WO2008096206A1

WO2008096206A1 - A system and method for facilitating marketing

Info

Publication number: WO2008096206A1
Application number: PCT/IB2007/050400
Authority: WO
Inventors: Alec Kebin So Kwan Wing; Thana Pramotedham; Philip Dias; Sai Ho Jonathan Wong
Original assignee: Ip First Private Limited
Priority date: 2007-02-07
Filing date: 2007-02-07
Publication date: 2008-08-14
Also published as: WO2008096206A9; TW200901067A

Abstract

A method of facilitating marketing. The method comprises the steps of implementing an incentive scheme (3) associated with a token (2) associated with an advertisement (1). The incentive scheme (3) provides an incentive for a consumer to send a message including the token (2). In an embodiment, the token (2) is in the form of a tag displayed in a newspaper article. The consumer sends a tag code provided in the tag by SMS to the incentive scheme (3) to receive the incentive. The incentive scheme (3) may obtain relevant marketing information from the received SMS data.

Description

Description A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FACILITATING MARKETING

[1] The present invention relates to a system and method for facilitating marketing and more particularly, but by no means exclusively, to a permission-based advertising system and method.

[2] Background of the Invention

[3] The single key objective of any advertisement is to convey a message to the highest number of potential consumers in the fastest, most effective and most memorable way possible. The advertisement must have 'impact'.

[4] A problem with advertising, however, is that with the ubiquity of advertising via all different types of media, the consumer tends to become 'weary' and it is difficult to generate the appropriate impact required for a successful advertisement.

[5] Another problem that advertisers face is the lack of information available to the advertiser about the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. Research on the effectiveness of an advertising campaign often takes time and cost. The results of the research are usually collated and analysed at the end of a campaign. By then, it is often too late to rectify an advertising strategy that has not been working. There is a lack of 'real-time' feedback on the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.

[6] Yet a further problem faced by advertisers, is that there is no effective way for the advertiser to contact a consumer 'prospect' who is interested in the advertisement or a product associated with the advertisement. This is because advertising is generally at 'arms-length' from the advertisers. Unless there are ways to contact and track consumer prospects, prospects generated by an advertisement may be lost.

[7] Summary of the Invention

[8] In accordance with a first aspect, the present invention provides a method of facilitating marketing, comprising the step of implementing an incentive scheme associated with a token associated with an advertisement, the incentive scheme providing an incentive for a consumer to send a message including the token.

[9] An advantage of at least an embodiment of the invention is that the method provides an incentive for consumers to take notice of advertisements by looking for tokens that are associated with advertisements. In an embodiment, the tokens may be incorporated within the advertisement.

[10] In an embodiment, a response to the message is provided to the consumer, including information relating to the advertisement. The response may be provided by a system associated with the incentive scheme. In an embodiment, the response may be designated by an advertiser. In an embodiment, the advertiser may be advised and put in contact with the consumer. Contact may be by any media, including call centres, internet, telephone, and other media.

[11] In this embodiment, the method provides the advantage of connecting the consumer who is interested in the advertisement, or a product associated with an advertisement, with the advertiser, so that the advertiser can follow-up the 'prospect'.

[12] In an embodiment, the method comprises the further step of obtaining information associated with the consumer message. The information may include an amount of consumers that have sent the message, the location of the consumers, time and date of the message, and other information. In one embodiment, the information includes demographic information about the consumer.

[13] An advantage at least of this embodiment is that an advertiser may be provided with real-time feedback about the impact of an advertisement on consumers. The feedback may include information on demographics, time, number of consumers responding to the advertisement and other information. The advertiser will advantageously be able to utilise this information to facilitate the advertising campaign. For example, they may be able to change or adjust the campaign in response to the feedback, while the campaign is still active, to obtain maximum marketing benefit from the campaign.

[14] In an embodiment, in order to be part of the incentive scheme the consumer registers with the incentive scheme. In an embodiment, in the registration process information is obtained from the consumer which may be used to facilitate marketing to the consumer. The information may include demographic information. The information may also include an identifier of a mobile communications device (e.g. mobile telephone number), such as a mobile telephone. This number may be included in a database operated by the incentive scheme so that the consumer may be identified by way of the mobile device identifier.

[15] In an embodiment, a reward may be provided to the consumer for sending the message. The reward may be in the form of a coupon for goods and/or services (products) or credit towards products. The reward may include points redeemable for the products. The products may be associated with the advertisement.

[16] In an embodiment, the token includes an identifier which uniquely identifies the advertisement. This may enable the location of the advertisement to be established, as well as the advertiser associated with the advertisement.

[17] Note that the term 'advertiser' incorporates an agency that may be acting on behalf of a product provider or the product provider themselves (which may not be necessarily be the advertising agent).

[18] In an embodiment, the message is sent from the consumer via a mobile communication device over a wireless network. In an embodiment the message is sent using a mobile data communications protocol. The message may be sent in SMS or MMS format. [19] In an embodiment, the token may include a request identifier which specifies the type of information which is to be transmitted to the consumer.

[20] In accordance with a second aspect, the present invention provides a system for facilitating marketing, comprising a token associated with an advertisement and an incentive scheme, and an incentive scheme management system including a receiver arranged to receive a message from the consumer, including the token.

[21] In an embodiment, the system further comprises a transmitter arranged to provide a response to the message to the consumer. In an embodiment, the response includes information relating to the advertisement. In an embodiment, the information relating to the advertisement is information about a product and/or service associated with the advertisement. In an embodiment, the information relating to this advertisement is information about the incentive scheme. In an embodiment, the response is provided to the consumer from a system associated with the incentive scheme. In an embodiment, the response is provided via a call centre associated with the advertisement. In an embodiment, the system further comprises a processor arranged to obtain information associated with the consumer message. In an embodiment, the information associated with the consumer message comprises an amount, being the amount of consumers that have sent messages. In an embodiment, the information associated with the consumer message comprises a location of the consumer sending the message. In an embodiment, the information associated with the consumer message comprises demographic information. In an embodiment, the information associated with the consumer message includes the time and date of the message. In an embodiment, the information associated with the consumer message comprises an identifier of a communications device associated with the consumer. In an embodiment, the message sent by the consumer additionally includes a request to purchase a product associated with the advertisement and wherein the system processes the message to identify the request.

[22] In an embodiment, the token uniquely identifies the advertisement. In an embodiment, a request identifier is provided within the message, the request identifier specifying the type of information which is to be transmitted to the consumer and wherein the system processes the message to identify the request identifier.

[23] In accordance with a third aspect, the present invention provides a device for facilitating marketing, comprising a token arranged to be associated with an advertisement and an incentive scheme, the token being arranged to be included in a message to be sent by a consumer subscribing to the incentive scheme.

[24] In an embodiment the token uniquely identifies the advertisement. In an embodiment the token comprises a string of alphanumeric characters. In an embodiment, the incentive scheme utilises the device to provide a response to the consumer, the response including information associated with the advertisement.

[25] In accordance with a fourth aspect, the present invention provides a computer program comprising instructions for controlling a computer to implement a method in accordance with the first aspect of the invention.

[26] In accordance with a fifth aspect, the present invention provides a computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with the fourth aspect.

[27] In accordance with a sixth aspect, the present invention provides a computer program comprising instructions for controlling the computer to implement a device in accordance with the third aspect of the invention.

[28] In accordance with a seventh aspect, the present invention provides a computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with the sixth aspect.

[29] In accordance with an eighth aspect, the present invention provides a method of facilitating marketing, comprising the steps of receiving a message from a consumer, the message including a token associated with an advertisement, and the message including information about the consumer; and providing information on a product associated with the advertisement to the consumer. The advertiser may be put in contact with the consumer.

[30] In this aspect of the invention, an incentive is not essential, however one may be included.

[31] In accordance with a ninth aspect, the present invention provides a system for facilitating marketing, the system comprising a receiver for receiving a message from a consumer, the message including a token associated with an advertisement, and the message including information about the consumer, and comprising a means for enabling information associated with the advertisement to be provided to the consumer.

[32] In accordance with a tenth aspect, the present invention provides a computer program comprising instructions for controlling a computer to implement a system in accordance with the eighth aspect.

[33] In accordance with an eleventh aspect, the present invention provides a computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with the tenth aspect.

[34] Brief Description of the Drawings

[35] Features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments thereof, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[36] Figure IA is a diagram showing process flow for a method in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

[37] Figure IB is a diagram showing process flow for a method in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention; [38] Figure 1C is a block diagram of a system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[39] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the basic structure of a relational database residing on the primary database server shown in Figure 1C;

[40] Figure 3 is a flow diagram showing method steps for processing messages received by the advertisement system of Figure 1C;

[41] Figure 4 is a flow diagram showing the method steps for determining actions to be taken by the advertisement system upon receiving a message at the gateway server of Figure 1C;

[42] Figure 5 is a block diagram of an alternative system in accordance an embodiment of the present invention;

[43] Figure 6 is a diagram showing the primary access functions provided by the system of Figure 1C; and

[44] Figures 7 & 8 show alternative methods for registering with the advertisement system of Figure 1C.

[45] Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments

[46] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the

Figures.

[47] In the following embodiments, the term 'AdTag' is used. The term 'AdT ag' is a trademark and other words may be used to describe the 'tags' associated with the invention. The tags include a token, in this embodiment being in the form of a series of alphanumeric characters, which a consumer can transmit (via a mobile communications device which in this example is a mobile telephone), to a system (embodied by a computing system), for receiving the consumer's message. The message can be used to facilitate preparation of analytics about an advertising campaign. It can also be used to identify a consumer and link the advertiser or product provider with the consumer (for example, the advertiser may send messages to the consumer).

[48] Referring to Figure IA, a first embodiment of the invention will now be described.

[49] The consumer reads an advertisement (Reference Symbol 1) and identifies an

AdTag in the advertisement. The AdTag includes a token 2, which in this case is in an alphanumeric form. The token 2 is associated with an incentive scheme, in this example being an incentive scheme to provide a chance of winning money or prizes.

[50] The consumer transmits a digital message (in this instance an SMS) to an advertisement system 3, including the token.

[51] In this example, to be part of the incentive scheme the consumer must have pre- registered with the system 3. Pre-registration may include provision of consumer details, including their mobile phone number, demographic details, etc.

[52] When the system 3 receives the message from the consumer, they can use the message to extract pre-registration information to prepare analytics relating to the advertising campaign. This analytic information may then be provided to advertisers for measuring the effectiveness of the advertisement and/or advertising campaign.

[53] If the consumer has not previously pre-registered with the system 3, they may still be entitled to receive prizes and/or awards for sending the message including the token to the advertisement system 3. In this embodiment, the system 3 can still gather analytic information, such as the location of the consumer.

[54] Figure IB shows a slightly different process in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention. The same reference numerals have been used for components similar to the components of Figure IA.

[55] In this embodiment, the system is not necessarily associated with an incentive scheme. Instead, consumers use AdT ags when they wish to know more about the product which is being advertised. The consumer sends a message to the system 3 including the token 2 and a request identifier 4. The system recognises the request identifier 4 and provides the consumer's details to advertisers for subsequent follow-up. The system 3 may also provide the consumer with a pre-designated information response which may be in the form of a return SMS text message and which may include text, coupons, multimedia content and URLS associated with the incentive scheme and/or advertisement.

[56] Note that this embodiment may also be associated with an incentive scheme, but that this is not necessary.

[57] A detailed description of a system which can implement the processes of Figure IA and Figure IB will now be given.

[58] With reference to Figure 1C, the system 100 includes an advertisement system 102 in the form of a mobile data gateway server 104, web server 106, analytics server 108, data warehouse server 110, and primary database server 112; user computing devices 114; communication system 116; and advertisers 118.

[59] The first element of the advertisement system 102 is the mobile data gateway server

104 in the form of an SMS gateway server 104 (hereafter 'gateway server 104'). The primary function of the gateway server 104 is to manage all incoming mobile data messages and outgoing mobile data broadcasts. To perform this function, the gateway server 104 comprises traditional computer hardware including a motherboard, central processing units, random access memory, hard disks, networking hardware and a power supply. In addition to the hardware, the gateway server 104 includes an operating system (such as Linux, which can be obtained from www.redhat.com) that resides on the hard disk and which co-operates with the hardware to provide an environment in which software applications can be executed. In this regard, the hard disk of the gateway server 104 is loaded with a gateway server application for identifying the format of all incoming mobile data messages, updating database tables residing on the primary database server 112 and determining what actions need to be taken based on information extracted from incoming mobile data messages.

[60] The advertising system 102 additionally includes a web server 106 and analytics server 108. The web server 106 and analytics server 108 include the same hardware as the gateway server 104, described above. The web server 106 is loaded with a web server application which has the primary function of hosting a web-site which allows both users of the user computer devices 114 (herein after 'taggers') and advertisers 118, to register with the advertisement system 102 and, once registered, to access, update and configure their personal accounts. The analytics server 108 has the primary function of generating reports for advertisers and generally supporting the business intelligence of the system 102. To carry out these functions, the analytics server 108 is loaded with an analytics server application which extracts data stored in database servers 110, 112 and generates statistical information and various business reports for advertisers regarding the performance of the advertisements.

[61] The last two elements of the advertisement system 102 are the data warehouse server 110 and primary database server 112. The servers 110 and 112 connect to each of the analytics server 108, web server 106 and gateway server 104, by way of a high speed fire- walled link 120. The data warehouse server 110 is loaded with warehouse database scripts and tools for communicating with the web server 106 and analytics server 108 to allow advertisers to view collected data associated with displayed advertisements (such as consumer demographic information, geographic information etc). The collected data may assist the advertisers in determining the impact and effectiveness of their advertisements and assist in developing advertising strategies. To enhance the useability of the data, the scripts also allow advertisers 118 to extract data in different reports, structures and visual formats, such as graphs and charts. It is envisaged that advertisers 118 will be able to create their own scripts to extract data in keeping with pre-determined restrictions set by the advertisement system 102. The primary database server 112 contains tables regarding registered consumer information, advertiser information, tag information and other tables required for general operation of the system. The basic components of the databases are best shown in Figure 2.

[62] The user computer devices 114 are in the form of personal mobile phones.

However, it will be readily appreciated that the present invention is not restricted to personal mobile phones. It is envisaged that in alternative embodiments of the present invention, the user computing devices 114 could be, for example, laptop or desktop computers or handheld digital devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDA). Each user computing device 114 comprises computing hardware including a central processing unit, random access memory, power supply, visual display unit and a user information input (for instance, a keyboard or keypad). The user computing devices 114 allow taggers to generate, transmit and receive short messages using the short message service (SMS) protocol or other suitable mobile data communication protocol, such as the Multi-Media Message Service (MMS) protocol.

[63] The communication system 116 enables the user computing devices 114 to exchange data with the advertisement system 102. To support the exchange of data, the communication system 116 comprises a GSM mobile telephone network 122 incorporating an SMS aggregator service 124 for forwarding short messages transmitted by the user computing devices 114, to the advertisement system 102. The present invention is not restricted to being used with the mobile telephone network and an alternative embodiment of the present invention may employ, for example, an 802.11 based wireless network. In addition to the mobile telephone network 122, the communication system 116 comprises a public access internet protocol-based packet-switched network 126, such as the Internet, for connecting advertisers 118 to the advertisement system 102. In an alternative embodiment, the mobile telephone network 122 may employ a third generation ('3G') or GPRS network architecture, thereby allowing taggers to send messages to the packet-switched network, without requiring forwarding by an aggregator service.

[64] A second embodiment of the present invention is primarily concerned with systems and methods for facilitating marketing and for connecting advertisers to their target consumers. As such, the following description focuses particularly on the techniques to achieve this functionality, and will be described with particular reference to the flow diagrams illustrated in Figures 3 to 6.

[65] As previously discussed, in this embodiment the system 100 is arranged to connect advertisers to consumers and at the same time analyse the effectiveness of their advertising campaigns, by offering consumers rewards for responding to advertisements. The advertisements may be statically or dynamically displayed in print media, on electronic billboards and signs, and also broadcast over the Internet. To respond, the consumers (hereafter 'taggers') communicate a token (hereafter 'tag') located within the advertisement to an incentive scheme which is in the form of an advertisement system 102. In return, the advertisement system generates a response which includes information relating to the advertisement and transmits it to the tagger.

[66] The primary method of communicating tags to the advertisement system is via

SMS. Incoming messages need to be examined to determine how the tags are to be processed and what type of action needs to be taken by the advertisement system 102. This process is known as the 'SMS handling process' and is best shown in Figure 3. The first step 302 in the message handling process is to receive the incoming messages (which may have a dedicated SMS short code telephone number specified by the content provider) at the gateway server 104. At step 304 the gateway server application captures tagger identification data associated with the received message and stores it in an 'incoming SMS' table in the primary database server 112. Specifically, the tagger identification data which is stored in the table includes:

[67] i. phone number of the user device 114; [68] ii. day /date/time; and [69] iii. message text (including an advertisement identifier (token)) [70] At step 306, the gateway server application determines whether the tagger exists in a 'customer information' table stored in the primary database server 112. This basically involves comparing the phone number of the user device 114 against a list of phone numbers stored in the customer information table, for a match.

[71] If at step 306 a match is found, the process proceeds directly to step 310. However, if no match is found then the process proceeds to some other intermediate step 308, where the phone number (or identifier of the customer obtained from the message) of the tagger is inserted into the customer information table and a new tagger account is created. All future messages that originate from that phone number will be assigned to the newly created account.

[72] At step 310, the gateway server application determines whether the tag in the message is in a valid format. The tag is compared to a list of valid tag formats in a 'valid tag formats' table residing on the primary database server 112.

[73] In accordance with the embodiment described herein, there are a series of valid formats, such as those shown in Table 1. [74]

[75] Table 1 [76] If the tag is not in a valid format, then the gateway server application will automatically send a return message to the tagger informing them that they have submitted an invalid tag and provide correction instructions (step 312).

[77] In response to receiving a message which has a valid tag, the gateway server application updates an analytics table residing on the primary database server 112. Par- ticularly, the analytics table is updated with the tagger's phone number, date and time. If the tagger is registered, the analytics table will additionally be populated with the taggers demographic information (step 314).

[78] It has now been determined by the gateway server application that the tag contained within the SMS message is in a valid format. It can be seen from Table 1 (above), that the first two formats (i, ii) include both a first portion which uniquely identifies the tag (i.e. 123456), and a second portion (X, buy, cod) which specifies a particular action to be taken by the advertisement system 102. The remaining three formats are used by taggers to (iii) request information about the services of the advertisement system, (iv) request a balance check of their account, and (v) to request coupons.

[79] A more detailed description of the different formats and associated actions by the advertisement system 102 will now be described, with particular reference to Figures 3 and 4.

[80] Tag Entry - Format (i) [81] If a message including a format (i) tag is detected by the gateway server application, the process proceeds to step 316. As previously discussed, the first portion (hereinafter 'tag number') uniquely identifiers the tag and according to this embodiment is in the form of an alpha-numeric code, ranging from two (2) to nine (9) digits in sequence which has been assigned to and displayed in a particular media advertisement. The tag also includes a request identifier (hereinafter 'request suffix') specifying an action to be taken by the advertisement system 102. A breakdown of this format is shown below.

[82]

[83] Advertisement Identifier Format [84] ,123456C, , 654321 , ,7890126,

First I Tag Secon Id Tag Third I Tag

Taggers may enter multiple tags in a single short message, provided that they are separated by a space or comma as shown below.

[85] Multiple Advertisement Identifiers in single SMS

[86] If the tag is invalid (either because it has expired or was never a valid tag number), a return message is sent to the tagger informing the tagger that they have entered an invalid tag number and the analytics table will be updated accordingly (step 318).

[87] At step 320, the gateway server application examines the message for multiple tags.

If it establishes that there are multiple tags, the application deals with each tag separately. The same tag number is not allowed to be repeated in a single short message and can only be submitted once daily from an individual tagger. In the event of repetition, the repeated tags are discarded and the rest of the message data is processed.

[88] Every message received at the gateway server is stored. This allows future data mining to be conducted with regards to the overall integrity of system data and risk reduction for fraudulent tagger activity.

[89] At step 322 the gateway server application updates the analytics table with the phone number, date and time. The tag number and any additional information relating to the tag, such as publication, size, and validity dates may also be entered into the analytics table. The request suffix is entered into the table in association with the above details. This information may subsequently be utilised by advertisers to assist in gauging what impact their advertisements are having on target markets.

[90] In the same step, the tagger's personal details are entered into a 'prize entry / points' table residing on the primary database server 112. Their valid tag entry qualifies them for an incentive, which, in this embodiment, is an entry in a prize draw.

[91] Step 324 involves determining the action to be taken for the identified request suffix. As previously mentioned, the request suffix is denoted by a single letter or symbol located typically at either the beginning or end of the tag number. According to the embodiment described herein there are three primary request suffixes as follows:

[92] T or '?' = Request additional information about the product associated with the tag number. ('#' is also considered as a valid suffix and will return the same information as the T suffix);

[93] 'C or '!' = Request that the company associated with the tag number contact the tagger; and [94] 'B' or '$' = Buy the product associated with the tag

[95] If no request suffix is detected in the tag, the gateway server application may send a default auto-reply thanking the tagger for their entry; provide an update of the tagger's point balance and competition entry; and send an 'e-Coupon' for a product/service associated with the tag, if applicable.

[96] Request Suffix T or '?'

[97] If, at step 324 the gateway server application detects an T or '?' request suffix, the process proceeds to step 328. At step 328, the gateway server application sends a message to the tagger containing the following information:

[98] a) text thanking the tagger for their SMS;

[99] b) an update of the tagger's points balance and competition entry;

[100] c) an e-Coupon for the product/service associated to the tag (if applicable); and

[101] d) information relating to the product/service associated with the tag.

[102] The information relating to the product/service is pre-determined by the advertisers and stored in a 'tag request' table residing on the primary database server 112. The information relating to the product/service which is sent to the tagger may also be selected based on the day and time that the tag was received, as well as pre-selected demographic classification available, such as the age of tagger, their location, gender and any other information known to the system. Unregistered taggers will also be sent text outlining the benefits of being a registered tagger and information on how to register (step 330).

[103] In the embodiment described herein, advertisers will pay for the number of messages which are sent to taggers containing information on the product/service. To keep track of this information, the gateway server application is configured to update an advertisers billing information table residing on the primary database server.

[104] Request Suffix 'C or '!'

[105] If at previous step 324 the gateway server application detects a 'C request suffix, the application sends a return message to the tagger containing the following information (step 334):

[106] a) text thanking the tagger for their entry;

[107] b) an update of the tagger's points balance and competition entry;

[108] c) an e-Coupon for the product/service associated with the tag (if applicable); and

[109] d) confirmation that they will be contacted by the company associated with the tag number shortly.

[110] In the following step (step 336), the gateway server application determines whether the tagger is registered by checking the registration table. If the tagger is registered, the process proceeds directly to step 342 which involves sending an e-mail or short message including the contact details of the tagger to a telecommunications centre (e.g. a call centre), notifying them that they need to contact the tagger.

[I l l] If the tagger is not already registered, the gateway server application will determine whether the unregistered tagger's phone number should be sent to the call centre for follow-up (step 338). Parameters for making this assessment may include the day, time of day and/or tag number. If it is determined that the tagger's information is to be sent to the call centre (step 340), then the call centre will be notified as outlined in step 342. If not, the taggers will additionally receive a message (such as a SMS text message) outlining the benefits of being a registered tagger and information on how to register in the return message sent at step 334 and the process proceeds to step 342 (outlined above). The last step (step 344) involves updating the advertiser billing table to account for any return messages sent to the taggers.

[112] Request Suffix 'B' or '$'

[113] If the request suffix 'B' or '$' is detected at step 324, the gateway server application recognises that tagger has requested to purchase the products/services associated with the tag number. The process begins at step 346 in which the gateway server application checks the balance of the tagger's account (stored in the aforementioned tagger account table). If the tagger has insufficient credit, the process proceeds to step 348 which involves the gateway server application sending a return message to the tagger containing the following information:

[114] a) text thanking the tagger for their entry;

[115] b) an update of the tagger's points balance and competition entry;

[116] c) notification that the tagger's account balance is insufficient to complete the purchase;

[117] d) information on how to replenish their account balance or how to instead purchase online

[118] If cash-on-delivery (CO. D) is available from the company providing the product or service, the tagger will additionally receive the following information in the return message (step 350):

[119] e) text stating that C. O. D. is available and requesting particulars

[120] If the tagger is unregistered, the message will also contain details on how to register online in order to complete the purchase (step 352).

[121] If, at step 346 the application determines that the tagger has sufficient credit, the tagger will be informed that their account balance is sufficient and a short message will be sent to the tagger containing the following information (step 354):

[122] a) text thanking the tagger for their entry;

[123] b) an update of the tagger's points balance and competition entry;

[124] c) notification that their account balance is sufficient to complete the purchase; and

[125] d) request that the tagger send an SMS to a specified phone number containing the tag number and a secret pin number which will have previously been provided to the tagger during the registration process. [126] The taggers short message reply should adopt the format shown below in order to be processed by the gateway server application: [127]

[128] OR [129] Format of purchase request [130] The transaction details of the purchase (including tagger information and tag information) will be entered into a purchases pending table residing on the primary database server. The purchase will only be confirmed once the tagger has replied with the confirmation SMS providing their secret pin number (as described above). At step 355 the advertiser billing table is updated to account for all return messages.

[131] With reference to Figure 5, there is shown an alternative method of using the Internet to collect data from taggers. By logging in to a website hosted by the web server 106, taggers using either their personal computer or a GPRS/3G/WAP enabled phone (or other suitable mobile communications device) are able to enter tags as well as perform a number of other tasks relating to the registration and management of their tagger accounts.

[132] A simple overview of the functionality available to taggers and advertisers can be seen in Figure 6. [133] It will be understood by persons skilled in the art that although a six digit code was used to uniquely identify the advertisement, the code length should not be limited to six digits and may comprise any number of bits (as required for the specific implementation) for uniquely identifying the advertisement. Similarly, the advertisement need not be limited to print media, but could equally be displayed statically or dynamically on an electronic billboard, communicated in a radio broadcast or in any other fashion which suitably conveys the first portion of the advertisement identifier to the taggers.

[134] While the invention has been described with reference to the present embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that alterations, changes and im- provements may be made and equivalents may be substituted for the elements thereof and steps thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt the invention to a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the central scope thereof. Such alterations, changes, modifications and improvements, though not expressly described above, are nevertheless intended and implied to be within the scope and spirit of the invention. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment described herein and will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the independent claims.

[135] In the above embodiments, SMS has been used as the form for sending the message to the system. The present invention is not limited to SMS communications. Any wireless communications may be utilised and any also wired communication. For example, the internet may be utilised. Land telephone may be utilised. Any communication system may be utilised to send the message from the consumer to the system.

[136] In the above embodiment, cash or points incentives are used as the incentive. The invention is not limited to using cash or points, any incentive or reward may be used.

[137] In the above embodiments, print media and bulletin boards are examples of how advertising may be provided. The invention is not limited to this. The advertising may be provided by any media, including over the internet (on the Web), by television, or by any other media.

[138] In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word 'comprise' or variations such as 'comprises' or 'comprising' is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the invention.

Claims

[ 1 ] THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS :

A method of facilitating marketing comprising the steps of implementing an incentive scheme associated with a token associated with an advertisement, the incentive scheme providing an incentive for a consumer to send a message including the token.

[2] A method in accordance with claim 1, comprising the further step of providing a response to the message to the consumer, the response including information relating to the advertisement.

[3] A method in accordance with claim 2, wherein the information relating to the advertisement is information about a product and/or service associated with the advertisement.

[4] A method in accordance with claim 2, wherein the information relating to the advertisement is information about an advertiser associated with the advertisement.

[5] A method in accordance with claim 2, wherein the information relating to this advertisement provides further information about the incentive scheme.

[6] A method in accordance with any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the response is provided to the consumer from a system associated with the incentive scheme.

[7] A method in accordance with claim 6, wherein the information is provided to the system by an advertiser.

[8] A method in accordance with any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the response is provided via a call centre associated with the advertisement.

[9] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, comprising the further step of obtaining information associated with the consumer message.

[10] A method in accordance with claim 9, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises an amount, being the amount of consumers that have sent messages.

[11] A method in accordance with claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises a location of the consumer sending the message.

[12] A method in accordance with any one of claims 9, 10 or 11, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises demographic information.

[13] A method in accordance with any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the information associated with the consumer message includes the time and date of the message.

[14] A method in accordance with any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises geographic information.

[15] A method in accordance with any one of claims 9 to 14, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises an identifier of a communications device associated with the consumer.

[16] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, comprising the further step of the consumer registering with the incentive scheme.

[17] A method in accordance with claim 16, wherein the step of registering with the incentive scheme comprises registering information associated with the consumer.

[18] A method in accordance with claim 17, wherein the information associated with the consumer is demographic information.

[19] A method in accordance with claim 17 or claim 18, wherein the information associated with the consumer is an identifier of a communications device.

[20] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, comprising the further step of providing information associated with the consumer message to an advertiser associated with the advertisement.

[21] A method in accordance with claim 20, comprising the further step of the advertiser providing information to the consumer.

[22] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, comprising the further step of providing a reward to the consumer for sending the message.

[23] A method in accordance with claim 22, wherein the reward is in the form of a coupon for a product or credit towards a product.

[24] A method in accordance with claim 23, wherein the coupon may be redeemed for money.

[25] A method in accordance with claim 22, wherein the reward includes points which are redeemable for a product or credit towards a product.

[26] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 22 to 25, wherein the product is associated with the advertisement.

[27] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the message sent by the consumer additionally includes a request to purchase a product associated with the advertisement.

[28] A method in accordance with claim 27, comprising the further step of the consumer communicating a code to authorise the purchase.

[29] A method as claimed in claim 28, whereby the code is provided to the consumer during a registration process with the incentive scheme.

[30] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the token uniquely identifies the advertisement.

[31] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 2 to 30, comprising the further step of providing a request identifier in the message, wherein the request identifier specifies the type of information which is to be transmitted to the consumer.

[32] A method in accordance with claim 31, wherein the request identifier comprises an alphanumeric code.

[33] A method in accordance with claim 32, wherein the request identifier comprises a single alphanumeric character.

[34] A method in accordance with any one of claims 31 to 33, wherein the request identifier is provided as a suffix or prefix to the token in the message.

[35] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the message is sent by the consumer using a mobile communication device over a wireless network.

[36] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the message is sent in a short message service (SMS) format.

[37] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 1 to 36, wherein the message is sent over the Internet.

[38] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the token comprises a string of alphanumeric characters.

[39] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the token is incorporated within the advertisement.

[40] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the advertisement is a print advertisement.

[41] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the advertisement is a poster advertisement.

[42] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the advertisement is an on-line advertisement.

[43] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the advertisement is a television advertisement.

[44] A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, whereby the advertisement is a dynamic advertisement arranged to display a plurality of advertisements, each advertisement containing a different token.

[45] A system for facilitating marketing, comprising a token associated with an advertisement and an incentive scheme, and an incentive scheme management system including a receiver arranged to receive a message from the consumer, including the token.

[46] A system for facilitating marketing in accordance with claim 45, further comprising a transmitter arranged to provide a response to the message to the consumer.

[47] A system for facilitating marketing in accordance with claim 46, wherein the response includes information relating to the advertisement.

[48] A system for facilitating marketing in accordance with claim 47, wherein the information relating to the advertisement is information about a product and/or service associated with the advertisement.

[49] A system method in accordance with claim 47, wherein the information relating to this advertisement is information about the incentive scheme.

[50] A system in accordance with any one of claims 46 to 49, wherein the response is provided to the consumer from a system associated with the incentive scheme.

[51] A system in accordance with any one of claims 46 to 50, wherein the response is provided via a call centre associated with the advertisement.

[52] A system in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 45 to 51, comprising a processor arranged to obtain information associated with the consumer message.

[53] A system in accordance with claim 52, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises an amount, being the amount of consumers that have sent messages.

[54] A system in accordance with claim 52 or claim 53, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises a location of the consumer sending the message.

[55] A system in accordance with any one of claims 52, 53 or 54, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises demographic information.

[56] A system in accordance with any one of claims 52 to 55, wherein the information associated with the consumer message includes the time and date of the message.

[57] A system in accordance with any one of claims 52 to 56, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises geographic information.

[58] A system in accordance with any one of claims 52 to 57, wherein the information associated with the consumer message comprises an identifier of a communications device associated with the consumer.

[59] A system in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 45 to 58, wherein the message sent by the consumer additionally includes a request to purchase a product associated with the advertisement and wherein the system processes the message to identify the request.

[60] A system in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 45 to 59, wherein the token uniquely identifies the advertisement.

[61] A system in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 45 to 60, wherein a request identifier is provided within the message, the request identifier specifying the type of information which is to be transmitted to the consumer and wherein the system processes the message to identify the request identifier. [62] A system in accordance with claim 61, wherein the request identifier comprises an alphanumeric code. [63] A system in accordance with claim 62, wherein the request identifier comprises a single alphanumeric character. [64] A system in accordance with any one of claims 61 to 63, wherein the request identifier is provided as a suffix or prefix to the token in the message. [65] A system in accordance with any one of the preceding claims 45 to 64, wherein the message is sent by the consumer using a mobile communication device over a wireless network. [66] A device for facilitating marketing, comprising a token arranged to be associated with an advertisement and an incentive scheme, the token being arranged to be included in a message to be sent by a consumer participating in the incentive scheme. [67] A device in accordance with claim 66, wherein the token uniquely identifies the advertisement. [68] A device in accordance with claims 66 or 67, wherein the token comprises a string of alphanumeric characters. [69] A device in accordance with claims 66, 67 or 68, wherein the incentive scheme utilises the device to provide a response to the consumer, the response including information associated with the advertisement. [70] A computer program comprising instructions for controlling a computer to implement a method in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 44. [71] A computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with claim 70. [72] A computer program comprising instructions for controlling a computer to implement a device in accordance with any one of claims 66 to 69. [73] A computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with claim 72. [74] A method of facilitating marketing, comprising the steps of: receiving a message from a consumer, the message including a token associated with an advertisement, and the message including information about the consumer; and providing information on a product associated with the advertisement to the consumer. [75] A system for facilitating marketing, the system comprising a receiver for receiving a message from a consumer, the message including a token associated with an advertisement, and the message including information about the consumer; and a means for enabling information associated with the ad- vertisement to be provided to the consumer. [76] A computer program comprising instructions for controlling a computer to implement a system in accordance with claim 74. [77] A computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with claim 76.