Unified Payment System for Social Media Transaction Friction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity and inefficiency of initiating and completing financial transactions on mobile devices, requiring multiple clicks and account registrations, deter users from making purchases, especially when dealing with new merchants or services.
Innovation Solution
A system that allows users to initiate and complete financial transactions within apps, social media, and ads by providing a streamlined account creation and payment process, using a single account that can be used across various platforms, and enabling merchants to create offers with embedded call-to-actions without needing their own payment systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If users are redirected to external browsers and websites to complete transactions, then merchants can process payments through their own systems, but the transaction process becomes complex and requires ten or more clicks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the merchant's payment processing capabilities directly into the social media application environment. Instead of redirecting users to external browsers, the system embeds the payment interface within the native app, combining the social media experience with transaction processing in a single unified environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a payment intermediary system that acts as a bridge between the social media platform and merchant payment processing. This intermediary layer enables transactions to occur within the app by mediating the connection between user, merchant, and payment processor without requiring external browser redirection.
2Adaptability or versatility
If users create accounts at multiple merchants to facilitate transactions, then payment processing becomes more flexible, but the time and complexity required to initiate transactions increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal payment account system that functions across multiple merchants and platforms. Instead of requiring separate accounts at each merchant, the system implements a single payment account that can be used universally, making the payment system adaptable to various merchants while reducing the time needed to initiate transactions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary account setup where payment information is collected and stored in advance during a single registration process. This preliminary action enables users to make subsequent transactions without repeatedly entering payment information, significantly reducing the time required to initiate transactions while maintaining versatility across merchants.
3Productivity
If users manually return to the original app after completing a transaction in an external browser, then the transaction is completed, but the user experience becomes tedious and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the entire transaction workflow within the native application environment, eliminating the need for users to switch to external browsers and manually return. The payment processing, confirmation, and post-transaction activities all occur within the same app interface, improving productivity and eliminating time loss from context switching.
Data Source
AI summary
The system provides a method and apparatus for initiating and completing a financial transaction from within an app, application, interface, email, ad, or the like, including social media apps, with very few steps. The system is agnostic as to merchant or advertiser, and allows a user to establish a single account that can be used for quick purchases across multiple platforms and promotional streams. The system is not limited to mobile devices but may be used in any computing environment. In a case of first time use, the system streamlines the account creation process by scraping required account data of the user from available sources. Any missing information may be requested at the time of account creation, or, if not immediately required, may be deferred to a later time. Subsequent interactions and purchases will be accomplished within the app and can be done in just a few clicks.