Invention for A method and apparatus for improving online purchasing
Invented by Karen Shaak, Vijay Varadan, Alex Daniel Gramling, Walgreen Co
The method and apparatus for improving online purchasing is a technology that aims to enhance the online shopping experience for consumers. This technology can be used by online retailers to improve their website’s functionality, making it easier for consumers to navigate and find the products they are looking for. It can also help to speed up the loading times of web pages, reducing the frustration of waiting for pages to load.
One of the key benefits of this technology is that it can help to improve the security of online transactions. With the increasing number of cyber threats, consumers are becoming more cautious about sharing their personal and financial information online. The method and apparatus for improving online purchasing can help to address these concerns by providing a secure platform for online transactions.
Another benefit of this technology is that it can help to improve the overall user experience. By providing a more user-friendly interface, consumers can easily find the products they are looking for and make purchases without any hassle. This can lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, which can ultimately result in higher sales for online retailers.
The market for a method and apparatus for improving online purchasing is growing rapidly, as more and more consumers are turning to online shopping. Online retailers who invest in this technology can gain a competitive advantage by providing a better shopping experience for their customers. This can lead to increased customer retention and repeat business, which can ultimately result in higher profits.
In conclusion, the market for a method and apparatus for improving online purchasing is a promising one. With the increasing popularity of online shopping, there is a growing need for technology that can enhance the online shopping experience for consumers. Online retailers who invest in this technology can gain a competitive advantage by providing a better shopping experience for their customers, which can ultimately lead to higher profits. As technology continues to evolve, we can expect to see even more innovative solutions that will further improve the online shopping experience for consumers.
The Walgreen Co invention works as follows
In exchange for user feedback, electronic commerce sellers (such as a web page) can improve the online purchasing of products. Users are given a subset of the products that can be purchased from an online commerce site for a sample program. The product can only be sampled by a predetermined number users. The feedback from users is tracked and collected to provide more information to the seller or potential purchaser.
Background for A method and apparatus for improving online purchasing
The rapid expansion of the World Wide Web in recent years has enabled people to compare and preview products on a computer or other Internet-accessible device, instead of physically purchasing the products. The convenience of electronic commerce on the World Wide Web has been dramatically increased by this convenience. As more people gain access to the Internet and become more comfortable using electronic commerce, we will see an increase in electronic commerce.
Electronic commerce is able to present a large number of products because the location of the ordered products are not related to their presentation. The sheer number of products that are available on a single Web page for electronic commerce can overwhelm users. Electronic commerce Web pages categorize their products to make shopping easier. An electronic commerce web page may include links to books, herbal remedies and beauty products. The user can select the category they are interested in before seeing specific products available for sale.
Users may be uncomfortable with electronic purchases due to the large number and inaccessibility products before purchase. What is needed, therefore, is an improved online purchasing mechanism.
Methods, apparatuses and devices for improving online purchasing are described.” The electronic presentation of information about a group of products which can be ordered online. The user is provided with a subset of a set of products at a low or no cost to the requester. In response to a requestor choosing one of the subsets of products, the user receives a predetermined amount of that product. The user is asked to provide feedback on the product they selected.
Methods, apparatuses, and systems for improving online purchasing are described.” To provide a complete understanding of the invention, many specific details will be provided in the following description. To those skilled in the art, it will be obvious that the invention may be implemented without the specific details. Other times, devices and structures are shown as block diagrams to avoid confusing the invention.
Reference to one embodiment” in the specification or ?an embodiment? It means that the feature, structure or characteristic described with respect to the embodiment is present in at least one embodiment. The phrase “in one embodiment” appears several times in the specification. The phrase “in one embodiment” may appear in different places within the specification. This does not mean that they all refer to the same embodiment.
Some of the detailed descriptions that follow are presented as algorithms and symbols of operations on bits of data within a computer’s memory. The algorithmic representations and descriptions are used by data processing experts to communicate the essence of their work most effectively to other skilled individuals. Here, an algorithm is a sequence of steps that leads to a specific result. These steps require physical manipulation of physical quantities. These quantities are usually, but not always, electrical or magnetic signals that can be stored, transferred combined, compared and otherwise manipulated. These signals are sometimes referred to as bits, values or elements. They can also be called characters, symbols, terms, numbers and the like.
It is important to remember that these terms and others are simply convenient labels for the physical quantities. It is understood that unless specifically stated, as evident from the discussion below, throughout the description, terms like?processing’ are used. It is understood that throughout the description, discussions using terms such as?processing? Or?calculating”? Or?calculating? “determining” or “displaying” “displaying” or “the like”, refers to the actions and processes of a computing system or other electronic device that manipulates and transforms physical (electronic) quantities in the registers and memory of the computer into other physical quantities in the registers and memory or other similar information storage, transmission, or display devices.
The invention also pertains to apparatuses for performing the operations described herein.” The apparatus can be specially designed for the desired purposes or may consist of a general-purpose computer that is selectively activated by a program stored on the computer. This computer program can be stored on a machine-readable medium such as a floppy disk, optical disk, CD-ROM, magnetic-optical disc, random access memory (RAM), EPROM, EEPROM, magnetic or optical card, or any other media that is suitable for storing instructions.
The algorithms and displays described herein do not necessarily relate to any specific computer or apparatus. The teachings of the present invention can be implemented on a variety of general-purpose systems, or more specialized apparatuses may be constructed to carry out the method steps. From the following description, it will be apparent what structure is required for various systems. The present invention does not refer to any specific programming language. You will appreciate that many programming languages can be used to implement teachings of this invention.
In exchange for user feedback, electronic commerce sellers (such as a web page) can improve the online purchasing of products. Users are given a subset of the products that can be purchased from an online commerce site for a sample program. The product can only be sampled by a predetermined number users. The feedback from users is tracked and collected to provide more information to the seller or potential purchaser.
Electronic Commerce System Overview
FIG. “FIG. Internet 100 is a global network of computing devices. The configuration shown in FIG. The configuration of FIG. “Any appropriate networking protocol may be used.
Client devices 140 and 150 are devices that allow a client device user to access resources on the network. Internet 100 can be connected to any number of client devices. Client devices 140 and/or 150 can be computer systems, but other devices may also be used. Client devices 140 and/or150 can, for example, be “set-top boxes” Internet terminals or set-top boxes can be used as client devices 140 and/or 150. WebTV, for example? “A terminal from Sony Electronics, Inc., Park Ridge, N.J., using a cable modem for accessing a network, such as the Internet.
Client devices 140 and 150 can also be “dumb” Thin client devices, such as ThinSTAR? Available from Network Computing Devices, Inc., Mountain View, Calif. In a second alternative embodiment, the client devices 140 or 150 can be handheld electronic devices such as personal digital assistants, cellular phones, pagers or other electronic devices which provide network access.
The term “Web Farm 120” refers to any server configuration that provides access to electronic resources, such as Web pages and databases. In one embodiment, Web farm 120 comprises multiple Hypertext Markup language (HTML), servers that deliver electronic commerce Web pages 140 and/or to client devices 150. “Any configuration that allows access to electronic resources with any appropriate protocol is acceptable.
FIG. “FIG. The computer system shown in FIG. The computer system illustrated in FIG. Computer systems may include different, more or fewer components.
Computer System 200 comprises bus 201, or another communication device for communicating information, and processors 202 coupled with bus 201 for processing information. Computer system 200 may be illustrated as a single-processor system, but it can also include more than one processor or co-processor. Computer system 200 also includes a random access memory (RAM), or another dynamic storage device (referred to here as main memory), which is coupled to bus 201 and stores information and instructions that will be executed by processor. The main memory 204 can also be used to store intermediate information or temporary variables during the execution of instructions by processor 200.
Computer System 200 also includes read-only memory (ROM) or other static storage devices 206 coupled with bus 201 for storing static information and instructions to processor 202. The data storage device 207, which stores information and instructions, is connected to the bus 201. “A data storage device such as a disk drive or optical disc can be connected to the computer system 200.
Computer system 200 may also be connected via bus 201 with display device 221 (such as a liquid crystal display or cathode-ray tube), in order to display information for a computer user. The alphanumeric keyboard 222 is usually coupled to the bus 201 in order to transmit information to the processor 202. Cursor control 223 is another type of input device, such as a trackball or mouse to send direction information to processor 202, and control cursor movements on display 221.
Network Interface 230″ provides an interface between the computer system 200 and a network external (not shown on FIG. 2). “Network interface 230 may be, for instance, a network card (NIC), or any other network interface that can provide network access to the computer system 200.
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