US-20260127629-A1 - MWM INTEGRATION WITH CARD USAGE-BASED REWARDS

US20260127629A1US 20260127629 A1US20260127629 A1US 20260127629A1US-20260127629-A1

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for integrating existing card usage-based rewards systems with multi-wave user structures and third-party rewards. Unique card numbers associated with the rewards systems can also be used to keep track of the user tree structure including multiple levels of upline members and downline members associated with a particular user, which may result in identifying which upline users are responsible for the user's online activities and which downline users' online activities may be attributed to this particular user.

Inventors

Fred Cooper

Assignees

KwikClick, LLC

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20230411

Claims (20)

1 . A method for integrating multiwave user structures into rewards systems, the method comprising: storing a first code in a database in memory, wherein the first code is associated with a card identifier of a first user; receiving a request sent over a communication network from a user device using an online web application associated with a link having the first code embedded therein, the user device associated with a second user, wherein the request is associated with a card identifier of the second user; identifying one or more upline users including the first user associated with the matching code in the database corresponding to the first code embedded in the link; assigning one or more rewards to the first user based on being among the identified upline users, wherein the assigned rewards are stored in the database in association with the card identifier of the first user; generating a second code to assign to the second user; and updating the database to store the second code in association with the second user, wherein the second code is further associated with the at least one upline user and the card identifier of the second user.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising storing a decay rate associated with the assigned rewards, whereby the decay rate decreases upline rewards by a predefined ratio.
3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising storing one or more coupon codes in the database in association with the card identifier of the second user, and applying one of the coupon codes to the request.
4 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising changing a rewards schedule in response to the first coupon code being applied to the request.
5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein changing the rewards schedule includes changing an associated decay rate used for assigning the rewards.
6 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising: determining whether the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the first code; and generating a prompt to the user device regarding a selection between the first coupon code and the first code when the first coupon code is determined to be mutually exclusive with the first code.
7 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising: searching a rewards database to identify a set of the one or more rewards related to the request, wherein the rewards include one or more of rebates, redeemable points, and discounts associated with the card identifier of the second user; determining whether the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the set of rewards; and generating a prompt to the user device regarding a selection between the first coupon code and the set of rewards when the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the set of rewards.
8 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising erasing or marking as used the first coupon code after the first coupon code has been applied to another request from a user device of the first user.
9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising: signaling a third-party computer network to send the first code and information regarding the second user to an administrative computer network; extracting a discount code that corresponds to the first code using the link as extracted from a database of the third-party computer network; and applying a discount to the request in accordance with the discount code.
10 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising storing information associated with the card identifier in a computational data structure, the stored information including one or more of a user identity field, a card number field, a credit limit field, a pre-loaded coupon code field, and a pre-loaded referral code field.
11 . A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium, having embodied thereon instructions executable by a computer to perform a method for integrating multiwave user structures into rewards systems, the method comprising: storing a first code in a database in memory, wherein the first code is associated with a card identifier of a first user; receiving a request sent over a communication network from a user device using an online web application associated with a link having the first code embedded therein, the user device associated with a second user, wherein the request is associated with a card identifier of the second user; identifying one or more upline users including the first user associated with the matching code in the database corresponding to the first code embedded in the link; assigning one or more rewards to the first user based on being among the identified upline users, wherein the assigned rewards are stored in the database in association with the card identifier of the first user; generating a second code to assign to the second user; and updating the database to store the second code in association with the second user, wherein the second code is further associated with the at least one upline user and the card identifier of the second user.
12 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , further comprising instructions executable to store a decay rate associated with the assigned rewards, whereby the decay rate decreases upline rewards by a predefined ratio.
13 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , further comprising instructions executable to store one or more coupon codes in the database in association with the card identifier of the second user, and apply one of the coupon codes to the request.
14 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , further comprising instructions executable to change a rewards schedule in response to the first coupon code being applied to the request.
15 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 14 , wherein changing the rewards schedule includes changing an associated decay rate used for assigning the rewards.
16 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , further comprising instructions executable to: determine whether the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the first code; and generate a prompt to the user device regarding a selection between the first coupon code and the first code when the first coupon code is determined to be mutually exclusive with the first code.
17 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , further comprising instructions executable to: search a rewards database to identify a set of the one or more rewards related to the request, wherein the rewards include one or more of rebates, redeemable points, and discounts associated with the card identifier of the second user; determine whether the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the set of rewards; and generate a prompt to the user device regarding a selection between the first coupon code and the set of rewards when the first coupon code is mutually exclusive with the set of rewards.
18 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , further comprising instructions executable to erase or mark as used the first coupon code after the first coupon code has been applied to another request from a user device of the first user.
19 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , further comprising instructions executable to: signal a third-party computer network to send the first code and information regarding the second user to an administrative computer network; extract a discount code that corresponds to the first code using the link as extracted from a database of the third-party computer network; and apply a discount to the request in accordance with the discount code.
20 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , further comprising instructions executable to store information associated with the card identifier in a computational data structure, the stored information including one or more of a user identity field, a card number field, a credit limit field, a pre-loaded coupon code field, and a pre-loaded referral code field.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION The present application claims the priority benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 63/330,203 filed Apr. 12, 2022, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present disclosure is generally related to multi-wave user structures. More specifically, the present disclosure is directed to integration multi-wave user structures with card usage-based rewards. Description of the Related Art A multi-wave marketing (MWM) system is a sales strategy used by some direct sales companies, which is used to encourage existing distributors to recruit new distributors who are paid a percentage of their recruits' sales. The recruits are the distributor's “downline.” Distributors also make money through direct sales of products to customers. Amway, which sells health, beauty, and home care products, is an example of a well-known direct sales company that uses multi-wave marketing. Multi-wave marketing is a legitimate business sales strategy. One problem is that the MWM is organized as a pyramid tree. However, pyramid “schemes” that use money from new recruits to pay people at the top rather than those who perform the work are illegal. These pyramid schemes involve taking advantage of people by pretending to be engaged in legitimate multi-wave or network marketing. You can spot pyramid schemes by their greater focus on recruitment rather than product sales. One issue in determining the legitimacy of a multi-wave marketing company is whether it sells its products primarily to consumers or to its members, who must recruit new members to buy their products. The company is likely a legitimate multi-wave marketer if it sells its products primarily to consumers. If it sells its products primarily to its members, it could be an illegal pyramid scheme. Although each MWM company dictates its own specific financial compensation plan for the payout of any earnings to their respective participants, the common feature found across all MWMs is that the compensation plans theoretically pays out to participants only from two potential revenue streams. The first is paid out from sales commissions made by the participants directly to their retail customers. The second is paid out from commissions based upon the wholesale purchases made by other distributors below the participant who have recruited those other participants into the MWM; in the organizational hierarchy of MWMs, these participants are referred to as one's downline distributors. Therefore, MWM salespeople (distributors) are expected to sell products directly to end-user retail consumers through relationship referrals and word-of-mouth marketing. Still, most importantly, they are incentivized to recruit others to join the company's distribution chain as fellow salespeople so that these can become downline distributors. Currently, to join a MWM, there is an initiation fee, which is a barrier against those who just wish to refer a single product they like. Current MWM systems also do not take full advantage of the Internet and fail to integrate with online user workflows, thereby leading to inefficient, repetitive, and/or otherwise poor online experiences. Also, current MWM systems do not incorporate incentivizing users of MWM systems by offering a dynamic rewards structure (e.g., tree structure). Conversely, there is no current MWM system that allows for discounts, coupons, or other rewards to be reincorporated into a multi-wave marketing system so as to incentivize users to engage with certain websites and further promote further engagement by other users. Conversely, presently available systems for managing rewards systems based on online usage of digital or other card codes (e.g., rewards card, membership card, credit card) by different online users having complex, multi-level relationships. Inability to track such relationships prevents existing systems from being able to identify which users may be responsible for certain online activities or actions of other users across the different websites. Nor do most online rewards systems track multiple levels of upline or downline users that may have contributed to another user's online activities, leading to the inability to treat such online actions (e.g., taken at a website or via web application) differently based on such relationships. There is therefore a need in the art for improved system and methods of integrating multi-wave user structures with card usage-based rewards. SUMMARY OF THE CLAIMED INVENTION Systems and methods are provided for integrating existing card usage-based rewards systems with multi-wave user structures and third-party rewards. Unique card numbers associated with the rewards systems can also be used to keep track of the user tree structure including multiple levels of upline members and downline members associated with a particular user, which may result in identifying which upline users are r