Patent ID: 8306925

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for automatically associating a price structure with an online stationery product comprising: defining a plurality of product attributes for stationery products, wherein the plurality of product attributes comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of fulfillment order types, card sizes, paper types, occasions, number of photos, number of envelopes, number of inks, and stationery classes; prioritizing the plurality of product attributes; defining a plurality of price categories, each of the price categories associated with a specified set of the product attributes and having a tiered price structure; creating a new stationery product in response to user input, the new stationery product having a first set of product attributes associated therewith; and identifying, by a computer system, an appropriate price category for the new stationery product by performing the operations of: searching for a matching price category within the plurality of price categories using all of the first set of product attributes; if a matching price category is found using the first set of product attributes, associating the price structure for the matching price category with the stationery product; if a matching price category is not found, removing a lowest priority attribute from the first set of product attributes to produce a second set of product attributes; searching again for a matching price category using the second set of product attributes; and if a matching price category is found using the second set of product attributes, associating the price structure for the matching price category with the stationery product; if a matching price category is not found using the second set of product attributes, continuing to remove a next lowest priority attribute from the first set of product attributes and searching until a matching price category is found.