Processing Online Transactions
Disclosed are systems and methods for managing transactions in which an order is specified online and payment is received at a point of sale (POS). Methods are disclosed for managing payment for such transactions at a POS, including transactions involving payment for both in-store purchases and online orders. Methods are also disclosed for managing inventory and price changes for such transactions where payment can occur at any time in a pay period following order creation. Also disclosed are methods for processing refunds for online orders for which payment was made at a POS. Finally, methods for preventing fraud and abuse as well as restricting the availability of this payment method for certain items are disclosed.
1 . A method for managing inventory comprising:
making a watermark copy of an inventory;
receiving, by a server, a user order for a selected item in the inventory, the order having a purchase price associated therewith;
receiving a payment method selection;
if the payment method selection indicates a cash payment method, updating the watermark copy according to the user order;
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order is received from a point of sale (POS) within an expiry period, updating the inventory according to the user order; and
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price is not received from the POS within the expiry period restoring the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising if the payment method selection indicates electronic payment:
processing electronic payment for the user order; and
updating both the inventory and watermark inventory according to the user order.
3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a user request to view the selected item;
returning to the user, in response to the request, an item description and an item availability corresponding to the selected item, the item availability indicating availability of the item for purchase according to the watermark copy.
4 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising:
evaluating eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the watermark copy; and
transmitting to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
5 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising:
evaluating eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the inventory; and
transmitting to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, by the server, a user request to cancel the order; and
in response to receipt of the request to cancel the order, restoring the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein a portion of the inventory is associated with the a fulfillment facility, the method further comprising:
upon receiving acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order from the POS within an expiry period, assigning the user order for fulfillment by the fulfillment facility.
8 . A system for managing inventory comprising one or more processors operably coupled to one or more memory devices, the one or more memory devices storing executable and operational data effective to cause the one or more processors to:
make a watermark copy of an inventory;
receive a user order for a selected item in the inventory, the order having a purchase price associated therewith;
receive a payment method selection;
if the payment method selection indicates a cash payment method, update the watermark copy according to the user order;
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order is received from a point of sale (POS) within an expiry period, update the inventory according to the user order; and
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price is not received from the POS within the expiry period restoring the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
9 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:
if the payment method selection indicates electronic payment:
process electronic payment for the user order; and
update both the inventory and watermark inventory according to the user order.
10 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:
receive a user request to view the selected item;
return to the user, in response to the request, an item description and an item availability corresponding to the selected item, the item availability indicating availability of the item for purchase according to the watermark copy.
11 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:
evaluate eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the watermark copy; and
transmit to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
12 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:
evaluate eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the inventory; and
transmit to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
13 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:
receive a user request to cancel the order; and
in response to receipt of the request to cancel the order, restore the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
14 . The system of claim 8 , wherein at least a portion of the inventory is associated with the a fulfillment facility; and
wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to, upon receiving acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order from the POS within an expiry period, assign the user order for fulfillment by the fulfillment facility.
15 . A computer program product for managing inventory, the computer program product being embodied in a computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:
making a watermark copy of an inventory;
receiving a user order for a selected item in the inventory, the order having a purchase price associated therewith;
receiving a payment method selection;
if the payment method selection indicates a cash payment method, updating the watermark copy according to the user order;
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order is received from a point of sale (POS) within an expiry period, updating the inventory according to the user order; and
if acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price is not received from the POS within the expiry period restoring the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
16 . The computer program product of claim 15 , further comprising computer instructions for:
if the payment method selection indicates electronic payment:
processing electronic payment for the user order; and
updating both the inventory and watermark inventory according to the user order.
17 . The computer program product of claim 15 , further comprising computer instructions for:
receiving a user request to view the selected item;
returning to the user, in response to the request, an item description and an item availability corresponding to the selected item, the item availability indicating availability of the item for purchase according to the watermark copy.
18 . The computer program product of claim 17 , further comprising computer instructions for:
evaluating eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the watermark copy; and
transmitting to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
19 . The computer program product of claim 18 , further comprising computer instructions for:
evaluating eligibility of the selected item according to a threshold and availability of the selected item according to the inventory; and
transmitting to the user, payment options including a cash payment option only if the selected item is found to be eligible.
20 . The computer program product of claim 15 , further comprising computer instructions for:
receiving a user request to cancel the order; and
in response to receipt of the request to cancel the order, restoring the watermark copy to reverse the update according to the user order.
21 . The computer program product of claim 1 , wherein a portion of the inventory is associated with the a fulfillment facility, the computer program product further comprising computer instructions for:
upon receiving acknowledgment of payment of the purchase price for the user order from the POS within an expiry period, assigning the user order for fulfillment by the fulfillment facility.