Entity Social Network Group Segmentation and Targeted Posting

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Solution Overview

Problem

Social networking systems lack effective methods for non-person entities to interact meaningfully while respecting user privacy and allowing targeted messaging to specific user groups without unnecessary exposure to other users.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a system where non-person entities can manage interactions by associating users with groups based on their profiles, enabling targeted posting and access only after users initiate contact, with features like profile viewing and stream filtering to ensure relevant content delivery.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If non-person entities can access and interact with all users on the social network, then the entity can maximize its reach and engagement, but user privacy is compromised and users receive unwanted interactions from entities they do not know

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveentity reach and engagementVSAvoiduser privacy violation and unwanted interactions

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the entity's audience into different groups based on user characteristics such as age, gender, location, and interests. The organization tool allows entities to create targeted groups and associate specific content with specific groups, enabling precise delivery of information only to relevant user segments rather than broadcasting to all users indiscriminately.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary actions by automatically detecting user profiles and pre-associating users with appropriate entity groups based on their characteristics before the entity needs to communicate with them. This pre-segmentation ensures that when the entity posts content, it is already targeted to the right audiences, reducing unwanted exposures while maintaining engagement potential.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Productivity

If entities can post information to all user streams, then the entity can maximize information dissemination, but users are exposed to irrelevant content from groups they are not associated with

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinformation disseminationVSAvoidinformation relevance to user

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements local quality by allowing different portions of the entity's information stream to have different qualities or relevance levels for different users. The organization tool enables the entity to associate specific content with specific user groups, so each user receives a customized view of the entity's stream that contains only information relevant to their characteristics and associations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary filtering and association of users with content categories before the information is delivered. By pre-analyzing user profiles and pre-associating users with appropriate groups, the system ensures that information is already tailored to user relevance before it reaches the user's stream, eliminating the need for users to filter through irrelevant content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Productivity

If entities can automatically access user profiles without user initiation, then the entity can efficiently segment and target users, but user privacy and control are violated

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuser segmentation efficiencyVSAvoiduser control and privacy

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent inverts the traditional approach by requiring user initiation rather than entity initiation. Instead of the entity actively seeking to access and segment users, the system waits for users to voluntarily interact with the entity (such as following or liking the entity's page). This reversal maintains user control and privacy while still enabling efficient segmentation through the organization tool that activates only after user initiation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Data Source

PatentUS9922379B1Entity social network management and entity social interactive controls

Publication Date: 2018.03.20 GOOGLE LLC

AI summary

In one aspect, a method is provided. The method includes providing a social network on one or more servers connected to the internet. The method includes identifying an instance where a user takes action to add the social networking account of the entity to a social networking account of the user, and in response to the identification of the user's action, enabling identification of and access to the user by the entity. The method includes enabling the social networking account of the entity to post information to a stream of the user that took action to add the social networking account of the entity to the social networking account of the user. The method further includes presenting a stream view of one or more postings to the user, the one or more postings being from the groups that the user was associated to by the entity.