METHOD OF DOING BUSINESS REMOTELY AND SYSTEM FOR REMOTE ELECTRONIC MARKETING
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to the field of marketing, and more particularly to
communication systems for remote marketing.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Fast food restaurants essentially offer convenience to a customer in the
simplicity of choices, with a cafeteria style self service atmosphere This very
convenience lends itself to mass marketing, descπbing the simplicity of the
experience and the ease of choosing without the intimidation of a traditional
restaurant.
In order to have a competitive advantage, fast food restaurants must attempt to
set themselves apart from other fast food restaurants The strategies that have been
adapted include focusing on establishing mam menu items as well as enlarging
product choice and diversity while introducing concepts such as dπve up windows.
etc. The differences between the fast food restaurants have eroded, making it difficult
for a particular fast food restaurant to be special in the customer's view and stand out
from the competition Marketing targeted as responding to a customer's needs and
providing customer service has evolved, including hosting birthday parties and offeπng promotional give away items, frequently targeted at children
The automat was at the cutting edge of technology at the turn of the century
Joseph Horn and Paul Hardart opened their first automat (from "automatic")
Philadelphia in 1902 At their peak in the 1940s and '50s, automats served 350.000
patrons daily. But fast food restaurants eventually displaced them The last Horn &
Hardart automat closed m New York City in 1991 The automated restaurants that
were marketed in the past declined in novelty The impersonal nature of simply
feeding coins into vending machines has been supplanted by ATM machines, high tech video entertainment devices and electronic juke boxes, and video juke boxes,
which have even found a foot hold in restaurants and bars However, the use of
vanous high tech entertainment devices is essentially isolated from the core services
of the restaurants.
While fast food restaurants frequently tie in their advertising and promotions to movies, toys and other mass appeal consumer items, merchandise availability is
limited to promotional items currently in stock. The very nature of fast food
restaurants surrounded with mass marketing, common menus, and limited customer
contact, prevents the collection of individualized consumer preference information for
use in future marketing campaigns. There is a need to be able to collect accurate consumer demographic
information for fast food restaurants. There is a further need to be able to expand
cross marketing in a fast food restaurant beyond promotional merchandise.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
The present invention is a method for remote electronic marketing at a fast
food restaurant having a computeπzed cash register. The method compπses the
following steps: identifying a customer by data entry means at an electronic kiosk,
providing personalized information to the customer by a display means at the electronic kiosk in response to the identification; collecting order and transactional
lnformation from the customer's interaction with the electronic kiosk, stoπng the
order and transactional information; and, updating data relating to the personalized information A system for utilizing the method is also descπbed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
A more complete understanding of the present invention may be obtained from consideration of the following descπption in conjunction with the drawings in which
FIG 1 is a high level diagram of the electronic kiosk; and,
FIG. 2 is an overview of the interconnected computer system networks and the
electronic kiosk employing the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS ILLUSTRATIVE
EMBODIMENTS
The present invention, method and system for remote cross marketing enables
the collection of accurate consumer demographic information while expanding cross
product marketing in a commercial environment such as a fast food restaurant. Fast
food restaurants essentially offer convenience to a customer in the simplicity of choices, with a self-service cafeteπa style atmosphere, minimizing personal contact
between the fast food restaurant staff and the customers. This very efficiency and
convenience lends itself to mass marketing, describing the simplicity of the
expeπence and the ease of choosing without the intimidation of a traditional
restaurant.
However, in order to maintain a competitive advantage, fast food restaurants
attempt to set themselves apart, focusing on establishing mam menu items as well as enlarging product choice and diversity while introducing new concepts The
differences between the fast food restaurants rapidly erode, making it difficult for a
particular fast food restaurant to be special in the customer's view and stand out from the competition Marketing targeted as responding to a customer's needs and
providing customer service has ex olved. frequently targeted at children. The related
services include hosting birthdas parties, providing play areas and offeπng
promotional give away items (usually tied into a popular movie, toy. or holiday
season).
The automat was at the cutting edge of technology at the turn of the century.
At their peak in the 1940s and '50s. automats served 350,000 patrons daily. But fast
food restaurants eventually displaced them. The last Horn & Hardart automat closed
in New York City in 1991. The impersonal nature of simply feeding coins into
vending machines has been supplanted by ATM machines, high tech video
entertainment devices, electronic juke boxes, and video juke boxes, which have even
found a foot hold in restaurants and bars However, the use of vaπous high tech
entertainment devices is essentially isolated from the core services of the restaurants.
Fast food restaurants frequently tie in their advertising and promotions to
movies, toys and other mass appeal consumer items. Merchandise availability is
limited to promotional items currently in stock The very nature of fast food restaurants surrounded with mass marketing, common menus, and limited customer
contact, prevents the collection of individualized consumer preference information for
use in future marketing campaigns.
Marketing success depends on breaking through the clutter of messages and
products facing consumers m the marketplace. But the more innovative the idea —
whether it be a new product, package, pπce, or promotion — the greater the πsk Traditional marketing-research methods, such as test markets, focus groups,
controlled field expeπments, all have limitations Some are vulnerable to observation
and manipulation by competitors, others are contπved and unrealistic, too expensive,
or simply incapable of providing the information that managers need But a new
alternative, the virtual store, not only addresses those limitations, it also broadens the hoπzons of marketmg research Virtual-shopping simulations are easy and
inexpensive to create using readily available data They also are flexible, researchers
can change the assortment of brands on display or the features of any given brand
within minutes. The virtual store gives researchers the freedom to exercise their imagination early in the product development process with no πsk When tailored to
individual consumer and demographic information, the virtual store can be a unique
entertaining expeπence as well as a πch source for collecting additional demographic
and individual consumer information.
Because the Internet evolved from the ARPAnet, a research expeπment that
supported the exchange of data between government contractors and (often academic) researchers, an on-line culture developed that is alien to the corporate business world
Although the Internet was not designed to make commercialization easy. Internet
publishing and e-commerce have rapidly evolved. In part it is the very ease that
anyone can publish a document that is accessible by a large number of people that makes electronic publishing attractive. Setting up e-commerce provides low overhead
while reaching a worldwide market 24 hours a day The growth and populanty of the Internet is providing new opportunities for commercialization including but not
limited to Web sites dπven by electronic commerce, ad revenue, branding, database
transactions, and intranet/extranet applications.
Domain names direct where e-mail is sent, files are found, and computer
resources are located. The% are used when accessing information on the World Wide
Web (Web) or connecting to other computers through Telenet Internet users enter the domain name, which is automatically converted to the Internet Protocol address by the
Domain Name System (DNS).
The World Wide Web (WWW) is the graphical data transfer area of the
Internet This is the area of the Internet where Home Pages and web sites are found
The WWW has become a popular place to advertise businesses, but it can also be used
as a front end for electronic commerce (e-commerce) Many companies have online
ordeπng on their web sites
E-mail was one of the first services developed on the Internet. Today, e-mail
is an important service on any computer network, not just the Internet E-mail involves sending a message from one computer account to another computer account
E-mail is used to send textual information as well as files, including graphic files,
executable files, word processing and other files. E-mail is becoming a popular wa\ to conduct business over long distances Using e-mail to contact a business associate
can be faster than using a voice telephone, because the recipient can read it at a
convenient time, and the sender can include as much information as needed to explain the situation
On-line commerce, or "e-commerce' , uses the Internet, of which the WWW is a part, to transfer large amounts of information about numerous goods and services in
exchange for payment or customer data needed to facilitate payment Potential
customers can supply a company with shipping and invoicing information without
having to tie up sales staff The convenience offered to the customer is that they don't
have to dπve around town all day looking for the product they want
Although the present invention, a method and system method and system for remote cross marketing enables the collection of accurate consumer demographic
information while expanding cross product marketing m a commercial environment,
is particularly well suited for in a fast food restaurant environment, and shall be so
descπbed, the present invention is equally well suited for use other commercial
environments where consumer interaction is limited, such as convenience stores, food
stores, department stores, etc
A fast food restaurant is essentially offers convenience to a customer in the
simplicity of choices, with a cafeteπa style self service atmosphere This very
convenience it ideal for mass marketing, descπbing the simplicity of the expeπence
and the ease of choosing without the intimidation of a traditional restaurant
While automated restaurants were marketed in the past, such as the H&H
Automat in New York City, the impersonal nature of automated technology, the competitive nature of the restaurant business, and their novelty decline has lead to
their demise Feeding coins and pushing buttons has been supplanted by ATM
machines, high tech video entertainment devices and sophisticated electronic juke boxes, including video juke boxes have found a foot hold even in restaurants and bars The use of the high tech entertainment devices is essentially isolated from the core and related services of the restaurants.
Fast food restaurants frequently tie their advertising and promotions to
movies, toys and other mass appeal consumer items Frequently the promotional items become collectibles While previous promotional items may be highh sought
after, their accessibility to the customer is limited to the items currently available at the fast food restaurant The very nature of fast food restaurants, with mass
marketing, common menus, and limited customer contact, prevents the collection of
individualized consumer preference information for use in future marketing
campaigns.
With extensive consumer acceptance of ATM machines, the WWW. Personal
Digital Assistants, Digital Wireless Communication devices, and other technology
seems to be at odds with the fast food restaurant expeπence. How can the extensive
proven methods for electronic marketing and individualized consumer target marketing be combined with the fast food restaurant expeπence?
Demographic information (data), the statistical characteπstics of human
populations, such as age, gender, and income, are especially useful for identifying
consumer markets for goods and services. Once collected, the demographic data provides an invaluable marketing tool for businesses Information including
economic data, age, gender, social type, employment, housing type, lifestyle,
expenditure habits and other related data is used to support a wide range of business
decisions, such as creating targeted strategies for marketing campaigns. The potential
consumer is the best source for information.
Referπng to FIG. 1 there is shown one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, method and system for remote personalized marketing, which utilizes an
electronic kiosk, placed in a fast food restaurant. The kiosk is configured to a provide
user access at a height convmient to the user in which the housing raises the mfterface
to a level convient to the user or the user interface is support by a wall or counter-top
mount This The electronic kiosk 10 contains a color monitor 12 (optionally having touch screen functionality), alpha numeπc keyboard 14 (optionally covered with a
flexible membrane), magnetic card reader 16, numeπc keypad 18. receipt pπnter 20,
and internal computer system 22. The card reader 16 may also be substituted by an
electronic transponder.
Referπng to FIG. 2 there is shown one exemplary embodiment of the
communication interconnections of the electronic kiosk. A communication interface
in the internal computer system 22 (shown in FIG. 1) of the electronic kiosk 10 is
coupled to the fast food restaurant order entry/cash register system 30. A pick
up/table deliver pπnter 32 is coupled to the order entry/cash register system 30. An
additional communication interface in the internal computer system 22 (shown m FIG
1) of the electronic kiosk 10 is coupled to a secured link 34 to a centralized computer
system 36 Additionally, a communication interface in the internal computer system
22 (shown in FIG. 1) of the electronic kiosk 10 is coupled to an ISP (Internet Service Provider) having local communication access to the Internet 38 Vaπous remote
computer systems 40 are coupled to the Internet 38, including individual customer
computer systems 42.
A restaurant customer inserts mto a magnetic card reader 16, a magnetic card,
such as a restaurant card, credit card, debit card, etc., which identifies the customer to
the electronic kiosk 10. Previously collected preferential information about sports, travel, hobbies, and related interests is accessed from a remote location 40. The
customer is welcomed by first name or alias (if they so desire) and presented with the
highlights of their interests (sport scores, select new s reports, and products of interest)
Optionally they may be alerted to a message that was left for them by another
customer, or routed by e-mail. Additionally, the electronic kiosk 10 can be interfaced
to the fast food restaurant order entry/cash register system 30, enabling the customer to accurately place their order and make payment by debit card or credit card if
desired. When using a debit card or credit card, the customer enters their PIN number
through the numeπc keypad 18. The receipt pπnter 20 of electronic kiosk 10 then
pπnts a receipt, which would be taken to a pick up window or counter. Payment for
customers who wish to use cash could be made at that time at the counter or pick up
window, or through a suitable cash collection device at the electronic bosk 10. A
detailed record of the customer's purchases would be collected by the electronic kiosk
10, enabling suggestions to be made at future visits, or allowing a customer to simpl) order their usual. The detailed records would be forwarded to the central computer 36
for future analysis.
Alternatively, the receipt pπnter 20 can be utilized when the electronic kiosk
10 is not interfaced to a fast food restaurant order entry/cash register system. Thus
enabhng the processing of transactions, including food payment by credit card, without restaurant staff interaction The receipt pπnter 20, after the customer orders
and makes payment at the electronic kiosk 10, would pπnt out a receipt, which would then be taken to the fast food restaurant counter for filling.
Products can be expanded offeπng tie-ins to current, previous or future
promotional activities, such as a video of a classic movie or collectible piece of
memorabilia Where the merchandise is kept locally, the ordered item can be added to
their fast food order, otherwise the order would be shipped directly to the customer, bv any of a number of shipping options, from a remote distπbution center.
Individua zation of a customer profile can include calendar events, such as
birthdays, anniversaπes, holidays, vacations, graduations, which would then be used
to remind the customer of the coming event, and to even suggest possible gift
alternatives and enable the sending of electronic cards where appropπate To
encourage customization by entry of personal and demographic data, access can be provided through a Web Site, utilizing a sign in procedure similar to that at the
electronic kiosk 10 The customer initially responds to a detailed questionnaire,
providing individual data and demographic information. The survey questions can be
multiple choice or simple yes-no so that only one answer per question will be
recorded. Some of the responses can be fill in the blanks. (Ex A question such as "are you a full or part time student" would expand if part time were selected This
would then ask how many hours per week or offer predetermined ranges. The system
would then "close," while the level previously used would "open up". For college or
graduate school further queπes can be for majors, years already completed, etc. A
question such as "do you enjoy football9" would be expanded upon a positive
response to ask what their favoπte team is )
Duπng an individual customer's access to the electronic kiosk 10, as w ell as duπng idle access times, video clips from movies and product information can be
displayed The video clips, product information and other data can be stored locally in
the internal computer system 22 in the electronic kiosk 10, enabling faster access to
the information and reduced communication bandwidth requirements
The particular buying habits of the customers can be used to predict when they will next be making a purchase, enabling the pre-loading of personalized news and sporting information, as well as individualized data, thus enabling the electronic kiosk
to efficiently operate duπng a communication network failure This includes customer
suggestions for gift ideas and customer background information The customer information will then be used for specific marketing to dπve customers mto the
restaurant to increase food sales The electronic kiosk 10 allow s the customers to
order food from the electronic kiosk 10 for delivery to the customer at a table or in the
play area by pπnting a record of the order at the pick up/table deliver pπnter 32 It
will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the record of the order may also be
displayed on a monitor
In an enhanced embodiment of the present invention, a customer loyalty
program can be tied to particular purchases, such as food products, earning points,
which can be redeemed automatically by the customer through the electronic kiosk 10
Customer purchases of food made through the electronic kiosk 10 could be made an
mcentive by offeπng points for such purchases Bonus points could be provided for
payments made through the electronic kiosk 10
An intelligent software agent can be utilized to predict customer preferences, patterns and select related marketing information, which may be of interest, based on
the stored individual data and demographic information An intelligent agent must
have the capability to take actions leading to the completion of a task or objective,
such as accessing databases, reading e-mail etc , without tπgger or input from an end-
user The details of the programming of the intelligent agent are known to those skilled in the art The functioning and design of intelligent software agents are
descπbed in "Software Agents An Overview" by Hyacinth S Xwana, Knowledge
Engineeπng Review, Vol 11, No 3 pp 1-40, September 1996 and "Intelligent
Agents A Technology And Business Application Analysis" b\ Kathryn Heilmann et al , http:// www.mmes.u-nancy.fr/ -gueniffe/ CoursEMN/ 131/ heilmann/
heilmann.html, 1998, which are herein incorporated by reference
Additionally, the electronic kiosk 10 is interfaced to the Internet 38, through a
selective browser interface, such as a Java applet The selective browser interface can
provide access to products, which are offered, for sale on the Internet 38 Through
formal linking agreements, or through associate agreements, revenue can be generated
which is credited to the source, the particular electronic kiosk or particular restaurant
Catalogs can be requested by the customer, which can be personalized and pπnted,
sent electronically, or simply linked to a customized web site When a customer utilizes a suitable e-mail provider, access to their e-mail can be offered, such as for a
nominal monthly, or per message fee
The electronic kiosk is capable of being located remotely for use duπng
promotional events, such as chanty fund raising, where a percentage of sales is provided to the chanty Additionally, the electronic kiosk can pπnt coupons, tickets, and other documents. Further, when interfaced with a suitable vending device, the
electronic kiosk can dispense postage stamps and other small items directly When
payment capability is provided by the electronic kiosk, in addition to making change for a cash transaction, the electronic kiosk may function as an ATM device
General information relating to the location can be displayed on large screens
(such as with flat screen technology) as well as provide entertaining commercials and
news clips to customers who are in line and in the seating area. Large theme
amusement parks have long learned that lines seem shorter when the customers are entertained while they wait Information may include updates on food or product promotions, local news events, community issues, local weather, local sports,
community events, etc.
Additionally the electronic kiosk 10 and auxiliary large screen displays
provide a tool for uniform training of employees on existing procedures and policies
and enables the rapid dissemination of updated information.
Numerous modifications and alternative embodiments of the invention will be
apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the foregoing descπption. Accordingly,
this descπption is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention Details of the
structure may be vaπed substantially without departing from the spiπt of the invention
and the exclusive use of all modifications, which come within the scope of the
appended claim, is reserved.