Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY GENERATING A CUSTOMIZED
INCENTIVE INTERFACE
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present application relates to systems and methods for
automatically
generating a customized incentive interface.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Incentives such as digital incentives may be provided for a number
of reasons. It
is often difficult to manage and track incentives as the provider may not have
a system set up to
manage and track the incentives.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0003] Embodiments are described in detail below, with reference to the
following
drawings:
[0004] FIG. 1 is a schematic operation diagram illustrating an operating
environment of
an example embodiment;
[0005] FIG. 2 is a simplified schematic diagram showing components of a
computing
device;
[0006] FIG. 3 is a high-level schematic diagram of an example computer
device;
[0007] FIG. 4 shows a simplified organization of software components
stored in a
memory of the example computer device of FIG. 3;
[0008] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
in automatically generating a customized incentive interface according to an
embodiment;
1
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0009] FIG. 6 shows an example white label incentive interface according
to an
embodiment;
[0010] FIG. 7 shows another example white label incentive interface
according to an
embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 8 shows a digital gift card skin according to an embodiment;
[0012] FIG. 9 shows a customized incentive interface generated using the
example white
label incentive interface of FIG. 6 according to an embodiment;
[0013] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for generating recommendations for who should receive the one or more digital
incentives
according to an embodiment;
[0014] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for obtaining the electronic addresses of computing devices associated with
the accepted
recommendation according to an embodiment;
[0015] FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for generating a customized incentive interface in a determined digital format
according to an
embodiment;
[0016] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for sending a particular digital incentive according to an embodiment;
[0017] FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for automatically determining a label for a graphical object according to an
embodiment;
[0018] FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for managing a bulk order of incentives according to an embodiment;
2
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0019] FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for managing and tracking bulk orders of incentives according to an
embodiment;
[0020] FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for providing additional information of a particular bulk order of incentives
according to an
embodiment; and
[0021] FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing operations performed by a server
computer system
for cancelling or putting on hold at least one bulk order of incentives
according to an
embodiment.
[0022] Like reference numerals are used in the drawings to denote like
elements and
features.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS
[0023] Accordingly, in one aspect there is provided a server computer
system comprising
a communications module; a processor coupled with the communications module;
and a memory
coupled to the processor and storing processor-executable instructions which,
when executed by
the processor, configure the processor to store, in a database and in
association with a provider of
one or more incentives, data associated with at least one bulk order of
incentives, the data
including identifying information of a purchaser of the at least one bulk
order of incentives and a
unique number for each incentive; authenticate a computing device associated
with the provider
of the one or more incentives; obtain, from the database, at least one
graphical object associated
with the provider of the one or more incentives; automatically generate a
customized incentive
interface by populating one or more interface elements of a white label
incentive interface, the
customized incentive interface including at least a summary of the at least
one bulk order of
incentives and the at least one graphical object associated with the provider
of the one or more
incentives; and send, via the communications module and to the computing
device associated
with the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal causing the
computing device to display
the customized incentive interface that includes at least the summary of the
at least one bulk
3
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
order of incentives and the at least one graphical object associated with the
provider of the one or
more incentives.
[0024] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to determine a
verification status of
the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives, wherein the
customized incentive
interface includes an indication of the verification status of the purchaser
of the at least one bulk
order of incentives.
[0025] In one or more embodiments, the customized incentive interface
includes a
selectable interface element for flagging the purchaser of the at least one
bulk order of incentives
as suspicious.
[0026] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to receive, via the
communications
module and from the computing device associated with the provider of the one
or more
incentives, a signal indicating selection of the selectable interface element
for flagging the
purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives as suspicious; and
responsive to receiving
the signal indicating selection of the selectable interface element for
flagging the purchaser of the
at least one bulk order of incentives send, via the communications module and
to the computing
device associated with the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal
updating the
customized incentive interface to identify the purchaser of the at least one
bulk order of
incentives as suspicious; and cancel or put on hold the at least one bulk
order of incentives.
[0027] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to determine a
change in the
verification status of the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of
incentives; and send, via the
communications module and to the computing device associated with provider of
the one or
more incentives, a signal updating the indication of the verification status
of the purchaser of the
at least one bulk order of incentives based on the determined change in the
verification status.
4
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0028] In one or more embodiments, the customized incentive interface
includes a
selectable interface element for viewing additional information of a
particular bulk order of
incentives and the processor-executable instructions, when executed by the
processor, further
configure the processor to receive, via the communications module and from the
computing
device associated with the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal
indicating selection of
the selectable interface element for viewing additional information of the
particular bulk order of
incentives; responsive to receiving the signal indicating selection of the
selectable interface
element for viewing additional information of the particular bulk order of
incentives, obtain,
from the database, the additional information of the particular bulk order of
incentives; and send,
via the communications module and to the computing device associated with the
provider of the
one or more incentives, a signal causing the device to display an interface
that includes the
additional information of the particular bulk order of incentives.
[0029] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to receive, via the
communications
module and from a computing device associated with the purchaser of the at
least one bulk order
of incentives, a signal that includes a request to purchase the at least one
bulk order of incentives;
and responsive to receiving the request to purchase the at least one bulk
order of incentives,
generate the unique number for each incentive.
[0030] In one or more embodiments, at least a portion of the unique
number for each
incentive is generated using a random number generator.
[0031] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to obtain
electronic addresses of a
plurality of computing devices associated with recipients of at least one
incentive of the at least
one bulk order of incentives; and send, via the communications module and to
the electronic
addresses of the plurality of computing devices associated with the recipients
of at least one
incentive of the at least one bulk order of incentives, a signal that includes
the at least one
incentive.
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0032] In one or more embodiments, the processor-executable instructions,
when
executed by the processor, further configure the processor to generate a
unique code for each
incentive; and send, via the communications module and to the electronic
addresses of the
plurality of computing devices associated with the recipients of the at least
one incentive of the at
least one bulk order of incentives, a signal that includes the unique code for
each incentive,
wherein the unique code is sent as a separate communication than the at least
one incentive and
is different than the unique number for each purchased incentive.
[0033] According to another aspect there is provided a computer-
implemented method
executed by a processor of a computer server system, the method comprising
storing, in a
database and in association with a provider of one or more incentives, data
associated with at
least one bulk order of incentives, the data including identifying information
of a purchaser of
the at least one bulk order of incentives and a unique number for each
incentive; authenticating a
computing device associated with the provider of the one or more incentives;
obtaining, from the
database, at least one graphical object associated with the provider of the
one or more incentives;
and automatically generating a customized incentive interface by populating
one or more
interface elements of a white label incentive interface, the customized
incentive interface
including at least a summary of the at least one bulk order of incentives and
the at least one
graphical object associated with the provider of the one or more incentives;
and sending, via a
communications module and to the computing device associated with the provider
of the one or
more incentives, a signal causing the computing device to display the
customized incentive
interface that includes at least the summary of the at least one bulk order of
incentives and the at
least one graphical object associated with the provider of the one or more
incentives.
[0034] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises
determining a
verification status of the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of
incentives, wherein the
customized incentive interface includes an indication of the verification
status of the purchaser of
the at least one bulk order of incentives.
6
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0035] In one or more embodiments, the customized incentive interface
includes a
selectable interface element for flagging the purchaser of the at least one
bulk order of incentives
as suspicious.
[0036] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises
receiving, via the
communications module and from the computing device associated with the
provider of the one
or more incentives, a signal indicating selection of the selectable interface
element for flagging
the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives as suspicious; and
responsive to
receiving the signal indicating selection of the selectable interface element
for flagging the
purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives: sending, via the
communications module
and to the computing device associated with the provider of the one or more
incentives, a signal
updating the customized incentive interface to identify the purchaser of the
at least one bulk
order of incentives as suspicious; and cancelling or putting on hold the at
least one bulk order of
incentives.
[0037] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises
determining a change
in the verification status of the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of
incentives; and sending,
via the communications module and to the computing device associated with
provider of the one
or more incentives, a signal updating the indication of the verification
status of the purchaser of
the at least one bulk order of incentives based on the determined change in
the verification status.
[0038] In one or more embodiments, the customized incentive interface
includes a
selectable interface element for viewing additional information of a
particular bulk order of
incentives and the method further comprises receiving, via the communications
module and from
the computing device associated with the provider of the one or more
incentives, a signal
indicating selection of the selectable interface element for viewing
additional information of the
particular bulk order of incentives; responsive to receiving the signal
indicating selection of the
selectable interface element for viewing additional information of the
particular bulk order of
incentives, obtaining, from the database, the additional information of the
particular bulk order of
incentives; and sending, via the communications module and to the computing
device associated
7
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
with the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal causing the device
to display an
interface that includes the additional information of the particular bulk
order of incentives.
[0039] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises
receiving, via the
communications module and from a computing device associated with the
purchaser of the at
least one bulk order of incentives, a signal that includes a request to
purchase the at least one
bulk order of incentives; and responsive to receiving the request to purchase
the at least one bulk
order of incentives, generating the unique number for each incentive.
[0040] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises obtaining
electronic
addresses of a plurality of computing devices associated with recipients of at
least one incentive
of the at least one bulk order of incentives; and sending, via the
communications module and to
the electronic addresses of the plurality of computing devices associated with
the recipients of at
least one incentive of the at least one bulk order of incentives, a signal
that includes the at least
one incentive.
[0041] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises
generating a unique
code for each incentive; and sending, via the communications module and to the
electronic
addresses of the plurality of computing devices associated with the recipients
of the at least one
incentive of the at least one bulk order of incentives, a signal that includes
the unique code for
each incentive, wherein the unique code is sent as a separate communication
than the at least one
incentive and is different than the unique number for each purchased
incentive.
[0042] According to another aspect there is provided a non-transitory
computer readable
storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions which, when
executed, configure a
processor to store, in a database and in association with a provider of one or
more incentives,
data associated with at least one bulk order of incentives, the data including
identifying
information of a purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives and a
unique number for
each incentive; authenticate a computing device associated with the provider
of the one or more
incentives; obtain, from the database, at least one graphical object
associated with the provider of
the one or more incentives; automatically generate a customized incentive
interface by
8
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
populating one or more interface elements of a white label incentive
interface, the customized
incentive interface including at least a summary of the at least one bulk
order of incentives and
the at least one graphical object associated with the provider of the one or
more incentives; and
send, via a communications module and to the computing device associated with
the provider of
the one or more incentives, a signal causing the computing device to display
the customized
incentive interface that includes at least the summary of the at least one
bulk order of incentives
and the at least one graphical object associated with the provider of the one
or more incentives.
[0043] Other aspects and features of the present application will be
understood by those
of ordinary skill in the art from a review of the following description of
examples in conjunction
with the accompanying figures.
[0044] In the present application, the term "and/or" is intended to cover
all possible
combinations and sub-combinations of the listed elements, including any one of
the listed
elements alone, any sub-combination, or all of the elements, and without
necessarily excluding
additional elements.
[0045] In the present application, the phrase "at least one of ...or..."
is intended to cover
any one or more of the listed elements, including any one of the listed
elements alone, any sub-
combination, or all of the elements, without necessarily excluding any
additional elements, and
without necessarily requiring all of the elements.
[0046] In the present application, examples involving a general-purpose
computer,
aspects of the disclosure transform the general-purpose computer into a
special-purpose
computing device when configured to execute the instructions described herein.
[0047] FIG. 1 is a schematic operation diagram illustrating an operating
environment of
an example embodiment. As shown, the system 100 includes a computing device
110 and a
server computer system 120 coupled to one another through a network 130, which
may include a
public network such as the Internet and/or a private network. The computing
device 110 and the
server computer system 120 may be in geographically disparate locations. Put
differently, the
9
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
computing device 110 and the server computer system 120 may be located remote
from one
another.
[0048] The computing device 110 may be a laptop computer as shown in FIG.
1.
However, the computing device 110 may be a computing device of another type
such as for
example a smartphone, personal computer, a tablet computer, a notebook
computer, a hand-held
computer, a personal digital assistant, a portable navigation device, a mobile
phone, a wearable
computing device (e.g., a smart watch, a wearable activity monitor, wearable
smart jewelry, and
glasses and other optical devices that include optical head-mounted displays),
an embedded
computing device (e.g., in communication with a smart textile or electronic
fabric), and any other
type of computing device that may be configured to store data and software
instructions, and
execute software instructions to perform operations consistent with disclosed
embodiments.
[0049] The server computer system 120 is a computer server system. A
computer server
system may, for example, be a mainframe computer, a minicomputer, or the like.
In some
implementations thereof, a computer server system may be formed of or may
include one or
more computing devices. A computer server system may include and/or may
communicate with
multiple computing devices such as, for example, database servers, computer
servers, and the
like. Multiple computing devices such as these may be in communication using a
computer
network and may communicate to act in cooperation as a computer server system.
For example,
such computing devices may communicate using a local-area network (LAN). In
some
embodiments, a computer server system may include multiple computing devices
organized in a
tiered arrangement. For example, a computer server system may include middle
tier and back-
end computing devices. In some embodiments, a computer server system may be a
cluster
formed of a plurality of interoperating computing devices.
[0050] The network 130 is a computer network. In some embodiments, the
network 130
may be an internetwork such as may be formed of one or more interconnected
computer
networks. For example, the network 130 may be or may include an Ethernet
network, an
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) network, a wireless network, a
telecommunications network,
or the like.
[0051] The computing device 110 is associated with a requesting party and
may be
adapted to send, to the server computer system 120, web requests. As will be
described in more
detail below, the web requests may include a web request to send one or more
incentives. The
incentives may include, for example, physical gift cards, digital gift cards,
loyalty point
multipliers, etc.
[0052] The server computer system 120 may be a financial institution
server and may
maintain a database 140 that includes various data records. At least some of
the data records
may be associated with customer bank accounts and/or customer credit card
accounts. For
example, a data record may reflect an amount of value stored in a customer's
bank account. As
another example, a data record may store transaction data associated with one
or more
transactions made on a credit card. The transaction data may include
information related to one
or more transactions such as for example a transaction location, a transaction
date, a transaction
amount, etc. At least some of the data records may include additional account
data such as for
example the name, age, address of the customer, etc. and the account data may
be associated with
the customer bank accounts and/or customer credit card accounts. The account
data may
additionally include information relating to incentives or digital incentives
previously accepted
by a customer. For example, the information may identify the amount of the
digital incentive,
the type of the digital incentive, and the digital format that was used to
send the digital incentive
to the customer.
[0053] It will be appreciated that the amount of data stored in the
database may be
referred to as big data. For example, the database 140 may store transaction
data for every
transaction made by every customer of the financial institution. The amount of
data may be too
large or complex to be dealt with by traditional data-processing application
software. As such, in
one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may engage a data
mining module to
analyze the account data to generate at least one recommendation for sending a
digital incentive.
11
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0054] The server computer system 120 may communicate with the database
140 directly
or through the network 130.
[0055] The server computer system 120 may communicate with one or more
additional
computing devices 150. Specifically, the server computer system 120 may send
and receive
signals with the additional computing devices 150 and at least some of the
signals may include a
customized incentive interface that is to be displayed on the one or more
additional computing
device 150. Although only one additional computing device 150 is shown in FIG.
1, a plurality
of computing devices 150 may communicate with the server computer system 120
and each
additional computing device 150 may be associated with a customer of the
financial institution.
Each additional computing device 150 may be, for example, a laptop, a
smartphone, personal
computer, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a hand-held computer, a
personal digital
assistant, a portable navigation device, a mobile phone, a wearable computing
device (e.g., a
smart watch, a wearable activity monitor, wearable smart jewelry, and glasses
and other optical
devices that include optical head-mounted displays), an embedded computing
device (e.g., in
communication with a smart textile or electronic fabric), and any other type
of computing device
that may be configured to store data and software instructions, and execute
software instructions
to perform operations consistent with disclosed embodiments.
[0056] FIG. 2 is a simplified schematic diagram showing components of an
exemplary
computing device 200. The computing device 110 and the one or more additional
computing
devices 150 may be of the same type as computing device 200. The computing
device 200 may
include modules including, as illustrated, for example, one or more displays
210, an image
capture module 220, a sensor module 230, and a computer device 240.
[0057] The one or more displays 210 are a display module. The one or more
displays
210 are used to display screens of a graphical user interface that may be
used, for example, to
communicate with the server computer system 120 (FIG. 1). The one or more
displays 210 may
be internal displays of the computing device 200 (e.g., disposed within a body
of the computing
device).
12
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0058] The image capture module 220 may be or may include a camera. The
image
capture module 220 may be used to obtain image data, such as images. The image
capture
module 220 may be or may include a digital image sensor system as, for
example, a charge
coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal¨oxide¨semiconductor (CMOS) image
sensor.
[0059] The sensor module 230 may be a sensor that generates sensor data
based on a
sensed condition. By way of example, the sensor module 230 may be or include a
location
subsystem which generates location data indicating a location of the computing
device 200. The
location may be the current geographic location of the computing device 200.
The location
subsystem may be or include any one or more of a global positioning system
(GPS), an inertial
navigation system (INS), a wireless (e.g., cellular) triangulation system, a
beacon-based location
system (such as a Bluetooth low energy beacon system), or a location subsystem
of another type.
[0060] The computer device 240 is in communication with the one or more
displays 210,
the image capture module 220, and the sensor module 230. The computer device
240 may be or
may include a processor which is coupled to the one or more displays 210, the
image capture
module 220, and/or the sensor module 230.
[0061] Referring now to FIG. 3, a high-level operation diagram of an
example computer
device 300 is shown. In some embodiments, the computer device 300 may be
exemplary of the
computer device 240 (FIG. 2) and/or server computer system 120.
[0062] The example computer device 300 includes a variety of modules. For
example, as
illustrated, the example computer device 300 may include a processor 310, a
memory 320, a
communications module 330, and/or a storage module 340. As illustrated, the
foregoing
example modules of the example computer device 300 are in communication over a
bus 350.
[0063] The processor 310 is a hardware processor. The processor 310 may,
for example,
be one or more ARM, Intel x86, PowerPC processors or the like.
[0064] The memory 320 allows data to be stored and retrieved. The memory
320 may
include, for example, random access memory, read-only memory, and persistent
storage.
13
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
Persistent storage may be, for example, flash memory, a solid-state drive or
the like. Read-only
memory and persistent storage are non-transitory computer-readable storage
mediums. A
computer-readable medium may be organized using a file system such as may be
administered
by an operating system governing overall operation of the example computer
device 300.
[0065] The communications module 330 allows the example computer device
300 to
communicate with other computer or computing devices and/or various
communications
networks. For example, the communications module 330 may allow the example
computer
device 300 to send or receive communications signals. Communications signals
may be sent or
received according to one or more protocols or according to one or more
standards. For
example, the communications module 330 may allow the example computer device
300 to
communicate via a cellular data network, such as for example, according to one
or more
standards such as, for example, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM),
Code
Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Evolution Data Optimized (EVDO), Long-term
Evolution
(LTE) or the like. Additionally or alternatively, the communications module
330 may allow the
example computer device 300 to communicate using near-field communication
(NFC), via Wi-Fi
(TM), using Bluetooth (TM) or via some combination of one or more networks or
protocols. In
some embodiments, all or a portion of the communications module 330 may be
integrated into a
component of the example computer device 300. For example, the communications
module may
be integrated into a communications chipset. In some embodiments, the
communications
module 330 may be omitted such as, for example, if sending and receiving
communications is
not required in a particular application.
[0066] The storage module 340 allows the example computer device 300 to
store and
retrieve data. In some embodiments, the storage module 340 may be formed as a
part of the
memory 320 and/or may be used to access all or a portion of the memory 320.
Additionally or
alternatively, the storage module 340 may be used to store and retrieve data
from persisted
storage other than the persisted storage (if any) accessible via the memory
320. In some
embodiments, the storage module 340 may be used to store and retrieve data in
a database. A
database may be stored in persisted storage. Additionally or alternatively,
the storage module
14
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
340 may access data stored remotely such as, for example, as may be accessed
using a local area
network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), personal area network (PAN), and/or a
storage area
network (SAN). In some embodiments, the storage module 340 may access data
stored remotely
using the communications module 330. In some embodiments, the storage module
340 may be
omitted and its function may be performed by the memory 320 and/or by the
processor 310 in
concert with the communications module 330 such as, for example, if data is
stored remotely.
The storage module may also be referred to as a data store.
[0067] Software comprising instructions is executed by the processor 310
from a
computer-readable medium. For example, software may be loaded into random-
access memory
from persistent storage of the memory 320. Additionally or alternatively,
instructions may be
executed by the processor 310 directly from read-only memory of the memory
320.
[0068] FIG. 4 depicts a simplified organization of software components
stored in the
memory 320 of the example computer device 300 (FIG. 3). As illustrated, these
software
components include an operating system 400 and an application 410.
[0069] The operating system 400 is software. The operating system 400
allows the
application 410 to access the processor 310 (FIG. 3), the memory 320, and the
communications
module 330 of the example computer device 300 (FIG. 3). The operating system
400 may be,
for example, Google (TM) Android (TM), Apple (TM) iOS (TM), UNIX (TM), Linux
(TM),
Microsoft (TM) Windows (TM), Apple OSX (TM) or the like.
[0070] The application 410 adapts the example computer device 300, in
combination
with the operating system 400, to operate as a device performing a particular
function. For
example, the application 410 may cooperate with the operating system 400 to
adapt a suitable
embodiment of the example computer device 300 to operate as the computer
device 240 (FIG. 2)
and/or the server computer system 120.
[0071] While a single application 410 is illustrated in FIG. 3, in
operation the memory
320 may include more than one application 410 and different applications 410
may perform
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
different operations. For example, in at least some embodiments in which the
computer device
300 is functioning as the computing device 110, the applications 410 may
include an incentive
management application. The incentive management application may be provided
as a web
application and/or a mobile application. The incentive management application
may be
configured to present one or more graphical user interfaces on a display of
the computing device
110 and may provide various incentive management functions.
[0072] The incentive management application may require a requesting
party to
authenticate. For example, the incentive management application may be
accessed on the
computing device 110 via an intemet web browser and may require the user of
the computing
device 110 (also referred to as the requesting party) to create an account.
Account creation may
require the submission of credentials to be used for authentication such as
for example a
usemame and a password. The usemame may include the requesting party's email
address.
Additional information may be required to complete account creation such as
for example a
company name, etc. It will be appreciated that in one or more embodiments the
incentive
management application may be downloaded or resident on the computing device
110 and thus
may be accessed directly thereon.
[0073] To access the incentive management application on the computing
device 110, the
requesting party may be prompted to enter the credentials submitted during the
account creation.
For example, the requesting party may be prompted to submit a usemame and a
password
associated with their account. In response to receiving the credentials, the
server computer
system 120 may authenticate the computing device 110 (or user) and may
identify an account
associated therewith.
[0074] Within the incentive management application, a graphical user
interface may be
displayed on a display screen of the computing device 110 that may include one
or more
selectable interface elements for submitting additional information and/or
objects. For example,
a selectable interface element for uploading or submitting one or more
graphical objects
associated with the requesting party may be displayed. The graphical objects
may include
16
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
company logos, digital gift card skins, animated objects, etc. In response to
selecting the
selectable interface element, a graphical user interface may be displayed that
includes one or
more selectable interface elements for uploading or submitting the one or more
graphical objects.
The requesting party may select one of the selectable interface elements which
may prompt the
user to select a particular file or web address that includes the graphical
object. In this manner,
graphical objects may be submitted by the requesting party using the computing
device 110 and
stored in the database 140 by the server computer system 120. As will be
described in more
detail below, the server computer system 120 may analyze the uploaded
graphical objects to
label or categorize each uploaded graphical object. Alternatively, the
requesting party may be
prompted to label or categorize each uploaded graphical object.
[0075] As another example, a selectable interface element for uploading
or submitting a
list of electronic addresses that are to receive the one or more digital
incentives may be
displayed. The list of electronic addresses may include, for example, email
addresses, telephone
numbers, unique identifiers of computing devices, etc. In response to
selecting the selectable
interface element, a graphical user interface may be displayed that includes
one or more
selectable interface elements for uploading or submitting the list of
electronic addresses. The
requesting party may select one or more digital files that include the list of
electronic addresses
and the digital files may be in a standardized format such as for example a
comma-separated
values (CSV) file format.
[0076] The incentive management application may present one or more
graphical user
interfaces on the computing device 110 that allow a requesting party to submit
a request to
automatically send one or more digital incentives. In response to receiving
the request to send
one or more digital incentives, a customized incentive interface may be
generated and sent to one
or more electronic addresses.
[0077] Reference is made to FIG. 5, which illustrates, in flowchart form,
a method 500
for generating a customized incentive interface. The method 500 may be
implemented by a
computing device having suitable processor-executable instructions for causing
the computing
17
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
device to carry out the described operations. The method 500 may be
implemented, in whole or
in part, by the server computer system 120.
[0078] The method 500 includes receiving, from a computing device
associated with a
requesting party, a signal that includes a web request to send one or more
digital incentives and
defines one or more scopes for the one or more digital incentives (step 510).
[0079] In one or more embodiments, the web request to send one or more
digital
incentives may include or may define one or more scopes for the one or more
digital incentives.
The scopes may be defined by the requesting party within the incentive
management application.
For example, the incentive management application may display, on the
computing device 110, a
graphical user interface that includes one or more interface elements for
defining the scopes for
the one or more digital incentives. The interface elements may include, for
example, selectable
interface elements (selectable buttons, radio buttons, toggle buttons, etc.),
input fields, etc. and
may be selected or completed by the requesting party using, for example, an
input device of the
computing device 110.
[0080] The one or more scopes may include, for example, a type of each
digital
incentive. For example, the type of a digital incentive may include a digital
gift card, a loyalty
point multiplier, etc. The one or more scopes may additionally define an
amount of the digital
incentive. For example, the digital incentive type may include the digital
gift card and the
amount of the digital incentive may include, for example, $5, $10, etc. As
another example, the
digital incentive type may include the loyalty point multiplier and the amount
of the digital
incentive may include, for example, 2x, 3x, 5x etc. It will be appreciated
that the loyalty point
multiplier may be an amount of loyalty points earned per dollar spent. For
example, the amount
of the digital incentive may include 5x and as such for every $1 spent at a
particular merchant the
digital incentive may allow a recipient of the digital incentive to earn five
(5) loyalty points. It
will be appreciated that the request to send one or more digital incentives
may include a request
to send multiple digital incentives and each digital incentive may be of a
different type or a
different value.
18
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0081] The one or more scopes may include parameters for each digital
incentive. For
example, the parameters may define where the digital incentive may be used
such as for example
a particular merchant or category of merchants. As one example, the parameters
of a particular
digital incentive may define that the digital incentive may be used at a
Merchant A and the
parameters of another digital incentive may define that the digital incentive
may be used at a
Merchant B.
[0082] It will be appreciated that the requesting party itself may be the
merchant where
the digital incentive may be used. For example, the requesting party may be a
particular grocery
store and as such the digital incentives may be used only at the particular
grocery store.
[0083] The one or more scopes may include one or more text fields that
are to be used
when sending the one or more digital incentives. The one or more text fields
may be customized
or entered by the requesting party. Additionally or alternatively, within the
incentive
management application, the server computer system 120 may cause the computing
device 110
to display a number of predefined text fields that may be selected by the
requesting party. The
predefined text fields may include messages relating to sending digital
incentives such as for
example "You have received an offer of a digital gift card" and the requesting
party may select
one or more of the predefined text fields that are to be used.
[0084] The one or more scopes may additionally define who is to receive
the one or more
digital incentives. For example, as mentioned previously, the requesting party
may upload a list
of electronic addresses that are to receive the one or more digital
incentives. In one example, the
requesting party may upload a first list defining a first segment that is to
receive a first digital
incentive and may upload a second list defining a second segment that is to
receive a second
digital incentive.
[0085] The one or more scopes may include a request that the server
computer system
120 generate recommendations for who should receive the one or more digital
incentives. For
example, the requesting party may select a selectable option requesting that
the server computer
system 120 generate recommendations for who should receive the one or more
digital incentives.
19
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
Examples of how the server computer system 120 may generate the
recommendations will be
described in more detail below.
[0086] The requesting party may upload a list of electronic addresses
that are to receive
the one or more digital incentives and may request that the server computer
system 120 generate
recommendations for who should receive the one or more digital incentives. For
example, the
requesting party may upload a first list defining a first segment that is to
receive a first digital
incentive and may request that the server computer system 120 generate
recommendations for
who should also receive the first digital incentive or may request that the
server computer system
120 generate recommendations for who should receive a second digital
incentive.
[0087] The one or more scopes may additionally include a selection of one
or more
graphical objects to be used when sending the one or more digital incentives.
For example, as
mentioned, within the incentive management application, the user may have
previously uploaded
or submitted one or more graphical objects associated with the requesting
party where the one or
more graphical objects may include company logos, digital gift card skins,
animated objects etc.
As when, when defining the one or more scopes, the computing device 110 may
display one or
more of the graphical objects and the requesting party may select one or more
of the graphical
objects to be used.
[0088] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
have
automatically labelled each uploaded graphical object and as such the server
computer system
120 may cause the computing device 110 to display all uploaded graphical
objects that have the
same label and may request that the requesting party select one of the
graphical objects. For
example, the requesting party may have uploaded five (5) different digital
gift card skins and the
server computer system 120 may cause the computing device 110 to display the
five (5) different
digital gift card skins and may request that the requesting party select one
of the digital gift card
skins. Of course, in embodiments where the web request includes a request to
send two different
gift cards, the server computer system 120 may request that the requesting
party select two of the
digital gift card skins.
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0089] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
have
automatically labelled each uploaded graphical object and as such the server
computer system
120 may not require selection of the one or more graphical objects by the
requesting party. For
example, the requesting party may have uploaded a single digital gift card
skin and as such the
server computer system 120 may not require the requesting party to select the
single digital gift
card skin.
[0090] The one or more scopes may additionally define a digital format
for sending the
one or more digital incentives. For example, the digital incentives may be
sent via email, text
message, or may be sent such that they are displayed as a notification and the
digital format may
correspond to how the digital incentives are to be sent.
[0091] Once the user has completed defining the one or more scopes, the
requesting party
may select a selectable interface element to submit the web request and in
response a signal may
be sent to the server computer system 120 that includes the web request.
[0092] In response to receiving the web request, the method 500 includes
automatically
retrieving a white label incentive interface based at least on the one or more
scopes for the one or
more digital incentives (step 520).
[0093] The server computer system 120 receives the web request to send
one or more
digital incentives and based on the one or more scopes for the one or more
digital incentives,
may automatically retrieve a white label incentive interface. In one or more
embodiments, server
computer system 120 may store one or more white label incentive interfaces in
the database 140.
The white label incentive interfaces may have different digital formats based
on whether they are
being sent via email, text message, or whether they are to be displayed as a
notification.
[0094] The one or more scopes may include a request to send a digital
incentive in the
form of a $5 gift card via email and as such the server computer system 120
may retrieve a white
label incentive interface associated with sending a single gift card. As
another example, the one
or more scopes may include a request to send two digital incentives via email
where a first
21
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
digital incentive is in the form of a $5 gift card for Merchant A and a second
digital incentive is
in the form of a $10 gift card for Merchant B and as such the server computer
system 120 may
retrieve a white label incentive interface associated with sending two gift
cards.
[0095] An example white label incentive interface 600 is shown in FIG. 6.
The white
label incentive interface 600 may be in a digital format to be sent via email.
The white label
incentive interface 600 may be a white label incentive interface associated
with sending a single
digital incentive. The white label incentive interface 600 includes a first
interface element 605, a
second interface element 610, a third interface element 615 and a fourth
interface element 620.
The various interface elements are fixed in position relative to one another
and this may be
defined in metadata of the white label incentive interface 600. Each interface
element may
include a tag such as for example "logo", "header", "title", "message",
"digital incentive",
"selectable element", etc. and this may be defined in the metadata. The tag
may be used to
populate each interface element.
[0096] Another example white label incentive interface 700 is shown in
FIG. 7. The
white label incentive interface 700 may be in a digital format to be sent via
email. The white
label incentive interface 700 may be a white label incentive interface
associated with sending
two (2) digital incentives. The white label incentive interface 700 includes a
first interface
element 705, a second interface element 710, a third interface element 715, a
fourth interface
element 720, a fifth interface element 725 and a sixth interface element 730.
The various
interface elements are fixed in position relative to one another and this may
be defined in
metadata of the white label incentive interface 700. Each interface element
may include a tag
such as for example "logo", "header", "title", "message", "digital incentive",
"selectable
element", etc. and this may be defined in the metadata. The tag may be used to
populate each
interface element.
[0097] The method 500 includes, using the white label incentive
interface, automatically
generating a customized incentive interface by populating one or more
interface elements of the
white label incentive interface according to the one or more scopes, the
customized incentive
22
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
interface including at least one selectable interface element for accepting
the one or more digital
incentives (step 530).
[0098] The server computer system 120 may populate various interface
elements of the
retrieved white label incentive interface according to the one or more scopes
for the one or more
digital incentives to automatically generate the customized incentive
interface.
[0099] As one example, the white label incentive interface 600 may be
used by the server
computer system 120 to automatically generate a customized incentive
interface. For example,
the interface element 605 may be tagged as "logo" and as such the server
computer system 120
may obtain, from the one or more scopes, a graphical object that has been
selected by the user
and is labelled or tagged as a company logo. The server computer system 120
may automatically
populate the interface element 605 using the graphical object.
[0100] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
determine that
no graphical object has been uploaded by the requesting party and as such the
server computer
system 120 may engage an application programming interface (API) to obtain a
graphical object
associated with the requesting party. For example, the server computer system
120 may send an
API request to an API associated with obtaining images that includes
identifying information of
the requesting party and may receive, from the API associated with obtaining
images, a graphical
object associated with the requesting party. The server computer system 120
may use the
graphical object to populate the interface element 605, for example.
[0101] The server computer system 120 may obtain, from the one or more
scopes, one or
more text fields that are to be used. For example, the interface element 610
may be tagged as
"header", "title" or "message" and as such the server computer system 120 may
obtain one or
more text fields from the one or more scopes and may automatically populate
the interface
element 610 using the one or more text fields.
23
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0102] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
determine that
the one or more scopes do not include any text fields and as such the server
computer system 120
may select a default text field that is to be used to populate the interface
element 610.
[0103] The server computer system 120 may obtain, from the one or more
scopes, a
graphical object that has been selected by the user and is labelled or tagged
as a digital gift card
skin. The interface element 615 may be tagged as "digital incentive" and as
such the digital gift
card skin may be used to automatically populate the interface element 615.
[0104] It will be appreciated that the digital gift card skin itself may
have an interface
element that is to be populated and the server computer system 120 may
automatically populate
the interface element based on the one or more scopes. An example digital gift
card skin 800 is
shown in FIG. 8. As can be seen, the digital gift card skin 800 includes an
interface element 805
that is to be populated by the server computer system 120 to indicate the
value of the digital gift
card based on the one or more scopes. In one example, the one or more scopes
may define the
digital gift card as a $5 digital gift card and as such the server computer
system 120 may
populate the interface element 805 the digital gift card skin 800 with "$5"
and as such, a digital
gift card may be automatically generated by the server computer system 120
that indicates the
value of the gift card based on the one or more scopes.
[0105] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
determine that
no graphical object has been uploaded by the requesting party that has be
labelled as "digital
incentive" and as such the server computer system 120 may engage an
application programming
interface (API) to obtain a graphical object associated with the requesting
party and may
automatically generate a digital incentive skin such as a digital gift card
skin. For example, the
server computer system 120 may obtain a default digital gift card skin and may
populate an
interface element with the graphical object associated with the requesting
party and in this
manner the digital gift card skin may be automatically customized for the
requesting party.
24
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0106] The interface element 620 may be tagged as "selectable element"
and as such the
server computer system 120 may populate the interface element 620 to be a
selectable interface
element that, when selected, accepts the digital incentive.
[0107] A customized incentive interface 900 automatically generated by
the server
computer system 120 using the white label incentive interface 600 is shown in
FIG. 9. As can be
seen, the customized incentive interface 900 includes a company logo 905, a
message 910, a
digital gift card 915 (with a populated interface element indicating that the
digital gift card is a
$5 gift card), and a selectable interface element 920 that, when selected,
accepts the digital
incentive.
[0108] The method 500 includes sending, to electronic addresses of a
plurality of
computing devices, a signal that includes the customized incentive interface
(step 540).
[0109] As mentioned, the one or more scopes may define who is to receive
the one or
more digital incentives (or the customized incentive interface). For example,
the requesting
party may upload a list of electronic addresses that are to receive the one or
more digital
incentives. The electronic addresses may include email addresses, telephone
numbers, unique
identifiers of computing devices, etc. The server computer system 120 may
obtain the electronic
addresses from the list and may send, to the electronic addresses, a signal
that includes the
customized incentive interface.
[0110] The one or more scopes may include a request that the server
computer system
120 generate recommendations for who should receive the one or more digital
incentives. The
server computer system 120 may obtain data that is not available to the
requesting party, such as
for example data from the database 140, to generate the recommendations.
[0111] Reference is made to FIG. 10, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1000
for generating recommendations for who should receive the one or more digital
incentives. The
method 1000 may be implemented by a computing device having suitable processor-
executable
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
instructions for causing the computing device to carry out the described
operations. The method
1000 may be implemented, in whole or in part, by the server computer system
120.
[0112] The method 1000 includes obtaining, from a database, account data
(step 1010).
[0113] The server computer system 120 obtains account data from the
database 140. As
mentioned, at least some of the data records may be associated with customer
bank accounts
and/or customer credit card accounts. The data records may also store
transaction data
associated with transactions made on a credit card. The transaction data may
include information
related to one or more transactions such as for example a transaction
location, a transaction date,
a transaction amount, etc. At least some of the data records may include
additional account data
such as for example the name, age, address of the customer, etc. and the
account data may be
associated with the customer bank accounts and/or customer credit card
accounts. The account
data may additionally include information relating to digital incentives
previously accepted by a
customer. The information may identify the amount of the digital incentive,
the type of the
digital incentive, and the digital format that was used to send the digital
incentive to the
customer.
[0114] The method 1000 includes engaging a data mining module to analyze
the account
data to generate at least one recommendation for sending the signal that
includes the customized
incentive interface (step 1020).
[0115] As mentioned, since the amount of data stored by the database 140
may be too
large or complex to be dealt with by traditional data-processing application
software, the server
computer system 120 may engage a data mining module to analyze the account
data to generate
at least one recommendation for sending a digital incentive.
[0116] The data mining module may analyze the account data to identify at
least one
segment that is likely to accept the one or more digital incentives. In one or
more embodiments,
a segment may include a particular group of customers who are likely to accept
the one or more
digital incentives. The group of customers may share at least one common
characteristic.
26
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
Example characteristics may include location such as for example customers
located within a
same neighbourhood, city, province, state, country, etc. Example
characteristics may include
transactions made by the customers such as for example customers who have
recently completed
a transaction at a particular merchant. Example characteristics may include
personal finances
such as for example customers who have an annual salary above or below a
certain threshold.
Example characteristics may include customers who have recently accepted a
digital incentive or
customers who accepted a digital incentive more than a threshold amount of
time ago. For
example, customers may have accepted a digital incentive over one year ago.
Example
characteristics may include customers who have downloaded a particular mobile
application.
Example characteristics may include a particular demographic such as for
example customs of a
particular age category, gender, marital status, etc.
[0117] The recommendation may include a digital format recommendation.
For
example, the data mining module may identify a particular segment that is
likely to accept a
digital incentive sent as a notification within a mobile application. As
another example, the data
mining module may identify a particular segment that is likely to accept a
digital incentive sent
as an email. For example, a customer who is twenty (20) years old may be more
likely to accept
a digital incentive sent as a notification and a customer who is seventy (70)
years old may be
more likely to accept a digital incentive sent as an email.
[0118] The recommendation may include a recommendation for a digital
incentive type.
For example, the data mining module may identify a particular segment that is
likely to accept a
loyalty point modifier rather than a digital gift card. As another example,
the data mining
module may identify a particular segment that is likely to accept a digital
gift card but only if it is
$10 or more.
[0119] The recommendation may include a recommendation for where the
digital
incentive may be used. For example, the recommendation may include a
recommendation to
send a $5 digital gift card for a discount grocery store and that this digital
gift card be sent to a
first segment that has an annual salary below a threshold and may include a
recommendation to
27
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
send a $10 digital gift card for a premium grocery store and that this digital
gift card be sent to a
second segment that has an annual salary above the threshold.
[0120] The at least one recommendation may include a first recommendation
that
identifies a first segment that is likely to accept the one or more digital
incentives and a second
recommendation that identifies a second segment that is likely to accept the
one or more digital
incentives. For example, the first segment may include customers who are known
to be college
students and the second segment may include customers who are known to be
retired.
[0121] The at least one recommendation may include a first digital
incentive that is likely
to be accepted by the first segment and a second digital incentive that is
likely to be accepted by
the second segment. For example, the recommendation may recommend a first
digital incentive
such as a digital gift card for the college students and the recommendation
may recommend a
second digital incentive such as a loyalty point multiplier for airline
loyalty points for customers
who are known to be retired.
[0122] The method 1000 includes sending, to the computing device
associated with the
requesting party, a signal that includes the at least one recommendation and
at least one
selectable interface element for accepting the at least one recommendation
(step 1030).
[0123] The server computer system 120 sends a signal to the computing
device 110 that
includes the at least one recommendation and at least one selectable interface
element for
accepting the at least one recommendation. The recommendation may include
information that
identifies, for example, the one or more segments and may include a count of
how many
customers within the segment are going to receive the one or more digital
incentives. It will be
appreciated that multiple recommendations may be generated and as such the
server computer
system 120 may send a signal that includes the multiple recommendations and a
selectable
interface element for accepting each particular recommendation.
[0124] The requesting party may select one or more of the recommendations
by, for
example, selecting the selectable interface element associated with the
recommendation. In
28
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
response, the server computer system 120 may perform a method to obtain
electronic addresses
of computing devices associated with the accepted recommendation.
[0125] Reference is made to FIG. 11, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1100
for obtaining the electronic addresses of computing devices associated with
the accepted
recommendation. The method 1100 may be implemented by a computing device
having suitable
processor-executable instructions for causing the computing device to carry
out the described
operations. The method 1100 may be implemented, in whole or in part, by the
server computer
system 120.
[0126] The method 1100 includes receiving, from the computing device
associated with
the requesting party, a signal indicating selection of the at least one
selectable interface element
for accepting the at least one recommendation (step 1110).
[0127] The server computer system 120 receives the signal from the
computing device
110 that indicates selection of a particular selectable interface element for
accepting a particular
recommendation.
[0128] The method 1100 includes obtaining, from the database, the
electronic addresses
of the plurality of computing devices associated with the accepted
recommendation (step 1120).
[0129] The particular recommendation may identify a segment of customers
that are
likely to accept the one or more digital incentives. The server computer
system 120 obtains,
from the database 140, electronic addresses of computing devices associated
with the customers
within the segment.
[0130] The server computer system 120 may then send the one or more
digital incentives
to the electronic addresses of the computing devices in accordance with step
540 of the method
500.
29
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0131] In one or more embodiments, the recommendation may identify a
digital format
that is likely to be accepted and as such the server computer system may
generate the customized
incentive interface in the digital format that is likely to be accepted.
[0132] Reference is made to FIG. 12, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1200
for generating a customized incentive interface in a determined digital
format. The method 1200
may be implemented by a computing device having suitable processor-executable
instructions
for causing the computing device to carry out the described operations. The
method 1200 may
be implemented, in whole or in part, by the server computer system 120.
[0133] The method 1200 includes determining one or more digital formats
likely to be
accepted (step 1210).
[0134] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
engage the
data mining module to determine a digital format that is likely to be accepted
by a particular
segment. For example, a particular segment may include customers that have a
particular mobile
application installed on their computing device and as such the data mining
module may
determine that the digital format that is likely to be accepted by the
particular segment may be a
notification that is to be displayed within the particular mobile application.
[0135] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
engage the
data mining module to determine a digital format that is likely to be accepted
by each customer
within the segment. For example, the data mining module may analyze historical
digital
incentive data to determine a digital incentive that has been previously
accepted by the customer
and may identify that digital format of the previously accepted digital
incentive as being the
digital format likely to be accepted by the customer.
[0136] In one or more embodiments, the data mining module may determine
that
different customers within a particular segment may be more likely to accept a
digital incentive if
it is sent in a particular digital format. For example, a segment may include
customers within a
particular city. The data mining module may determine that customers under the
age of forty
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
(40) are more likely to accept a digital incentive sent via text message and
customers over the
age of forty (40) are more likely to accept a digital incentive sent via
email.
[0137] The server computer system 120 generates the customized incentive
interface in
the determined digital format(s) (step 1220). The customized incentive
interface may be
automatically generated by the server computer system 120 in manners similar
to that described
herein. The server computer system 120 may generate the customized incentive
interface in
different digital formats and this may be done based on the digital formats
identified during step
1210.
[0138] Once the customized incentive interface has been sent to the
electronic addresses
of the plurality computing devices, the server computer system 120 may
receive, from a
particular computing device, a signal indicating selection of a selectable
interface element for
accepting a particular digital incentive and in response the server computer
system 120 may
generate the digital incentive and send the digital incentive to the
particular computing device.
[0139] Reference is made to FIG. 13, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1300
for sending a particular digital incentive. The method 1300 may be implemented
by a computing
device having suitable processor-executable instructions for causing the
computing device to
carry out the described operations. The method 1300 may be implemented, in
whole or in part,
by the server computer system 120.
[0140] The method 1300 includes receiving, from a particular computing
device, a signal
indicating selection of the at least one selectable interface element for
accepting a particular
digital incentive (step 1310).
[0141] A recipient of the customized incentive interface may select a
particular selectable
interface element to accept a particular digital incentive and in response the
computing device of
the recipient may send the signal to the server computer system 120. The
signal may identify the
particular digital incentive that is being accepted.
31
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0142] The method 1300 includes generating a unique identifier of the
particular digital
incentive (step 1320).
[0143] In response to receiving the signal indicating selection of the at
least one
selectable interface element for accepting the particular digital incentive,
the server computer
system 120 generates a unique identifier of the particular digital incentive.
[0144] In one or more embodiments, the unique identifier may be generated
using a
random number generator. For example, the server computer system 120 may send
a signal
requesting that a random sixteen (16) digit number be generated. The server
computer system
120 may receive the random sixteen (16) digit number.
[0145] In one or more embodiments, at least a portion of the unique
identifier may be
fixed. For example, the first four (4) digits of the sixteen (16) digit number
may be fixed and
this may be used, for example, to identify the requesting party, that is, the
sender of the digital
incentive. The remaining twelve (12) digits may be generated using a random
number generator.
[0146] In one or more embodiments, the unique identifier may follow a
sequence of
identifiers assigned to digital incentives. For example, a unique identifier
may end with one or
more digits and the one or more digits may be incremented by a set amount,
such as for example
one (1) digit, each time a new unique number is to be generated. For example,
a unique number
may end with 0001 and the next unique number may end with 0002.
[0147] The method 1300 includes storing the unique identifier of the
particular digital
incentive in a database in association with an electronic address of the
particular computing
device (step 1330).
[0148] Once the unique identifier of the particular digital incentive has
been generated,
the server computer system 120 may send a signal to store the unique
identifier in the database
140 in association with the electronic address of the particular computing
device 110.
32
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0149] The method 1300 includes sending, to the particular computing
device, a signal
that includes the particular digital incentive including the unique identifier
and a machine-
readable indicia (step 1340).
[0150] The server computer system 120 may automatically generate the
digital incentive
to include the unique identifier. For example, a digital gift card skin may
include an interface
element that is to be populated using the unique identifier and the server
computer system 120
may populate the interface element to include the unique identifier. The
server computer system
120 may also generate a machine-readable indicia that may be used to redeem or
otherwise use
the digital incentive. The machine-readable indicia may include a barcode or a
Quick Response
(QR) code, for example.
[0151] The signal that includes the particular digital incentive is sent
to the particular
computing device. In one or more embodiments, the signal may cause the
particular computing
device to store the particular digital incentive in a digital wallet. The
recipient may access the
digital incentive within the digital wallet and this may cause, for example,
the machine-readable
indicia to be displayed on a display screen of the particular computing
device. The machine-
readable indicia may be scanned by a merchant and in this manner the digital
incentive may be
redeemed.
[0152] As mentioned previously, the server computer system 120 may
analyze uploaded
graphical objects to label or categorize each uploaded graphical object.
Reference is made to
FIG. 14, which illustrates, in flowchart form, a method 1400 for automatically
determining a
label for a graphical object. The method 1400 may be implemented by a
computing device
having suitable processor-executable instructions for causing the computing
device to carry out
the described operations. The method 1400 may be implemented, in whole or in
part, by the
server computer system 120.
[0153] The method 1400 includes analyzing a graphical object to identify
at least one
parameter thereof (step 1410).
33
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0154] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
analyze the
graphical object to determine a size of the graphical object. The size may
include the physical
size of the image and/or the resolution of the image measured in pixels. For
example, the server
computer system 120 may determine, based on the size of a graphical object,
that the graphical
object is likely to be a digital gift card skin.
[0155] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
analyze the
file type of the graphical object. For example, the file type of the graphical
object may be an
Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) file type and as such the server may determine
that the graphical
object is likely to be a company logo.
[0156] The method 1400 includes determining, based on the identified
parameter, a label
for the graphical object (step 1420).
[0157] Responsive to identifying the at least one parameter of the
graphical object, the
server computer system 120 may assign a label to the graphical object. For
example, the server
computer system 120 may determine, based on the size of the graphical object,
that the graphical
object is likely to be a digital gift card skin and as such the server
computer system 120 may
assign the label "digital gift card skin" to the graphical object.
[0158] It will be appreciated that although the server computer system
120 may label or
categorize the graphical object, the requesting party may change or update the
label of the
graphical object and this may be done within the incentive management
application.
[0159] The incentive management application may allow the requesting
party to sell or
otherwise offer incentives to one or more third parties and the server
computer system 120 may
manage and track purchases of the incentives on behalf of the requesting
party. In this
embodiment, the requesting party may be referred to as a provider of the
incentives and the third
party may be referred to as a purchaser of the incentives. The purchase of the
incentives may be,
for example, a bulk order of incentives.
34
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0160] In one or more embodiments, within the incentive management
application, a
purchaser may create an account and may select one or more incentives for
purchase. As
mentioned, the purchase may be a bulk order and thus may include a purchase of
a large number
of incentives. In the event that the purchaser completes a purchase of a bulk
order of one or
more incentives offered by the provider, the server computer system 120 may
manage and track
the bulk order on behalf of the provider.
[0161] Reference is made to FIG. 15, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1500
for managing a bulk order of incentives. The method 1500 may be implemented by
a computing
device having suitable processor-executable instructions for causing the
computing device to
carry out the described operations. The method 1500 may be implemented, in
whole or in part,
by the server computer system 120.
[0162] The method 1500 includes receiving, from a computing device
associated with a
purchaser of a bulk order of incentives, a signal that includes a request to
purchase the bulk order
of incentives (step 1510).
[0163] As mentioned, within the incentive management application, a
purchaser may
select one or more incentives for purchase. In this embodiment, the purchase
is for a bulk order
of incentives and as such the server computer system 120 receives a signal
that includes the
request to purchase the bulk order of incentives. The signal may include
information identifying
the provider of the incentives and one or more scopes relating to the
incentives being purchased.
For example, the one or more scopes may indicate the quantity of incentives
being purchased and
what incentives are being purchased. In one example, the bulk purchase may be
for five hundred
(500) digital gift cards that are valued at $5 each.
[0164] The method 1500 includes generating a unique identifier for each
incentive in the
bulk order of incentives (step 1520).
[0165] In this embodiment, after the request to purchase the bulk order
of incentives is
received, the server computer system 120 generates a unique identifier for
each incentive.
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0166] In one or more embodiments, the unique identifier may be generated
using a
random number generator. For example, the server computer system 120 may send
a signal
requesting that a random sixteen (16) digit number be generated. The server
computer system
120 may receive the random sixteen (16) digit number.
[0167] In one or more embodiments, at least a portion of the unique
identifier may be
fixed. For example, the first four (4) digits of the sixteen (16) digit number
may be fixed and
this may be used, for example, to identify the requesting party, that is, the
sender of the digital
incentive. The remaining twelve (12) digits may be generated using a random
number generator.
[0168] In one or more embodiments, the unique identifier may follow a
sequence of
identifiers assigned to digital incentives. For example, a unique identifier
may end with one or
more digits and the one or more digits may be incremented by a set amount,
such as for example
one (1) digit, each time a new unique number is to be generated. For example,
a unique number
may end with 0001 and the next unique number may end with 0002.
[0169] The method 1500 includes storing, in a database and in association
with a
provider of the one or more incentives, data associated with the bulk order of
incentives (step
1530).
[0170] Once the unique identifiers of the incentives being purchased in
the bulk order
have been generated, the server computer system 120 may send a signal to store
data associated
with the bulk order of incentives. In this embodiment, the data associated
with the bulk order
may include the unique numbers of the incentives and information identifying
the purchaser of
the incentives. The data is stored in the database in association with the
provider. The data may
also be stored in the database in association with the purchaser.
[0171] The server computer system 120 may provide a customized interface
to a
computing device associated with the provider that may allow the provider to
manage and track
bulk purchases of incentives provided thereby.
36
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0172] Reference is made to FIG. 16, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1600
for managing and tracking bulk orders of incentives. The method 1600 may be
implemented by
a computing device having suitable processor-executable instructions for
causing the computing
device to carry out the described operations. The method 1600 may be
implemented, in whole or
in part, by the server computer system 120.
[0173] The method 1600 includes storing, in a database and in association
with a
provider of one or more incentives, data associated with at least one bulk
order of incentives
(step 1610).
[0174] The data associated with the at least one bulk order of incentives
may be stored in
the database in association with the provider of the one or more incentives in
manners similar to
that described herein, for example in manners described herein with reference
to method 1500.
[0175] The method 1600 includes authenticating a computing device
associated with the
provider of the one or more incentives (step 1620).
[0176] In one or more embodiments, to access the incentive management
application on
the computing device 110 associated with the provider of the one or more
incentives, the
provider may be prompted to enter credentials submitted during the account
creation. For
example, the provider may be prompted to submit a username and a password
associated with
their account. In response to receiving the credentials, the server computer
system 120 may
authenticate the computing device 110 associated with the provider of the one
or more incentives
and may identify an account associated therewith.
[0177] The method 1600 includes obtaining, from the database, at least
one graphical
object associated with the provider of the one or more incentives (step 1630).
[0178] During account creation, the provider may have uploaded or
submitted at least
one graphical object associated therewith and the server computer system 120
may have stored
the at least one graphical object in the database 140. In this embodiment, the
server computer
system 120 may obtain the at least one graphical object from the database 140.
37
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0179] As mentioned, one or more graphical objects uploaded may be
labelled or tagged
(either automatically or manually). As such, the server computer system 120
may obtain the at
least one graphical object from the database 140 by selecting one or more
graphical objects that
were labelled or tagged with "logo".
[0180] The method 1600 includes sending, to the computing device
associated with the
provider of the one or more incentives, a signal causing the computing device
to display an
interface that includes the at least one graphical object and a summary of the
at least one bulk
order of incentives (step 1640).
[0181] In one or more embodiments, the interface may be a white label
incentive
interface that includes one or more interface elements and the server computer
system 120 may
populate the interface elements prior to sending the interface to the
computing device 110
associated with the provider of the one or more incentives. For example, an
interface element
may be tagged as "logo" and as such the server computer system 120 may
populate the interface
element using the at least one graphical object obtained during step 1630. In
this manner, the
server computer system 120 may automatically generate a customized interface
that includes the
at least one graphical object.
[0182] One or more interface elements may be populated using the data
associated with
the at least one bulk order of incentives. For example, the server computer
system 120 may
obtain identifying information of one or more purchasers and a count of
incentives purchased by
each purchaser and this may be used to populate an interface element to
generate the summary of
the at least one bulk order of incentives.
[0183] In this manner, the server computer system 120 may populate the
interface such
that the incentive management application is customized for the provider and
this may be done
responsive to successful authentication of the provider. It will be
appreciated that different
providers may also use the incentive management application and that the
server computer
system 120 may populate the interface for the different providers responsive
to successful
authentication thereof.
38
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0184] In one or more embodiments, the interface that includes the at
least one graphical
object and the summary of the at least one bulk order of incentives may
include a selectable
interface element for viewing additional information of a particular bulk
order of incentives.
[0185] Reference is made to FIG. 17, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1700
for providing additional information of a particular bulk order of incentives.
The method 1700
may be implemented by a computing device having suitable processor-executable
instructions
for causing the computing device to carry out the described operations. The
method 1700 may
be implemented, in whole or in part, by the server computer system 120.
[0186] The method 1700 includes receiving, from the computing device
associated with
the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal indicating selection of
the selectable interface
element for viewing additional information of a particular bulk order of
incentives (step 1710).
[0187] As mentioned, the interface may include a selectable interface
element for
viewing additional information of a particular bulk order of incentives. The
selectable interface
element may be positioned adjacent to the summary of the particular bulk order
of incentives.
The selectable interface element may be selected using, for example, an input
device associated
with the computing device 110. In response to selection of the selectable
interface element, the
computing device 110 may send a signal to the server computer system 120
indicating selection
of the selectable interface element. The signal may identify the particular
bulk order of
incentives.
[0188] The method 1700 includes obtaining, from the database, the
additional
information of the particular bulk order of incentives (step 1720).
[0189] Responsive to receiving the signal indicating selection of the
selectable interface
element for viewing additional information of the particular bulk order of
incentives, the server
computer system 120 may obtain the additional information of the particular
bulk order of
incentives from the database 140. The additional information may include, for
example, a list of
39
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
each incentive purchased within the particular bulk order that includes the
unique number of
each incentive, an amount of each incentive, a type of each incentive, etc.
[0190] In one or more embodiments, the purchaser of the particular bulk
order of
incentives may provide information identifying the recipient of each
incentive. For example, the
incentive may include physical gift cards and as such the purchaser of the
particular bulk order of
incentives may provide a mailing address of the recipients of each incentive.
As another
example, the incentives may include digital incentives and as such the
purchaser of the particular
bulk order of incentives may provide electronic addresses of the recipients of
each incentive. As
such, the additional information may include the identifying information of
the recipient of each
incentive.
[0191] In one or more embodiments, the additional information may include
a pickup
location for the incentives. For example, the incentives may include physical
gift cards and as
such the purchaser may have indicated a particular location for picking up the
physical gift cards.
The physical location may include, for example, a particular retail location
of the providers of
the incentives.
[0192] The additional information may include a status of each incentive.
For example,
the incentives may include digital incentives and each digital incentive may
be sent to an
electronic address of a particular recipient. The status may indicate whether
each recipient has
accepted the incentive. For example, the particular recipient may accept the
incentive and as
such the status of the incentive may be set to "accepted". As another example,
a particular
incentive may have been sent to a recipient but may not have been accepted and
as such the
status of the incentive may be set to "sent".
[0193] The method 1700 includes sending, to the computing device
associated with the
provider of the one or more incentives, a signal causing the computing device
to display an
interface that includes the additional information of the particular bulk
order of incentives (step
1730).
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0194] The server computer system 120 sends, to the computing device 110,
a signal that
causes the computing device 110 to display the interface that includes the
additional information
of the particular bulk order of incentives. The interface may be displayed as
a new window
within the incentive management application. The interface may include
interface elements such
as for example a scroll bar that may be used to scroll up or down to view the
additional
information of the particular bulk order of incentives. The interface may
additionally include a
graphical object associated with the providers of the incentives, similar to
that described herein.
[0195] As mentioned, within the incentive management application, a
purchaser may
create an account and may select one or more incentives for purchase. It will
be appreciated that
in one or more embodiments, it may be required that the identity of the
purchaser be verified and
this may be done to fulfill, for example, know your customer (KYC)
requirements. It will be
appreciated that the identity of the purchaser may be verified by, for
example, the financial
institution associated with the server computer system 120 and may require the
purchaser to
provide or upload one or more government issued identity documents.
[0196] In one or more embodiments, responsive to the purchaser creating
an account, the
server computer system 120 may engage an application programming interface
(API) associated
with identity verification and may provide the purchaser the option to
complete verification
using the API.
[0197] In one or more embodiments, verification may include uploading one
or more
government issued identity documents and capturing a photo of a person
registering as the
purchaser. For example, once an image of a government issued identity document
has been
uploaded, the server computer system 120 may request that the computing device
110 open a
camera or imaging device associated therewith and may prompt the user of the
computing device
110 to capture a "selfie". The server computer system 120 may receive the
image of the
government issued identity document and the image of the user of the computing
device 110 and
may analyze the two images to verify the identity thereof.
41
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0198] The purchaser may create an account and complete purchases prior
to being
verified; however, the purchase may not be fulfilled until after the identity
of the purchaser has
been verified. In one or more embodiments, the provider of the incentives may
have the option
to allow a purchase prior to the identity of the purchaser being verified and
may have the option
to cancel or put on hold the purchase until the identity of the purchaser has
been verified.
[0199] In one or more embodiments, the interface provided to the
computing device
associated with the provider of the one or more incentives, for example during
step 1640 of the
method 1600, may additionally include a verification status of the purchaser
of the at least one
bulk order of incentives. For example, the interface may include the graphical
object, the
summary of the at least one bulk order of incentives, and the verification
status of the purchaser
of the at least one bulk order of incentives. It will be appreciated that the
verification status may
be binary in that the verification status may be one of "verified" or "not
verified".
[0200] The verification status of a purchaser may change. For example,
the identity of a
purchaser may be verified and in response the verification status of the
purchaser may change
from "not verified" to "verified". For example, a purchaser may complete a
bulk order of
incentives and after the purchase has been completed, may engage the API
associated with
verifying their identity. The purchaser may verify their identity using the
API and as such the
verification status of the purchaser may change from "not verified" to
"verified". In response,
the server computer system 120 may update, in real time, the verification
status of the purchaser.
In this manner, the provider of the incentives purchased by the purchaser may
receive notice, in
real-time, that the purchaser verification status has changed.
[0201] In one or more embodiments, the interface may additionally include
a selectable
interface element for flagging the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of
incentives as
suspicious. For example, a purchaser that is "not verified" may be deemed
suspicious and the
provider of the incentives may wish to flag the purchaser as suspicious and
may want to cancel
or put on hold the at least one bulk order of incentives.
42
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0202] Reference is made to FIG. 18, which illustrates, in flowchart
form, a method 1800
for cancelling or putting on hold at least one bulk order of incentives. The
method 1800 may be
implemented by a computing device having suitable processor-executable
instructions for
causing the computing device to carry out the described operations. The method
1800 may be
implemented, in whole or in part, by the server computer system 120.
[0203] The method 1800 includes receiving, from the computing device
associated with
the provider of the one or more incentives, a signal indicating selection of
the selectable interface
element for flagging the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of
incentives as suspicious (step
1810).
[0204] As mentioned, the interface may include a selectable interface
element for
flagging the purchaser of the at least one bulk order of incentives as
suspicious. The selectable
interface element may be selected using, for example, an input device
associated with the
computing device 110. In response to selection of the selectable interface
element, the
computing device 110 may send a signal to the server computer system 120
indicating selection
of the selectable interface element. The signal may identify the purchaser
being flagged.
[0205] The method 1800 includes sending a signal updating the interface
to identify the
purchaser of the at least one bulk order as suspicious (step 1820).
[0206] Responsive to receiving the signal indicating selection of the
selectable interface
element for flagging the purchaser of the at least one bulk order as
suspicious, the server
computer system 120 may send a signal updating the interface to identify the
purchaser of the at
least one bulk order as suspicious. For example, the interface may be updated
to change the
appearance of any orders completed by the purchaser such that they appear in a
red font. As
another example, the interface may be updated to include a graphical object
positioned adjacent
to each order completed by the purchaser that identifies the purchaser as
being suspicious.
[0207] The method 1800 includes cancelling or putting on hold the at
least one bulk
order of incentives (step 1830).
43
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
[0208] Once the purchaser has been flagged as suspicious, the server
computer system
120 may automatically cancel or put on hold the at least one bulk order of
incentives completed
by the purchaser.
[0209] In one or more embodiments, the server computer system 120 may
prompt the
provider of the incentives by sending a signal that causes the computing
device 110 to display a
selectable interface element for cancelling the bulk order and a selectable
interface element for
putting on hold the bulk order. In this manner, the provider may have the
option to cancel or put
on hold the bulk order until the identity of the purchaser is verified.
[0210] In one or more embodiments, responsive to the purchaser being
flagged as being
suspicious, the server computer system 120 may identify one or more additional
orders
completed by the purchaser. The one or more additional orders may be for
incentives provided
by the provider or may be one or more additional orders for incentives
provided by one or more
other providers. The server computer system 120 may cancel or put on hold the
one or more
additional orders completed by the purchaser and may update interfaces
provided to the one or
more other providers to identify the purchaser as suspicious. In this manner,
the server computer
system 120 may cancel or put on hold all orders made by the purchaser and this
may reduce or
eliminate fraud issues for one or more other providers of incentives that have
accounts with the
incentive management application.
[0211] As mentioned, the purchaser of a bulk order of incentives may
provide electronic
addresses of a plurality of computing devices associated with recipients of
the incentives. The
server computer system 120 may send the incentives to the recipients using the
electronic
addresses. The incentives may include, for example, the unique number of the
incentive. The
incentive may be sent using a customized incentive interface and/or a
customized digital gift card
skin and this may be done in manners described herein, for example with
reference to FIGs. 5 to
9.
[0212] In one or more embodiments, a unique code may be required to
redeem a
particular incentive. For example, a digital incentive such as a digital gift
card may be assigned
44
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
a unique number and a unique code. The unique code may be required to redeem
the digital gift
card. In one or more embodiments, the unique code may be generated by the
server computer
system 120 and provided to the recipient of the incentive. For example, a
purchaser may
complete a bulk order of digital gift cards and may provide electronic
addresses of recipients of
the digital gift cards. The purchaser may receive the unique number of each
digital gift card but
may not be provided the unique code of each digital gift card. The server
computer system 120
may generate a unique code for each digital gift card and may send the unique
code to the
electronic address of the recipient of the digital gift card. The unique code
may be sent as a
separate communication than the incentive. For example, the recipient may
receive a first email
that includes the incentive and may receive a second email, different than the
first email, that
includes the unique code. In this manner, the unique number and the unique
code are sent
separately and the unique code is only sent to the recipient of the incentive.
This may reduce the
risk of fraud and may reduce the risk of the incentive being used by someone
other than the
recipient.
[0213] The incentive management application described herein may allow
the provider
and/or the requester to update and maintain information associated therewith.
For example, the
incentive management application may allow the provider to update one or more
physical retail
locations associated therewith.
[0214] The methods described herein may be modified and/or operations of
such
methods combined to provide other methods.
[0215] Example embodiments of the present application are not limited to
any particular
operating system, system architecture, mobile device architecture, server
architecture, or
computer programming language.
[0216] It will be understood that the applications, modules, routines,
processes, threads,
or other software components implementing the described method/process may be
realized using
standard computer programming techniques and languages. The present
application is not
limited to particular processors, computer languages, computer programming
conventions, data
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
structures, or other such implementation details. Those skilled in the art
will recognize that the
described processes may be implemented as a part of computer-executable code
stored in volatile
or non-volatile memory, as part of an application-specific integrated chip
(ASIC), etc.
[0217]
As noted, certain adaptations and modifications of the described embodiments
can
be made. Therefore, the herein discussed embodiments are considered to be
illustrative and not
restrictive.
46
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-02-04
