JP7779535B2 - Server device, method and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a server device, method, and program suitable for delivering or distributing promotional information provided to consumers to encourage consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by businesses.

Currently, a widely used advertising method involves distributing advertising media containing promotional information, such as advertisements, to consumers' mailboxes at their homes to encourage them to use products offered by businesses. This type of advertising method is also known as posting. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of posting advertising media to a group of consumers who are likely to use the products advertised in the advertising media. However, the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not allow for more effective distribution of promotional information to consumers in the future based on the effects achieved by distributing promotional information to consumers in the past.

Patent Publication No. 2022-000822

This embodiment was conceived against the background described above, and aims to enable the analysis of new promotional information based on promotional information used to promote the use of past products, etc.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a server device according to an embodiment includes at least one processor, and the at least one processor is configured to: generate first promotional information provided to a consumer to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service by a business; receive behavioral information indicating the behavior of the consumer related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service based on the first promotional information received by the consumer; and execute processing to analyze second promotional information to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service by the business or a business other than the business, using a trained analysis model obtained based on the first promotional information and the behavioral information.

Furthermore, a method according to an embodiment is a method carried out by at least one processor executing predetermined instructions in a computer including the at least one processor, and includes the steps of: generating first promotional information to be provided to a consumer and promoting the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by a business; receiving behavioral information indicating the behavior of the consumer related to the provision of at least one of goods and services based on the first promotional information received by the consumer; and analyzing second promotional information to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business or a business other than the business using a trained analysis model obtained based on the first promotional information and the behavioral information.

Furthermore, the program according to the embodiment causes a computer to function as a processor configured to execute processing to generate first promotional information provided to a consumer to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by a business, receive behavioral information indicating the behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services performed by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer, and analyze, using a trained analysis model obtained based on the first promotional information and the behavioral information, second promotional information to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business or a business different from the business.

The server device, method, and program according to the embodiment can analyze new promotion information based on promotion information for encouraging the use of past products, etc.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a system 1 according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the consumer terminal device 100 shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the server device 200 and the business device 300 shown in FIG. FIG. 4A is a first diagram showing information stored in memory 213 of server device 200 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. FIG. FIG. 4B is a second diagram showing information stored in memory 213 of server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 5A is a first communication sequence diagram showing the communication process performed between the consumer terminal device 100, the consumer terminal device 100 and the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 5B is a second communication sequence diagram showing the communication process performed between the consumer terminal device 100, the consumer terminal device 100 and the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 5C is a third communication sequence diagram showing communication processing performed among the consumer terminal device 100, the consumer terminal device 100 and the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 5D is a diagram illustrating details of the process of S22 shown in FIG. 5C. FIG. 6A is a first flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating an advertising medium to which a recording medium is attached. FIG. 6C is a second flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 6D is a diagram illustrating an example of an image displayed on the consumer terminal device 100 and used for downloading a business application program. FIG. 6E is a third flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in FIGS. FIG. 7A is a communication sequence diagram in a modified example in which a distributor distributes advertising media and also mediates transactions between businesses and consumers. FIG. 7B is a flowchart showing the processing of server device 200 corresponding to the communication sequence shown in FIG. 7A.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that, in the drawings, substantially the same components, processes, and information will be assigned the same reference numerals and names. Furthermore, the number and types of components and data in the drawings are shown as examples and may be increased, decreased, or changed as appropriate. Furthermore, the number and order of processes in devices and communications between devices are shown as examples and may be changed as appropriate.

For convenience of illustration, some names of components may be omitted from the drawings as appropriate. Components that are not relevant to the essential explanation of the invention may be omitted from the drawings as appropriate. In the following description, "business operator" and "consumer" may refer not only to a single natural person, but also to multiple natural persons, corporations, organizations, companies, etc. Furthermore, m, n, and p are integers of 1 or greater, and p' is an integer of 0 or greater.

1. Configuration of System 1 The configuration of system 1 according to the embodiment will be described below with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of system 1 according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, system 1 includes a consumer terminal device 100, a server device 200, and a business device 300, which are connected via a communication network 14 so as to be able to transmit and receive information and data to and from each other.

The consumer terminal device 100 is used by a consumer (user). The server device 200 is used by an advertiser. The business device 300 is used by a business that sells products and/or provides services to consumers. The advertiser delivers or distributes advertisements and the like to consumers that encourage them to purchase products and/or use services provided by the business.

In the following, "at least one of selling products provided by a business to consumers and allowing consumers to use services provided by a business" will be referred to as "a business performs business operations." Also, "a consumer purchases products provided by a business and/or uses services provided by a business" will be referred to as "a consumer uses a business's operations."

Using these components, system 1 distributes information promoting consumers' use of a business's services to consumers' consumer terminal devices 100 via communication network 14, and distributes media containing such information to consumers. Note that hereinafter, "information promoting consumers' use of a business's services" will be referred to as "promotional information." System 1 also grants benefits to consumers who use a business's services. For example, this benefit could be a cashback, in which a portion of the product price is returned to the consumer when the consumer purchases a product offered by the business. Alternatively, this benefit could be a discount on all or part of the price the consumer pays to the business. Another example of this benefit is a points service, in which consumers grant points to businesses that can be used to use the business's services. Another example of this benefit is a volume discount, in which the more a consumer uses a business's services, the lower the unit price. Another example of this benefit is an exemption from delivery fees for products from the business to the consumer.

System 1 allows at least one of a business and an advertiser to confirm that promotional information has actually been delivered or distributed to consumers. System 1 also allows the extent to which the delivery or distribution of promotional information to consumers has increased consumer use of the business's business, i.e., the effectiveness of the delivery or distribution of promotional information, to be confirmed. System 1 also generates a trained analysis model by machine learning attribute information, etc., of consumers to whom promotional information will be delivered or distributed, based on the behavior of consumers in response to past delivery or distribution of promotional information (first promotional information). Furthermore, System 1 analyzes and optimizes the delivery or distribution destination of the latest promotional information (second promotional information) based on this trained analysis model, thereby enabling the delivery or distribution of promotional information to be carried out more effectively.

Note that consumers who have previously received or been the recipients of promotional information may be the same as or different from the consumers who will receive or be the recipients of the latest promotional information. Furthermore, the business (provision of at least one of goods and services) whose use was promoted by promotional information in the past may be the same as or different from the business whose use is being promoted by the latest promotional information.

Note that "businesses" refer to a variety of industries, including, for example, retailers, wholesalers, intermediaries, transportation companies, shipping companies, electric power companies, waterworks, communications companies, airlines, shipping companies, fisheries companies, agriculture, real estate agents, advertising agencies, and network service providers. The "businesses" of these businesses include all of the products and services they offer. Methods for encouraging consumers to use their services include the aforementioned cashback, discounts on the cost of using the services, and point services, as well as all other benefits to consumers, such as price reductions, deferred payment, price reductions based on the number of times the service is used, and prizes awarded by lottery. Promotional information is distributed to consumers in a variety of ways, including voice communication, image distribution, video distribution, network distribution, cable broadcasting, and radio broadcasting. Notification media containing promotional information is distributed using a variety of means, including posting, posters, billboards, and optical displays.

2. Overview of Advertising Media Distribution by System 1 As described above, in System 1, promotional information can be delivered to the consumer terminal device 100 as electronic information or printed on various media, such as paper, and distributed. However, for the sake of specificity and clarity, the following example will be a case in which promotional information is published on paper advertising media. Such advertising media are also commonly referred to as "flyers." The following example will be a case in which an advertising agency distributes advertising media to consumers by posting them in accordance with a plan agreed upon with a business. The following example will be a case in which consumers who use the business's services receive a cashback as a special benefit. The following example will be a case in which "advertising media" is referred to as "advertising media." The following example will be a case in which "advertising agencies" that distribute advertising media to consumers by posting them are referred to as "distributors."

To facilitate understanding of this embodiment, an overview of the distribution of advertising media to consumers using system 1 will be described. A distributor, business operator, or other third party operates a portal site using server device 200, business operator device 300, or the like. A portal site is a specific website that is first displayed on consumer terminal device 100 when a consumer accesses communication network 14 to use the business operator's services. Note that the following example will be a case where the portal site is operated by a distributor using server device 200. Therefore, all information received by the portal site is output to server device 200, and all information sent by the portal site is input from server device 200.

First, the business requests the distributor to distribute the advertising media to consumers by posting them, and an advertising contract is made between the business and the distributor. This contract can be made using the server device 200 and business device 300, or by the business and distributor meeting in person. The contract also stipulates that the promotional information will be distributed by advertising media. The contract also stipulates the attributes of the consumers to whom the advertising media will be distributed, the location and time range of distribution, and whether a cash back will be offered as a benefit.

The contract also stipulates whether the distributor will act as an agent for the business to issue cashback. If the distributor acts as an agent for the business to issue cashback, the details of the cashback will be determined. The details of the cashback include, for example, the percentage of the price to be returned to the consumer through cashback, and the amount of commission to be paid by the business to the distributor for acting as an agent for the cashback. The contract also stipulates whether the distributor will act as an agent for delivering the business's products to consumers.

The contract also stipulates that the fee paid by the business to the distributor for distributing the advertising media will be calculated based on the track record of effectiveness of distributing the advertising media. The contract also stipulates that the distributor will analyze the attributes of consumers to whom the advertising media will be distributed pursuant to the contract, as well as the location and time range of the distribution destination, based on the behavior of consumers in response to past distribution of the advertising media, and decide whether to optimize these. The distributor's analysis and optimization of the attributes of consumers to whom the advertising media will be distributed may or may not involve payment of a fee from the business to the distributor. Once a contract including these items is concluded, the business uses the business device 300 to generate information to be included in the promotion information table, which will be described below with reference to Figure 4A, and transmits it to the server device 200.

The distributor's server device 200 stores all information indicating the attributes of consumers to whom advertising media was distributed in postings made before this contract, as well as the locational and time ranges. Furthermore, as will be described later with reference to Figure 4B, the server device 200 also stores all information indicating the effects, such as whether each consumer to whom advertising media was distributed in postings made before this contract accessed the portal site.

The server device 200 performs machine learning on this information. As a result of this machine learning, the server device 200 generates a trained analysis model. This trained analysis model is used to determine the attributes of consumers to whom advertising media should be distributed, and in what locational and time ranges, in order to maximize consumer use of the service. If a contract is concluded between the distributor and the business to optimize the attributes of consumers to whom the advertising media will be distributed, the server device 200 analyzes the attributes of consumers to whom the advertising media generated by the business will be distributed, as well as the locational and time ranges to which the advertising media will be distributed, based on the trained analysis model it has generated.

As a result of this analysis, the server device 200 optimizes the attributes and locational and temporal ranges of consumers who are optimal recipients of the advertising media. The server device 200 transmits the analyzed attributes of the consumers who are the recipients of the optimized advertising media to the business device 300, and the distributor obtains the business's approval for the attributes of the consumers who will be the recipients of the optimized advertising media. Once the distributor obtains the business's approval, the distributor distributes the advertising media to consumers who have the attributes indicated by the optimization information, within the locational and temporal ranges indicated by the optimization information.

Such promotional information is published on paper advertising media. Furthermore, this advertising media may be accompanied by a recording medium such as a two-dimensional code that stores the information necessary for consumers to receive cashback from the business. The information recorded on this recording medium indicates, for example, the URL of the website the consumer must access to receive the cashback, as well as information identifying the advertising media. The information recorded on this recording medium is transmitted from the server device 200 to the business device 300, and the business produces advertising media with the recording medium containing this information, at least the number p required by the contract. The business then delivers the produced advertising media to a distributor for distribution.

A business will provide a cashback to a consumer if the consumer's behavior meets certain conditions. These certain conditions include, for example, the consumer using the business's services. Note that the consumer's use of the business's services may or may not involve payment of compensation from the consumer to the business. These certain conditions also include, for example, using the consumer terminal device 100 to read a URL and information identifying the advertising medium from a recording medium attached to the advertising medium, and accessing the business's website indicated by this URL.

Furthermore, this specified condition may include, for example, a consumer who accesses the business operator's or distributor's website downloading and installing an application program for using the business operator's services onto the consumer terminal device 100. In this case, the consumer downloads the application program for using the business operator's services from the business operator's or distributor's website, and the URL of this website can be read from a recording medium attached to the advertising medium. Note that, hereinafter, "application program for using the business operator's services" will be referred to as "business application program." Furthermore, such application programs are commonly abbreviated to "app."

Furthermore, this predetermined condition may include, for example, the consumer launching a business application program installed on the consumer terminal device 100 and registering personal information, etc. on the business's website. Further, this predetermined condition may include, for example, the consumer uploading predetermined information to the business's website using the consumer terminal device 100. This predetermined information may include information showing evidence that the consumer has used the business's services, such as an image of a receipt taken by the consumer using the consumer terminal device 100, and information that identifies the advertising medium, etc., read from a recording medium attached to the advertising medium. Note that distributors may provide cashback to consumers on behalf of the business. In this case, the consumer simply uses the consumer terminal device 100 to access a portal site operated by the distributor using the server device 200.

When a consumer uploads an image of a receipt or other data along with information identifying the advertising medium, this indicates that the advertising medium has been distributed to that consumer. This also indicates that the consumer read the URL and other information identifying the advertising medium from the recording medium attached to the distributed advertising medium and used the business operator's services. Furthermore, the percentage of consumers who access the portal site or receive cash back from the business operator relative to the number p of distributed advertising media can be estimated statistically or empirically by distributors, etc.

Based on the number of advertising media p specified in the contract and the ratios mentioned above, the distributor can reliably prove to the business the number of advertising media p' actually distributed to consumers. Similarly, the distributor can also prove to the business the effectiveness of distributing the advertising media. Therefore, based on the actual distribution of the advertising media and its effectiveness, and in accordance with the contents of the contract, the distributor can calculate the amount of compensation to be charged to the business for distributing the advertising media, charge the business, and receive payment.

Furthermore, distributors can accumulate information used in past advertisement distribution and information showing consumer responses to past advertisement distribution. By applying machine learning to this accumulated information used in distribution using information showing consumer responses, distributors can obtain a trained analysis model for analyzing and optimizing the information used in the latest advertisement distribution. By using this trained analysis model to analyze and optimize information on consumers and other recipients of advertising media created by businesses intending to distribute advertising media, distributors can provide these businesses with information on consumers and other recipients of better advertising media, contributing to the development of their business.

Note that while the above describes the case where paper advertising media is distributed as promotional information, such promotional information is not limited to paper advertising media. For example, coupon information can be distributed (delivered) as promotional information by reading a two-dimensional code attached to advertising media and accessing a specified portal site. In this case, by using machine learning to analyze information indicating consumer reactions to the results of distributing coupon information, distributors can obtain a trained analysis model for optimizing the distribution conditions and recipients of coupon information. By using such a trained analysis model to analyze and optimize information on consumers and other recipients of coupon information created by a business that intends to distribute coupon information, it is possible to provide the business with information on consumers and other recipients that would be better recipients, contributing to the development of the business's business.

3. Configuration of the Consumer Terminal Device 100 The configuration of the consumer terminal device 100 will be described below with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the consumer terminal device 100 shown in Fig. 1. Note that the consumer terminal device 100 does not need to include all of the components shown in Fig. 2, and some of the components of the consumer terminal device 100 may be omitted. Furthermore, components other than those shown in Fig. 2 may be added to the consumer terminal device 100.

The consumer terminal device 100 is a device that can communicate with other devices in the system 1 and execute the processes necessary for distributing advertising media using the system 1 described above. Examples of consumer terminal devices that can be used include mobile terminal devices capable of wireless communication, such as smartphones, tablet personal computers (PCs), notebook PCs, and desktop PCs.

Note that system 1 may include multiple consumer terminal devices 100, but these do not all need to be the same or of the same type; system 1 may include consumer terminal devices 100 that are different from one another or of different types. In this case, for example, one consumer's consumer terminal device 100 may be a smartphone, while another consumer's consumer terminal device 100 may be a desktop PC.

As shown in FIG. 2, the consumer terminal device 100 includes a display 111, a processor 112, a memory 113, a communication interface (communication IF) 114, and an input interface (input IF) 116. These components of the consumer terminal device 100 are electrically connected via a bus and control lines (not shown) to transmit and receive data and information to and from each other.

The display 111 includes a speaker (not shown) and functions as an output device that displays images input from the memory 113 and outputs sound. The display 111 may be located outside the consumer terminal device 100 and connected via an output interface (not shown), or may be configured integrally with the consumer terminal device 100 and connected to the output interface.

Processor 112 is composed of one or more CPUs (microprocessors) and their peripheral circuits. Alternatively, processor 112 is composed of a combination of one or more CPUs and one or more GPUs specialized for image processing, and their peripheral circuits. Processor 112 functions as a control unit that controls other connected components based on various programs stored in memory 113.

Specifically, the processor 112 reads from the memory 113 and executes an application program for executing communication processing with other devices via the communication network 14. The memory 113 also reads from the memory 113 and executes an application program for executing processing performed by the consumer terminal device 100 in distributing advertising media by the above-mentioned system 1. The processor 112 also reads from the memory 113 and executes a business application program downloaded from the portal site as described above. The processor 112 also reads from the memory 113 and executes a program for running the OS.

Memory 113 is composed of ROM, RAM, non-volatile memory (NVM), HDD, etc., and functions as a storage unit. Furthermore, removable storage media, databases, etc. can be connected to memory 113.

ROM is memory that can retain written data without a power supply, but does not allow data to be written from the processor 112. ROM stores, as programs, specific instructions and commands for executing the application program and OS according to this embodiment.

RAM is memory that retains data only while power is supplied, and allows data to be written to and read from the processor 112. Non-volatile memory is memory that can retain written data even without power being supplied, and allows data to be written to and read from the processor 112.

While a program stored in ROM is being processed by the processor 112, data required for this processing can be written to and read from the RAM and non-volatile memory. In addition, as described above, data can be written to and read from the RAM and non-volatile memory in response to the execution of business application programs downloaded from a portal site, etc.

Specifically, memory 113 stores application programs for executing processes for communication with other nodes via communication network 14. Memory 113 also stores application programs for executing processes performed by consumer terminal device 100 in distributing advertising media by system 1 described above. Processor 112 also stores business application programs downloaded from the portal site as described above. Processor 112 also stores programs for running the OS.

The communication interface 114 includes a communication processing circuit 115 and an antenna. The communication interface 114 connects the communication network 14 and the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication processing circuit 115 and the antenna, and functions as a communication unit that transmits and receives data to and from other devices connected to the communication network 14.

Specifically, the communication interface 114 communicates with the portal site described above, receives the business application programs described above, and registers consumer information. The communication interface 114 also transmits and receives information and data required for processing by the consumer terminal device 100 when distributing advertising media using system 1 to and from other devices.

The communication processing circuit 115 of the communication interface 114 performs communication processing to communicate information via an antenna between the communication network 14 and the consumer terminal device 100 using a wideband wireless communication method or a narrowband wireless communication method. An example of a wideband wireless communication method is the LTE method. An example of a narrowband wireless communication method is IEEE 802.11 or Bluetooth (registered trademark). Note that the communication processing circuit 115 may also perform processing for communication using a wired communication method instead of or in addition to a wireless communication method.

The input interface 116 is connected to input devices such as the touch panel 117 and camera 118 via wired or wireless communication, and functions as an input unit that accepts user operations and receives various types of information. Examples of the input interface 116 include devices that comply with various standards, such as a serial port, a parallel port, and a USB.

Furthermore, when the input interface 116 connects to the touch panel 117 or the like via a wireless communication method (e.g., Bluetooth (registered trademark)), the input interface 116 can perform the processing of the communication interface 114. In this case, conversely, the communication interface 114 can perform the processing of the input interface 116.

The touch panel 117 is arranged, for example, to cover the screen of the display 111. The touch panel 117 detects swipe and tap operations by the user on icons and the like displayed on the display 111, and outputs the operations to the processor 112.

Camera 118 captures images of objects outside the consumer terminal device 100 in response to, for example, a consumer operation received via touch panel 117. In system 1, camera 118 is used, in particular, to capture images of recording media attached to advertising media and identify the URL and promotion identification information W (Figure 4A).

The consumer terminal device 100, the touch panel 117, and the camera 118 may be configured as an integrated unit or separately. When the consumer terminal device 100, the touch panel 117, and the camera 118 are not configured as an integrated unit but are configured separately, they are connected using a wireless communication method or a wired communication method.

4. Configuration of Server Device 200 and Provider Device 300 The configuration of the server device 200 and provider device 300 shown in Fig. 1 will be described below with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the server device 200 and provider device 300 shown in Fig. 1. For example, the server device 200 is a PC server or a large computer.

Note that there is no essential difference in configuration between the server device 200 and the provider device 300. For example, if an application program for the server device 200 is installed and executed on the provider device 300, the provider device 300 will realize the functions of the server device 200. Conversely, if an application program for the provider device 300 is installed and executed on the server device 200, the server device 200 will realize the functions of the provider device 300.

As shown in FIG. 3, the server device 200 and the business operator device 300 include an output interface 211, a processor 212, a memory 213, and a communication interface 214, similar to the consumer terminal device 100 shown in FIG. 2. These components of the server device 200 and the business operator device 300 are electrically connected via a bus and control lines (not shown) to transmit and receive data and information to and from each other.

Note that the server device 200 and the provider device 300 do not need to have all of the components shown in FIG. 3, and some components may be omitted. Furthermore, the server device 200 and the provider device 300 may be provided with components other than those shown in FIG. 3, such as a display 111, an input interface, and an input device. Note that the memory 213 and processor 212 of the server device 200 and the provider device 300 may be configured as an integrated unit in a single computer, or may be distributed across multiple computers.

The output interface 211 connects output devices such as a speaker (not shown) and a display 111 to the server device 200 and the provider device 300. These output devices may be located outside the server device 200 and the provider device 300 and connected via the output interface 211, or may be configured integrally with the server device 200 and the provider device 300 and connected to the output interface 211.

The processor 212 may be composed of one or more CPUs (microprocessors) and their peripheral circuits. Alternatively, the processor 212 may be composed of a combination of one or more CPUs and one or more GPUs specialized for image processing, and their peripheral circuits. The processor 212 functions as a control unit that controls other connected components based on various programs stored in the memory 213.

Specifically, the processor 212 of the server device 200 and the provider device 300 reads from the memory 213 and executes an application program for processing communications with other devices via the communication network 14. The processor 212 also reads from the memory 213 and executes a program for running the OS.

In particular, in this embodiment, the processor 212 of the server device 200 reads from memory 213 and executes an application program including predetermined instructions for generating first promotional information to be provided to consumers and for promoting consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by a business. The processor 212 of the server device 200 also reads from memory 213 and executes an application program including predetermined instructions for receiving behavioral information indicating behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services undertaken by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer. The processor 212 of the server device 200 also reads from memory 213 and executes an application program including predetermined instructions for analyzing second promotional information to promote consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business or a business different from the business, using a trained analysis model obtained based on the first promotional information and the behavioral information.

The memory 213 is composed of ROM, RAM, non-volatile memory (NVM), HDD, etc., and functions as a storage unit. Furthermore, removable storage media, databases, etc. can be connected to the memory 213.

ROM is memory that can retain written data without a power supply, but does not allow data to be written from the processor 212. ROM stores, as programs, specific instructions and commands for executing the application program and OS according to this embodiment.

RAM is memory that retains data only while power is supplied, and allows data to be written to and read from the processor 212. Non-volatile memory is memory that can retain written data without power being supplied, and allows data to be written to and read from the processor 212.

While a program stored in ROM is being processed by the processor 212, data required for this processing can be written to and read from the RAM and non-volatile memory. Furthermore, as described above, data can be written to and read from the RAM and non-volatile memory in response to the execution of business application programs downloaded from a portal site, etc.

Specifically, the memory 213 stores application programs for executing communication processes between the server device 200 and the provider device 300 and other nodes via the communication network 14. The memory 213 also stores business application programs for executing processes performed by the server device 200 and the provider device 300 in distributing advertising media using the above-mentioned system 1. The processor 212 also stores programs for executing the OS.

In particular, in this embodiment, the memory 213 of the server device 200 stores an application program including predetermined instructions for generating first promotional information to be provided to consumers and for promoting consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by a business. The memory 213 of the server device 200 also stores an application program including predetermined instructions for receiving behavioral information indicating behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services performed by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer. The memory 213 of the server device 200 also stores an application program including predetermined instructions for analyzing second promotional information to promote consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business or a business different from the business, using a trained analysis model obtained based on the first promotional information and the behavioral information.

The communication interface 214 of the server device 200 and the provider device 300 includes a communication processing circuit 115 and an antenna (not shown), similar to the communication interface 114 of the consumer terminal device 100. The communication interface 214 connects the communication network 14 to the server device 200 and the provider device 300 via the communication processing circuit 115 and the antenna, and functions as a communication unit that transmits and receives data to and from other devices connected to the communication network 14.

Specifically, the communication interfaces 214 of the server device 200 and the business operator device 300 send and receive information to and from the portal site described above. Furthermore, the communication interfaces 214 of the server device 200 and the business operator device 300 send and receive information and data required for the processing of the server device 200 and the business operator device 300 in distributing advertising media using system 1 to and from other devices.

5. Information stored in memory 213 of server device 200 The information stored in memory 213 of server device 200 shown in Figures 1 and 3 will now be described. Figure 4A shows a promotion information table used to manage promotion information. Figure 4B shows a consumer table used to manage consumers.

As shown in Figure 4A, the promotion information table contains information related to m promotion information. Each row of the promotion information table contains, in association with each other, promotion identification information W, condition information A, promotion information B, provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, time information K, behavior summary information L, effect information M, and performance information N. Promotion information B contains, in association with each other, announcement information C, business operator attribute information D, announcement attribute information E, and coupon information F.

The consumer table shown in Figure 4B also includes information related to n consumers. The n consumers include consumers to whom the latest advertising media will be distributed. As shown in Figure 4B, each row in the consumer table includes associated consumer (user) identification information U, attribute information P, and behavioral information O. The behavioral information O also includes associated access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V.

In the promotion information table, a new row is created and stored in memory 213 each time an advertising contract is concluded between the business and the distributor and an advertisement is placed. Even if an advertisement is placed under a new contract, previously added rows are not deleted unless there is a special reason. Therefore, information is added and stored in the promotion information table each time a new advertisement is placed.

In addition, each time advertising media is distributed to a new consumer, a new row for the consumer that did not exist before the distribution is created in the consumer table (Figure 4B) and stored in memory 213. On the other hand, even when a row for a new consumer is added, rows that were previously added are not deleted from the consumer table unless a reason for deletion arises, such as the information becoming invalid due to the consumer moving. Therefore, new information is added and accumulated in the consumer information table each time advertising media is distributed to a new consumer.

In each of the m rows of the promotion information table shown in FIG. 4A, the promotion identification information W uniquely identifies the promotion information. In other words, the promotion identification information W uniquely identifies the information contained in each of the m rows included in the promotion information table. Note that the promotion identification information W can be used as information that identifies the advertising medium.

Condition information A indicates the conditions under which a consumer must satisfy before the business will grant a special benefit to the consumer. These conditions include, for example, the consumer reading the URL of a portal site operated by server device 200 from a recording medium, such as a two-dimensional code attached to an advertising medium, using consumer terminal device 100 and accessing the portal site. These conditions also include the consumer downloading a business application program from the portal site to consumer terminal device 100, executing it, and registering the consumer's personal information. These conditions also include the consumer using the business's services by using a coupon sent from the portal site to consumer terminal device 100 along with promotion identification information W in response to this registration. The following explanation assumes that the business will grant a special benefit to a consumer if condition information A satisfies all of the conditions described in this section. However, the conditions indicated by condition information A may be changed as appropriate based on the business's policies, etc., and the contract between the business and the distributor may also be changed. The promotion information table is also updated with the changed condition information A and stored in memory 213.

Promotion information B in the promotion information table is distributed to the consumer's consumer terminal device 100 as electronic data based on at least one of the provision method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K. Alternatively, promotion information B is published on paper media or the like and distributed to the consumer's home or the like. Promotion information B is used to encourage consumers to use the business operator's services.

As mentioned above, the notice information C included in the promotion information B indicates advertisements and the like used to encourage consumers to use the business's services. Furthermore, the business attribute information D indicates the business that uses the promotion information B, as well as the business's attributes, such as its industry and size. Furthermore, the notice attribute information E indicates the attributes of the notice information C, such as the business whose use is promoted by the notice information C, the business that provides this business, and the fee paid by users for using this business.

As described above, coupon information F indicates whether a coupon can be used to grant a benefit from a business to a consumer, and the details of the coupon if it is used. The coupon includes, for example, an image of the coupon and information indicating the percentage of the cashback value to be given to the consumer by the business. Furthermore, the coupon includes reference information used to reference the corresponding notice information C, business attribute information D, and notice attribute information E. Using this reference information, the server device 200, etc., can reference the notice information C, business attribute information D, and notice attribute information E corresponding to the coupon. Therefore, by processing the coupon, the server device 200, etc., can obtain information indicating the business whose use is promoted by the coupon, the business providing this business, the value of the business, the details of the benefit, etc.

The provision method information G indicates the method and conditions for providing the announcement information C and coupon information F contained in the promotion information B to consumers. For example, if the announcement information C contained in the promotion information B is provided to consumers by publication in a paper medium, the provision method information G indicates the method and conditions for distribution of the paper medium. Distribution methods for paper medium include posting and distribution in stores or on the street. Furthermore, for example, if the promotion information B or the announcement information C of the promotion information B is electronic information, the provision method information G indicates the method and conditions for distribution of the announcement information C from the server device 200 or the like to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication network 14. Examples of electronic information distribution methods include distribution methods using a recording medium such as a two-dimensional code on which the URL of the website from which the electronic information is distributed and the promotion identification information W are recorded. Examples of electronic information distribution methods include distribution methods using a business application program downloaded and installed on the consumer terminal device 100. The distribution conditions indicate, for example, that the location and time range within which the paper medium containing the announcement information C is distributed is limited depending on the content of the announcement information C. The distribution conditions also indicate, for example, that the location and time range within which the announcement information C is distributed is limited depending on the content of the announcement information C.

Furthermore, if the coupon information F included in the promotion information B is information provided to consumers by distribution, the distribution method information G indicates the distribution method and conditions. Coupon information F can be distributed from a portal site by accessing the portal site's URL recorded in the two-dimensional code, by installing a predetermined application program in advance and distributing through the application program, by sending the coupon information to an email address registered with the consumer, or by entering the URL of a site where the coupon information can be obtained in the email address and distributing by having the consumer access the URL. Distribution conditions for coupon information F include access to a predetermined portal site, introducing the service provided by the business to other consumers, past usage of the service provided by the business (e.g., number of points), the day of the week, date (e.g., birthday or birth month), and time of access. Although not described in detail, coupon information F may also be further limited to its recipients by target information H, distribution destination information I, and time information K, as with announcement information C.

Target information H indicates the attributes of consumers who are suitable as recipients or recipients of announcement information C contained in promotion information B. Note that these attributes correspond to attribute information P contained in the consumer table (Figure 4B). Destination location information I indicates the geographical range to which announcement information C will be delivered or distributed, for example, by attributes such as city center, suburbs, residential area, and building district, as well as names on a map, longitude, latitude, etc.

Time information K indicates the time range during which announcement information C included in promotion information B is delivered or distributed to consumers. For example, if the business is a supermarket and announcement information C is published in the supermarket's advertising media, time information K indicates the day of the week and time period during which consumers select items to purchase at the supermarket. Also, for example, if the business is a clothing retailer and announcement information C promotes a bargain sale as part of its business, time information K indicates a period during which the seasons change, etc.

The behavioral aggregate information L includes at least one of the following information indicating the first to fourth ratios, which indicate the behavior of consumers in response to the distribution of advertising media, obtained by the server device 200 aggregating the behavioral information O contained in the consumer table (Figure 4B). For example, the first ratio indicates the number of consumers who accessed the portal site after receiving the distribution of advertising media relative to the number of advertising media p. The first ratio can be calculated by dividing the total number of access information R, which indicates that consumers who received the distribution of advertising media accessed the portal site, by the number of distributed advertising media p. The second ratio indicates the ratio of the number of consumers who used the business operator's services after receiving the distribution of advertising media relative to the number of distributed advertising media p. The second ratio can be calculated by dividing the total number of usage information S, which indicates that consumers who received the distribution of advertising media used the business operator's services, by the number of distributed advertisements p. The third ratio indicates the ratio of the number of consumers who uploaded images of receipts, etc. to the portal site relative to the number of distributed advertising media p. The third ratio can be calculated by dividing the total number of receipt information T, which indicates that consumers who received advertising media and uploaded receipt images to a portal site, by the number p of distributed advertisements. The fourth ratio indicates the ratio of the number of consumers who used coupons to use the business's services, relative to the number p of distributed advertising media. The fourth ratio can be calculated by dividing the total number of coupon usage information V, which indicates that consumers who received advertising media used coupons, by the number p of distributed advertisements.

Effectiveness information M indicates the effectiveness of advertising media, for example, the total amount of consideration paid by consumers to whom advertising media was distributed for using the business's services, relative to the number of advertising media distributed. Effectiveness information M is generated by the following first and second processes. In the first process, the server device 200 performs OCR processing on images of receipts, etc. included in receipt information T included in behavior information O, and reads the consideration paid by consumers from each piece of receipt information T. In the second process, the server device 200 calculates the total amount of consideration paid by consumers for using the business's services, divides it by the number p of advertising media distributed, and generates effectiveness information M.

Performance information N indicates the ratio of the number of advertising media p' actually distributed to consumers to the number of advertising media p that were planned to be distributed. The ratio of consumers who access a portal site after receiving advertising media compared to the number of advertising media p can be estimated statistically or based on the distributor's experience. Therefore, the number of advertising media p' estimated to have actually been distributed to consumers can be calculated by dividing the total number of access information R included in behavioral information O by this ratio. Performance information N is calculated by dividing the number of advertising media p' estimated to have actually been distributed to consumers by the number of advertising media p that were planned to be distributed. If performance information N (= p'/p) is a value of 1 or less, the closer performance information N is to 1, the more the distributor can assert to the business operator that it has honestly distributed advertising media to consumers. Alternatively, if performance information N is a value greater than 1, the distributor can assert to the business operator that the distribution of advertising media has had a greater effect than expected.

As explained above, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K indicate the attributes, location, and time range of consumers who are suitable targets for promoting the use of the business through announcement information C contained in promotion information B. However, as mentioned above, it may be decided in the advertising contract that the distributor will optimize the attributes of consumers who will be the recipients or distribution destinations. Note that the initial condition information A, provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K before optimization are generated and created by the business operator using business operator device 300, for example, and transmitted to server device 200 before the advertising medium is distributed.

In each of the n rows of the consumer table shown in Figure 4B, consumer identification information U uniquely identifies the consumer to whom or who may be the recipient of notification information C contained in promotion information B. In other words, consumer identification information U uniquely identifies the information contained in each of the n rows in the consumer table. Note that consumer identification information U identifies not only consumers who have been the recipients of advertising media in the past, but also consumers who will most recently be the recipients of advertising media.

As described above, attribute information P corresponds to target information H included in the promotion information table (Figure 4A) and indicates attributes such as personal information of the consumer identified by consumer identification information U. More specifically, attribute information P indicates attributes of this consumer, such as name, address, age, gender, payment account, the consumer's past business usage history, the consumer's hobbies and preferences, etc. As described above, server device 200, for example, launches a business application program downloaded to consumer terminal device 100 and prompts the consumer to register personal information on the portal site. Attribute information P is generated from personal information collected through such registration, etc.

The behavioral information O includes access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V, which indicate the behavior of a consumer identified by consumer identification information U after receiving or receiving advertising media. Furthermore, the behavioral information O may include other information in addition to the access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V. The other information indicates, for example, whether the consumer downloaded and installed a business application program on the consumer terminal device 100. Furthermore, the further information indicates, for example, whether the consumer launched a business application program on the consumer terminal device 100 and registered personal information, etc., on the business or distributor's website.

Among the information contained in the behavioral information O, access information R indicates whether a consumer who received the advertising medium accessed a specific website, such as the portal site mentioned above. This specific website is identified, for example, by a URL contained in the recording medium information read from the recording medium attached to the advertising medium using the consumer terminal device 100 by a consumer who received or received the notification information C (Figure 4A) contained in the promotion information B. Usage information S indicates whether a consumer identified by consumer identification information U used the services of a business whose use was promoted by the notification information C identified by promotion identification information W. Receipt information T indicates information that proves that a consumer who used the business's services used the business's services and the amount of the fee, such as an image of a receipt issued in response to payment for the use of the services. Alternatively, receipt information T indicates information such as an image uploaded by the consumer to the server device 200 or business device 300 along with the promotion identification information W. Coupon usage information V indicates whether the consumer used a coupon that was distributed or delivered by being attached to an advertising medium in which notice information C (Figure 4A) was published.

6. Communication Sequence The communication sequence between the consumer terminal device 100, the server device 200, and the business operator device 300 in the system 1 will now be described with reference to Figures 5A to 5C. Figures 5A to 5C are first to third communication sequence diagrams illustrating communication processing performed between the consumer terminal device 100, the server device 200, and the business operator device 300 shown in Figures 1 to 3. The communication sequence shown in Figure 5A illustrates a specific example in which, as described above with reference to Figure 1, paper advertising media containing announcement information C for promotion information B and further including a recording medium are distributed to consumers by posting. Another specific example is when the server device 200 functions as a web server and operates a business operator's portal site, providing it to consumers.

Therefore, all information sent from the portal site to the consumer terminal device 100 is output from the server device 200. In addition, all information input to the portal site is input to the server device 200. As mentioned above, the production of advertising media by businesses, the delivery of advertising media from businesses to distributors, and the distribution of advertising media to consumers by distributors include parts that must be done manually. Therefore, for ease of explanation, the communication sequence and processing shown in Figure 5A etc. include manual work in addition to the processing and communication performed by the consumer terminal device 100 and server device 200.

At S100 in FIG. 5A, a distributor using the server device 200 and a business using the business device 300 enter into a contract for the distribution of advertising media by posting a predetermined number p of advertising media between them. As described above, this contract may be made via the server device 200, communications network 14, and business device 300, or the business and distributor may meet in person. The contract will determine matters such as those described with reference to FIG. 1. This explanation will take as an example a case in which the contract stipulates that target information H, etc., will be optimized. The processor 212 of the business device 300 and server device 200 stores contract information indicating this contract in memory 213.

At S102, the business operator inputs promotion information B (Figure 4A) including notice information C indicating an advertisement to be placed in a paper advertising medium to the business operator device 300, for example, using a recording medium detachable from the memory 213. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 receives the promotion information B via the memory 213 and stores it in the memory 213. Furthermore, the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 reads the promotion information B from the memory 213 and transmits the received promotion information B to the server device 200 via the communication interface 214.

At S104, the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 transmits the initial information other than the promotion information B contained in each row of the promotion information table to the server device 200 via the communication interface 214. That is, as described above, the processor 212 transmits the initial condition information A, promotion identification information W, provision method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K to the server device 200 via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives this initial information via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the server device 200 further updates the promotion information table with this initial information and stores it in the memory 213.

At S106, the processor 212 of the server device 200 analyzes the information received in the processing of S214 and stored in the memory 213 based on the learned analysis model, and optimizes this information. The learned analysis model is generated by the processor 212 of the consumer terminal device 100 learning the information contained in the promotion information table and the consumer table. The learned analysis model is generated by the processor 212 through machine learning based on the information contained in some or all of the accumulated promotion information table and consumer table, and is stored in the memory 213. The learned analysis model is used to generate provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K so that behavior information O indicating the consumer's greatest behavior after the distribution of advertising media and coupon information is generated.

In S108, the processor 212 of the server device 200 transmits optimization information indicating the optimized provision method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K for the advertising medium and coupon information obtained in the processing of S104 to the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 receives the optimization information via the communication interface 214 and displays it on the display 11 to show to the business operator.

In S110, the business operator checks the optimization information displayed on the business operator device 300 and then performs an operation to approve it on the input interface (not shown) of the business operator device 300. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 accepts this operation.

At S112, the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 generates approval information indicating that the business operator has approved the content of the optimization information, in accordance with the business operator's operation accepted in the processing of S110. The processor 212 transmits the generated approval information to the server device 200 via the communication interface 214.

At S114, the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 adds a new row to the promotion information table (Figure 4A). Furthermore, the processor 212 generates information to be included in the new row, updates the promotion information table with the generated information, and stores it in the memory 213.

At S116, the processor 212 of the server device 200 transmits information indicating the recording medium attached to the advertising medium, or information recorded on the recording medium, to the business device 300 via the communication interface 214. This recording medium is, for example, an RFID tag from which the processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 can contactlessly read information, or the two-dimensional code described above. As described above, the recording medium information recorded on these recording media includes the URL of the portal site described above and promotion identification information W (Figure 4A) used to identify the advertising medium.

At S118, the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 receives information indicating the recording medium from the server device 200 via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 creates an image such as the two-dimensional code described above from the information indicating the recording medium. The business operator produces advertising media with the recording medium on which the information is recorded, in quantities equal to or greater than the number specified in the contract.

In S120, the business delivers the advertising media created in the processing of S118 to the distribution business.

At S122, the distributor using the server device 200 performs processing to distribute advertising media to consumers in accordance with the contract concluded in the processing of S100. More specifically, the processor 212 of the server device 200 determines the method and conditions for providing the advertising media and coupon information based on the provision method information G contained in the optimized promotion information table. The processor 212 then selects consumer identification information U from the consumer table (Figure 4B) that corresponds to the attribute information P that matches the target information H (Figure 4A). The processor 212 then selects recipient location information I and time information K that correspond to the selected consumer identification information U. Note that if the number p of selected recipient location information I and time information K becomes excessively large, the processor 212 selects a predetermined number of recipient location information I and time information K in descending order of the number of corresponding consumer identification information U. Through these processing steps, information such as a list of consumers to whom the recording medium will be distributed, which is necessary for distributing the advertising media, is generated.

In S124, based on the delivery method information G determined by the processor 212, one or more delivery personnel of the delivery company will distribute the advertising medium by posting to the homes of some or all of the consumers to whom the advertising medium created in the processing of S122 is to be distributed.

The processing of S140 shown in Figure 5B indicates that all information received by the portal site operated by the distributor using the server device 200 is input to the processor 212 of the server device 200 and stored in the memory 213, as described above. The processing of S140 also indicates that all information transmitted by the portal site is output by the processor 212 of the server device 200, as described above. The processing of S142 to S148 indicates the processing from when the consumer accesses the portal site, to when they register their personal information using a business application program, and receive the coupon indicated by coupon information F (Figure 4A). Therefore, the processing of S140 allows the processor 212 of the server device 200 to execute the processing of S142 to S148 without communicating with the business operator device 300.

The processing of S180 to S184 represents the processing performed by the processor 212 of the server device 200 on behalf of the business to provide cash back to consumers who have used the business's services using a coupon. The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives an image of a receipt uploaded from the consumer terminal device 100 via a portal site, along with promotion identification information W. By performing OCR processing or the like on the received receipt image, the processor 212 can identify the business, service, and fee for the service from the receipt image. The processor 212 acquires the notification attribute information E, etc. contained in the promotion information B corresponding to the promotion identification information W received together with the image from the consumer terminal device 100. The processor 212 further compares the business, service, and fee indicated in the acquired notification attribute information E, etc. with the identified business, service, and fee.

The processor 212 of the server device 200 determines whether or not this information matches through this comparison. If this information matches, the processor 212 can determine that the benefit granted to the user via the portal site was granted to the consumer who used the coupon sent to the consumer terminal device 100 via the portal site along with the promotion identification information W. Therefore, the processor 212 can grant the benefit to the consumer who used the coupon to use the business's services on behalf of the business. In other words, the processor 212 of the server device 200 can also execute the processes of S180 to S184 without receiving information about the use of the services from the business device 300.

The processing of S142 to S186 will be explained in more detail. In S142, a consumer who has received advertising media with an attached recording medium operates the consumer terminal device 100 to read recording medium information from the recording medium attached to the advertising media. The processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 accepts the consumer's operation via the touch panel 117 and input interface 116. In response to the accepted operation, the processor 112 reads the recording medium information from the recording medium via the camera 118 and input interface 116. The processor 112 uses the URL included in the recording medium information to access the operator's portal site operated by the server device 200 via the communication interface 114 and transmits promotion identification information W (Figure 4A). The processor 212 of the server device 200 detects access from the consumer terminal device 100 via the portal site and receives the promotion identification information W.

At S144, the processor 212 updates the access information R of the behavior information O in the consumer table (Figure 4B) with information indicating that this access has been detected, and stores this in the memory 213. Furthermore, the processor 212 transmits information including a UI image requesting the consumer's consent to the download and installation of the business application program corresponding to the promotion identification information W to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. The processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 receives this information via the communication interface 114. The processor 112 displays the UI image included in the received information on the display 111.

The consumer operates the UI image displayed on the display 111 to consent to the download and installation of the business application program. The processor 112 accepts this operation via the touch panel 117 and the input interface 116. The processor 112 transmits information indicating this operation to the portal site via the communication interface 114. The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives the information transmitted from the consumer terminal device 100 to the portal site via the communication interface 214.

The processor 212 of the server device 200 downloads the business application program to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. The processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 receives the downloaded business application program via the communication interface 114. The processor 112 executes the business application program and installs it on the consumer terminal device 100.

At S146, the processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 executes the business application program to display on the display 111 a UI image that prompts consumers to whom the advertising media is distributed to input attribute information P (Figure 4B). When the consumer performs an operation to input attribute information P using the displayed UI image, the processor 112 accepts this operation via the touch panel 117 and the input interface 116. The processor 112 transmits the attribute information P input by the consumer to the portal site via the communication interface 114.

The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives the attribute information P sent from the consumer terminal device 100 to the portal site via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 updates the consumer table (Figure 4B) with the received attribute information P, stores it in memory 213, and registers the attribute information P.

At S148, the processor 212 of the server device 200 references the promotion information table (Figure 4A) and reads out the condition information A corresponding to the promotion identification information W. If the read out condition information A indicates that a benefit will be given to the consumer by the business operator by using the coupon indicated by the coupon information F, the processor 212 reads out the coupon information F from the promotion information B. Furthermore, the processor 212 transmits the coupon indicated by the read out coupon information F together with the promotion identification information W to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. In other words, in this example, the method of providing the coupon information F is specified by the provision method information G as a method of distributing the coupon information F by accessing a portal site via a two-dimensional code.

Furthermore, the processor 212 updates the access information R included in the behavioral information O in the consumer table (Figure 4B) corresponding to the consumer who accessed the portal site with information indicating that access has occurred, and stores this in the memory 213. The processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 receives the coupon and promotion identification information W from the server device 200 via the communication interface 114. Note that providing this coupon is merely one example. For example, after a consumer first uses the business's services by reading information from a recording medium attached to the distributed advertising medium, the consumer may then use the business's services using a business application program.

In S160, the consumer performs an operation on the consumer terminal device 100 to use the coupon received in the processing of S146 to take advantage of the business operator's services. For example, if the business operator is a retailer that sells products, this operation is an operation by the consumer to order and purchase the product from the business operator using the coupon. The consumer terminal device 100 accepts this operation via the touch panel 117 and input interface 116. The processor 112 transmits information indicating this operation to the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 114. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 receives this information via the communication interface 214.

At S162, payment for the consumer's use of the business's services is made between the business device 300 and the consumer terminal device 100 via a financial institution (not shown). For example, when a business sells a product in response to an order from a consumer, the consumer pays the business for the product through this payment.

In S164, the consumer uses the business's services. For example, if the consumer orders and purchases a product from a business, this use is executed by sending the product and a receipt for the purchase price from the business to the consumer. As described above, the processes of S160 to S186 can be executed without sending information from the business device 300 to the server device 200. However, as indicated by the dotted line in S166, information indicating the content of the consumer's use of the business's services may be sent from the business device 300 to the server device 200.

In S180, the consumer operates the consumer terminal device 100 to upload the image of the receipt received from the business in S164, along with the promotion identification information W, to the portal site. The processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 accepts this operation via the touch panel 117 and input interface 116. In response to the accepted operation, the processor 112 photographs the receipt using the camera 118 and input interface 116. The processor 112 uploads the image of the receipt obtained by this photograph, along with the promotion identification information W, to the portal site via the communication interface 114. The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives the image of the receipt and the promotion identification information W uploaded to the portal site via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 processes the image of the receipt and the promotion identification information W to determine the price paid by the consumer to the business. For example, if the consumer purchases a product from a business and pays for it, the price of the product can be determined from the image of the receipt.

In S182, the processor 212 of the server device 200 transmits the image of the receipt received in the processing of S180 and the coupon corresponding to this receipt to the business device 300 via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the business device 300 receives the image of the receipt and the coupon via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 processes the image of the receipt to determine the amount paid by the consumer to the business, and stores this in memory 213 in association with the coupon.

In S184, the server device 200 performs processing with the consumer terminal device 100 to return to the consumer, via a financial institution or the like, the proportion of the consideration calculated in the processing of S140 indicated by the coupon. In other words, the processor 212 of the server device 200 performs processing on behalf of the business using the business device 300 to provide a cashback to reduce the consideration paid by the consumer to the business.

In S186, settlement for the cashback agency processing in S184 is made between the business using the business device 300 and the distributor using the server device 200. In other words, the business pays the amount returned to the consumer by the distributor in processing S144 to the distributor via a financial institution or the like.

The series of processes from S160 to S186 are associated via the coupon and promotion identification information W. Therefore, as described above, the distributor using the server device 200 and the business using the business device 300 can accurately determine which cashback the payment in S186 relates to. Note that FIG. 5B shows a case in which a coupon is sent to the consumer terminal device 100 on the condition that a business application program is downloaded to the consumer terminal device 100 and personal information is registered using the business application program. However, the coupon may be sent to the consumer terminal device 100 on the condition that the consumer accesses a portal site using the consumer terminal device 100. Furthermore, if condition information A indicates that a benefit will be granted to the consumer by the business using the business application program, the benefit may be granted when the consumer uses the business application program to utilize the business's services.

At S200 shown in Figure 5C, the distribution period for the advertising media ends. The processor 212 of the server device 200 processes the access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V contained in the behavior information O included in the consumer table (Figure 4B) and corresponding to each consumer identification information U to whom the advertising media was distributed. Through this processing, the processor 212 generates behavior summary information L, effect information M, and performance information N contained in the promotion information table (Figure 4A).

The processor 212 updates the promotion information table (Figure 4B) with the generated behavior summary information L, effect information M, and performance information N, and stores the information in the memory 213. Furthermore, the processor 212 calculates the amount of compensation to be charged to the business operator using the business operator device 300 based on at least one of the behavior summary information L, effect information M, and performance information N.

In S202, the processor 212 of the server device 200 transmits at least one of the generated behavioral summary information L, effectiveness information M, and performance information N used to calculate the amount of compensation to the business using the business device 300. The processor 212 also invoices the business using the business device 300 for payment of the amount of compensation calculated in the processing of S200. The transmission of one or more of the behavioral summary information L, effectiveness information M, and performance information N to the business, and the invoice to the business for payment of compensation for distribution of advertising media, are carried out between the server device 200 and the business device 300 via the communications network 14. Alternatively, these may be carried out by means of mail from the distributor using the server device 200 to the business.

At S204, payment for the distribution of the advertising media is settled between the distributor using the server device 200 and the business using the business device 300 via a financial institution or the like, and this payment is paid by the business to the distributor. In other words, the advertising fee is settled between the distributor and the business.

In S206, the processor 212 of the server device 200 adds a new row to the consumer information table shown in FIG. 4B. The processor 212 further stores, in the newly added row, information indicating the consumer's behavior in response to the distribution of advertising media pursuant to the contract made in S100.

In S22, the processor 212 of the server device 200 performs machine learning using the promotion information table and consumer information table stored and accumulated in the processing of S206. Details of the processing of S22 will be described later with reference to FIG. 5D. This machine learning is performed using a neural network with or without training data. The purpose of this machine learning is to determine the optimal delivery method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K to encourage consumers to take the most actions.

Figure 5D is a diagram illustrating the details of the processing of S22 shown in Figure 5C. In S220 shown in Figure 5D, the processor 212 of the server device 200 references all rows in the promotion information table (Figure 4A) that contain promotion identification information W other than the promotion identification information W corresponding to the announcement information C that was most recently published and distributed in an advertising medium. The processor 212 acquires all of the provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K contained in the referenced rows as learning information.

At S222, the processor 212 of the server device 200 references rows in the consumer table (Figure 4B) that contain the consumer identification information U of all consumers who were most recently distributed advertising media. The processor 212 aggregates the access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V contained in the behavior information O of all referenced rows and obtains this as evaluation information. Note that the number p of advertising media differs for each contract between the business and the distributor. Therefore, the access information R, usage information S, receipt information T, and coupon usage information V may each be appropriately normalized based on the number p of distributed advertising media to prevent the number p of distributed advertising media from affecting the trained analysis model.

At S224, the processor 212 of the server device 200 labels the learning information acquired in the processing of S222 based on the evaluation information acquired in the processing of S224. The processor 212 generates label information as a result of this labeling.

At S226, the processor 212 of the server device 200 performs machine learning using the training information acquired in the processing of S222 and labeled with the evaluation information in the processing of S224. The processor 212 performs this machine learning, for example, using a neural network including multiple stages of neurons. More specifically, the processor 212 first inputs the provision method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K acquired in the processing of S200 into the neural network. Furthermore, the processor 212 adjusts the parameters of each neuron so that the output of the neural network is the same as the evaluation information acquired in the processing of S224. Machine learning is achieved through these processes.

At S228, the processor 212 of the server device 200 acquires the neural network used for machine learning in the processing of S226 and the parameters of each neuron as a trained analysis model. As described above, the processor 212 uses the acquired trained analysis model to analyze and optimize the provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K for distributing advertising media. Note that while the case where the trained analysis model is generated by the processor 212 has been described here, the processing related to this generation may be performed by a processor of another server device or another terminal device. Furthermore, the trained analysis model generated as described above may be used by a processor of another server device or another terminal device.

In S230 shown in FIG. 5C, the machine learning in S22 weights the connections between nodes included in multiple layers of the neural network. The processor 212 of the server device 200 uses the neural network for which machine learning in the processing of S22 has been completed as the trained analytical model in the processing of S106 shown in FIG. 5A. The processor 212 of the server device 200 performs the processing of S106 shown in FIG. 5A based on this trained analytical model.

6. Processing of Server Device 200 The processing of server device 200 will now be described. First, with reference to Figures 6A to 6D, the processing of server device 200 corresponding to the processing of S100 to S124 shown in Figure 5A will be described. Note that in the description of the processing of server device 200, processor 212 of server device 200 will be simply referred to as processor 212.

Figure 6A is a first flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in Figures 1 and 3. In S400 shown in Figure 6A, the processor 212 of the server device 200 determines whether or not a request for distribution to consumers of advertising media has been made by the business device 300 via the communication interface 214. If a request has been made (Y), the server device 200 proceeds to processing of S402; if no request has been made (N), the server device 200 remains in processing of S400.

In S402, the processor 212 concludes a contract with the business operator device 300 for the distribution of advertising media and coupon information via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 stores the contents of this contract in the memory 213. As mentioned above, the processing of S200 and S202 may be carried out between the business operator and the distributor, without going through the server device 200 and the business operator device 300.

In processing S404, the processor 212 determines whether all initial information, such as the promotion identification information W, contained in one row of the promotion information table (Figure 4A) has been received from the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214. If the processor 212 has not received this information (N), it remains in processing S404, but if the processor 212 has received this information (Y), it proceeds to processing S406.

In S406, the processor 212 analyzes and optimizes the provision method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K received in the processing of S404 based on the learned analysis model generated in the processing of S22 in Figures 5C and 5D.

At S408, the processor 212 transmits the optimized delivery method information G, target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K to the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214.

In S410, the processor 212 determines whether approval information has been received from the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214. If approval information has been received (Y), the processor 212 proceeds to processing S412; if approval information has not been received, the processor 212 remains in processing S410 (N).

At S412, the processor 212 transmits information indicating the recording medium on which the information is stored and which will be attached to the advertising medium to the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214. The processor 212 of the business operator device 300 receives the information indicating the recording medium from the server device 200 via the communication interface 214. The business operator creates the advertising medium with the recording medium attached, which has been generated based on this information, and delivers it to the distributor.

Figure 6B is a diagram illustrating an example of advertising media with a recording medium attached. The business is, for example, a store that mainly sells food, such as a supermarket. In this case, the advertising media includes advertisements for various foods, such as fruits, beverages, sweets, and fresh produce, as illustrated in Figure 6B. In addition, a recording medium on which information such as a URL and promotion identification information W (Figure 4A) is recorded is attached to the advertising media, for example in the form of a two-dimensional code.

In S414 shown in FIG. 6A, processor 212 determines whether advertising media such as those illustrated in FIG. 6B have been delivered by the business operator. If the advertising media have been delivered (Y), processor 212 proceeds to processing S416; if the advertising media have not been delivered (N), processor 212 remains in processing S414.

At S416, the processor 212 performs processing for the distributor to distribute the advertising medium to consumers, such as processing to generate information such as a list of consumers to whom the advertising medium will be distributed. As mentioned above, the advertising medium is distributed to consumers by the distributor posting, etc.

In S418, the distributor distributes the advertising media delivered in S414 to consumers by posting using the information generated in S416.

Next, referring to Figure 6C, the processing of the server device 200 corresponding to the processing of S142 to S184 shown in Figure 5B will be described. Figure 6C is a second flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in Figures 1 and 3.

At S440 shown in FIG. 6C, the processor 212 determines whether information for accessing the portal site has been received from the consumer's consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. If the processor 212 has received information for accessing the portal site (Y), it proceeds to processing of S442; if the processor 212 has not received information for accessing the portal site (N), it remains at processing of S440.

At S442, the processor 212 sends a message to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214 and the portal site, requesting the consumer's consent to the download and installation of the business application program.

At S444, the processor 212 of the server device 200 determines whether a message authorizing the download and installation of the business application program has been received from the consumer terminal device 100 via the portal site and communication interface 214. If the processor 212 has received a message of authorization (Y), it proceeds to processing of S446; if the processor 212 has not received a message of authorization (N), it remains at processing of S444.

At S446, the processor 212 of the server device 200 downloads the business application program to the consumer terminal device 100 that accessed the portal site in the processing of S440 via the communication interface 214 and the portal site. The downloaded business application program is launched on the consumer terminal device 100 and, with the consumer's consent, installed on the consumer terminal device 100.

Figure 6D is a diagram illustrating an example of an image displayed on the consumer terminal device 100 and used to download a business application program. In the image shown in Figure 6D, the business operator is shown as "ABC Store." The image shown in Figure 6D also includes an image labeled "ABC Store App Download Page" and an operation button labeled "Start Download" to request the consumer's permission to download the business application program, etc.

When access is detected, the processor 212 transmits an image such as that shown in Figure 6D to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. Furthermore, the processor 212 determines whether information indicating that the consumer has operated the operation button shown in Figure 6C has been received from the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. If the processor 212 receives this information (Y), it downloads the business application program to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214, installs it, and executes it.

At S448 shown in FIG. 6C, the processor 212 receives, via the portal site and communication interface 214, personal information registered by the consumer for the UI image of the business application program launched on the consumer terminal device 100. The processor 212 uses the received personal information to update the attribute information P in the consumer table (FIG. 4B) and stores and registers it in the memory 213.

At S450, the processor 212 transmits the coupon indicated by the coupon information F (Figure 4A) along with the promotion identification information W to the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214 and the portal site.

At S452, the processor 212 determines whether or not an image of a receipt uploaded by the consumer and indicating that the consumer has used the business's services has been received from the consumer terminal device 100 via the portal site and the communication interface 214, along with the promotion identification information W. If the communication interface 214 has received an image of the receipt (Y), it proceeds to processing of S454; if it has not received an image of the receipt (N), it remains at processing of S452.

At S454, the processor 212 transmits an image of the receipt and the coupon to the business device 300 via the communication interface 214.

At S456, the processor 212 acts as an agent for the business to provide cash back to the user who has sent an image of the receipt, etc., via the communication interface 214 and the portal site.

At S458, the processor 212 bills the business operator's business device 300 for the amount of cash back given to the user and a fee for the cash back agency via the communication interface 214. When the business operator device 300 responds to this bill, the processor 212 performs processing to settle the amount of cash back given to the consumer, etc., with the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214, via a financial institution, etc.

Next, referring to Figure 6E, the processing of the server device 200 corresponding to S200 to S206, S22, and S230 shown in Figure 5C will be described. Figure 6E is a third flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 shown in Figures 1 and 3.

As shown in FIG. 6E, in S480, processor 212 determines whether the distribution period for the advertising medium stipulated in the contract between the business operator and the distributor has ended. If the distribution period for the advertising medium has ended (Y), processor 212 proceeds to processing S482; if the distribution period has not ended (N), processor 212 remains in processing S480.

At S482, the processor 212 generates behavior summary information L, effect information M, and performance information N.

At S484, the processor 212 calculates the amount of compensation to be charged to the business operator by the distributor for the distribution of the advertising media, based on at least one of the behavior summary information L, effectiveness information M, and performance information N, among the information generated in the processing of S262. Furthermore, the processor 212 transmits at least one of the behavior summary information L, effectiveness information M, and performance information N used to calculate the amount of compensation to the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214.

At S486, the processor 212 invoices the business operator device 300 for payment of the amount calculated in the processing of S484 via the communication interface 214.

In S488, processor 212 determines whether the fee claimed in S286 has been paid. If the fee has been paid (Y), processor 212 proceeds to S490; if the fee has not been paid, processor 212 remains in S488.

In S490, the processor 212 performs settlement with the business operator device 300 via the communication interface 214, and receives payment of the amount claimed in the processing of S266 via a financial institution or the like. Note that, as mentioned above, the processing of S266 and S268 may be performed between the business operator and the distributor, without going through the server device 200 and the business operator device 300.

At S492, the processor 212 performs machine learning using the accumulated promotion information table and consumer information table in the process of S22 shown in Figures 5C and 5D. Through machine learning, the provision method information G, target information H, distribution location information I, and time information K are analyzed, and a trained analysis model is generated that optimizes this information so as to maximize the behavior of consumers indicated by the behavior information O.

In S494, the processor 212 designates the neural network for which machine learning in the processing of S492 has been completed as the trained analysis model.

7. Modifications A modification of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In this modification, in addition to distributing advertising media, the distributor also uses server device 200 to mediate transactions between businesses and consumers via a portal site. Figure 7A is a communication sequence diagram for this modification, in which the distributor distributes advertising media and also mediates transactions between businesses and consumers.

The communication sequence shown in Figure 7A corresponds to the processing of S160 to S164 in the communication sequence shown in Figure 5B, and the processing of S140 to S148 and S180 to S186 shown in Figure 5B is omitted in Figure 7A. Also, when a distributor acts on behalf of a business operator, the contract between the business operator and the distributor includes the distributor acting on behalf of the business operator and the business operator paying a fee to the distributor for this acting on behalf of the distributor.

As shown in FIG. 7A, in S240 and S242, the consumer performs an operation on the consumer terminal device 100 to use the coupon indicated in the coupon information F to utilize the business's services. The consumer terminal device 100 accepts this operation via the touch panel 117 and input interface 116. The processor 112 transmits information indicating this operation, along with the promotion identification information W, to the server device 200 via the communication interface 114 and the portal site. The processor 212 of the server device 200 receives this information via the communication interface 214.

In S244 and S246, the processor 212 of the server device 200 transmits, via the communication interface 214 and the portal site, information indicating that the use of the business indicated by the information received in the processing of S180 and S182 has been accepted.

In S248 and S250, the processor 212 of the server device 200 and the processor 112 of the consumer terminal device 100 communicate via the communication interface 214 and the portal site. Through this communication, a settlement is made via a financial institution (not shown) or the like, for the consumer to pay the distributor the fee for using the business services indicated by the information received in the processing of S240 and S242.

At S252, the processor 212 performs processing for the consumer's use of the business's services. For example, when a consumer purchases a product from a business, this processing is performed so that the distributor can ship the product to the consumer on behalf of the business. Note that in this case, the distributor will need to stock the business's product for shipping and order it from the business.

At S254, the processor 212 of the server device 200 and the processor 212 of the business operator device 300 communicate via the communication interface 214. Through this communication, the distributor pays the business operator the compensation it receives for providing services to the consumer on its behalf, and the business operator pays the distributor a fee via a financial institution, etc.

Next, referring to Figure 7B, the processing of the server device 200 corresponding to the communication sequence shown in Figure 7A will be described. Figure 7B is a flowchart showing the processing of the server device 200 corresponding to the communication sequence shown in Figure 7A. At S500 shown in Figure 7B, the processor 212 of the server device 200 performs processing to enable consumers to use the business operator's services.

In S502, the processor 212 determines whether or not information indicating that the consumer will use the business operator's services has been received from the consumer terminal device 100 via the communication interface 214. If the processor 212 has received this information (Y), it sends information indicating that it has accepted the consumer's request to use the business operator's services and proceeds to processing of S504; if the processor 212 has not received this information (N), it remains in processing of S502.

At S504, the processor 212 and the consumer terminal device 100 communicate via the communication interface 214. Through this communication, the processor 212 bills the consumer for the business's services accepted in the processing of S286 via the communication interface 214 and the consumer terminal device 100. In response to this bill, the processor 212 determines whether payment for the use of the services has been made from the consumer terminal device 100 via a financial institution or the like. If payment has been made (Y), the processor 212 proceeds to processing S506; if payment has not been made (N), the processor 212 remains in processing S504.

At S506, the processor 212 performs processing to allow the consumer to use the business's services.

At S508, the processor 212 communicates with the server device 200 via the communication interface 214. Through this communication, the distributor pays the business operator the compensation it receives for providing services to the consumer on its behalf, and the business operator pays the distributor a fee via a financial institution (not shown) or the like.

In S510, the processor 212 determines whether the payment made in the processing of S508 has been completed. If the payment has been completed (Y), the processor 212 ends the processing; if the payment has not been completed, the processor 212 remains in the processing of S510.

Note that while the above example illustrates a case in which a consumer uses a dedicated application program to access a business's services, such as to receive a special offer, a dedicated application program is not required to receive a special offer. Therefore, a consumer may use a general-purpose application program, such as a browser, to receive a special offer. Furthermore, by repeating the processing of S148 to S186 shown in FIG. 5A for multiple consumers, the server device 200 can realize a platform that enables multiple consumers to jointly purchase products, etc., offered by a business.

In such a platform, for example, a consumer receives advertising media bearing a two-dimensional code from a business. The consumer then reads the two-dimensional code using the consumer terminal device 100, accesses a website where notification information C contained in promotional information B is available, or obtains an application program. If the consumer then takes action such as purchasing a product based on the notification information C contained in promotional information B, a special benefit is provided to the consumer in accordance with that action. Furthermore, for subsequent purchases, not only is promotional information B provided via a two-dimensional code as described above, but notification information C contained in promotional information B is also provided to the consumer via a website or application program. If the consumer then takes further action such as purchasing a product based on the notification information C contained in the provided promotional information B, a special benefit is also provided to the consumer.

Specifically, the processor 212 of the server device 200 executes a process to select consumers to whom the announcement information C included in the promotion information B is to be provided at predetermined intervals. The processor 212 references consumer attributes stored in the memory 213. The processor 212 selects consumers with the appropriate attributes based on candidate information received, for example, from the business operator device 300 of the business operator. The candidate information includes at least one of the consumer attributes and the number of consumers to select for provision of the announcement information C included in the promotion information B. The processor 212 makes the selection by inputting the received candidate information into a learned recipient selection model. In other words, the processor 212 inputs the candidate information received from the business operator device 300 into the learned recipient selection model, and acquires the number of consumers determined by the candidate information as recipients based on the learned recipient selection model.

Here, the destination selection model is generated by the processor 212 of the server device 200 or a processor of another device. Specifically, information regarding the attributes of consumers who have been provided with the notification information C contained in the promotion information B is obtained in advance. This information is then assigned label information based on behavioral information indicating whether each consumer has taken action based on the notification information C contained in the promotion information B. The processor then performs machine learning using the obtained consumer attributes as input information and the label information as training data. This generates a trained destination generation model.

When the announcement information C included in the promotion information B is selected as described above, the processor 212 transmits the announcement information C included in the promotion information B to the consumer terminal device 100 of the selected consumer via the communications network. Upon receiving the announcement information C included in the promotion information B, the consumer terminal device 100 outputs a notification to the display 111 or the like via a business application program or the like that the announcement information C included in the promotion information B has been received. Thereafter, the amount of compensation is calculated and the benefit is provided using processing similar to that described in S126 and the like in Figure 5.

As explained above, according to system 1 of the embodiment, advertising media are distributed to consumers along with a recording medium storing the URL of a portal site, etc. Therefore, based on the number of consumers who access the portal site using this recording medium, the distributor can clearly prove to the business that the advertising media was distributed in good faith in accordance with the contract between the business and the distributor, and the effectiveness of the distribution of the advertising media. This increases the distributor's credibility, and the distributor can charge the business a fee for distributing the advertising media based on the track record of good faith distribution of the advertising media and the effectiveness of the distribution of the advertising media.

In addition, consumers can access the business's portal site from the recording medium attached to the advertising medium, obtain coupons from the portal site along with promotion identification information W, and receive special benefits when using the business's services. Businesses can also encourage consumers to use their services by attaching recording media to advertising media, directing consumers to their portal site, and providing special benefits. Distributors can also act on behalf of businesses to provide special benefits to consumers, and can even perform some of the business's operations, further increasing opportunities to earn commission income from businesses.

In addition, each time announcement information C included in promotion information B is delivered or distributed to a consumer, the trained analysis model obtained through machine learning using previously accumulated promotion information tables and consumer tables is updated. Therefore, the distributor can always optimize the target information H, distribution destination location information I, and time information K and provide them to the business. Therefore, the business can always send announcement information C included in promotion information B to the optimal delivery or distribution destination, maximizing the effect of increased sales through advertising.

In the above, the specific example was one in which the notice information C included in the promotion information B is advertising information published on paper media, and the notice information C included in the promotion information B is published on paper media and distributed to consumers. However, as mentioned above, the notice information C included in the promotion information B can be distributed to the consumer terminal device 100 used by the consumer via the communication network 14 as electronic information, without using a medium such as paper.

The processes and procedures described herein may be realized not only by the devices explicitly described in the embodiments, but also by software, hardware, or a combination of these. Specifically, the processes and procedures described herein may be realized by implementing logic corresponding to the processes in media such as integrated circuits, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, magnetic disks, and optical storage. Furthermore, the processes and procedures described herein may be implemented as computer programs and executed by various types of computers, including terminal devices and server devices.

Processes and procedures described herein as being performed by a single device, software, component, and/or module may be performed by multiple devices, multiple software, multiple components, and/or multiple modules. Furthermore, various pieces of information described herein as being stored in a single memory and storage device may be stored in multiple memories included in a single device or in multiple memories distributed across multiple devices. Furthermore, the software and hardware described herein may be realized by integrating them into fewer components or by decomposing them into more components.

Although 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 may be embodied in a variety of other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are within the scope and spirit of the present invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the claims.

1 System, 14 Communication network, 100 Consumer terminal device, 111 Display, 112, 212 Processor, 113, 213 Memory, 114, 214 Communication interface, 115 Communication processing circuit, 116 Input interface, 117 Touch panel, 118 Camera, 200 Server device, 211 Output interface, 300 Business device

Claims (9)

A server device including at least one processor,
The at least one processor:
generating first promotional information including an advertisement to be provided to the consumer to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service by the business;
receiving behavioral information indicating behavior related to the provision of at least one of the goods and services performed by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer;
The system is configured to execute a process of analyzing the delivery destination or distribution destination of an advertising medium in which second promotion information including an advertisement for promoting the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business operator or a business operator different from the business operator is posted, using a trained analysis model showing the relationship between the first promotion information and the behavior information, obtained by performing machine learning using the first promotion information and the behavior information as learning information.
Server device. The server device according to claim 1, wherein the first promotion information includes a coupon for granting a benefit to the consumer. 3. The server device according to claim 2 , wherein the coupon is provided when the consumer accesses a predetermined website or when the consumer installs a predetermined application program. 4. The server device according to claim 3 , wherein the access destination of the predetermined website or the download destination of the predetermined application program is recorded on a recording medium attached to the advertising medium . The server device described in claim 1, wherein the trained analysis model is obtained by machine learning the first promotion information labeled based on the behavioral information that is the result of providing the first promotion information to the consumer. The server device of claim 5 , wherein the analysis using the learned analysis model is to predict the results that will be obtained by providing the second promotion information to the consumer when the second promotion information is input. The server device according to claim 1, wherein the first promotion information is provided based on at least one of location information indicating the geographical range within which the first promotion information is provided, attribute information indicating the attributes of the consumer to whom the first promotion information is provided, and time information indicating the temporal range within which the first promotion information is provided. A method performed by a computer including at least one processor by the at least one processor executing predetermined instructions,
generating first promotional information including an advertisement to be provided to a consumer to promote an action of the consumer related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service by a business;
receiving behavioral information indicating behavior related to the provision of at least one of the goods and services taken by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer;
a step of analyzing the delivery or distribution destination of advertising media in which second promotion information including advertisements for promoting consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business operator or a business operator other than the business operator is posted, using a trained analysis model showing the relationship between the first promotion information and the behavioral information, obtained by performing machine learning using the first promotion information and the behavioral information as learning information;
A method comprising: Computer,
generating first promotional information including an advertisement to be provided to the consumer and to promote the consumer's behavior related to the provision of at least one of a product and a service by the business;
receiving behavioral information indicating behavior related to the provision of at least one of the goods and services performed by the consumer based on the first promotional information received by the consumer;
and functioning as a processor configured to execute a process of analyzing the delivery or distribution destination of advertising media in which second promotion information , including advertisements for promoting consumer behavior related to the provision of at least one of goods and services by the business operator or a business operator different from the business operator, is posted, using a trained analysis model showing the relationship between the first promotion information and the behavioral information, obtained by performing machine learning using the first promotion information and the behavioral information as learning information.
program.