Patent Publication Number: US-2012041803-A1

Title: Customer value opportunity system

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     Retailers are investing more discreetly in strategies to gain and keep customers based on their unique behaviors and needs. Traditionally, retailers have implemented retailer loyalty and rewards programs as well as online retail channels in order to gain and keep customers. Retailers are now investing in new strategies to attract customers, while attempting to shape customer demand for specific products. Some of these strategies include learning the unique needs and behaviors of the customers with the intention of growing customer lifetime value. Customer lifetime value is the present value of the future cash flows related to a customer relationship. 
     Manufacturers are also investing in strategies to gain and keep customers and grow customer lifetime value. Traditionally, manufacturers have relied heavily on advertisements, promotions and coupons to attract customers to their products and shape customer demand. More recently, manufacturers have started to invest in other strategies such as acquiring optimal positions on store shelves for their products, paid online search strategies and online advertisements in order to gain and keep customers as well as shape customer demand. 
     However, retailers and manufacturers must invest heavily in these strategies without being able to ensure that these strategies are indeed influencing customer demand and customer lifetime value. Moreover, it is difficult for retailers and manufacturers to determine whether they are receiving a return on their investment when implementing these strategies since their return on investment may depend on highly variable customer behavior. Because of the difficulty retailers and manufacturers have in determining the effect of their marketing investment strategies, they may be implementing such strategies without realizing a sufficient return on investment. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to an embodiment, a customer value opportunity system for determining one or more winning candidate bids includes an offer receipt module, a customer potential scoring module, a bid receipt module, a bid matching module and a bid determination module. The offer receipt module is configured to create an offer, the offer including a request for a demand shaping tactic, a type of product, a demand opportunity group, and a desired demand response. The customer potential scoring module is configured to determine a customer potential score for the offer based on the demand opportunity group and the demand shaping tactic of the offer. The bid receipt module is configured to receive a plurality bids for a plurality of different offers including the offer. The bid matching module is configured to determine one or more matching bids of the plurality of bids based on the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the desired demand response of the offer. The bid determination module is configured to determine one or more winning candidate bids, wherein one or more of the matching bids is a winning candidate bid if the customer potential score of the offer exceeds a predetermined threshold and the ad yield of the winning candidate bid is higher than an effect on customer lifetime value. 
     According to an embodiment, a method for determining one or more winning candidate bids includes receiving offer information including a request for a demand shaping tactic, wherein the demand shaping tactic is for a type of product, a demand opportunity group, and a desired demand response and creating an offer based on the offer information, the offer including the request for a demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the desired demand response. The method further includes determining a customer potential score for the offer based on the demand opportunity group and the demand shaping tactic of the offer and receiving a plurality bids for a plurality of different offers including the offer. The method also includes determining one or more matching bids of the plurality of bids based on the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the desired demand response of the offer and determining, by a computer system, one or more winning candidate bids, wherein the one or more matching bids is a winning candidate bid if the customer potential score of the offer exceeds a predetermined threshold and the ad yield of the winning candidate bid is higher than an effect on customer lifetime value. According to an embodiment, the method described above may be embodied in a computer program stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium, which when executed by a computer system performs the method. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
       The embodiments of the invention will be described in detail in the following description with reference to the following figures. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a customer value opportunity system for determining one or more winning candidate bids, according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a method for determining one or more winning candidate bids, according to an embodiment; and 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a computer system configured to provide a hardware platform for the customer value opportunity system shown in  FIG. 1 , according to an embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     For simplicity and illustrative purposes, the principles of the embodiments are described by referring mainly to examples thereof. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be apparent however, to one of ordinary skill in the art, that the embodiments may be practiced without limitation to these specific details. In some instances, well known methods and structures have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure the embodiments. Also, the embodiments described herein may be used with each other in various combinations. 
     1. Overview 
     According to embodiments, interactions among retailers, manufacturers and customers are coordinated to generate a new revenue stream that takes advantage of customer value opportunities. A customer value opportunity is an identified opportunity to influence customer demand determined based on customer-centric modeling. Customer-centric modeling indicates a next most profitable action to take with regard to product recommendations to make to a customer based on a goal of growing customer lifetime value. Customer lifetime value is the present value of the future cash flows related to a customer relationship. An identified opportunity to influence customer demand is an opportunity to implement the next most profitable action to take in the form of demand shaping tactics such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc., for a specific type of product for a specific demand opportunity group to bring about a desired demand response. A demand opportunity group is a group of customers with similar characteristics. For example, a demand opportunity group may include customers who are between the ages of 18 to 24, prefer sweetened cereal and consume only specific brands of cereal. Retailers and manufacturers may group their customers into demand opportunity groups. A desired demand response is an action that is to be taken by the demand opportunity group that is desired by a retailer or manufacturer. For example, the desired demand response may be for the demand opportunity group to purchase a product. 
     According to an embodiment, a bidding system is used to generate the new revenue stream. A retailer may bid against other retailers and manufacturers for a customer value opportunity in response to an offer posted by a manufacturer. Conversely, a manufacturer may bid against other manufacturers and retailers for a customer value opportunity in response to an offer posted by a retailer. An offer may be an invitation to bid on the customer value opportunity and bring about a desired demand response. Therefore, the offer may be an invitation to perform the next most profitable action determined by customer-centric modeling, i.e. provide a demand shaping tactic to influence customer demand for a specific type of product for a specific demand opportunity group to bring about a desired demand response. A bid may be a response to an offer and may provide the demand shaping tactic for the specific type of product for the specific demand opportunity group requested in the offer in order to bring about the desired demand response. The bid includes an amount to be paid to the offeror if the demand shaping tactic is used by the offeror. 
     The system provides an opportunity for retailers and manufacturers to post an offer for a customer value opportunity and permits other retailers and manufacturers to respond to the offer with a bid to influence customer demand and bring about the desired demand response as requested in the offer. The system may determine one or more winning candidate bids based on predefined criteria. Thus, the retailer or manufacturer receives the investment as revenue from the retailer or manufacturer whose bid is determined a winning candidate bid and accepted by the retailer or the manufacturer. 
     The retailer or the manufacturer providing the bid in response to the offer may want to determine whether it is in their best interest to bid, i.e. pay the offeror to use the demand shaping tactic described in the bid, and how much to bid on the offer. Therefore, the demand opportunity group to which the offer is related may be given a customer potential score by the system, according to an embodiment. The customer potential score is an indicator of a potential return on investment from the customers in the demand opportunity group to which the offer is related and is used to determine which bid is a winning candidate bid, if any. Thus, the customer potential score varies by demand opportunity group. 
     The customer potential score for the demand opportunity group is a product of a performance objective. The performance objective is a measure tied to the desired demand response for the offer. More specifically, the retailers&#39; or manufacturers&#39; desire to increase performance metrics such as: (1) share of trips to the store (trip frequency and repeat rate), (2) share of categories bought (how much of the customer requirements are met at the store shopping experience), and (3) share of value received (the ratio of cost to margin received after discounts of foods bought by the customer). To increase any one of the three customer performance metrics, retailers and manufacturers may configure factors of the customer potential score for the demand opportunity group. The customer potential score is based upon a variety of factors for which weightings may be specified. An example of factors may include product category, seasonality, competitor analysis, supply chain inventory, shelf-life calculations, demand implications, etc. Retailers and manufacturers may specify a weighting for these factors for the demand opportunity group for which the offer is desired. By specifying the weightings for the factors, the customer potential score may be increased or decreased for the demand opportunity group. 
     Thus, the customer potential score is a reflection of the customers&#39; in the demand opportunity group potential to change behavior and the typical time that the behavior change stays in place. For example, if the demand opportunity group has a high customer potential score, the customers in the demand opportunity group are more likely to switch brands of the specific type of product in response to experiencing the demand shaping tactic in the offer. There may be a different customer potential score for different demand shaping tactics, such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. The bid from the retailer or manufacturer may include a minimum customer potential score that reflects whether the bidder, e.g. the retailer or the manufacturer, will want to bid on the offer. For example, if the minimum customer potential score accepted by the bidder is 38, and the offer has a customer potential score of only 25, the bidder may not accept the offer since the minimum customer potential score of the bid has not been met by the customer potential score of the offer. 
     Moreover, the demand shaping tactic submitted in the bid may negatively affect customer lifetime value. For example, a winning candidate bid that is accepted may direct a customer to purchase from another entity. Thus, before the winning candidate bid is accepted, a determination is made whether the winning candidate bid results in more profits for the offeror, e.g., ad yield, than a potential effect on customer lifetime value in terms of profits. Once this determination is made, if the ad yield is higher than the negative effect on customer lifetime value in terms of dollars, the winning candidate bid may be accepted. 
     According to an aspect of this disclosure, a method for obtaining, storing and viewing storing user data in an bidding environment is provided. The method includes providing a user interface on a user computer. The method further includes determining whether a bid meets the criteria of an offer which indicates whether there is synchronization between data in two databases. The method also includes obtaining user data with the user interface. In addition, the method includes storing the user data in the user database. Thus, the method may decrease the mental and physical effort required from a user in order to perform a task (e.g. storing data), since the user does not need to worry about where data is stored. In addition, the offers and bids may enable an improved, continued man-machine interaction, by facilitating the storage and synchronization of data. 
     2. System 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a customer value opportunity system  100 , according to an embodiment.  FIG. 1  includes retailers  101   a - n  and manufacturers  102   a - n  that may access the customer value opportunity system  100  via a network, such as Internet  103  or other type of network. The retailers  101   a - n  and the manufacturer  102   a - n  may be any entity operable to post offers and/or bids to the customer value opportunity system  100 . The customer value opportunity system  100  includes a registration module  104 , a retailer profile database  107 , a manufacturer profile database  108 , a graphical user interface  109 , an offer receipt module  110 , a retailer offer database  111 , a manufacturer offer database  112 , a customer potential scoring module  113 , a bid receipt module  114 , a retailer bid database  115 , a manufacturer bid database  116 , a bid matching module  117  and a bid determination module  118 . 
     A retailer, for example, retailer  101   a , and/or a manufacturer, for example manufacturer  102   a , may register with the customer value opportunity system  100  in order to access the customer value opportunity system  100 . The retailer  101   a  or the manufacturer  102   a  may access the customer value opportunity system  100  in order to post an offer, to determine if a bid was placed in response to a previously posted offer, to determine one or more winning candidate bids, to post a bid in response to an offer, etc. As described above, an offer may be an invitation to bid on a customer value opportunity, i.e. a next most profitable action, and bring about a desired demand response determined based on customer-centric modeling. Customer-centric modeling indicates a next most profitable action to take with regard to product recommendations to make to a customer based on a goal of growing customer lifetime value. Customer lifetime value is the present value of the future cash flows related to a customer relationship. Therefore, the offer may be an invitation to perform the next most profitable action determined by customer-centric modeling, which may include providing a demand shaping tactic to influence customer demand for a specific type of product for a specific demand opportunity group to bring about a desired demand response. As described above, a bid may be a response to an offer and may provide the demand shaping tactic for the specific type of product for the specific demand opportunity group requested in the offer in order to bring about the desired demand response. The bid includes a minimum customer potential score. The bid includes an amount to be paid to the offeror if the demand shaping tactic is used by the offeror. 
     To register with the customer value opportunity system  100 , the retailer  101   a  may submit a retailer profile data  105  to the registration module  104 . The retailer profile data  105  may include a retailer name, a retailer address, a login ID, a password and other information about the retailer  101   a . The registration module  104  stores the retailer profile data  105  in the retailer profile database  107 . Once the retailer  101   a  is registered with the customer value opportunity system  100 , the retailer  101   a  may access the customer value opportunity system  100 . The retailer  101   a  may access the customer value opportunity system  100  by providing a login ID and a password to the graphical user interface  109  that matches the login ID and the password in the retailer profile data  105  for the retailer  101   a.    
     To register with the customer value opportunity system  100 , the manufacturer  102   a  may submit a manufacturer profile data  106  to the registration module  104 . The manufacturer profile data  106  may include a manufacturer name, a manufacturer address, a login ID, a password and other information about the manufacturer  102   a . The registration module  104  stores the manufacturer profile data  106  in the manufacturer profile database  108 . Once the manufacturer  102   a  is registered with the customer value opportunity system  100 , the manufacturer  102   a  may access the customer value opportunity system  100 . The manufacturer  102   a  may access the customer value opportunity system  100  by providing a login ID and a password to the graphical user interface  109  that matches the login ID and the password in the manufacturer profile data  106  for the manufacturer  102   a.    
     The offer receipt module  110  receives offer information entered into the graphical user interface  109  by the retailer  101   a  or the manufacturer  102   a . The offer information may include a request for a demand shaping tactic such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. The offer information may also include a type of product, a demand opportunity group, and a desired demand response for which the demand shaping tactic is requested. The offer receipt module  110  may create an offer from an offer template based on the offer information. For example, the offer is created when the offer information is populated in the offer template by the offer receipt module  110 . The offer information, when entered by the retailer  101   a , is saved as an offer in the retailer offer database  111 . When entered by the manufacturer  102   a , the offer information is saved as an offer in the manufacturer offer database  112 . Thus, the retailer offer database  111  includes a variety of offers from various the retailers  101   a - n . The manufacturer offer database  112  includes a variety of offers from the various manufacturers  102   a - n.    
     Once the offer is saved in the retailer offer database  111  or the manufacturer offer database  112 , the offer may be posted to an electronic board in the customer value opportunity system  100  or may be sent electronically to the retailers  101   a - n  and the manufacturers  102   a - n  via text, email, automated message alert, etc. to be available for viewing. The offer may be viewable by the other retailers  101   a - n  and/or the other manufacturers  102   a - n  registered with the customer value opportunity system  100 , or a subset thereof. 
     The customer potential scoring module  113  determines a customer potential score for the offer available for viewing, based on the demand opportunity group and the demand shaping tactic related to the viewable offer. The customer potential score is an indicator of a potential return on investment from the customers in the demand opportunity group of the viewable offer. The customer potential score for the demand opportunity group in the offer is a product of a performance objective. The performance objective is a measure tied to the retailers&#39; or manufacturers&#39; desired demand response. More specifically, the retailers&#39; or manufacturers&#39; desire to increase one or more customer performance metrics, such as: (1) share of trips to the store (trip frequency and repeat rate), (2) share of categories bought (how much of the customer requirements are met at the store shopping experience), and (3) share of value received (the ratio of cost to margin received after discounts of foods bought by the customer). 
     Retailers and manufacturers may configure factors of the customer potential score for the demand opportunity group to increase any one of the three customer performance metrics through the graphical user interface  109 . The customer potential score is based upon a variety of factors for which weightings may be specified. An example of factors may include product category, seasonality, competitor analysis, supply chain inventory, shelf-life calculations, demand implications, etc. Retailers and manufacturers may specify a weighting for these factors for the demand opportunity group for which the offer is desired. By specifying the weightings for the factors, the customer potential score may be increased or decreased for the demand opportunity group. 
     Thus, the customer potential score determined by the customer potential scoring module  113  may be based on weightings entered into the graphical user interface  109 . If weightings are not entered into the graphical user interface  109 , the customer potential score is determined by the customer potential scoring module  113  based on default weightings for the factors. Therefore, the customer potential score is a reflection of the customers&#39; in the demand opportunity group potential to change behavior and the typical time that the behavior change stays in place. For example, if the demand opportunity group has a high customer potential score, the customers in the demand opportunity group are more likely to switch brands of the specific type of product in response to the demand shaping tactic in the offer. There may be a different customer potential score for different demand shaping tactics such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. 
     The bid receipt module  114  receives a plurality of bids from the retailers  101   a - n  and/or the manufacturers  102   a - n . Thus, the bid receipt module  114  receives the bids entered into the graphical user interface  109  by the retailers  101   a - n  and/or the manufacturers  102   a - n . The bids received by the bid receipt module  114  may be in response to any of the variety of the viewable offers. The bids may include a demand shaping tactic such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. The bids may also include a type of product, a demand opportunity group, a demand response, a minimum customer potential score and an amount to be paid to the offeror if the demand shaping tactic is used by the offeror. Once the bid is created, the bid is stored. The bids received from the retailers  101   a - n  are saved in the retailer bid database  115 . The bids received from the manufacturers  102   a - n  are saved in the manufacturer bid database  116 . Thus, the retailer bid database  115  includes a variety of bids from the various retailers  101   a - n . The manufacturer bid database  116  includes a variety of bids from various the manufacturers  102   a - n.    
     The bid matching module  117  determines one or more matching bids of the plurality of bids in either the retailer bid database  115  or the manufacturer bid database  116  for a viewable offer of the plurality of viewable offers. For instance, if the viewable offer was posted by the retailer  101   a , the one or more matching bids may be determined from the retailer bid database  115  and the manufacturer bid database  116 . Conversely, if the viewable offer was posted by a manufacturer  102   a , the one or more matching bids may be determined from the retailer bid database  115  and the manufacturer bid database  116 . The one or more matching bids are determined based on whether the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the demand response of the bid matches the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the desired demand response in the viewable offer. If these parameters match, the bid is considered a matching bid. 
     Once one or more matching bids are determined by the bid matching module  117 , the bid determination module  118  determines if the one or more matching bids are winning candidate bids. Each of the one or more matching bids are winning candidate bids if the customer potential score in the viewable offer exceeds a predetermined threshold. The predetermined threshold is the minimum customer potential score in each of the one or more matching bids. 
     The demand shaping tactic submitted in the winning candidate bid may negatively affect customer lifetime value. For example, though a retailer may receive profits, i.e. ad yield, from using the demand shaping tactic in the winning candidate bid submitted by another retailer, the retailer may lose the customer permanently to the other retailer that submitted the winning candidate bid. Thus, accepting the winning candidate bid negatively affects customer lifetime value, even thought the ad yield was received. Therefore, before the winning candidate bid is accepted, a determination is made by the bid determination module  118  whether the profits from the winning candidate bid, i.e. ad yield, are more than a potential effect on customer lifetime value in terms of profits. Once this determination is made, if the ad yield is higher than the negative effect on customer lifetime value in terms of dollars, the winning candidate bid may be accepted. The retailer  101   a  or the manufacturer  102   a  that posted the viewable offer is notified if there is one or more winning candidate bids via email, alert, SMS, text, etc. 
     3. Method 
       FIG. 2  illustrates method  200  for determining one or more winning candidate bids, according to an embodiment. The method  200  is described with respect to the customer value opportunity system  100  shown in  FIG. 1  by way of example and not limitation. The method  200  may be performed by other systems. 
     At step  201 , the customer value opportunity system  100  receives offer information. The offer information may be entered into the customer value opportunity system  100  by a retailer or by a manufacturer. The offer information may include a request for a demand shaping tactic such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. The offer information may also include a type of product, a demand opportunity group, and a desired demand response for which the demand shaping tactic is requested. 
     At step  202 , the customer value opportunity system  100  creates an offer from the offer information. As described above, the offer may be an invitation to bid on a customer value opportunity, i.e. a next most profitable action, and bring about a desired demand response determined based on customer-centric modeling. Therefore, the offer may be an invitation to perform the next most profitable action determined by customer-centric modeling, which may include providing a demand shaping tactic to influence customer demand for a specific type of product for a specific demand opportunity group to bring about a desired demand response. The offer may be created when the offer information is populated in an offer template and saved as an offer. There may be a variety of offers from various retailers and various manufacturers. 
     At step  203 , the offer may be posted to an electronic board (e.g., displayed on a web site) in the customer value opportunity system  100  or may be sent electronically to the retailers or the manufacturers via text, email, automated message alert, etc. to be available for viewing. The offer may be viewable by the other retailers and/or the other manufacturers registered with the customer value opportunity system  100 , or a subset thereof. 
     At step  204 , the customer value opportunity system  100  determines whether weightings were received by the customer value opportunity  100  for factors of a customer potential score. A customer potential score for the offer based on the demand opportunity group and the demand shaping tactic related to the viewable offer. The customer potential score for the demand opportunity group may be based on a performance objective. The performance objective is a measure tied to the retailers&#39; or manufacturers&#39; desired demand response. For example, the retailers&#39; or manufacturers&#39; desire to increase one of three core customer performance metrics: (1) share of trips to the store (trip frequency and repeat rate), (2) share of categories bought (how much of the customer requirements are met at the store shopping experience), and (3) share of value received (the ratio of cost to margin received after discounts of foods bought by the customer). There may be a different customer potential score for different demand shaping tactics such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. Retailers and manufacturers may configure the factors of the customer potential score for the demand opportunity group to increase any one of the three customer performance metrics through a graphical user interface. The customer potential score is based upon a variety of factors for which weightings may be specified. An example of factors may include product category, seasonality, competitor analysis, supply chain inventory, shelf-life calculations, demand implications, etc. Retailers and manufacturers may specify a weighting for these factors for the demand opportunity group for which the offer is desired. By specifying the weightings for the factors, the customer potential score may be increased or decreased for the demand opportunity group. If the weightings have not been received by the customer value opportunity system  100 , the process proceeds to step  205 . If the weightings have been received by the customer value opportunity system  100 , the process proceeds to step  206 . 
     At step  205 , default weightings are retrieved by the customer value opportunity system  100 . The process then proceeds to step  206 . 
     At step  206 , the customer potential score is determined by the customer value opportunity system  100  either based on the weightings received at step  205  or the default weightings received at step  206 . 
     At step  207 , the customer value opportunity system  100  receives a plurality of bids from the retailers and/or the manufacturers. The bids may be entered into the customer opportunity system  100  by the retailers and/or the manufacturers in response to any of the variety of viewable offers. As described above, the bid may be a response to an offer and may provide the demand shaping tactic for the specific type of product for the specific demand opportunity group requested in the offer in order to bring about the desired demand response. The bids may include a demand shaping tactic such as marketing materials, advertising, promotions, discounts, coupons, etc. The bids may also include a type of product, a demand opportunity group, a demand response and a minimum customer potential score. The bid includes an amount to be paid to the offeror if the demand shaping tactic is used by the offeror. There may be a variety of bids from various retailers and a variety of bids from various manufacturers. 
     At step  208 , the customer value opportunity system  100  determines one or more matching bids of the plurality of bids for a viewable offer of the plurality of viewable offers. The one or more matching bids are determined based on whether the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the demand response of the bid matches the demand shaping tactic, the type of product, the demand opportunity group, and the desired demand response in the viewable offer. If these parameters match, the bid is considered a matching bid. If there are no matching bids, the process ends at this step. If there is one or more matching bid, the process proceeds to step  210 . 
     At step  209 , the customer value opportunity system  100  determines if the one or more matching bids are winning candidate bids. For example, a matching bid may be considered a winning candidate bid if the customer potential score in the viewable offer exceeds a predetermined threshold. The predetermined threshold is the minimum customer potential score in the one or more matching bids. 
     The demand shaping tactic submitted in the winning candidate bid may negatively affect customer lifetime value. Thus, before the winning candidate bid may be accepted, a determination is made at step  209  whether the profits from the winning candidate bid, i.e. ad yield, are more than a potential effect on customer lifetime value in terms of profits. Once this determination is made, if the ad yield is higher than the negative effect on customer lifetime value in terms of dollars, the winning candidate bid may be accepted. Of course, there may be no winning candidate bids. 
     At step  210 , the retailer or manufacturer that posted the viewable offer is notified of the one or more winning candidate bids via email, alert, SMS, text, etc. For example, if there is one or more winning candidate bids determined at step  209 , the retailer or manufacturer that posted the viewable offer is notified of these. If, however, at step  209 , no winning candidate bids were determined, the retailer or manufacturer that posted the viewable offer is notified that no winning candidate bids were determined. 
     4. Computer System 
     According to an embodiment, the customer value opportunity system  100  may also be software running on a computer system belonging to the retailer  101  or the manufacturer  102 , a system accessed via the Internet, a web service, etc.  FIG. 3  shows a computer system  300  that may be used as a hardware platform for the customer value opportunity system  100 , according to an embodiment. The computer system  300  may be used as a platform for executing one or more of the steps, methods, modules and functions described herein that may be embodied as software stored on one or more computer readable mediums, which may be non-transitory, such as storage devices. The modules may be software, hardware or a combination of both software and hardware. 
     The computer system  300  includes a processor  302 , unit or processing circuitry that may implement or execute software instructions performing some or all of the methods, functions and other steps described herein. Commands and data from the processor  302  are communicated over a communication bus  304 . The computer system  300  also includes a computer readable storage device  303 , such as random access memory (RAM), where the software and data for processor  302  may reside during runtime. The storage device  303  may also include non-volatile data storage. The computer system  300  may include a network interface  305  for connecting to a network. It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that other known electronic components may be added or substituted in the computer system  300 . 
     While the embodiments have been described with reference to examples, those skilled in the art will be able to make various modifications to the described embodiments without departing from the scope of the claimed embodiments. Also, the embodiments described herein may be used to determine brands or products customers may switch to, the likelihood of a customer switching brands or products, etc.