System and method for directing customers to product locations within a store
A method to provide directions to customers requesting information about the location of products in a store that brings the customer into the vicinity of other products in which the customer may have an interest to purchase receives customer identification data and product selection data, determines customer interest data from the customer identification data, and generates a customer path to a location corresponding to the product selection data that includes a location corresponding to the customer interest data. A customer following the generated path comes into the vicinity of one or more products in which the customer may have an interest to purchase. A customer may enter the identification data through a keypad or through a scanning device that reads a customer token. Preferably, the customer token may be a smart card or a card bearing a magnetic stripe. A keypad or touch screen may be used to provide product selection data. The location of a selected product and the location of the kiosk where the data was entered define an endpoint and a starting point for the customer's path, respectively. The customer identification data may be used to query a database for the customer's purchase history at the store or to ascertain demographic data. These data may be used to identify products that the customer may be interested in purchasing. The locations of these products are used to define a customer's path to the selected product. The display of this path is made without reference to the portions of the store containing other products not corresponding to the customer's interests. A system to implement the method is also disclosed.
1. A method for directing customers through a store to a customer selected product on a path that includes the location of a product in which the customer may have an interest to purchase comprising:
receiving customer identification data and customer product selection data from a customer;
generating customer interest data from said customer identification data; and
generating a customer path to a location corresponding to said selected product identification data that includes a location corresponding to said customer interest data so that said customer following said generated path comes into the vicinity of a product in which the customer may have an interest to purchase on the way to the customer selected product.
2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
querying a database with said customer identification data to obtain a customer purchase history; and
said customer interest generation using said customer purchase data to identify products in which a customer may have an interest to purchase.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein said customer path generation further comprising:
constructing a shortest distance path between a kiosk location and a location corresponding to said selected product identification data; and
reconstructing said constructed path to include at least one location of a product corresponding to said customer interest data.
4. The method of claim 3 wherein said location included in said reconstructed path lies within a minimum distance to said constructed path.
5. The method of claim 3 wherein said location included in said reconstructed path is the location of a product corresponding to said customer interest data that is closest to said constructed path.
6. The method of claim 3 wherein said customer path generation further comprising:
editing aisle intersections in said customer path data for said reconstructed path to reduce the likelihood of said customer deviating from said reconstructed path.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein said data receipt further comprising:
receiving date and time data; and
said customer interest data generation using said date and time data to generate customer interest data.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein said receipt of data further comprising:
reading demographic data from a customer token containing said customer identification data.
9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
querying a database with said customer identification data to obtain a customer demographic data; and said customer interest generation using said customer demographic data to identify products in which a customer may have an interest to purchase.