Email-Based Transaction System Using Mailto Hyperlinks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current e-commerce systems require customers to switch between applications for viewing product information and entering payment details, making the purchasing process inconvenient and time-consuming, especially for non-profit organizations during donation campaigns.
Innovation Solution
An e-commerce system that generates and sends advertising emails with mailto hyperlinks, allowing customers to place orders directly from their email client, which are then processed by the e-commerce system, eliminating the need to switch applications and simplifying the payment process through integrated payment processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If customers use traditional e-commerce systems with web browsers, then they can access product information and complete purchases, but they must switch between applications and enter payment information repeatedly, making the process inconvenient and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the email client application with the e-commerce transaction process by using mailto hyperlinks that enable customers to initiate and complete purchases directly within their existing email application, eliminating the need to switch to a web browser and reducing the number of steps required to complete a transaction
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-configuring mailto hyperlinks with customer identification and product information embedded in the email client, so that when a customer clicks a link, the purchase process is already partially initiated with relevant data prepared, reducing the time and effort needed to complete the transaction
2Productivity
If non-profit organizations use traditional email marketing campaigns, then they can reach customers, but the donation process requires switching applications and entering payment information, making it complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the donation process with the email marketing campaign by integrating mailto hyperlinks that allow donors to complete transactions directly within their email client, eliminating the need to switch applications and simplifying the overall process
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing customers to initiate and complete purchases or donations directly from their email client using pre-configured mailto hyperlinks, reducing the need for manual intervention and simplifying the process for both customers and organizations
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic commerce (e-commerce) system may send advertisement emails to customers that are registered with the e-commerce system. The advertisement emails may include mailto hyperlinks. Each mailto hyperlink may be associated with a product that is being offered for sale, and each mailto hyperlink describes an email message that may be generated when that hyperlink is selected. When a mailto hyperlink is selected, the generated email message may include one or more parameters related to the product associated with the hyperlink, such as an identifier of the product. The generated email message may then be transmitted to the e-commerce system. The e-commerce system may receive the message and, based on the parameters in the received message, execute a transaction to purchase the identified product on behalf of the customer.