Price Comparison Server System Automating Retail Credit Assignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumers and retailers face difficulties in evaluating competitive pricing across various advertisements and coupons, leading to inconvenient and time-consuming processes for finding the best deals, as existing methods lack an efficient way to compare prices and provide price matching across different retail stores.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilize a server system to compare prices paid by customers with third-party pricing data, assigning credits for price differences and applying them towards subsequent purchases, thereby enabling price matching across online and in-store transactions, and determining competitive offering prices based on customer behavior and pricing data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If customers manually review advertisements and coupons from various media to find the best deals, then they can identify price differences, but the process becomes time-consuming and inconvenient
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic price monitoring and comparison without requiring customer intervention. The server system automatically collects pricing data from multiple retailers, compares prices, and notifies customers of better deals, allowing the system to serve itself in performing the price comparison task that would otherwise require manual customer effort
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of customers physically reviewing advertisements and coupons with an automated electronic system. The server system electronically collects, stores, and compares pricing data from multiple sources, substituting the manual review process with automated information processing and delivery to customers
2Object-generated harmful factors
If customers visit various retail stores to purchase items at different prices, then they can obtain the best deals, but the process becomes inconvenient and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a price matching mechanism as an intermediary between customers and retailers. When a customer finds a better price at another retailer, the system facilitates price matching by allowing the customer to receive compensation (such as store credits or refunds) from the original retailer, eliminating the need to physically visit multiple stores while still obtaining the best price
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides universal price matching capabilities across multiple retailers and product categories. The server system maintains pricing data from various sources and applies price matching rules universally, allowing customers to benefit from price comparisons across different retail channels (online and in-store) without needing to manually visit each location
3Loss of information
If retailers publish advertisements and coupons in various publications, then they can promote competitive pricing, but customers must wade through all of these to find the best deal
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges pricing information from multiple retailers and sources into a single centralized database on the server system. Instead of customers encountering scattered advertisements and coupons across various publications, the system consolidates all pricing data in one location and presents consolidated pricing information to customers through a unified interface
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where pricing data from multiple retailers is continuously collected, compared, and used to generate actionable information for customers. The system provides feedback to customers about price differences and better deals available, enabling informed purchasing decisions without requiring customers to manually search through multiple information sources
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are disclosed for evaluating a transaction concluded at a POS (point of sale) device. Prices for competitive retail stores within a geographic region of the POS may be evaluated after concluding a transaction. Price differences between items and corresponding prices in the third party data are identified. Where the purchase price exceeds the corresponding third-party price, a credit is assigned to the customer, such as in the form of a gift card or code that may be redeemed in a subsequent transaction. Credits may also be assigned to a debit card associated with a user, either with or without applying some multiplier. A credit may be applied to an online transaction of the user. Based on the use of the credit, the user's in-store purchases and online purchases may be related to the same individual and used to better characterize interests of the user.