Multi-system distributed processing of group goals

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11715116-B2
Application number	US-202117515632-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 1, 2021
Priority date	Feb 9, 2011
Publication date	Aug 1, 2023
Grant date	Aug 1, 2023

Abstract

Various systems and methods that may relate to referral and/or delivery services are described. Some embodiments may include incentivizing groups to meet goals. Various other embodiments are described.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
at least one processor configured to control:
determining at least one incentive that may be provided to a group of users of a delivery service, in which the at least one incentive has a first scale relationship to a size of the group of users;
determining a goal for the group of users to collectively meet in order to receive the at least one incentive, in which the goal has a second scale relationship to the size of the group of users and includes a number of orders placed by the group of users for merchants that meet a criteria established by the delivery service, in which the first scale relationship is different from the second scale relationship;
tracking a progress by the group of users towards meeting the goal based on a plurality of orders placed by users of the group of users;
transmitting, over a communication network, to a given computing device of at least one user of the group, display information to cause updating of a graphical user interface at a display device of the given computing device, to present an updated ordering interface indicating an update to the progress towards meeting the goal;
receiving in real time, over the communication network from the given computing device, at least one order from the at least one user of the group including first location information indicating a current location of the given computing device;
receiving in real time, over the communication network from each of a plurality of mobile computing devices respectively of a plurality of delivery agents of the delivery service, second location information indicating a current location of the mobile computing device;
in response to receiving (i) the at least one order from the at least one user and (ii) the second location information respectively from the plurality of mobile computing devices, transmitting, over the communication network, to a first mobile computing device of the plurality of mobile computing devices, an instruction to deliver the at least one order to the at least one user of the group, in which the first mobile computing device is selected from the plurality of mobile computing devices based on a determination from the second location information respectively from the plurality of mobile computing devices that the first mobile computing device is proximate to a given merchant as a source of the at least one order;
determining, based on the at least one order, that the group of users has met the goal; and
in response to determining that the group of users has met the goal, facilitating provision of the at least one incentive to the group.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which facilitating provision of the at least one incentive comprises
notifying a merchant to provide the at least one incentive to the group of users.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which determining the group comprises:
selecting members of the group from a geographic area.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , in which the geographic area comprises: a delivery region of at least one merchant of the merchants.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the goal comprises: a goal to place orders that have a cumulative dollar amount value with the delivery service.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the at least one processor is configured to control determining a set of merchants, in which the goal includes a goal to place orders with the set of merchants.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , in which the at least one order includes an order for at least one merchant of the set of merchants.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 , in which the at least one incentive is related to orders placed with at least one merchant of the set of merchants.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , in which the at least one incentive comprises a discount on orders placed with at least one merchant of the set of merchants.

10. The apparatus of claim 6 , in which determining the set of merchants comprises:
determining that a merchant that is new to the delivery service; and
adding the merchant that is new to the set of merchants.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the goal must be achieved within an amount of time.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , in which the amount of time is a month.

13. A method comprising:
controlling, by at least one processor:
determining at least one incentive that may be provided to a group of users of a delivery service, in which the at least one incentive has a first scale relationship to size of the group of users;
determining a goal for the group of users to collectively meet in order to receive the at least one incentive, in which the goal has a second scale relationship to the size of the group of users and includes a number of orders placed by the group of users for merchants that meet a criteria established by the delivery service, in which the first scale relationship is different from the second scale relationship;
tracking a progress by the group of users towards meeting the goal based on a plurality of orders placed by users of the group of users;
transmitting, over a communication network, to a given computing device of at least one user of the group, display information to cause updating of a graphical user interface at a display device of the given computing device to present an updated ordering interface indicating an update to the progress towards meeting the goal;
receiving in real time, over the communication network from the given computing device, at least one order from the at least one user of the group including first location information indicating a current location of the given computing device;
receiving in real time, over the communication network from each of a plurality of mobile computing devices respectively of a plurality of delivery agents of the delivery service, second location information indicating a current location of the mobile computing device;
in response to receiving (i) the at least one order from the at least one user and (ii) the second location information respectively from the plurality of mobile computing devices, transmitting, over the communication network, to a first mobile computing device of the plurality of mobile computing devices, an instruction to deliver the at least one order to the at least one user of the group, in which the first mobile computing device is selected by the computing device from the plurality of mobile computing devices based on a determination from the second location information respectively from the plurality of mobile computing that the first mobile computing device is proximate to a given merchant as a source of the at least one order;
determining, based on the at least one order, that the group of users has met the goal; and
in response to determining that the group of users has met the goal, facilitating provision of the at least one incentive to the group.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which facilitating provision of the at least one incentive comprises:
crediting an account of at least one user of the group of users.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the goal comprises a plurality of goals.

16. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the goal comprises a tiered goal.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 , in which the at least one incentive comprises a first incentive and a second incentive,
in which the group of users receive the first incentive upon meeting a first goal; and
in which the group of users receive the second incentive upon meeting a second goal.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 ,
in which the at least one order indicat

Assignees

• Cfph Llc

Inventors

• Lutnick Howard W
• Sims Colin
• Friedman Ari
• Grech Richard
• Miller Mark A

Classifications

• G06Q30/02 Primary

  Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising · CPC title