JP2023011035A - gift asset management system - Google Patents

Abstract

The object of the present invention is to more appropriately manage gift assets in which a wholesale-retail relationship has been established.
SOLUTION: A gift card 4 is issued as a gift asset that can be exchanged for an arbitrary product or service and has an exchange term, is wholesaled from an issuer to a retailer, and the information is stored in a gift information file on a storage unit 2. 23 and gift wholesale information file 24. The refund amount output program 15 on the management server 1 outputs to the refund information file 25 the amount to be refunded to the retailer for the gift card 4 for which the recipient has not applied for exchange within the time limit. The person in charge of the venue provider company who is a retailer displays the exchange status browsing page on the venue person in charge terminal 53 by the exchange status browsing program 16 on the management server 1, and browses whether or not the retailed gift assets have been exchanged. can.
[Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

The invention of this application relates to gift assets that can be exchanged for goods or services.

Various gifts (gifts) are purchased by the giver and presented to the other party (hereinafter referred to as the recipient in this specification) at ceremonial occasions, various celebrations, etc., or for the purpose of gratitude and greetings. ing. A gift may be a tangible product, or may be some kind of service (intangible product).
In presenting such a gift, there are cases in which the gift itself is not presented, but a right (claim) that can be exchanged for the gift. A typical example of this is the so-called catalog gift.

A catalog-type gift is a set consisting of a booklet (catalog) introducing exchangeable goods and services and an application form for exchange. Recently, some businesses have started accepting requests for exchange of goods and services listed in the gift catalog on their websites.
Hereinafter, in this specification, a right that can be exchanged for goods or services and presented as a gift is referred to as a "gift asset." For catalog gifts, the catalog with the application form is the tangible gift asset. A product or service as an exchangeable object is hereinafter referred to as a "exchangeable article".

In the case of any gift asset, there is a gift issuer that issues the gift asset, and the giver pays the issuer to issue the gift asset. Then, the giver presents the gift assets to the recipient, and the recipient applies to the gift issuer for exchange of the gift assets.
In this way, in the gift asset market, there are many situations in which a giver simultaneously presents gift assets to a large number of recipients. Gift giving at ceremonial occasions such as weddings and funerals is a typical example of this.
For example, at a wedding reception, the bride and groom present each attendee with a gift. In this case, the gift asset may be presented as a gift. Also, when a funeral is held, the chief mourner may present gift assets to each attendee as so-called koden return.

In this way, when the giver presents the gift to many recipients at the same time, the gift asset is suitable because it saves time and effort. The giver only needs to purchase gift assets for the number of recipients from the issuer and present them to the recipients. If the giftee is a gift asset such as a cataloged gift that can be exchanged for any redeemable item, the giver does not have to select the redeemable item based on what the giftee wants. However, it is suitable because it saves time and effort.
In other words, in the form of presenting a gift asset, there is no need to actually prepare the item to be exchanged, so it is very convenient for the giver because it is easy to present the gift to a large number of recipients at the same time. It is a thing.

Japanese Patent No. 6741320

Such gift assets are currently sold directly to the giver by the gift issuer. That is, the gift issuer has become a retailer of gift assets.
In the future, gift issuers are expected to become wholesalers. For example, at a wedding reception, if gift assets are to be presented as gifts, the bride and groom will apply to a gift issuer to have them issued, and then present them to each invitee at the wedding reception. As for wedding receptions, companies that provide reception halls (hotels and wedding hall companies) collectively provide services to the bride and groom, and there are cases where a carry-on fee is incurred. In other words, the company that provides the wedding banquet hall prepares in advance a menu of ordinary gifts (items to be given other than gift assets). If you try to present something you purchased yourself at the reception hall, you will be charged a carry-on fee.

For the bride and groom, if gift assets are included in the menu of gifts offered by the company of the reception hall, they can choose from them, and there is no carry-on fee, which is convenient. As a reception hall operator, the addition of gift assets to the menu of items to be given provides a wider range of choices, which is also an incentive for the bride and groom to choose the reception hall, which is suitable. If gift assets can be procured at a low price, profits can also be expected from the difference in sales (retail sales) to the bride and groom.

For this reason, it is conceivable that the wedding reception company will purchase (purchase) the gift assets from the gift issuers and resell them to the bride and groom. be.
The invention of the present application is an invention made assuming such a situation, and aims to enable more suitable management of gift assets when a wholesale-retail relationship is established with respect to gift assets. there is

In order to solve the above problems, an invention of a gift asset management system is disclosed in this specification. The gift asset management system according to the disclosed invention is a gift asset that is wholesaled from the issuer to retailers as an asset that can be exchanged for any product or service and that has an exchange deadline. and a gift asset management system for managing gift assets for which an application for exchange of any product or service is made to an issuer. This system includes a storage unit and exchange status browsing means.
A gift information file is stored in the storage unit. The gift information file contains, for each gift asset, information that can identify the retailer who is the wholesaler of the gift asset, the exchange deadline for the gift asset, and the gift asset that is sold to the giver and received from the giver. and exchange record information, which is information as to whether or not the recipient has applied for exchange after the gift has been presented to the recipient.
The exchange status browsing means comprises a management server connected via a network to a retailer terminal operated by a person in charge at the retailer, and an exchange status browsing program installed in the management server. there is The exchange status viewing program, according to the contents of the gift information file, displays the exchange status viewing page displaying the exchange deadline and whether or not the gift assets sold to the gift giver by the retailer related to the retailer terminal that accessed the relevant terminal. It is a program that is sent to a retailer's terminal and displayed.
In the above-mentioned gift asset management system, the exchange status browsing program allows the issuer to contact the retailer in a state where the retailer has not refunded the gifter for the gift asset for which the exchange deadline has passed and the exchange performance information has not been recorded. It may be a program that displays a refund schedule on the exchange status viewing page.
In the gift asset management system described above, the exchange status viewing program can be used by the issuer to retail the gift asset for which the exchange deadline has passed and the exchange record information has not been recorded, in a state in which the retailer has not refunded the gift giver. It may be a program that displays the amount to be refunded to the trader on the exchange status viewing page.
Further, in the above gift asset management system, the exchange status browsing program displays the total amount to be refunded on the exchange status browsing page when there are multiple gift assets whose exchange deadline has passed and exchange record information has not been recorded. It can be a program.

As explained below, according to the invention of the gift asset management system according to the disclosed invention, the person in charge at the retailer can view the exchange status on the exchange status viewing page, so the refund is scheduled because the exchange has not been made. can be confirmed. Therefore, it is possible to check the refund with the amount to be refunded at a later date, thereby facilitating the checking of the refund.
At this time, if the fact that a refund is scheduled for a gift asset whose exchange deadline has passed and the exchange record information has not been recorded is displayed on the exchange status viewing page, the refund check operation becomes easier.
Also, at this time, if the amount to be refunded is displayed on the exchange status viewing page for the gift asset whose exchange deadline has passed and the exchange record information has not been recorded, the refund check operation becomes easier, and the gift asset that has not yet been exchanged is displayed. If the total amount to be refunded is displayed when there is more than one, the refund check operation at the retailer becomes even easier.

1 is a schematic diagram of a gift asset management system of an embodiment; FIG. It is the schematic shown about the relationship of each subject in the support system of embodiment. It is the schematic which showed an example of the gift introduction page. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a gift card as a tangible gift asset; FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of a vendor information file; It is the schematic which showed an example of the structure of a gift product information file. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of a gift information file. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of a gift wholesale information file; It is the schematic which showed an example of the gift issue page. It is the flowchart which showed the outline of a gift issue program. It is the schematic shown about an example of an exchange application page. It is the flowchart which showed the outline of a refund amount output program. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of contents of a refund information file; It is the schematic which showed an example of the exchange status browsing page.

Next, a form (embodiment) for carrying out the invention of this application will be described.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the gift asset management system of the embodiment. A gift asset management system (hereinafter sometimes referred to as system) of the embodiment includes a management server 1 and a storage unit 2, as shown in FIG.
The discussion below takes as an example the case where the gift asset is a gift offered at a wedding reception. However, when implementing the present invention, the gift asset need not be a gift.

The gift asset management system of the embodiment involves four different entities. This point will be explained using FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the relationship of each subject in the support system of the embodiment.
One entity is the gift asset giver, in this example the bride and groom. Another entity is the presentee who receives the presentation of gift assets and is the invitee of the wedding party. Another entity is a retailer who sells (retails) gift assets to the giver (bride and groom). In this example, the retailer is a venue provider that provides venues for wedding receptions. Yet another entity is a wholesaler who sells gift assets to venue providers, and is a gift issuer (hereinafter abbreviated as an issuer) that issues gift assets. In this embodiment, the issuer is also an operating company that operates the system.

As will be described later, in this embodiment, gift assets are tangible in the form of cards. Hereinafter, this is called a gift card. What the venue provider purchases and retails is actually the gift card. A gift card is a card that can be exchanged for any exchanged item like a so-called catalog gift. However, as will be described later, the exchange is made by accessing the website. Also, in this embodiment, it is the issuer that exchanges the item for exchange. Therefore, an application for exchange with an exchangeable item is made to the issuer, and the website (hereinafter referred to as the gift site) is operated by the issuer.

As shown in FIG. 2, the bride and groom apply to a venue provider to hold a wedding reception, and make a contract regarding the use of the venue and the provision of food and drinks to attendees. At this time, an application is also made for a gift to be provided to each invited person, and the bride and groom apply to provide a gift card as a gift.
The venue provider purchases (purchases) the gift card from the issuer. Regarding purchase, there are cases where the required number of pieces is purchased after receiving an application from the bride and groom, and there are cases where a considerable number is purchased in advance and held as inventory. As an intermediate configuration, a configuration is adopted in which the gift card itself is not handed over and only the gift asset is wholesaled (or a reservation is made for the issuance of the gift card).
A giver who has purchased a gift card from a venue provider presents the gift card as a gift to a recipient at a wedding reception. The gift recipient applies to the issuer for exchange of the gift card, and exchanges the gift card for any exchangeable item.

Next, returning to FIG. 1, each part of the system will be described.
In the system shown in FIG. 1, a management server 1 is connected to a network. The network is the Internet 3 in this embodiment.
In this system, the Internet 3 includes a giver terminal 51 operated by the giver, a giftee terminal 52 operated by the giftee, and a venue operated by a person in charge of the venue provider (hereinafter referred to as a person in charge of the venue). A person-in-charge terminal 53 is connected to each of them, and access to the management server 1 is possible. Further, since the issuer also manages the management server 1 , a management terminal 54 operated by a person in charge at the issuer (issue side person in charge) is also connected to the management server 1 .

The management server 1 is a server capable of providing various pages and receiving information via the Internet 3, and has the function of a web server. The management server 1 may be only one server, but there are also cases where a plurality of servers share the function and the plurality of servers are the management server 1 .

The storage unit 2 is a storage device such as a hard disk included in the management server 1 in this embodiment. However, the storage unit 2 may be a storage device on a computer provided separately from the management server 1, or may be a storage device on a server provided separately from the management server 1, such as a storage server. Also good. The main functions of the management server 1 are the issuance and management of gift cards, and the reception of applications for exchange with exchangeable goods.

First, a gift card as a tangible gift asset will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a gift card as a tangible gift asset.
As shown in FIG. 3, the gift card 4 as a tangible item has a common information printing portion. The common information printed portion is where information such as that the card can be exchanged for the exchanged item and that an application on the website for exchange is required for exchange with the exchanged item is printed. The gift card 4 has an ID printing portion 40 on which a gift ID is printed, and portions (access information printing portions) 41 and 42 on which access information to a website for exchange (hereinafter referred to as a gift site) is printed. ing.

In this example, two types of access information printing units 41 and 42 are provided, one of which is the first access information printing unit 41 that prints access information in the form of a QR code. The other is a second access information printing unit 42 that prints access information in text. In the second access information printing section 42, the gift ID and the URL of the gift site are printed as access information. The first access information printing section 41 is a section where these are converted into QR codes and printed as images. "QR code" is a registered trademark. The gift card 4 has an exchange expiration date printed portion 43 on which the exchange expiration date for the item to be exchanged is printed.

On the other hand, the storage unit 2 stores a trader information file 21 in which information on each retailer is recorded. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram storing an example of the structure of the vendor information file.
As shown in FIG. 4, the vendor information file 21 is a database file containing records consisting of fields such as "dealer ID", "password", "dealer name", and "person in charge". A "vendor ID" is a field in which an ID for identifying each retailer is recorded. "Password" is a password required when accessing the management server 1 as a retailer. The password is set in advance and communicated to each retailer by the issuer. "Vendor Name" is a field in which the name of each retailer is recorded, and in this embodiment, the name of the venue provider is recorded. "Name of person in charge" is a field in which the name of the person in charge of the venue is recorded.

Also, the storage unit 2 stores a gift product information file 22 . FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of the gift product information file.
The gift product information file 22 is a file that records information on gift assets as products. As shown in FIG. 5, the gift product information file 22 is a database file containing records consisting of fields such as "gift product ID", "gift product name", and "wholesale price".

The “gift product ID” is a field in which an ID specifying the type of gift asset (amount of money or limit type) is recorded. In this embodiment, gift assets are provided in the form of gift cards 4, but there are several products of different amounts and types. As for the amounts, there are gift cards 4 with different amounts such as 3,000 yen, 5,000 yen, 7,000 yen, and so on. In addition, with regard to the restricted type, there is a type that must be exchanged with a set of confectionery and lucky charms (restricted type), and an exchangeable item that can be provided by the issuer without such restrictions. It is of a type that can be exchanged freely (free type). For example, a 3000 yen gift card 4 with a limited type is given a gift product ID such as BA3000FI3, and a 3000 yen gift card 4 of a free type is given a gift product ID such as BA3000FR. be. In the following description, the amount and restriction type of the gift card 4 are collectively referred to as "card type". The gift item ID is an ID that identifies the card type.

Also, a gift information file 23 is stored in the storage unit 2 . The gift information file 23 is a database file that records information on all gift assets that have been issued or provisionally issued. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of the gift information file.
As shown in FIG. 6, the gift information file 23 includes "gift ID", "gift item ID", "vendor ID", "wholesale amount", "wholesale date", "issue date", "exchange expiration date", This is a database file in which records consisting of fields such as "exchange application date" are recorded.

"Gift ID" is an ID assigned to all gift assets wholesaled by the issuer, and is a field in which an ID for identifying each gift asset is recorded.
“Gift product ID” is a field in which the gift product ID in the gift product information file 22 is recorded.
The "vendor ID" is a field in which the merchant ID in the merchant information file 21 is recorded, and is a field in which the merchant ID of the retailer who wholesaled (purchased) the gift asset is recorded.

The information in the gift information file 23 is initially obtained by operating the management terminal 54 by the person in charge on the issuing side. That is, the gift card 4 is wholesaled from the issuer to the venue provider company in a certain amount. At this time, the person in charge on the issuing side operates the management terminal 54 to record the above information. Since the wholesale amount is not necessarily the same for each retailer, the value of the "wholesale amount" in the gift information file 23 is the same as the "wholesale amount" in the gift item information file 22 even if the gift item ID is the same. may differ from In some cases, the gift card 4 wholesaled to the venue provider company is sold at a discounted price. The amount is lower than the "wholesale price" in the information file 22.
In this embodiment, the gift card 4, which is a tangible gift asset, is not handed over to the retailer on the wholesale day. That is, at the wholesale day stage, only gift assets (receivables) have been sold to retailers. Therefore, it can be said that the record in the gift information file 23 by the person in charge of the issuing side as described above is the record of the holder (transferee) of the claim.

The storage unit 2 also stores a gift wholesale information file 24 as a file for managing wholesale gift assets for each retailer. The gift wholesale information file 24 is a file provided for one trader ID, and is a file provided in a state of being linked to the trader ID by a method such as using the trader ID as a file name.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the structure of a gift wholesale information file. As shown in FIG. 7, the gift wholesale information file 24 contains "gift ID", "gift product ID", "wholesale amount", "wholesale date", "issue date", "gender name", "exchange deadline date", and "wholesale date". ', 'replacement application date', 'whether or not to refund', and other fields.
“Gift ID” and “Gift Item ID” are the same as those in the gift information file 23 . The “wholesale amount” and “wholesale date” are also fields in which the actual wholesale price and wholesale date of the gift asset are recorded, and are the same as those in the gift information file 23 .

The information of each record in the gift wholesale information file 24 is recorded by operating the management terminal 54 by the person in charge on the issuing side every time the gift assets are wholesaled. For example, when 100 gift assets (100 gift cards 4) are wholesaled, 100 records are added to the gift wholesale information file 24 and recorded.

The management server 1 is equipped with a recording program (hereinafter referred to as provisional issue program) 11 that is executed when gift assets are wholesaled (provisionally issued), and the management terminal 54 executes the provisional issue program 11. Execution causes each record to be recorded in the gift wholesale information file 24 . The temporary issue program 11 also records similar information in the gift information file 23 . In other words, for example, when 100 gift assets are wholesaled, the provisional issue program 11 adds 100 records to the gift information file 23 and records the gift assets corresponding to the dealer ID of the retailer who is the wholesaler. 100 records are added to the wholesale information file 24 and recorded. The provisional issue program 11 includes a code for generating a gift ID for each gift asset, and is programmed to record each generated gift ID in the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24, respectively.

On the other hand, the gift asset management system of the embodiment provides several services to retailers for each wholesale gift asset. One of the services provided is a service of fixing the issue date of gift assets. This service is a service considering that at the stage of being wholesaled to the venue provider, it is still in a state of provisional issuance and the issue date is not fixed.

Gift assets that are wholesaled and retailed in the embodiment have an expiration date for exchange with the exchanged item. The exchange term is, for example, a term of 3 months or 6 months, but in any case it is a term from the date of issue. If the gift property has a redemption term of more than six months, the law requires that a certain amount of the unused (unredeemed) amount be deposited. Therefore, the replacement deadline is often set to 6 months, and is set to 6 months in this embodiment as well.

In any case, since it is fair to set the expiration date after the gift asset is handed over to the giver, the issue date should be the date the gift asset is sold or a date close to it. . Considering this, the gift asset management system of the embodiment is provided with issue date registration means for registering a date later than the wholesale date as the issue date. The issue date registration means is composed of the management server 1 and the gift issuing program 12 installed in the management server 1 .
Specifically, the issue date registration means is composed of the management server 1 and the gift issue program 13 . In this embodiment, the gift issuing program 13 is installed in the management server, and is executed upon request from the management terminal 54. FIG.
More specifically, the management server 1 is equipped with an issuance page display program 12 for displaying a gift issuance page, and provides the management terminal 54 with the gift issuance page.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a gift issue page. A top page for management provided by the management server 1 to the management terminal 54 has a button labeled "Issue gift". This button is linked to a page for specifying the retailer. When the retailer name is entered and the send button is pressed, the vendor information file 21 is searched to obtain the vendor ID, which is used as an argument. Then, the issued page display program 12 is executed.

As shown in FIG. 8, on the gift issuing page, the trader name (name of the venue provider) and the name of the person in charge (name of the person in charge of the venue) are displayed for confirmation. These pieces of information are displayed by the issuance page display program 12 searching and acquiring the vendor information file 21 using the vendor ID passed as an argument.
As shown in FIG. 8, a provisional issue remaining number display field 61 is provided on the gift issue page. The temporary issue remaining number display column 61 is a column for displaying the number of gift cards 4 that have been provisionally issued (that is, wholesale) but have not yet been issued (that is, retail). The issue page display program 12 opens the gift wholesale information file 24 corresponding to the trader ID held at the time of login, and counts the number of records in which the "issue date" field is Null. Then, it is programmed to incorporate that value into the tentative issue remaining number display column 61 .

In FIG. 8, an issue date entry field 62, a giver name entry field 63, and an issue quantity entry field 64 are provided. The issue date input field 62 is a field for inputting the issue date of the gift card 4 . In this embodiment, since the gift card 4 is a gift for a wedding reception, the date of the reception is entered as the issue date. The names of the bride and groom are entered in the giver name entry field 62 .
The issue number entry field 64 is a field for entering the number of gift cards 4 to be issued. In this field, a number equal to or less than the number displayed in the remaining provisional issue display field 61 is entered.
As shown in FIG. 8, an OK button 65 is provided on the gift issue page. The OK button 65 is linked to a page for confirming the input content, and the send button provided there is an execution button for the gift issuing program 13 .

FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing an outline of the gift issuing program.
The gift issuance program 13 is executed with arguments of the trader ID held at the time of login and each information input on the gift issuance page. The gift issuing program 13 opens the gift wholesale information file 24 corresponding to the trader ID. Then, while moving the pointer sequentially from the first record, it is determined whether or not the "date of issue" field is Null. If the value is Null, the issue date input on the gift issue page is recorded in the "issue date" of the record. Then, the names of the bride and groom entered on the gift issuance page are recorded in the "gift owner's name". Also, the expiration date for replacement is automatically calculated and recorded in the "expiration date for replacement" field. In this embodiment, the expiration date is 6 months from the date of issuance, so the date after 6 months is acquired and recorded in the "expiration date" field.
Next, the gift issuing program 13 acquires the "gift ID" value of this record. Then, the gift information file 23 is opened, searched by the obtained gift ID, and the issue date and exchange deadline date are respectively recorded in the corresponding records.

After that, the gift issuing program 13 executes a card printing program as a subroutine. The card printing program is a program for printing information on card paper to produce a gift card 4 as shown in FIG. The card printing program prints a gift ID on card paper to form an ID printing section 40, generates and prints first access information (QR code) to form a first access information printing section 41, and forms second access information. is printed as the second access information printing portion 42 . Further, an exchange expiration date is printed as an exchange expiration print portion 43 . These processes are performed for each gift ID to produce the gift cards 4 of the wholesale quantity. Incidentally, the common information printing portion is printed in advance on the card paper.

This completes the processing for issuing one gift card 4, and repeats the same processing for the next record in the gift wholesale information file 24. FIG. When the number of repetitions reaches the number of issued cards, the program ends.
If the number entered in the number-of-issues input field is larger than the number displayed in the remaining provisional-issuance display field, the gift issuance program 13 displays an error message and terminates.
By executing the gift issuing program 13, each gift card 4 is produced as described above, the date of issue is recorded, and each gift card 4 becomes ready to be exchanged for an exchangeable item.

Next, an exchange application that can be made for each gift card 4 issued in this manner will be described. The management server 1 also serves as a web server that provides a gift site. An exchange application can be made by accessing the management server 1, logging in to the gift site, and displaying an exchange application page. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the exchange application page.

There are two ways to log in to the gift site. One is a method of reading the QR code (first access information printing unit 41) of the gift card 4 with the gift recipient terminal 52 and logging in. The other is a method of accessing by inputting the login URL (second access information printing unit 42) printed on the gift card 4 on the gift recipient terminal 52. FIG. In this case, the gift ID is entered on the login screen.
In any case, by logging in, the exchange application page shown in FIG. 10 is displayed on the giftee terminal 52 . An application page display program for displaying an exchange application page is installed in the management server 1, and is executed by login. The application page display program holds the gift ID as a session variable.

As shown in FIG. 10, the exchange application page is a page that displays the exchange deadline for confirmation and introduces each exchangeable item. What exchangeable item can be exchanged depends on the card type of the gift card 4 . The application page display program is a program for searching the gift information file 23 by the gift ID, acquiring the gift product ID from the corresponding record, and displaying the exchangeable goods according to the gift ID. For example, if the amount is 3,000 yen and the gift card 4 is a free type, each item that can be exchanged within the range of 3,000 yen is displayed. In the case where the amount is 3000 yen and the gift card 4 is of the restricted type with fixed three items, each combination of the item to be exchanged, the confectionery and the good luck charm corresponding to 3000 yen is displayed.

The storage unit 2 stores an image file of a photograph of each item to be exchanged, and the application page display program acquires the image file from the storage unit 2 and displays it as shown in FIG. When the item to be exchanged is a service, a coupon for the service is often provided, in which case a photograph of the coupon is displayed.
As shown in FIG. 10, in this example, the gift recipient sets conditions, and a set of the names and images of the exchanged items are arranged and displayed in the order that the conditions are met. Therefore, the exchange application page has a condition setting input field 66 .

In FIG. 10, the portion displaying the name and image of each item to be exchanged is a hyperlink 67, which links to the destination input page. The destination input page has fields for inputting the name and address as the destination of the replacement item. On this page, an exchange application button labeled "Apply for exchange" is provided. An exchange application processing program 14 is installed in the management server 1 . A confirmation page is linked to the exchange button, and a send button provided on the confirmation page serves as an execution button for the exchange application processing program 14 .

The exchange application processing program 14 includes an application date recording module for recording the exchange application date, a delivery information output module for outputting information for shipping the exchanged item, and the like. The application date recording module is a module that searches the gift information file 23 with the gift ID and records the execution date of the program in the "exchange application date" of the corresponding record. At the same time, the application date recording module acquires the “vendor ID” of the record and opens the corresponding vender information file 21 . Then, similarly, the gift ID is searched and the execution date is recorded in the "exchange application date" of the corresponding record. When the exchange application date is recorded in this way, the system treats the exchange as having been made, and henceforth it is no longer possible to search for and exchange with the gift ID.
The storage unit 2 stores a delivery information file for delivery of each replacement item. The delivery information file is a database file that records the ID of the replacement item selected on the replacement application page and the destination information (name, address, etc.) entered on the destination input page. Each piece of information is recorded by an output module. The item to be replaced is delivered according to the delivery information file.

The gift asset management system of such embodiments has several useful configurations in view of the retailer's involvement. One of them is a configuration for a refund when the gift asset is not exchanged for the exchanged item within the exchange period.
If the recipient does not exchange the gift asset for the exchanged item, it means that the claim was not exercised within the time limit (waiver of rights), so there is no particular need to make a refund. If the refund is not made, while the issuer has wholesale sales of the gift asset, the gift asset is not exchanged, so the whole wholesale price becomes profit for the issuer.

This is also acceptable, but the issuer dares to adopt a configuration of refunding in order to increase sales of gift assets as a whole through retailers. The refund in this case is a refund to the retailer. In other words, if the gift recipient does not exchange the gift asset within the time limit, a refund is made to the retailer who sold the gift asset.
Suppose a retailer has two different issuers, one that does not issue refunds and the other that does. In this case, the retailer will, of course, purchase from the issuer who will receive a refund. In other words, refunding retailers generally leads to increased sales of gift assets through retailers.

The gift asset management system of the embodiment has the refund amount output program 15 in consideration of the above points. The refund amount output program 15 is a program for outputting to a paper or an electronic file the refund amount when the issuer refunds the gift assets that have not been exchanged within the time limit to the retailer who sold the gift assets. be. In this embodiment, the refund amount output program 15 is a program that outputs to the refund information file 25 as an electronic file.
Although the refund amount output program 15 is installed in the management server 1 in this embodiment, it may be installed in the management terminal 54 . FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing an outline of the refund amount output program.

The refund amount output program 15 is a program that is executed periodically, such as once a month. As shown in FIG. 11, the refund amount output program 15 opens the vendor information file 21 and acquires the vendor ID of the first record. Then, the corresponding gift wholesale information file 24 is opened, and it is determined whether the "exchange deadline date" of the first record is earlier than the program execution date and the "exchange application date" is Null. If the "exchange deadline date" is earlier than the program execution date and the "exchange application date" is Null, the refund amount output program 15 confirms the value of "refund existence" of the record. If this value is false, the refund has not yet been made, so the refund amount output program 15 acquires the value of the "wholesale amount" of the record. Then, the acquired value is stored in a variable for aggregation. At the same time, it changes the value of the field “whether or not refund is possible” to a true value. In addition, 1 is added to the variable for counting the number of items to be refunded.

The refund amount output program 15 sequentially performs the above-described processing for each record of the gift wholesale information file 24, stores the wholesale amount in the form of adding it to a variable for aggregation, and counts the unexchanged gift asset if the refund has not yet been made. Add 1 to the variable for When processing up to the last record of the gift wholesale information file 24 is completed, the refund amount output program 15 subtracts a predetermined refund fee from the value of the aggregation variable (the total wholesale amount of gift assets to be refunded). This value is output to the refund information file 25.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the content of the refund information file. In this embodiment, refund information file 25 is a read-only file, such as a PDF. As shown in FIG. 12, the refund information file 25 is a file that displays the number of gift assets to be refunded in the current term and the total refund amount. It should be noted that the amount shown in FIG. 12 is an example for explanation and, of course, does not reflect the actual amount.
When the refund information file 25 is output, the processing for one gift wholesale information file 24 is completed. The refund amount output program 15 acquires the vendor ID in the next record of the vendor information file 21, and outputs the corresponding gift wholesale information. Open file 24. Similarly, for each record, the "wholesale amount" of the record whose exchange deadline has passed, the "exchange application date" is Null, and the "whether or not refund" is false is added. In addition, the values of "whether or not to refund" are changed to true values. Then, the amount obtained by subtracting the refund fee from the total amount and the number of items to be refunded are similarly incorporated to output the refund information file 25 . When all the records in the trader information file 21 have been processed, the refund amount output program 15 ends.

This embodiment also provides viewing means for allowing the retailer to view the redemption status of the gift assets as another beneficial feature in view of the retailer's involvement. The browsing means is composed of the management server 1 and the exchange status browsing program 16 installed in the management server 1 .
The exchange status viewing program 16 is a program that provides an exchange status viewing page to the venue staff terminal 53 in this embodiment. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an exchange status browsing page.

As described above, when the merchant ID is used to log in, the top page for the retailer is displayed on the venue staff terminal 53 . This page is provided with a button with a notation such as "Browse exchange status", and this button serves as an execution button for the exchange status browsing program 16. FIG.
The exchange status browsing program 16 opens the gift wholesale information file 24 corresponding to the trader ID held at the time of login. Then, the information of each record is acquired, incorporated into the exchange status viewing page as shown in FIG. 13, and transmitted to the venue staff terminal 53 for display.

As shown in FIG. 13, on the exchange status viewing page, the exchange status of each gift card 4 retailed by the venue provider company associated with the trader ID entered upon login is displayed in the form of a list. In this example, the name of the giver (the name of the bride and groom) and the date of issue are also displayed.
In the exchange status viewing page shown in FIG. 13, the text "Refund scheduled" is displayed for the gift card 4 whose exchange deadline has passed and the exchange application date is blank. The exchange status viewing program 16 is programmed to incorporate the characters "scheduled refund" into the line for records where the execution date of the program is later than the "exchange deadline date" and the "exchange application date" is a Null value. there is

In addition, as shown in FIG. 13, the exchange status viewing page has columns for displaying the total amount of refunds and the number of items to be refunded at the time the exchange status viewing program 16 is executed. The codes for displaying these are the same as those in the refund amount output program 15 .
The management server 1 is equipped with a deletion program that deletes records for which a certain period of time has passed after the exchange deadline has passed (records for which refund processing has been performed for items subject to refund) from the gift wholesale information file 24. Deleted records are not displayed on the exchange status viewing page.

The operation of the gift asset management system according to this embodiment will be described below.
The venue provider purchases a considerable number of gift assets from the issuer. At this time, the provisional issue program 11 is executed, a record of the number of purchases is added to the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24, and the gift ID is recorded. Also, in the gift information file 23, the vendor ID is recorded in each added record. However, the gift card 4 as a tangible object has not yet been handed over to the venue provider at this time. Only the gift assets as bonds are sold from the issuing business to the venue provider company, and the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24 record and manage the bonds as inventory.

The bride and groom apply for a wedding reception with a venue provider. At this time, we also consult about the gift, and follow the advice of the person in charge of the venue and decide to present the gift card to the invitee as a gift. The bride and groom select the amount and type of gift cards, and reserve purchases for the number of invitees who are scheduled to attend.

The person in charge of the venue contacts the person in charge of the issuing side by e-mail or the like, and informs them of the date of issue, the number of tickets to be issued, and the name of the giver (bridal couple). The issue date is usually the date of the wedding reception. The person in charge on the issue side operates the management terminal 54 and executes the issue page display program 12 . On the displayed gift issuance page, the date of issue, the number of gifts to be issued, and the names of the bride and groom are input, and the OK button 65 is pressed to execute the gift issuance program 13 . As a result, the date of issue is recorded in the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24, respectively, and the number of gift cards 4 to be issued is produced. The produced gift card 4 is sent from the issuer to the venue provider by a home delivery service or the like.

On the day of the wedding reception, the gift card 4 is handed over to the bride and groom, completing the retail sale. The gift card 4 is presented to each invitee as a gift at the wedding reception.
The recipient (invitee) later uses the recipient terminal 52 to access the gift site using the access information printing units 41 and 42 of the gift card 4 . Then, the exchange application page is displayed on the gift recipient terminal 52 . After that, select the item to be exchanged, and enter the name, address, etc. on the destination input page. Then, the exchange application button is pressed to cause the management server 1 to execute the exchange application processing program 14 . As a result, the exchange application date is recorded in the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24, respectively. Information such as the name and address for delivering the exchanged item is recorded in the delivery information file, and the exchanged item is delivered to the giftee.

During this time, the person in charge of the venue operates the terminal 53 of the person in charge of the venue to log in to the management server 1 with the trader ID, and browses the exchange status of each gift card 4 sold by the company. Then, the number of items to be refunded and the total refund amount are confirmed.
Then, the person in charge on the issuing side operates the management terminal 54 and executes the refund amount output program 15 periodically, such as once a month. As a result, a refund information file 25 is created, and the refund information file 25 is sent to the venue provider by a method such as e-mail attachment. At the same time, the issuer refunds the refund amount output to the refund information file 25 to the venue provider company.

According to the gift asset management system of the embodiment having such a configuration and action, if the issued gift card 4 is not applied for exchange within the exchange deadline, the venue providing company, which is the retailer, will be refunded. Therefore, many venue providers are expected to purchase gift cards 4 from this issuer, and an increase in the overall sales volume of gift cards 4 via venue providers can be expected. Since the refund amount output program 15 outputs the refund amount to the refund information file 25, the refund amount can be confirmed by providing the refund information file 25 to the venue provider company. This makes the refund process smoother.
As a venue provider, in addition to providing a wedding reception hall and food and drink, sales of gift cards 4 as gifts can be expected, and income from refunds can be expected if the gift cards 4 are not exchanged within the time limit. This makes the system more attractive.

In the above embodiment, a date later than the wholesale date can be registered as the issue date, and the exchange deadline is set based on the issue date. Even in such a case, a sufficient exchangeable period will be given to the giftee, and the system will be fair.

In the above embodiment, the issue date is input by the person in charge of the issuing side by operating the management terminal 54, but it is also possible for the person in charge of the venue to enter the date by operating the person in charge of the venue terminal 53. FIG. That is, the management server 1 provides a site for the venue provider company, and this site includes a gift issuance page. After logging in with the trader ID and password, a gift issue page is displayed on the venue staff terminal 53, where the date of issue, the number of gifts issued, and the name of the giver (bridal couple) are entered. Then, when the OK button 65 is pressed and the send button is pressed on the confirmation page, the gift issuing program 13 is executed.

In the above case, since the card paper is at the issuer's place, the card printing program as a subroutine is often executed separately upon request from the management terminal 54. FIG. In this case, when the gift issuing program 13 is executed, the notification is sent to the management terminal 54 by e-mail or the like. Upon receipt of this notification, the person in charge on the issuing side operates the management terminal 54 and executes the card printing program to produce the number of gift cards 4 to be issued. Then, the produced gift card 4 is sent to the venue providing company by a parcel delivery service or the like. In addition, card paper may be sent in advance to the venue provider to be held as inventory, and the execution of the card printing program (printing of the card) may be performed by the printer of the venue provider.

To supplement the explanation of the refund, the venue provider company may refund the amount refunded by the issuer to the gift giver (the bride and groom) who are the purchasers. Alternatively, the retail amount of the gift card 4 may be set low in anticipation that a certain percentage of the gift card 4 will not be exchanged, although no refund will be made. For example, if gift card 4, which includes the right to exchange for 3000 yen worth of items to be exchanged and a set of sweets and lucky charms, is sold for 5000 yen, the bride and groom will receive 4500 yen on the condition that they will not be refunded even if they have not been exchanged. It is conceivable to sell.

In addition, since the person in charge of the venue can view the exchange status on the exchange status viewing page, it can be confirmed that the refund is scheduled because the exchange has not been performed. Therefore, it is possible to check the refund with the amount to be refunded at a later date, thereby facilitating the checking of the refund. For example, the contents of the refund can be easily checked by comparing the contents of the provided refund information file with the exchange status that has been viewed in advance. At this time, since the refund schedule is displayed, the checking work is easier, and since the number of refunds and the total refund amount are displayed, the checking work is easier.
The refund amount output program 15 may be a program for outputting (printing) the refund amount on paper. In this case, the refund amount output program 15 may be a program for printing a refund statement, or a program for printing a negative invoice.

In the above embodiment, gift assets are wholesaled in advance and purchased by the venue provider in the form of provisional issuance. It may be in the form of placing an order for wholesale with the business operator. In this case, the management server 1 is configured to provide an order page to the venue staff terminal 53 .

The order page is provided with an issue date input field, a giver name input field, and an issue quantity input field, similar to the gift issuance page. Similarly, the date of the wedding reception is entered in the issue date input field. The order reception program on the management server 1 executed from this page is a program that officially (not tentatively) issues the ordered gift assets. At the same time, the issuer also produces a gift card 4 as a tangible product, which is delivered to the venue provider by a home delivery service or the like.

The configuration as described above is preferable because it eliminates the need to input information at the time of provisional issuance. However, if wholesale processing is performed after payment is made after placing an order on the order page, it is assumed that it will take a certain number of days for the gift card 4 to arrive. If there are not many days from when the bride and groom apply for the wedding reception to when the reception is held, it is preferable to purchase gift assets in advance in the form of provisional issuance.

If the gift asset is purchased in advance in the form of provisional issuance, the price is paid at the stage of purchase, and the gift asset becomes inventory at the venue provider company. In this case, the remaining unsold items may be returned to the issuer and refunded. However, regarding settlement between the issuer and the venue provider, there is also a form (contract) in which the purchase price is paid to the issuer only when the venue provider conducts retail sales. In this case, the purchase can be regarded as a reservation for the issuance of the gift asset (gift card) rather than the transfer of the gift asset.

In the above-described embodiment, if the issued (retailed) gift card 4 is lost, it cannot be exchanged for the item to be exchanged. . Reissuing the gift card 4 corresponds to reissuing the gift ID. In this case, a gift issuance information file is stored in the storage unit 2 separately from the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24 . The gift issuance information file is a database file for managing the number of gifts issued, and is a file in which one record is recorded for each issuance of a gift card (for each wedding reception in the above example). A gift issuance ID is recorded in the gift issuance information file, and the number of gifts issued, the name of the giver, the date of issuance, the number of exchanged gifts, etc. are recorded in a form linked to the gift issuance information file. The number of exchanged gift cards is the number of exchanged gift cards assigned with the gift issue ID. A gift issue ID is recorded in each record of the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24 .

When reissuing, a new gift ID is generated and the gift card 4 is issued. In this case, the new gift ID is given the same gift issue ID as other gift IDs with the same name of the sender on the same issue date, and records are added to the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24 to complete the information. Recorded. Although a newly issued gift ID can be used to apply for exchange, the loss may be false and the same person may apply for exchange twice. Considering this, normally, when approving an exchange application, the exchange application processing program 14 searches the gift information file 23 with the gift ID to acquire the gift issuance ID, searches the gift issuance information file, and calculates the number of gifts to be issued. and get the number of items that have been exchanged. If the number of exchanged items reaches the number of gifts issued, the exchange application is not approved. That is, even if additional gift IDs are issued, the number of exchangeable items is limited to the number of issued gifts.

In the above description, the gift card 4 was presented as a gift at the wedding reception, but the gift card 4 may be presented as a gift at other auspicious occasions. For example, it is a party to commemorate the establishment of a company.
In addition, the gift card 4 is not limited to being presented as a gift, but may be presented as a gift at a funeral such as a funeral (so-called gift gift).
Further, while the retailer was the venue provider for the event, it could be otherwise. For example, in the case of a funeral, a funeral company that is not a venue provider may undertake and provide the service, and in such a case, a business that is not a venue provider will retail the gift card 4 as a retailer. .

Also, the partner to whom the issuer wholesales gift assets may be a wholesaler instead of a retailer. In other words, issuers may sell wholesale to wholesalers, who in turn wholesale to retailers. Thus, there may be more than one wholesaler involved in the final retail sale. In these cases, the issuer will issue a refund to the most upstream wholesaler for unredeemed gift assets. At this time, whether or not the refund is made to the downstream wholesaler depends on the judgment of the wholesaler who received the refund or the contract with the downstream wholesaler.

In the above-described embodiment, the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24 do not record the information of the recipient, and do not record the information of which recipient the gift card was presented to. It may be recorded. For example, an area for a gift giver is prepared in the management server 1, and a page for registering giftee information is implemented in this area. The giver accesses the management server 1 using the giver terminal 51 and inputs the information of each giftee on the giftee information registration page. On the giftee information registration page, a field for entering the name of the giftee is provided for one gift ID. and the name entered in the "presentee name" field in the gift wholesale information file 24. Such a configuration can be used, for example, as information for avoiding mix-ups when presenting gift cards 4 with different denominations to recipients. That is, if the card printing program acquires the name of the giftee and prints it on the gift card 4, it is suitable for preventing mix-ups.

Further, in implementing the present invention, the issuer need not be the operating company of the system, and a company other than the issuer may be the operating company. In this case, the person in charge at the operating company operates the management terminal 54 to input various information.
In the above description, two files, the gift information file 23 and the gift wholesale information file 24, are provided for managing the issued or provisionally issued gift assets, but the gift information file 23 alone is sufficient. . In this case, the exchange status viewing program 16 is programmed to search the gift information file 23 by merchant ID, extract only the records of gift assets sold by the retailer, and display them on the exchange status viewing page.

Incidentally, in carrying out the present invention, the gift asset does not have to be a gift card, and may be tangible in a form other than a card. For example, a gift ID may be written on a sheet provided together with a booklet that introduces an item to be exchanged, such as a catalog gift, and the sheet may be a tangible gift asset. If the gift asset is provided in the form of points redeemable for any redeemable item, the gift asset may not be tangible.

1 management server 11 temporary issue program 12 issue page display program 13 gift issue program 14 exchange application processing program 15 refund amount output program 16 exchange status viewing program 2 storage unit 21 trader information file 22 gift product information file 23 gift information file 24 gift wholesale Information file 25 Refund information file 3 Internet 4 Gift card 51 Giver terminal 52 Presenter terminal 53 Venue staff terminal 54 Management terminal

Claims (4)

A gift asset that is wholesaled from the issuer to a retailer as an asset that can be exchanged for any goods or services and that has an exchange deadline set, and an application for exchange of any goods or services is issued A gift asset management system for managing gift assets given to a business operator,
a storage unit;
and an exchange status browsing means,
The storage unit stores a gift information file,
The gift information file contains, for each gift asset, information that can identify the retailer who is the wholesaler of the gift asset, the exchange deadline for the gift asset, and whether or not the gift recipient has applied for the exchange of the gift asset. Exchange performance information, which is information, is recorded,
The exchange status browsing means comprises a management server connected via a network to a retailer terminal operated by a person in charge at the retailer, and an exchange status browsing program installed in the management server. cage,
The exchange status viewing program, according to the contents of the gift information file, displays the exchange status viewing page displaying the exchange deadline and whether or not the gift assets sold to the gift giver by the retailer related to the retailer terminal that accessed the relevant terminal. A gift asset management system characterized by being a program to be transmitted to a retailer terminal and displayed. The exchange status viewing program notifies the retailer that the issuer is scheduled to refund the gift asset for which the exchange deadline has passed and the exchange record information has not been recorded, and the retailer has not refunded the gift giver. 2. The gift asset management system according to claim 1, wherein the gift asset management system is a program displayed on the exchange status browsing page. The above-mentioned exchange status viewing program determines the amount that the issuer plans to refund to the retailer in a state where the retailer has not refunded the gift asset for which the exchange deadline has passed and the exchange performance information has not been recorded. 3. The gift asset management system according to claim 1, wherein the gift asset management system is a program displayed on the exchange status viewing page. The exchange status viewing program is a program for displaying the total amount to be refunded on the exchange status viewing page when there are a plurality of gift assets whose exchange deadline has passed and the exchange record information has not been recorded. 4. The gift asset management system according to claim 3.

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