Customer identification system and method
A method and system are presented for identifying a customer in a commercial transaction using less than complete identifying information. A name for the customer is extracted from a credit card during a purchase transaction. A trade area for the point of sale location used to restrict a search of a demographic database to find a list of potential identity matches having names similar to the name on the credit card. A best match generator creates a profile of the expected purchaser of the products in the transaction. Using demographic information about each identity in the list of potential identity matches, each identity is compared to the profile and given a score. The highest scoring identity is then considered the best match. The best match identity is then assumed to be the identity involved in the transaction, and the customer database is updated to reflect this determination.
1. A computer implemented method for identifying a customer in a customer database system that tracks purchase transactions, the customer having purchased a product at a point of sale location by using a payment mechanism to pay for the product purchase, the method comprising:
a) determining a customer name for the customer from the payment mechanism without requiring the customer to disclose their customer name other than by completing the purchase with the payment mechanism;
b) creating a computerized list of potential matches, the potential matches each being an identity of a particular person, wherein an identity constitutes information that uniquely identifies a particular person, the list of potential matches being created by
i) searching in a computerized database for identities having a name similar to the customer name, with similar names being determined through at least one mechanism chosen from the set including identically matching names, nicknames, abbreviations, and known variations of the customer name, and
ii) combining a plurality of the identities found by searching the computerized database into the computerized list of potential matches; and
c) developing a profile of demographic characteristics based upon the purchased product, at least one of the demographic characteristics included in the profile coming from the set of characteristics comprising income, parental status, marital status, education, and age;
d) selecting a best match identity from the computerized list of potential matches, the best match identity indicating which of the plurality of identities in the list of potential matches is to be selected as the identity for the customer name, the best match being selected by
i) obtaining demographic data concerning each identity within the list of potential matches, and
ii) comparing demographic data concerning each identity within the list of potential matches with the profile developed based upon the purchased product; and
e) using the best match identity as the identity for the customer name in the customer database system.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the computerized database is a general demographic database.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the step of creating a list of potential matches further comprises searching for potential matches in the customer database system.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the computerized database is the same database as the customer database system.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of selecting the best match identity further comprises examining, for each identity, prior sales data found in the customer database system relating to that identity and comparing such prior sales data with the purchased product.
6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first step of obtaining a unique account identifier associated with the payment mechanism and storing the unique account identifier along with the purchased product in the customer database system,
wherein the profile developed based upon the purchased product is refined according to all prior sales identified in the customer database system as being associated with the unique account identifier.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein the sub-step of searching in a computerized database for identities having a name similar to the customer name further comprises:
A) creating a trade area for the point of sale location, the trade area being determined through an analysis of past sales at the point of sale location, the trade area defining a geographic region containing the home addresses of a first subset of shoppers that have shopped at the point of sale location, while excluding a second subset of shoppers that have shopped at the point of sale location, and
B) searching for the identities being associated with an address within the trade area.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of determining a customer name is accomplished by extracting the customer name from an encoded customer name stored on the payment mechanism.