drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily implement the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein.

[0036] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0037] In describing the embodiments, descriptions of technical details that are well-known in the technical field to which the present invention pertains and are not directly related to the present invention will be omitted. This is to avoid obscuring the gist of the present invention by omitting unnecessary explanations and to convey it more clearly.

[0038] For the same reason, some components in the attached drawings are exaggerated, omitted, or schematically depicted. Furthermore, the dimensions of each component do not entirely reflect its actual size. Identical or corresponding components in each drawing are assigned the same reference numbers.

[0039] The advantages and features of the present invention, and the methods for achieving them, will become clearer with reference to the embodiments described in detail below together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below and may be implemented in various different forms. These embodiments are provided only to ensure that the disclosure of the present invention is complete and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the invention, and the present invention is defined only by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification.

[0040] At this time, it will be understood that each block of the processing flow diagrams and combinations of the flow diagrams can be performed by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be installed in a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing equipment, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing equipment create a means for performing the functions described in the flow diagram block(s). These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computer-available or computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing equipment to implement the functions in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-available or computer-readable memory can also produce a manufactured item that includes an instruction means for performing the functions described in the flow diagram block(s). Since the computer program instructions may be installed on a computer or other programmable data processing device, a series of operational steps may be performed on the computer or other programmable data processing device to create a computer-executable process, and the instructions that cause the computer or other programmable data processing device to perform the steps for performing the functions described in the flowchart block(s) may also provide steps for performing the functions described in the flowchart block(s).

[0041] Additionally, each block may represent a module, segment, or portion of code that contains one or more executable instructions for performing a specific logical function(s). It should also be noted that in some alternative implementation examples, the functions described in the blocks may occur out of order. For example, two blocks depicted in succession may actually be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending on their respective functions.

[0042] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing a system that provides a service based on coupon information according to one embodiment.

[0043] According to various embodiments, a system for providing a service based on coupon information includes an electronic device (110) and a customer terminal (120). In one embodiment, the system for providing a service based on coupon information may further include a network that supports information transmission and reception between the electronic device (110), the customer terminal (120), and at least some of the external devices.

[0044] The electronic device (110) and the customer terminal (120) of the system providing services based on coupon information may include a transceiver, memory, and a processor. Furthermore, each of the electronic device (110) and the customer terminal (120) represents a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented by hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. Throughout the embodiments, the electronic device (110) and the customer terminal (120) are referred to as separate devices and servers, respectively. However, this may be a logically separate structure, and may be implemented by separate functions within a single device or server.

[0045] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (110) and the customer's terminal (120) may include a plurality of computer systems or computer software implemented as network servers. For example, at least some of the electronic device (110) and the customer's terminal (120) may refer to a computer system and computer software that are connected to a lower-level device that can communicate with other network servers through a computer network such as an intranet or the Internet, receive a task execution request, perform the task in response, and provide the execution result. In addition, at least some of the electronic device (110) and the customer's terminal (120) may be understood as a broad concept that includes a series of application programs that can operate on a network server and various databases built within it. For example, at least some of the electronic device (110) and the customer's terminal (120) may be implemented using a network server program that is provided in various ways according to an operating system such as DOS, Windows, Linux, UNIX, or MacOS.

[0046] Meanwhile, for the convenience of explanation, each operating entity is referred to as an electronic device (110) and a customer terminal (120), but these should be understood as comprehensive devices that correspond to various types of devices such as computer devices and mobile communication terminals, include various types of devices, or can be included in various types of devices.

[0047] An electronic device (110) is a device that acquires and provides various information. The electronic device (110) can perform various tasks to provide services to customers. Services provided to customers may include, but are not limited to, shopping services for purchasing items.

[0048] More specifically, with respect to the operation of the electronic device (110), the electronic device (110) obtains input related to the use of a service from a customer, verifies information on a coupon provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer, configures a page for use of the service based on the coupon information, and provides the page to the customer. In this regard, the one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of the following: account information of the customer, information on the time when the customer last purchased an item, and information on the elapsed time from the time when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

[0049] In addition, in relation to this, input related to the use of the service may be obtained from the customer's terminal (120), and the configured page may be provided to the customer's terminal (120), but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, depending on the embodiment, the customer may directly provide input related to the use of the service through an input device of the electronic device (110) (e.g., a mouse connected to the electronic device (110), and may directly receive a page through an output device of the electronic device (110) (e.g., a screen of the electronic device (110).

[0050] A customer may correspond to an entity that receives a service (e.g., purchases an item for sale) through a terminal connected to the Internet. The customer's terminal (120) may be a device operated and managed by the customer. The customer's terminal (120) may receive user input from the customer or the like, or information from an electronic device (110) or the like, and perform actions corresponding thereto. For example, the customer's terminal (120) may obtain a page for using the service from the electronic device (110) and provide it to the customer (e.g., display it on a screen). Alternatively, the customer's terminal (120) may obtain information that serves as the basis for configuring a page from the electronic device (110), and configure the page based on the information and provide it to the customer. In addition, the customer's terminal (120) may obtain input related to the use of the service from the customer, transmit the obtained input to the electronic device (110), or transmit information generated based on the obtained input to the electronic device (110).

[0051] More detailed information regarding the electronic device (110) and the customer's terminal (120) will be described later in FIGS. 2 to 7, etc.

[0052] The operations associated with a series of information provision methods according to various embodiments may be implemented by a single physical device, or may be implemented by organically combining multiple physical devices. For example, some of the components included in a system that provides services based on coupon information may be implemented by a single physical device, while others may be implemented by other physical devices. For example, one physical device may be implemented as part of an electronic device (110), and the other physical device may be implemented as part of a customer's terminal (120) or other external device.

[0053] In some cases, each component included in a system that provides a service based on coupon information may be distributed and placed on different physical devices, and the distributed components may be organically combined to perform the functions and operations of the system that provides a service based on coupon information. For example, the electronic device (110) of the present specification may include at least one sub-device, and some of the operations described as being performed by the electronic device (110) may be performed by a first sub-unit, and other some operations may be performed by a second sub-unit.

[0054] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of each device in a system that provides a service based on coupon information according to an embodiment.

[0055] Referring to FIG. 2, an electronic device (110) according to one embodiment obtains input related to the use of a service from a customer (201). Input related to the use of a service may include, but is not limited to, input for initiating the use of a service (e.g., input for launching an application for the use of a service). For example, input related to the use of a service may further include various types of input, such as an input for searching for an item, an input for entering an item detail page, an input for adding an item to a shopping cart, an input for entering a checkout page for payment, and an input for completing a payment.

[0056] The electronic device (110) verifies coupon information provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer (202). The act of "verifying" coupon information provided to the customer should be interpreted broadly, encompassing various types of actions, including the act of acquiring coupon information or the act of viewing or utilizing information on previously acquired or stored coupons.

[0057] One or more pieces of information associated with a customer include one or more of the following: the customer's account information, the time of the customer's last purchase, and the elapsed time since the customer's last purchase. While the time of the customer's last purchase and the elapsed time since the customer's last purchase may be related, they are not essentially identical (since the current time is included as a parameter).

[0058] "Coupons provided to customers" identified based on this information may include coupons issued to encourage customer use of a service when the customer has not used the service for a certain period of time. "In the case of inactivity for a certain period of time" may include cases where the customer has not accessed the service for a certain period of time or cases where the purpose of using the service has not been achieved for a certain period of time (e.g., not purchasing an item using a shopping service). The meaning may vary depending on the specific embodiment.

[0059] Terms such as "welcome back coupon" and "return customer discount coupon" described below can be understood as names that are easier for customers to understand for the aforementioned "coupon provided when service has not been provided for a certain period of time." However, since the scope of coupons in this disclosure is not necessarily limited to "coupons provided when service has not been provided for a certain period of time," examples using terms such as "welcome back coupon" and "return customer discount coupon" below should also be understood as descriptions that can be applied to various types of coupons within the scope of this disclosure (rather than descriptions that apply only to a specific type of coupon).

[0060] With respect to FIG. 2, although the operation of drawing number 201 for obtaining input related to the use of the service has been described as being performed before the operation of drawing number 202 for confirming information on a coupon provided to a customer, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. That is, the operation of drawing number 201 and the operation of drawing number 202 may be performed simultaneously with at least some of the operations overlapping in time, and the operation of drawing number 202 may be performed before the operation of drawing number 201, and various other embodiments may fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0061] If the operation of drawing number 202 is performed before the operation of drawing number 201, it can be understood that the information on coupons that can be provided to each customer is checked in advance, and when input related to service use is obtained from the customer, the coupon information corresponding to the customer (checked in advance) is used.

[0062] For convenience of explanation, the following describes embodiments in which the operation of drawing number 201 is performed first and the operation of drawing number 202 is performed later. However, it should be understood that the following description can be applied to other embodiments as well.

[0063] Based on the verified coupon information, the electronic device (110) configures a page for service use (203) and provides the configured page to the customer (204). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a portion of the page. However, the method of configuring the page is not limited to "including coupon information," and various other embodiments may exist, such as methods of indirectly displaying the results of applying the coupon (e.g., a discounted price).

[0064] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (110) may configure a page to include a user interface related to the use of a coupon. In this regard, the user interface related to the use of a coupon may include (but is not required to include) information about the coupon.

[0065] In one embodiment, upon receiving a customer input corresponding to the user interface, the electronic device (110) may provide information related to the use of a coupon in response to the customer input. In one example, upon receiving a customer input corresponding to the user interface, the electronic device (110) may provide information on one or more items eligible for the coupon at the time of purchase. In another example, upon receiving a customer input corresponding to the user interface, the electronic device (110) may provide detailed benefit information related to the coupon.

[0066] A more detailed example of configuring a page to include a user interface related to coupon use is illustrated in FIG. 3. Referring further to FIG. 3 , an example of a user interface related to coupon use, included on a page configured by an electronic device (110), is illustrated as shown in FIG. 310 . In this regard, the user interface of FIG. 310 may include phrases such as "10,000 Won Coupon for Mr. Kim Cheol-su." Furthermore, the user interface may include a "Details" button, and upon receiving a customer input for the button, may provide detailed benefit information related to the coupon (see FIG. 320 ). Referring to drawing number 320, it can be seen that detailed benefit information according to an example can include various information such as information guiding products to which the coupon is applicable ("Can be used right now on various products marked 'Revisit'"), information guiding benefits ("Discount amount 10,000 won"), information guiding how to apply the coupon ("Coupon automatically applied upon payment"), and time information related to coupon application ("Can be used within 22:12:51").

[0067] In addition, the detailed benefit information of drawing number 320 includes a "View recommended products that can be used with coupons" button, and when a customer inputs the button, the electronic device (110) can provide information on one or more items that are eligible for the coupon at the time of purchase (see drawing number 330). Depending on the embodiment, the page providing information on one or more items may further provide functions for shopping for the items. For example, in drawing number 330, the information on one or more items may include a function for linking to a detailed page related to each item, a function for adding each item to a shopping cart, a function for moving directly to a payment page for the item, and various types of functions for shopping for items may fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0068] The example of FIG. 3 is an example of configuring a “page for executing an application for using a service” to include a user interface related to the use of a coupon, but it should be understood that the contents described in FIG. 3 can be applied similarly when configuring other types of pages to include a user interface related to the use of a coupon.

[0069] Drawing number 320 corresponds to an example of providing detailed benefit information related to a coupon, and other examples of providing detailed benefit information related to a coupon are further illustrated in FIG. 4 (400). Referring further to FIG. 4, the detailed benefit information according to an example may include information informing that the user is eligible for the coupon benefit ((a): "Only visible to customers eligible for the 'Welcome Back Coupon'", (b): "When paying for a product with a 'Welcome Back Coupon' displayed") and information informing of the benefit ((a): "Get a 7,000 won discount just for shopping", (b): "Mr. Kim Cheol-su gets an immediate 7,000 won discount"). In addition, the detailed benefit information according to an example may include a "Start Shopping" button, and upon receiving a customer input for the button, the electronic device (110) may provide a page including a function for shopping for one or more items that are eligible for the coupon at the time of purchase.

[0070] Returning to FIG. 2, the electronic device (110) according to one embodiment may determine whether one or more items on a page, including information about the item, are eligible for a coupon, and if at least one of the items is eligible for a coupon, may include coupon information in a portion of the page. More specifically, with respect to the operation of "determining whether a coupon is applicable," the electronic device (110) according to one embodiment may determine that an item is eligible for a coupon if the coupon is applicable, but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (110) according to another embodiment may determine that a coupon is not applicable if, even if a coupon is applicable, it is not appropriate to apply the coupon.

[0071] According to a more specific embodiment of determining whether it is appropriate to apply a coupon, with respect to a first item included in one or more items, the electronic device (110) may identify one or more candidate coupons to which the first item may be applied. For each of the identified one or more candidate coupons, the electronic device (110) may identify benefit information that the customer will obtain by applying the coupon to the first item. Based on the benefit information for each of the identified one or more candidate coupons, the electronic device (110) may determine whether it is appropriate to apply the coupon to the first item.

[0072] Cases in which it is not appropriate to apply a coupon include cases in which there is a better benefit than the benefit of the coupon among the benefits of other candidate coupons that cannot be applied in conjunction with the benefits of the coupon in question (for example, if you use the coupon, you get a discount of 10,000 won, but if you use the benefit of another candidate coupon, you get a discount of 15,000 won), and cases in which there is a benefit that is substantially the same as the benefit of the coupon in question but can be used more times among the benefits of other candidate coupons that cannot be applied in conjunction with the benefits of the coupon in question (for example, if the coupon in question can be used only once, but another candidate coupon can be used 10 times).

[0073] According to one embodiment, if there is at least one item to which a coupon is applied among one or more items, the electronic device (110) may display the coupon information together with the information of the item to which the coupon is applied.

[0074] Meanwhile, "one or more items on a page that include that information" may include, but is not limited to, items whose information is directly displayed on the page. For example, if some information is hidden to overcome space limitations on the page and a feature (e.g., a page scroll function) is provided that allows the hidden information to be displayed upon user request, items that are hidden and then displayed upon user request may also be included within the scope of "one or more items on a page that include that information."

[0075] Additionally, "one or more items for which the page includes the information" may include at least some items that satisfy the set condition among the multiple items for which the page includes the information. In other words, even if the page includes an item that does not satisfy the set condition, it may not be subject to verification as to whether the coupon is applicable. For example, the electronic device (110) may verify whether the page is applicable to a coupon for up to 30 items in order of their display priority among the items for which the information is applicable. In this example, the set condition may be a condition requiring that the items be "ranked within the top 30 when listed in order of display priority."

[0076] Furthermore, depending on the embodiment, the aforementioned "set condition" may also consider whether a coupon is applicable when determining whether it is applicable in the present disclosure. In this regard, it may be questionable whether considering the applicability of a coupon when determining whether an item satisfies the set condition is eligible for a coupon. However, since the specific criteria for determining whether a coupon is applicable and the "target of coupon application" may differ (for example, "applicability of a coupon" may be determined based on whether an item corresponds to a type of item eligible for a coupon, whereas "target of coupon application" may specifically consider whether the coupon is appropriate to be applied), determining whether a coupon is applicable is not contradictory. Even if the criteria for determining whether a coupon is applicable and the "target of coupon application" are identical or similar, it is difficult to consider this approach as being flawed, as iterative learning methods, which derive optimal results through repeated trials where the output becomes a new input, are widely used in various fields, such as machine learning.

[0077] More detailed examples of configuring a page based on whether there is at least one item to which a coupon is applied are illustrated in FIGS. 5 to 7. Referring further to FIG. 5, if it is determined that "HH Nature Kitchen Detergent Unscented, 500ml, 1 ea" among one or more items included in the item search page (510) corresponds to an item to which a coupon is applied, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a portion of the page (specifically, at the bottom of the page), and one example thereof may include information such as "Get a 12,000 won discount right now when purchasing a product marked 'Revisit'" as shown in drawing number 512. In addition, the electronic device (110) may display information on the coupon by linking it with the information on the HH Nature Kitchen Detergent, which is an item to which a coupon is applied, and an example thereof may include information such as “Coupon discount price of 8,000 won” and “One-time coupon discount applied to returning customers” as shown in drawing number 511.

[0078] Even when providing a detailed page (520) for “HH Nature Kitchen Detergent Unscented, 500ml, 1 ea”, which is an item to which a coupon is applied, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a part of the page (specifically, at the bottom of the page), and an example thereof may include information such as “12,000 won coupon discount for Mr. Kim Cheol-su, available right now”, as shown in drawing number 522. In addition, the electronic device (110) may display coupon information in conjunction with detailed information of the item, and an example thereof may include information such as “Coupon discount price 8,000 won”, “One-time coupon discount applied to returning customers”, as shown in drawing number 521.

[0079] Referring further to FIG. 6, if it is determined that one or more items included in the item search page (610) correspond to items to which a coupon is applied, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a part of the page (specifically, in the upper part of the page), and an example thereof may include information such as “{7,000 won} discount applied to the ‘Welcome Back’ product” and “This message is only shown to customers who are eligible for the discount”, as shown in drawing number 612. In addition, the electronic device (110) may display coupon information in conjunction with information on items to which a coupon is applied, and an example thereof may include providing phrases such as “Welcome Back discount applied” as a part of an image of each item or in a form associated with an image, as shown in drawing number 611.

[0080] Even when providing a detailed page (620) for “HH Nature Kitchen Detergent Unscented, 500ml, 1 ea”, which is an item to which a coupon is applied, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a part of the page (specifically, at the top of the page excluding the item image), and an example thereof may include information such as “Welcome back discount of 7,000 won applied upon payment” and “Shown only to customers eligible for the discount, limited to 1 per person”, as shown in drawing number 622. In addition, the electronic device (110) may display coupon information in conjunction with detailed information of an item, and an example thereof may include information such as “Coupon discount price of 7,000 won” and “Welcome back coupon discount applied”, as shown in drawing number 621.

[0081] Referring further to FIG. 7, if it is determined that "HH Nature Kitchen Detergent Unscented, 500ml, 1 unit" among one or more items included in the shopping cart page (710) is an item subject to the welcome back coupon ("II Company Jinhan Gel Liquid Detergent for Drums 2.1L is also subject to the coupon, but is not subject to the "welcome back coupon"), the electronic device (110) may include information on the welcome back coupon in a part of the page (specifically, at the top of the page), and an example thereof may include information such as "A total of 7,000 won discount applied to this order with the welcome back coupon" and "23:44:12" as in drawing number 712 ("23:44:12" corresponds to information on the remaining time that the welcome back coupon can be used). In addition, the electronic device (110) may display information on the coupon together with information on the items subject to the coupon, and an example thereof is drawing number This may include providing phrases such as "Coupon applied at checkout" in a form linked to the description of each item, such as 711.

[0082] Even when providing a checkout page (720) for shopping cart items, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a portion of the page, and an example thereof may include benefit information applied by a coupon, such as “10,000 won discount applied” as in drawing number 722, and may include information such as “total coupon discount -10,000 won”, “welcome back coupon discount applied -7,000 won”, etc. as in drawing number 721.

[0083] While the examples of FIGS. 5 and 6 display benefit information based on specific types of coupons ("welcome back coupons" and "returning customer discount coupons"), the example of FIG. 7 further displays benefit information based on different types of coupons (specifically, Company II Jinhan Gel drum liquid detergent is discounted by a coupon other than the welcome back coupon). This is not a contradiction, but rather a difference in implementation depending on the specific embodiment. Rather, it can be understood that all of these various methods of displaying coupon information fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0084] In addition, as can be seen in the examples of FIGS. 5 to 7, the form of the coupon information displayed may be partially different depending on the embodiment, and even in the same type of embodiment (the embodiment illustrated in the same drawing), the form of the coupon information displayed may be partially different depending on the type of page.

[0085] Meanwhile, throughout the present disclosure, including the examples of FIGS. 5 to 7, the act of including coupon information in a "part" of a page can be understood to include not only cases where coupon information is included to constitute a part of a page, but also cases where coupon information is included in an additional space, such as a separate pop-up window or bottom sheet, while providing that space.

[0086] Returning to FIG. 2, the electronic device (110) according to one embodiment may obtain an input from the customer to move to another page (which may be received from the customer's terminal (120), but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto). In such a case, if the coupon has not expired and the other page is related to the use of the service, the electronic device (110) may configure another page based on the coupon information and provide it to the customer. In this way, if the coupon is valid, the coupon information is continuously exposed to the user even when the user moves to another page, thereby continuously making the user aware of the coupon's existence and further encouraging the user to actively use the coupon.

[0087] However, this is only an example, and depending on the embodiment, there may be various embodiments, such as excluding coupon information when composing subsequent pages when a set condition is satisfied (for example, after the user has been provided with coupon information a set number of times) so that the user does not feel fatigued by continuous exposure to the same information.

[0088] According to one embodiment, if an input including a customer's intention to use a coupon is obtained (which may be received from the customer's terminal (120), but the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto) and the customer does not withdraw such intention, the electronic device (110) may reconfigure and provide the page so that coupon information is not included on the page. For example, if the customer added an item to which a coupon benefit was applied to a shopping cart and the customer subsequently removed the item from the shopping cart or a certain amount of time has passed since the customer terminated the service, the electronic device (110) may reconfigure and provide the page so that coupon information is not included on the page. This may be to prevent unnecessary confusion by ensuring that coupon information is no longer exposed to the customer, not only when the coupon expires due to the customer's use of the coupon, but also when the coupon is expected to expire soon even if it has not yet expired.

[0089] Furthermore, in some embodiments, even if the expiration of the coupon is not expected, if it is determined that the customer is clearly aware of the existence of the coupon, the electronic device (110) can prevent unnecessary increase in customer fatigue and save resources by preventing the coupon information from being exposed to the customer any longer.

[0090] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for providing a service based on coupon information in an electronic device according to an embodiment.

[0091] Referring to FIG. 8, an electronic device (110) according to an embodiment obtains input related to the use of a service from a customer (810). The input related to the use of a service may include, but is not limited to, an input for initiating the use of a service (e.g., an input for launching an application for the use of a service), and may further include various types of input, such as an input for searching for an item, an input for entering an item detail page, an input for adding an item to a shopping cart, an input for entering a checkout page for payment, and an input for completing a payment.

[0092] The electronic device (110) verifies coupon information provided to the customer (820) based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer. The one or more pieces of information related to the customer include one or more of the following: customer account information, information on the last time the customer purchased an item, and information on the elapsed time since the last time the customer purchased an item.

[0093] Based on the coupon information, the electronic device (110) configures a page for service use (830) and provides the configured page to the customer (840). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (110) may include coupon information in a portion of the page. However, the method of configuring the page is not limited to "including coupon information," and various other embodiments may exist, such as methods for indirectly displaying the results of applying the coupon.

[0094] Figure 9 is an exemplary diagram of the configuration of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0095] Referring to FIG. 9, the electronic device (110) includes a transceiver (910), a processor (920), and a memory (930). The electronic device (110) is connected to a customer's terminal (120) and other external devices through the transceiver (910), and can exchange data.

[0096] The processor (920) may include at least one of the devices described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8, or may perform at least one method described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. The memory (930) may store information for performing at least one method described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. The memory (930) may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory.

[0097] The processor (920) can execute a program and control an electronic device (110) to provide information. The code of the program executed by the processor (920) can be stored in the memory (930).

[0098] Additionally, the electronic device (110) of one embodiment may further include an interface capable of providing information to a customer.

[0099] Meanwhile, the present specification and drawings disclose preferred embodiments of the present invention. Although specific terms have been used, they are used in a general sense only to easily explain the technical contents of the present invention and to assist in understanding the invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other modified examples based on the technical concept of the present invention are possible in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0100] The recommendation server, electronic device or terminal according to the above-described embodiments may include a processor, a memory for storing and executing program data, permanent storage such as a disk drive, a communication port for communicating with an external device, a customer interface device such as a touch panel, a key, a button, etc. The methods implemented as software modules or algorithms may be stored on a computer-readable recording medium as computer-readable codes or program instructions executable on the processor. Here, the computer-readable recording medium includes a magnetic storage medium (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), floppy disk, hard disk, etc.) and an optical reading medium (e.g., CD-ROM, DVD: Digital Versatile Disc)). The computer-readable recording medium may be distributed to computer systems connected to a network, so that the computer-readable code may be stored and executed in a distributed manner. The medium may be readable by a computer, stored in a memory, and executed by a processor.

[0101] The present embodiment may be represented by functional block configurations and various processing steps. These functional blocks may be implemented by various hardware and / or software configurations that perform specific functions. For example, the embodiment may employ integrated circuit configurations such as memory, processing, logic, look-up tables, etc., which may perform various functions under the control of one or more microprocessors or other control devices. Similarly, the present embodiment may be implemented in a programming or scripting language such as C, C++, Java, assembler, Python, etc., including various algorithms implemented as a combination of data structures, processes, routines, or other programming configurations. Functional aspects may be implemented as algorithms that execute on one or more processors. Furthermore, the present embodiment may employ conventional techniques for electronic configuration, signal processing, and / or data processing. Terms like "mechanism," "element," "means," and "composition" can be used broadly and are not limited to mechanical or physical components. These terms can also encompass a series of software routines, such as those associated with a processor.

[0102] The above-described embodiments are merely examples, and other embodiments may be implemented within the scope of the claims set forth below.

Claims

1. In a method of providing information from an electronic device, A step of obtaining input related to the use of a service from a customer; A step of verifying information on a coupon provided to the customer based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer; A step of configuring a page for using the service based on the information of the above coupon; and Including the step of providing the above page to the above customer, A method of providing information, wherein one or more pieces of information associated with the customer include one or more of the customer's account information, information on when the customer last purchased an item, and information on the elapsed time from when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

2. In paragraph 1, The steps for configuring a page for using the above service are: A method for providing information, characterized by comprising the step of including information of said coupon in a part of said page.

3. In paragraph 1, The steps for configuring a page for using the above service are: A step for checking whether the above page is applicable to one or more items containing the information; and A method for providing information, characterized by including a step of including information about the coupon in a part of the page when at least one item to which the coupon is applied exists among the one or more items.

4. In paragraph 3, A method for providing information, wherein said one or more items include at least some items that satisfy a set condition among a plurality of items including the information on said page.

5. In paragraph 3, Steps to check whether you are eligible for the above coupon In relation to a first item included in the one or more items, a step of respectively checking one or more candidate coupons to which the first item can be applied; A step of checking the benefit information that the customer will obtain by applying the coupon to the first item, for each of the above one or more candidate coupons; and A method for providing information, characterized by comprising a step of determining whether it is appropriate to apply the coupon to the first item based on benefit information of the one or more candidate coupons.

6. In paragraph 3, A method for providing information, characterized in that when there is at least one item among the one or more items to which the coupon is applied, the electronic device displays information about the item to which the coupon is applied by linking the information about the coupon together.

7. In paragraph 1, A step of obtaining input from the customer for moving to another page; If the coupon has not expired and the other page is related to the use of the service, a step of configuring the other page based on the information of the coupon; and A method for providing information, characterized in that it further comprises the step of providing said other page to said customer.

8. In paragraph 1, The steps for configuring a page for using the above service are: Including a step of configuring the page to include a user interface related to use of the above coupon; A method for providing information, wherein the user interface includes information of the coupon.

9. In paragraph 8, A method for providing information, characterized in that when receiving the customer's input corresponding to the user interface, it further includes a step of providing information on one or more items to which the coupon is applied at the time of purchase.

10. In paragraph 8, A method for providing information, characterized in that it further includes a step of providing detailed benefit information related to the coupon when receiving the customer's input corresponding to the user interface.

11. In paragraph 1, A method for providing information, characterized in that when an input including an intention to use the coupon is obtained from the customer and the intention is not withdrawn by the customer, the electronic device reconfigures the page so that information on the coupon is not included on the page and provides the page to the customer.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having recorded thereon a program for executing the method of paragraph 1 on a computer.

13. In an electronic device providing information, comprising a transceiver, a memory storing instructions, and a processor; The above processor is connected to the transceiver and the memory, Obtain input related to the use of the service from customers, Based on one or more pieces of information related to the customer, check the information on the coupon provided to the customer, Based on the information of the above coupon, a page for using the above service is created, Provide the above page to the above customer, An electronic device, wherein one or more pieces of information associated with the customer include one or more of the customer's account information, information on when the customer last purchased an item, and information on the elapsed time from when the customer last purchased an item to the present.

Images