JP7483441B2 - COUPON MANAGEMENT DEVICE CONTROL PROGRAM, COUPON MANAGEMENT METHOD, AND COUPON MANAGEMENT DEVICE - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a control program for a coupon management device, a coupon management method, and a coupon management device.

There is a service that issues coupons from a POS (Point Of Sales) terminal to customers who purchase products at a store if the purchase satisfies the conditions for issuing the coupon. In recent years, to facilitate this type of service, coupon management devices that centrally manage the conditions for issuing coupons have been put into practical use.

The coupon management device has a database for storing the issuing conditions for each coupon plan. For example, assume that a manufacturer wishing to promote a specific product plans to issue a coupon for that specific product to consumers who purchase the product for a certain amount or more. In this case, the database stores an issuing condition "when the product is purchased for a certain amount or more" in association with the coupon for the specific product. The coupon management device then controls the POS terminal to issue a coupon for the specific product when a commercial transaction in which the product is purchased for a certain amount or more is settled at that POS terminal.

Meanwhile, stores purchase and sell products so that they do not run out of stock, but products that sell well or products that are in short supply may go out of stock. In addition, depending on the product, the store may stop selling it altogether.

In this way, if a specific product that is eligible for a coupon is out of stock or no longer available, even if a coupon for that specific product is issued from a POS terminal, consumers will be inconvenienced in that they will not be able to use the coupon at that store.

JP 2018-077922 A

The problem that the embodiments of the present invention aim to solve is to provide a control program for a coupon management device, a coupon management method, and a coupon management device that can prevent the issuance of coupons that cannot be used because the products covered by the coupons are not available.

In one embodiment, the control program of the coupon management device causes a computer of the coupon management device, which manages coupons related to commercial transactions, to function as a receiving means, an acquiring means, a confirming means, a setting means, a condition confirming means, a validity confirming means, and a providing means . The receiving means accepts coupon plan information including information on products covered by the coupons. The acquiring means acquires transaction data from a store. The confirming means confirms whether or not a product covered by the coupon included in the coupon plan information accepted by the receiving means has been sold based on the transaction data acquired by the acquiring means. The setting means sets information indicating that a coupon of a plan corresponding to the coupon plan information accepted by the receiving means is valid for a store that has sold a product covered by the coupon confirmed by the confirming means. The condition confirming means confirms whether or not the transaction data acquired by the acquiring means satisfies a coupon issuing condition included in the coupon plan information accepted by the receiving means. When it is confirmed by the condition confirming means that the transaction data satisfies the coupon issuing condition, the validity confirming means confirms whether or not the coupon is valid for the store that acquired the transaction data by the acquiring means based on the information indicating that the coupon is valid set by the setting means. The providing means provides coupon information to the store when the validity checking means confirms that the coupon is valid.
In one embodiment, the control program of another coupon management device causes a computer of the coupon management device, which manages coupons related to commercial transactions, to function as a receiving means, an acquiring means, a confirming means, and a setting means. The receiving means accepts coupon plan information including information on products that are the subject of coupons. The acquiring means acquires transaction data from stores. The confirming means confirms, based on the transaction data acquired by the acquiring means, whether or not products that are the subject of the coupons have been sold for a certain period of time prior to the coupon issuance start date included in the coupon plan information accepted by the receiving means. The setting means sets information that a coupon for a plan corresponding to the coupon plan information accepted by the receiving means is valid for stores that have sales of products that are the subject of the coupons confirmed by the confirming means.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a coupon management system according to an embodiment. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the main data structure of a coupon promotion record. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the main data structures of a coupon image record. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a coupon information setting screen. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a coupon information setting screen. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a coupon information setting screen. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a coupon information setting screen. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of a coupon management server. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the data structure of a store table. 4 is a flowchart showing the main steps of information processing executed by a processor of the coupon management server. 4 is a flowchart showing the main steps of information processing executed by a processor of the coupon management server. 4 is a flowchart showing the main steps of information processing executed by a processor of the coupon management server.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a coupon management device, a coupon management method, and a control program thereof will be described with reference to the drawings.
In this embodiment, the coupon management server 10 of the coupon management system 100 shown in FIG. 1 serves as the coupon management device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the coupon management system 100 includes a coupon management server 10, multiple POS terminals 20, and a communication network 30. The communication network 30 is, for example, the Internet, an intranet, a wide area network (WAN), or a local area network (LAN). The communication network 30 may include a telephone communication network or a mobile communication network. Alternatively, the communication network 30 may be a combination of these. In the coupon management system 100, each POS terminal 20 and the coupon management server 10 are connected to the communication network 30.

The POS terminal 20 is an accounting machine that is installed in the checkout area of a store. That is, the POS terminal 20 registers and processes sales data for products purchased by customers. The POS terminal 20 also settles commercial transactions with customers based on the registered sales data for the products. The POS terminal 20 then issues a receipt showing details of the commercial transaction. The POS terminal 20 also selectively issues coupons related to the commercial transaction. The receipt or coupon may be issued by printing it on paper media, or may be issued as electronic data that is downloaded to, for example, a smartphone owned by the customer. Such POS terminals 20 are well known. Therefore, a detailed description will be omitted here.

The POS terminal 20 may be connected to the communication network 30 by itself, or may be connected to the communication network 30 via a store server. In the coupon management system 100, multiple POS terminals installed in multiple stores are connected to the communication network 30 directly or via the store server.

The coupon management server 10 has a function of centrally managing coupons related to commercial transactions. To realize this function, the coupon management server 10 is equipped with a project database 40 and an image database 50. The coupon management server 10 is also connected to a project setting device 70 via a communication line 60. The communication line 60 is, for example, a LAN. The LAN may be a wired LAN or a wireless LAN.

The planning and setting device 70 is a computer device used for the task of setting coupon plans, including issuance conditions, etc., in the coupon management server 10. This task is hereinafter referred to as the planning and setting task. The planning and setting device 70 is equipped with at least an input device and a display device in order to carry out the planning and setting task. The input device is, for example, a keyboard, a pointing device, a touch panel, etc. The display device is, for example, an LCD display, a touch panel, etc. A commercially available personal computer, tablet computer, etc. is used as the planning and setting device 70.

The plan database 40 is a collection of coupon plan records 41 (see Figure 2) that are created for each coupon plan. The image database 50 is a collection of coupon image records 51 (see Figure 3) that are created for each coupon plan.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the main data structure of the coupon plan record 41. As shown in the figure, the coupon plan record 41 includes a record number n, a plan ID, a coupon name, an issue period, an issue condition, and a target product ID.

The record number n is a number set as a consecutive number for each coupon plan registered in the plan database 40. The plan ID is a unique code set for each coupon plan. The coupon name is a name representing the coupon plan set by the plan setting device 70 for each coupon plan. The issue period is the start date and end date of the period during which coupons for the plan identified by the plan ID are issued. The issue period may also be the start date and the number of days in the period.

The issuing conditions are the conditions for issuing a coupon. The issuing conditions include subtotal conditions and product conditions. The subtotal conditions are the subtotal amount that is the threshold for whether or not to issue a coupon. The product conditions are the product IDs of products that need to be sold as a condition for issuing a coupon.

The target product ID is the product ID of the coupon-eligible product that is eligible for a discount using the coupon.

The following four examples of coupon plans and the products eligible for the coupons according to those plans are listed as a to d.
a. In the case of a plan to issue a coupon for product A when a customer spends 1,000 yen, product A is the product eligible for the coupon. b. In the case of a plan to issue a coupon for product B or product C when a customer spends 1,000 yen, product B or product C is the product eligible for the coupon. c. In the case of a plan to issue a coupon for product D when a customer purchases product D, product D is the product eligible for the coupon. d. In the case of a plan to issue a coupon for product F when a customer purchases product E, products E and F are the products eligible for the coupon. In the case of plan a, the issue condition is the subtotal condition, and the subtotal amount is 1,000 yen. The target product ID is the product ID of product A.

For project b, the issuance condition is the subtotal condition, and the subtotal amount is 1,000 yen. The target product IDs are the product IDs of two products, product B and product C.

For project c, the issuing conditions are the product conditions and are the product ID of product D. The target product ID is the product ID of product D.

For project d, the issuing conditions are the product conditions and are the product ID of product E. The target product IDs are the product IDs of the two products, product E and product F.

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram showing the main data structure of a coupon image record 51. As shown in the figure, the coupon image record 51 includes a plan ID and coupon image data. The plan ID matches the plan ID of the coupon plan record 41 registered in the plan database 40. The coupon image data is image data of a coupon issued for a commercial transaction that satisfies the coupon issuance conditions of the plan specified by the corresponding plan ID. In the POS terminal 20, the coupon image data is printed on receipt paper by a printer, and a paper coupon is issued. Alternatively, in the POS terminal 20, the coupon image data is downloaded to a customer's smartphone using short-range wireless communication or the like, and an electronic coupon is issued.

Figures 4 to 7 are schematic diagrams showing examples of coupon information setting screens SCa to SCd displayed on a display device provided in the project setting device 70.

The coupon information setting screens SCa to SCd are used to set the products that are eligible for coupons.

When using the plan setting device 70 to register a new coupon plan record 41 in the plan database 40 of the coupon management server 10, the operator starts the plan setting device 70 and instructs it to start the plan setting work. Then, a work start command is sent from the plan setting device 70 to the coupon management server 10.

The coupon management server 10 that receives the operation start command transmits image data of the coupon information setting screen SCa as shown in FIG. 4 to the planning and setting device 70. As a result, the coupon information setting screen SCa is displayed on the display device of the planning and setting device 70.

In the planning and setting device 70, the process of updating the coupon information setting screen SCa in response to an operator's operation on the screen SCa is performed under the control of the coupon management server 10.

The coupon information setting screen SCa displays component images of three pull-down menu buttons PDa to PDc, two text boxes INa and INb, and one touch button TBa.

The pull-down menu button PDa is a button that displays a pull-down menu of [Coupon type] items such as "Single item price discount" and "Single item free." The pull-down menu button PDb is a button that displays a pull-down menu of [Value type] items such as "Specify amount," "Specify discount rate," and "Specify price."

The pull-down menu button PDc displays a pull-down menu with two options for [Input Type]: "Manual," for manually entering the product ID of the product covered by the coupon, and "CSV," for inputting from a CSV (Comma Separated Value) file.

In the [Value] text box INa, if "Specify amount" is selected as the [Value type] item, the text of the discount amount is entered. If "Specify discount rate" is selected as the [Value type] item, the text of the discount rate is entered. If "Specify price" is selected as the [Value type] item, the text of the price is entered. In the [Coupon name] text box INb, the text of the name representing the coupon project is entered.

When "Manual" is selected as the [Input Type] item, an [Add Product] touch button TBa is displayed. When the [Add Product] touch button TBa is touched, a [Product ID] text box INc for manually entering a product ID is added and displayed, as shown in the coupon information setting screen SCb in FIG. 5. The operator operates the input device of the planning and setting device 70 to manually enter the product ID of the product eligible for the coupon in the [Product ID] text box INc. Entering the product ID manually in this manner is effective when there are only a few products eligible for the coupon.

On the other hand, when "CSV" is selected as the [Input type] item as shown in the coupon information setting screen SCc of FIG. 6, a [Register from CSV] touch button TBb is displayed. When the [Register from CSV] touch button TBb is touched, a [File name] text box INd is added and displayed for inputting the product ID from a CSV file as shown in the coupon information setting screen SCd of FIG. 7. The CSV file contains the product names and product IDs of multiple products that are candidates for coupon eligible products, in association with each other.

When the [File name] text box INd is touched, a list of the file names of one or more CSV format files stored, for example, in a memory device externally connected to the project setting device 70 is displayed. When the operator selects an arbitrary file name from the list of file names, the selected file name is entered into the [File name] text box INd. Then, the product IDs of multiple products described in the file with the entered [File name] are entered together as product IDs for products eligible for the coupon. Entering product IDs from a CSV format file in this way is effective for setting multiple eligible product IDs all at once.

In the plan setting device 70, the plan ID, issue period, and issue conditions of the plan are also input in correspondence with the coupon type, value type, value, coupon name, and product ID of each coupon plan inputted according to the coupon information setting screens SCa to SCd.

The coupon plan information for each coupon plan, which is input by the plan setting device 70, including the coupon type, value type, value, coupon name, product ID, plan ID, issue period, and issue conditions, is accepted by the coupon management server 10. The coupon management server 10 creates a coupon plan record 41 (see FIG. 2) in the plan database 40 based on the coupon type, value type, value, coupon name, product ID, plan ID, issue period, and issue conditions accepted from the plan setting device 70.

Figure 8 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the coupon management server 10. The coupon management server 10 includes a processor 11, a main memory 12, an auxiliary storage device 13, a clock 14, a first communication interface 15, a second communication interface 16, and a system transmission path 17. The processor 11, the main memory 12, the auxiliary storage device 13, the clock 14, the first communication interface 15, and the second communication interface 16 are each connected to the system transmission path 17. The system transmission path 17 includes an address bus, a data bus, a control signal line, and the like. In the coupon management server 10, the processor 11, the main memory 12, and the auxiliary storage device 13 are connected by the system transmission path 17 to form a computer that performs information processing for controlling the coupon management server 10.

The processor 11 corresponds to the central part of the computer. The processor 11 controls each part to realize various functions of the coupon management server 10 according to an operating system or an application program. The processor 11 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit).

The main memory 12 corresponds to the main storage portion of the computer. The main memory 12 includes a non-volatile memory area and a volatile memory area. The main memory 12 stores an operating system or application programs in the non-volatile memory area. The main memory 12 stores data required for the processor 11 to execute processes for controlling each part in the volatile memory area. The main memory 12 also uses the volatile memory area as a work area where data is appropriately rewritten by the processor 11. The non-volatile memory area is, for example, ROM (Read Only Memory). The volatile memory area is, for example, RAM (Random Access Memory).

The auxiliary storage device 13 corresponds to the auxiliary memory portion of the computer. As the auxiliary storage device 13, for example, well-known storage devices such as EEPROM (Electric Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) (registered trademark), HDD (Hard Disc Drive), or SSD (Solid State Drive) are used alone or in combination. The auxiliary storage device 13 stores data used by the processor 11 when performing various processes, data generated by the processes in the processor 11, etc. The auxiliary storage device 13 may also store application programs.

The application programs stored in the main memory 12 or the auxiliary storage device 13 include the control programs described below. There are no particular limitations on the method of installing the control programs in the main memory 12 or the auxiliary storage device 13. The control programs can be installed in the main memory 12 or the auxiliary storage device 13 by recording them on a removable recording medium, or by distributing them by communication via a network. The recording medium can be in any form, such as a CD-ROM or memory card, as long as it can store the programs and is readable by the device.

The auxiliary memory device 13 also stores a store-specific table 131 (see FIG. 9) that is created for each new coupon plan created by the plan setting device 70.

Figure 9 is a schematic diagram showing the data structure of the store-specific table 131.

As shown in the figure, the store-specific table 131 stores the following data in association with each store ID of the store that is the target of coupon issuance in response to the coupon plan: plan ID, survey start date, target product ID, cumulative number of sales, and last sale date.

The store ID is a unique code set for each store that issues the coupon. The plan ID is a unique code set for each coupon plan, and matches the plan ID of the coupon plan record 41 registered in the plan database 40.

The investigation start date is the date on which an investigation begins for the store corresponding to the store ID to determine whether or not a product corresponding to the target product ID has been sold. If the date obtained by subtracting a certain investigation period from the start date of the issuance period included in the coupon project record 41 is a date in the past, the investigation start date is set to the current date, and if the date is a date after the current date, the investigation start date is set to that date. The certain investigation period is set in advance, for example, by the project setting device 70. Whether or not a product corresponding to the target product ID has been sold in the store corresponding to the store ID is determined based on the product ID of the sold product included in the commercial transaction data received from the POS terminal 20 of the store.

The target product ID is the product ID of the product that is the subject of the coupon, and matches the target product ID of the coupon plan record 41 registered in the plan database 40.

The cumulative number of sales is the number of times the target product has been sold, which is added if the target product ID is included in the commercial transaction data received from the POS terminal 20 after the survey start date. The last sale date is the last date on which a sale of the target product was confirmed, and is updated to the current date if the target product ID is included in the commercial transaction data received from the POS terminal 20 after the survey start date.

When multiple target product IDs are set as target product IDs in the coupon plan record 41, the target product IDs are also stored as target product IDs in the store-specific table 131. In this case, the cumulative number of sales is incremented if any of the multiple target product IDs is included in the commercial transaction data. The last sale date is updated to the current date if any of the multiple target product IDs is included in the commercial transaction data. In other words, if there are multiple target products in a coupon plan (corresponding to plan b or plan d described above), if a sale of any one of the target products is confirmed in the store that is the target of the coupon issuance, the corresponding cumulative number of sales is incremented and the corresponding last sale date is updated.

In the coupon management server 10 of FIG. 8, the clock 14 functions as a time information source for the coupon management server 10. The processor 11 keeps track of the current date and time based on the time information kept by the clock 14.

The first communication interface 15 is a circuit for performing data communication with a device connected via the communication network 30, such as a POS terminal 20.

The second communication interface 16 is a circuit for performing data communication with a device connected via the communication line 60, such as a planning and setting device 70.

In the coupon management server 10 configured as described above, a part of the storage area of the auxiliary storage device 13 is used as the area for the above-mentioned plan database 40, image database 50, and store-specific table 131. Note that the areas for the plan database 40, image database 50, and store-specific table 131 are not limited to a part of the storage area of the auxiliary storage device 13. For example, a part of the storage area of the auxiliary storage device 13 of another server connected to the communication network 30 may be used as the area for the plan database 40, image database 50, and store-specific table 131. In this case, the processor 11 accesses the plan database 40, image database 50, and store-specific table 131 by communicating with the server via the first communication interface 15.

Such a coupon management server 10 is configured to provide coupon-related services to each POS terminal 20 as cloud computing.

Figures 10 to 12 are flow charts showing the main steps of the information processing executed by the processor 11 of the coupon management server 10 in accordance with a control program. Below, the main operations of the coupon management system 100 including the coupon management server 10 are explained using each figure. Note that the operation explanation explained below is an example. As long as similar results are obtained, the steps are not particularly limited.

First, the operation of the coupon management server 10 that is performed each time a new coupon plan record 41 is registered in the plan database 40 in response to a new coupon plan set by the plan setting device 70 will be explained using the flowchart in FIG. 10.

Figure 10 is a flow chart showing the steps of information processing executed by the processor 11 of the coupon management server 10 in response to the registration of a new coupon plan record 41 in the plan database 40.

In ACT 1, the processor 11 of the coupon management server 10 determines whether a new coupon plan has been created based on whether a new coupon plan record 41 has been registered in the plan database 40. When a new coupon plan record 41 has been registered in the plan database 40, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 1 and proceeds to ACT 2.

In ACT 2, the processor 11 obtains the plan ID from the new coupon plan record 41 registered in the plan database 40. In ACT 3, the processor 11 obtains the start date Da of the issuance period from the new coupon plan record 41. In ACT 4, the processor 11 obtains the target product ID from the new coupon plan record 41.

In ACT 5, the processor 11 subtracts the number of days Dx of a certain survey period, which is preset by the planning and setting device 70, from the start date Da of the issuance period obtained in ACT 3 as a date calculation, and calculates the date Db of the subtraction result.

In ACT 6, the processor 11 determines whether the date Db is in the past relative to the current date obtained from the clock 14.

If the date Db obtained by subtracting the number of days Dx of a certain investigation period from the start date Da of the issuance period is in the past with respect to the current date, the processor 11 judges YES in ACT 6 and proceeds to ACT 7. In ACT 7, the processor 11 sets the current date as the investigation start date Dc, which is the start date for investigating whether or not the target product has been sold in the store that is the target of the coupon issuance.

On the other hand, if the date Db obtained by subtracting the number of days Dx of a certain investigation period from the start date Da of the issuance period is not in the past of the current date but is after the current date, the processor 11 judges NO in ACT 6 and proceeds to ACT 8. In ACT 8, the processor 11 sets the date Db as the investigation start date Dc for starting an investigation into whether or not the target product has been sold at the store that is the target of the coupon issuance.

In this way, if the date Db that is a certain survey period Dx before the coupon issue start date Da is earlier than the current date, the current date is set as the survey start date Dc. If it is later than the current date, that date Db is set as the survey start date Dc.

In other words, if the period from the current date when the coupon promotion record 41 is newly registered to the start date Da of the issuance period is shorter than the fixed survey period Dx, the current date is set as the survey start date Dc. If the period is the same as or longer than the fixed survey period Dx, the date Db after the fixed survey period Dx is set as the survey start date Dc.

In ACT 9, the processor 11 edits table data for the store-specific table 131 using the project ID obtained in ACT 2, the target product ID obtained in ACT 4, and the survey start date Dc set in ACT 7 or ACT 8.

In ACT 10, the processor 11 adds and stores the table data edited in ACT 9 in the store-specific table 131 (see FIG. 9) that has the store ID of the store for which the coupon is to be issued.

As a result, a store-specific table 131 is created in the auxiliary memory device 13 of the coupon management server 10 to store historical information on whether the product covered by the coupon was sold at the store that is the target of the coupon in response to the new coupon project.

Next, the operation of the processor 11 when commercial transaction data is received from the POS terminal 20 will be described with reference to the flow charts in Figs. 11 and 12. The commercial transaction data includes at least the store ID, which is the store code of the store where the transaction was performed, the product ID of the product registered in the transaction, the sales amount, and the subtotal amount of the transaction.

Figures 11 and 12 are flow charts showing the steps of information processing executed by the processor 11 of the coupon management server 10 in response to receiving commercial transaction data from the POS terminal 20.

When the processor 11 receives commercial transaction data from the POS terminal 20, the processor 11 judges the result to be YES in ACT 21 of FIG. 11 and proceeds to ACT 22. In ACT 22, the processor 11 sets the count value C of the addition counter to "0" to reset the addition counter, and in ACT 23, the processor 11 increments the count value C of the addition counter by "+1" to count up the addition counter.

In ACT 24, the processor 11 determines whether the count value C of the adding counter exceeds the total number N of coupon plan records 41 registered in the plan database 40. If the count value C of the adding counter does not exceed the total number N of coupon plan records 41, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 24 and proceeds to ACT 31 in FIG. 12. The processor 11 repeatedly executes the process from ACT 31 in FIG. 12 onwards until the count value C of the adding counter exceeds the total number N of coupon plan records 41.

In ACT 31, the processor 11 acquires the coupon promotion record 41 with the record number n corresponding to the count value C of the adding counter. In ACT 32, the processor 11 acquires the target product ID set in the coupon promotion record 41 acquired in ACT 31. In ACT 33, the processor 11 acquires the store code (store ID) included in the commercial transaction data.

The processor 11 determines whether or not the target product was sold at the store where the transaction took place based on whether or not the product ID included in the transaction data matches the target product ID in ACT 34.

If the target product was sold at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 34 and proceeds to ACT 35. On the other hand, if the target product was not sold at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 34 and proceeds to ACT 38. The processing procedure from ACT 38 onwards will be described later.

In ACT 35, the processor 11 obtains the survey start date Dc associated with the plan ID of the coupon plan record 41 obtained in ACT 31 from the store-specific table 131 corresponding to the store ID obtained in ACT 33. The processor 11 determines whether the survey period for the target product has begun based on whether the current date has passed the survey start date Dc.

If the current date has passed the investigation start date Dc and is within the investigation period, the processor 11 judges YES in ACT 35 and proceeds to ACT 36. On the other hand, if the current date has not passed the investigation start date Dc and is not within the investigation period, the processor 11 judges NO in ACT 35 and proceeds to ACT 38. The processing procedure from ACT 38 onwards will be described later.

In ACT 36, the processor 11 increments the cumulative number of sales M associated with the target product ID in the store-specific table 131 by "+1". In ACT 37, the processor 11 stores the current date as the last sale date Dd associated with the target product ID in the store-specific table 131. This makes it possible to investigate and confirm whether or not a product corresponding to the target product ID has been sold since the investigation start date Dc in the store for which the coupon is issued. Then, if it is confirmed that the target product has been sold, the sales history can be recorded in the store-specific table 131 as the cumulative number of sales M and the last sale date Dd.

When the processor 11 finishes the processing of ACT 37, the processor 11 proceeds to ACT 38. In this way, when there is no sales of the target product, when the current date is not within the survey period, or when the current date is within the survey period and the processor 11 finishes the processing of ACT 36 and ACT 37, the processor 11 proceeds to ACT 38.
The processor 11 determines in ACT 38 whether the current date is within the range of the coupon issuance period set in the coupon plan record 41 acquired in ACT 31. If the current date is within the range of the issuance period set in the coupon plan record 41, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 38 and proceeds to ACT 39. On the other hand, if the current date is outside the range of the issuance period set in the coupon plan record 41, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 38 and returns to the processing of ACT 23 in FIG.

In ACT 39, the processor 11 determines whether the contents of the commercial transaction data satisfy the coupon issuance conditions set in the coupon promotion record 41 acquired in ACT 31.

If the contents of the commercial transaction data satisfy the conditions for issuing a coupon, the processor 11 judges YES in ACT 39 and proceeds to ACT 40. On the other hand, if the contents of the commercial transaction data do not satisfy the conditions for issuing a coupon, the processor 11 judges NO in ACT 39 and returns to the processing of ACT 23 in FIG. 11.

If the current date is within the coupon issuance period and the contents of the commercial transaction data satisfy the coupon issuance conditions, the processor 11 obtains the cumulative number of sales M of the target product from the store-specific table 131 in ACT 40. The processor 11 determines whether the target product was sold at the store where the current commercial transaction took place based on whether the cumulative number of sales M is greater than "0", i.e., whether it is "1" or greater, in ACT 41.

If the cumulative number of sales M of the target product is greater than "0", i.e., if the target product was sold at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 41 and proceeds to ACT 42. On the other hand, if the cumulative number of sales M of the target product is "0", i.e., if the target product was not sold at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 41 and returns to the processing of ACT 23 in FIG. 11.

If the target product was sold at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 obtains the last sale date Dd of the target product from the store-specific table 131 in ACT 42. The processor 11 determines whether the target product is in stock at the store where the current transaction took place, based on whether the last sale date Dd of the target product is after the survey start date Dc of the target product in ACT 43.

If the last sale date Dd of the target product is after the survey start date Dc of the target product, i.e., if it can be determined that the target product is in stock at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 43 and proceeds to ACT 44. On the other hand, if the last sale date Dd of the target product is before the survey start date Dc of the target product, i.e., if it can be determined that the target product is not in stock at the store where the current transaction took place, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 43 and returns to the processing of ACT 23 in FIG. 11.

In ACT43, it is determined that the target product is in stock at the store where the transaction took place, based on the fact that the last sale date Dd of the target product is after the survey start date Dc of the target product, that is, a certain period of time before the current date including the current date. The last sale date Dd of the target product must be included in order to determine that the target product is in stock; the shorter the period is set, the higher the probability of determining that the product is in stock.

If it is determined that the target product is in stock at the store where the transaction took place, the processor 11 searches the image database 50 in ACT 44 to detect coupon image data in the coupon image record 51 associated with the plan ID in the coupon plan record 41. The processor 11 then stores the detected coupon image data in the coupon memory. In other words, since it has been confirmed that the target product is in stock at the store where the transaction took place and is valid as a coupon to be issued, settings are made to provide the coupon image data to the POS terminal 20 of that store. The coupon memory is formed, for example, in a volatile memory area of the main memory 12. The coupon memory may also be formed, for example, in the auxiliary storage device 13.

After completing the processing of ACT 44, the processor 11 returns to the processing of ACT 23 in FIG. 11. The processor 11 then executes the processing from ACT 23 onwards in the same manner as described above. That is, the processor 11 counts up the count value C of the additive counter, and if the count value C does not exceed the total number N of coupon plan records 41 registered in the plan database 40 and there is a next coupon plan record 41, the processor 11 executes the processing from ACT 31.

As a result, for all coupon plan records 41 registered in the plan database 40, when a product corresponding to the target product ID of each record 41 is sold, the cumulative number of sales M and the last sale date Dd can be recorded as the sales history of the target product in association with the plan ID in the store-specific table 131. Then, if the current date is within the coupon issuance period, the contents of the commercial transaction data satisfy the coupon issuance conditions, and the sales history of the target product is after the investigation start date Dc, it can be determined that the target product is in stock, and the coupon image data corresponding to the target product can be stored in the coupon memory.

When the processing from ACT 31 onwards has been executed for all coupon plan records 41 registered in the plan database 40 in this way, the count value C of the adding counter in ACT 23 exceeds the total number N of coupon plan records 41 registered in the plan database 40, so the processor 11 judges YES in ACT 24 and proceeds to ACT 25.

In ACT 25, the processor 11 checks whether coupon image data is stored in the coupon memory. If coupon image data is stored, the processor 11 determines YES in ACT 25 and proceeds to ACT 26. In ACT 26, the processor 11 transmits the coupon image data to the POS terminal 20 that transmitted the commercial transaction data.

If no coupon image data is stored in the coupon memory, the processor 11 determines NO in ACT 25 and proceeds to ACT 27. In ACT 27, the processor 11 transmits a command to the POS terminal 20 that transmitted the commercial transaction data, notifying that there is no coupon.
This is how the processor 11 ends the commercial transaction data receiving process.

The POS terminal 20 that sent the transaction data then issues a coupon containing coupon image data corresponding to the target product along with a receipt showing the details of the transaction.

The processor 11, which executes the information processing procedure shown in the flow charts of Figures 10 to 12, functions as a receiving means, an acquiring means, a confirming means, and a setting means. That is, the processor 11 accepts coupon plan information including information about the target product of the coupon. The processor 11 also acquires commercial transaction data from the POS terminal 20 of the store. The processor 11 also confirms, based on the acquired commercial transaction data, whether or not the target product included in the accepted coupon plan information has been sold and the sales date of the sales as the cumulative number of sales M and the last sales date Dd. The processor 11 then sets, as coupon image data, information that the coupon of the plan corresponding to the accepted coupon plan information is valid for stores where the confirmed target product has been sold and the sales date is a certain period before or after the current date, such as the survey start date Dc.

The processor 11, which executes the information processing procedures shown in the flow charts of Figures 10 to 12, further functions as a condition confirmation means, a validity confirmation means, and a provision means. That is, the processor 11 confirms whether the acquired commercial transaction data satisfies the coupon issuance conditions included in the coupon project information. If the processor 11 confirms that the commercial transaction data satisfies the coupon issuance conditions, it confirms whether the coupon is valid for the store that acquired the commercial transaction data based on information that the coupon set as coupon image data is valid. If the processor 11 confirms that the coupon is valid based on the existence of coupon image data, it provides the coupon image data as coupon information to the POS terminal 20 that sent the commercial transaction data.

Therefore, the coupon management server 10 can confirm that the store to which the coupon is issued has the target product in stock and cause the POS terminal 20 to issue a valid coupon, without the need to link with a product master that manages the inventory of the product at the corresponding store in the system on the POS terminal 20 side. This allows system developers of coupon management systems to easily build coupon management systems that can prevent the issuance of coupons that cannot be used because the product that the coupon is eligible for is not available.

The coupon management server 10 also checks whether the target product has been sold as the cumulative sales count M from the survey start date, which is a certain period before the coupon issuance start date included in the coupon planning information. Therefore, it is possible to check, based on more accurate data, whether the target product is in stock at the store for which the coupon is issued.

In addition, the coupon management server 10 checks whether the target product has been sold after the coupon issuance start date included in the coupon planning information as the cumulative sales count M. Therefore, by effectively utilizing commercial transaction data after the issuance start date, it is possible to check in real time whether the target product is in stock at the store for which the coupon is issued.

The coupon management server 10 also confirms whether the target product has been sold and the date of sale as the cumulative number of sales M and the last sale date Dd based on the commercial transaction data. Then, for stores where the target product has been sold and the sales date is a certain period of time before the current date, such as the survey start date Dc, information indicating that the coupon for the plan corresponding to the coupon plan information is valid is set as coupon image data. Therefore, by setting the certain period for confirming that the sales date of the target product is a certain period of time before the current date to a short period of time, it is possible to determine with high accuracy whether the target product is in stock without linking with the store's product master.

The above describes embodiments of the coupon management device, coupon management method, and control program thereof, but the embodiments are not limited to these.

In the above embodiment, in order to confirm that the product subject to the coupon is in stock at the store, the sales status of the target product ID is confirmed based on the commercial transaction data from the POS terminal 20, the coupon image data is stored in the coupon memory, and information that the coupon is valid is set. Not limited to this, if the coupon issuance condition is a product condition (corresponding to the above-mentioned plan c or plan d), the sales status of the product that satisfies the issuance condition may be confirmed based on the commercial transaction data and recorded as history in order to confirm that the product that satisfies the issuance condition is in stock at the store. In this case, if the product that satisfies the issuance condition is not in stock at the store, the issuance condition cannot be met in the first place, so if the sales status of the product is not confirmed, setting of information that the coupon is valid is prohibited regardless of whether the product subject to the coupon is available.

Although several other embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope of the invention and the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims.
The invention as originally claimed in the present application is set forth below.
[1] A control program for a coupon management device that causes a computer of the coupon management device that manages coupons related to commercial transactions to function as: a reception means for receiving coupon planning information including information on products that are the subject of the coupon; an acquisition means for acquiring transaction data from stores; a confirmation means for confirming whether or not the products that are the subject of the coupons included in the coupon planning information accepted by the reception means have been sold based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means; and a setting means for setting information that a coupon for a plan corresponding to the coupon planning information accepted by the reception means is valid for stores that have sales of the products that are the subject of the coupons confirmed by the confirmation means.
[2] A control program described in appendix [1] for causing a computer of the coupon management device to further function as a condition confirmation means for confirming whether the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means satisfies the coupon issuance conditions included in the coupon planning information accepted by the acceptance means, a validity confirmation means for confirming whether the coupon is valid for the store that acquired the transaction data by the acquisition means based on information that the coupon is valid set by the setting means when the condition confirmation means confirms that the transaction data satisfies the coupon issuance conditions, and a provision means for providing coupon information to the store when the validity confirmation means confirms that the coupon is valid.
[3] A control program described in appendix [1] or [2], wherein the confirmation means confirms whether or not the product covered by the coupon has been sold for a certain period of time prior to the coupon issuance start date included in the coupon planning information accepted by the acceptance means.
[4] The control program described in appendix [3], wherein the confirmation means confirms whether or not the product covered by the coupon continues to be sold after the coupon issuance start date included in the coupon planning information accepted by the acceptance means.
[5] A control program described in any of appendices [1] to [4], wherein the confirmation means confirms the sales status and sales date of the product that is the subject of the coupon included in the coupon planning information accepted by the reception means based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means, and the setting means sets information that the coupon for the plan corresponding to the coupon planning information accepted by the reception means is valid for stores that have sold the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by the confirmation means and whose sales date was a certain period of time or later before the current date.
[6] A coupon management method comprising the steps of: receiving coupon planning information including information on products that are the subject of the coupons by a computer of a coupon management device that manages coupons related to commercial transactions; acquiring transaction data from stores; confirming whether or not the products that are the subject of the coupons included in the received coupon planning information have been sold based on the acquired transaction data; and setting information that a coupon for the plan corresponding to the received coupon planning information is valid for stores that have sales of the products that are the subject of the confirmed coupons.
[7] A coupon management device comprising: a reception means for receiving coupon planning information including information on products that are eligible for the coupon; an acquisition means for acquiring transaction data from a store; a confirmation means for confirming whether or not the products that are eligible for the coupon included in the coupon planning information received by the reception means have been sold based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means; and a setting means for setting information that a coupon for a plan corresponding to the coupon planning information received by the reception means is valid for stores that have sales of the products that are eligible for the coupon confirmed by the confirmation means.

10... coupon management server, 11... processor, 12... main memory, 13... auxiliary storage device, 14... clock, 15... first communication interface, 16... second communication interface, 20... POS terminal, 30... communication network, 40... project database, 50... image database, 60... communication line, 70... project setting device, 100... coupon management system.

Claims (9)

A coupon management device for managing coupons relating to commercial transactions,
A receiving means for receiving coupon plan information including information on a product that is the subject of a coupon;
A means for acquiring transaction data from a store;
A confirmation means for confirming whether or not a product covered by the coupon included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means has been sold based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means;
a setting means for setting information indicating that a coupon for a promotion corresponding to the coupon promotion information received by said receiving means is valid for a store that has sales of the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by said confirmation means;
a condition confirmation means for confirming whether the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means satisfies a coupon issuing condition included in the coupon promotion information accepted by the acceptance means;
a validity confirmation means for confirming, when it is confirmed by said condition confirmation means that said transaction data satisfies said coupon issue conditions, whether or not said coupon is valid for the store from which said transaction data is obtained by said acquisition means, based on information indicating that said coupon is valid, set by said setting means;
providing means for providing coupon information to the store when the validity confirmation means confirms that the coupon is valid;
A control program for the coupon management device to function as a coupon management device. 2. The control program according to claim 1 , wherein the confirmation means confirms whether or not a product covered by the coupon has been sold for a certain period of time prior to a coupon issue start date included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means. A coupon management device for managing coupons relating to commercial transactions,
A receiving means for receiving coupon plan information including information on a product that is the subject of a coupon;
A means for acquiring transaction data from a store;
a confirmation means for confirming whether or not a product covered by the coupon has been sold for a certain period of time prior to the coupon issue start date included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means, based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means;
a setting means for setting information indicating that a coupon for a promotion corresponding to the coupon promotion information received by said receiving means is valid for a store that has sales of the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by said confirmation means;
A control program for the coupon management device to function as a coupon management device . the confirmation means confirms whether or not the product covered by the coupon has been sold after the coupon issue start date included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means;
The control program according to claim 2 or 3. The confirmation means confirms whether or not a product covered by the coupon included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means has been sold and the date of sale based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means,
The setting means sets information that a coupon for a plan corresponding to the coupon plan information received by the receiving means is valid for a store that has sold the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by the confirmation means and whose sales date is a certain period before or after the current date.
The control program according to any one of claims 1 to 4. A coupon management device computer that manages coupons related to commercial transactions
Accept coupon promotion information, including information about the products eligible for the coupon,
Obtain transaction data from stores,
Based on the acquired transaction data, a confirmation is made as to whether or not the product covered by the coupon included in the received coupon plan information has been sold;
and setting information indicating that the coupon for the plan corresponding to the received coupon plan information is valid for the store that has sales of the confirmed product that is the subject of the coupon.
confirming whether the acquired transaction data satisfies the coupon issuing conditions included in the received coupon promotion information;
If it is confirmed that the transaction data satisfies the coupon issuing conditions, it is confirmed whether the coupon is valid for the store that obtained the transaction data, based on the information that the coupon is valid.
If the coupon is confirmed to be valid, the coupon information is provided to the store .
A coupon management method comprising: A coupon management device computer that manages coupons related to commercial transactions
Accept coupon promotion information, including information about the products eligible for the coupon,
Obtain transaction data from stores,
Based on the acquired transaction data, confirm whether or not a product covered by the coupon has been sold for a certain period of time prior to the coupon issue start date included in the received coupon plan information;
setting information indicating that the coupon for the plan corresponding to the received coupon plan information is valid for the store that has sales of the confirmed product that is the subject of the coupon;
A coupon management method comprising: A receiving means for receiving coupon plan information including information on a product that is the subject of a coupon;
An acquisition means for acquiring transaction data from a store;
a confirmation means for confirming whether or not a product covered by the coupon included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means has been sold based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means;
a setting means for setting information indicating that a coupon for a promotion corresponding to the coupon promotion information received by said receiving means is valid for a store that has sales of the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by said confirmation means;
a condition confirmation means for confirming whether the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means satisfies a coupon issuing condition included in the coupon promotion information accepted by the acceptance means;
a validity confirmation means for confirming, when the condition confirmation means confirms that the transaction data satisfies the coupon issue conditions, whether the coupon is valid for the store that obtained the transaction data with the acquisition means, based on information indicating that the coupon is valid set by the setting means;
providing means for providing coupon information to the store when the validity confirmation means confirms that the coupon is valid;
A coupon management device comprising: A receiving means for receiving coupon plan information including information on a product that is the subject of a coupon;
An acquisition means for acquiring transaction data from a store;
a confirmation means for confirming whether or not a product covered by the coupon has been sold for a certain period of time prior to the coupon issue start date included in the coupon plan information received by the reception means, based on the transaction data acquired by the acquisition means;
a setting means for setting information indicating that a coupon for a promotion corresponding to the coupon promotion information received by said reception means is valid for a store that has sales of the product that is the subject of the coupon confirmed by said confirmation means;
A coupon management device comprising: