Patent ID: 6928417

Claim:
A method for conducting electronic commerce, comprising: browsing, by a user, for an item at an electronic store (e-Store) over an electronic medium; automatically recognizing, without human intervention, that the user is lost in attempting to find said item; and interactively querying by an electronic store assistant, at any time during a session, of said user whether the user needs help in finding said item, wherein said electronic store assistant is implemented in software as one of a program and a search window which is activated based on one of a query and activated automatically after a predetermined number of navigations by said user, wherein said automatically recognizing, without human intervention, comprises: considering a history of the browser based on said query entered in said browsing by said user; determining, based on said history and said query, whether an automated help resource is necessary; determining, based on said history and said query, whether a human help resource is necessary; and routing said user to at least one of said automated help resource and said human help resource, to help said user.