Patent ID: 8484135
Filing Date: 2013-07-09
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A non-transitory machine-readable media for classifying retail products and services by a merchant using an automated process, the machine-readable media comprising program code stored therein executable by one or more machines to perform the automated process, the automated process comprising: providing a listing of groupings of at least one of retail products and services, wherein the groupings of retail products and services are nodes in an article hierarchy or nodes in a merchandise hierarchy; providing a listing of price level groups, wherein at least one price level group in the listing of price level groups includes a multiple assignment of price level group field indicating whether the price level group can be assigned to more than one grouping of retail products or services; wherein the price level groups include products or services of different types in a price level group; receiving a merchant selection of groupings of at least one of retail products and services from the listing of groupings of at least one of retail products and services and a merchant selected price level group from the listing of price level groups, the merchant selected price level group is a first merchant selected price level group, the merchant selection of groupings is a first merchant selection of groupings; assigning the first merchant selected price level group to the first merchant selection of groupings, the first merchant selected price level group being valid for a first time period; receiving a second merchant selection of groupings including at least one of the groupings in the first merchant selection of groupings assigned to the first merchant selected price level group; receiving a second merchant selected price level group assigned to the first merchant selection of groupings from the listing of price level groups, the second merchant selected price level group being valid for a second time period, the second merchant selected price level group having a different number of price levels based on the second merchant selected price level group not having the same validity period as the first merchant selected price level group, the second merchant selected price level group is either locked or not locked; wherein the locked selected price level group prevents the same price level group from being created in parallel; when the second merchant selected price level group is not locked, reassigning the second merchant selected price level group to the second merchant selection of groupings; when the second merchant selected price level group is locked, the second merchant selected price level group remains assigned to the first merchant selection of groupings from the listing of price level groups; and storing at least one of the listing of groupings, listing of price level groups, and the merchant selection of groupings; wherein the first merchant selected price level group comprises a first predefined price band category, the first predefined price band category being lower; and wherein the second merchant selected price level group comprises a second predefined price band category, the second predefined price band category being medium.