Technique for providing information assistance including a concierge-type service

Abstract

A user may access information assistance for a concierge-type service, whereby the user may make restaurant reservations, purchase goods and services, obtain movie listings, etc. with an agent's (or operator's) assistance. In accordance with the invention, the agent may suggest a vendor for providing the goods or services requested by the user, and attempt to fulfill the user request. The suggested vendor may be one of the preferred vendors pre-selected by the user; it may be one of the preferred vendors pre-selected by a group to which the user belongs; it may be one of the preferred vendors pre-selected by the provider of the concierge-type service; and it may be one of the preferred vendors pre-selected by a telephone carrier to which the user subscribes. The suggested vendor may also be a function of characteristics of the vendors that the user prefers, costs, etc. The invention resolves conflicts of preferences of different parties involved to come up with the suggested vendor.

1 . A method for providing a concierge-type service at a service provider comprising: (a) receiving a call at the service provider from a caller; (b) directing the call to an agent; (c) receiving a request for a concierge-type service relating to an unidentified vendor from the caller; (d) automatically determining information related to said request; (e) using said information to identify an appropriate vendor; and (f) acting to fulfill said request as a function of said appropriate vendor. 
   
   
       2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said information relates to a location of the caller. 
   
   
       3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein said location of the caller is determined using GPS technology. 
   
   
       4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (d) further comprises retrieving said information from computer storage. 
   
   
       5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein said information relates to one or more of: preferred vendors of the caller, preferred vendors of a group to which the caller belongs, caller preferred locations for request fulfillment, preferred vendors of a concierge provider, preferred vendors of a telephone carrier, characteristics of vendors the caller prefers, caller preferred service options, and cost. 
   
   
       6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said service provider comprises an information assistance service provider, and said agent comprises an operator. 
   
   
       7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (e) further comprises connecting said caller to said appropriate vendor. 
   
   
       8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein step (e) further comprises attempting to fulfill said request with said appropriate vendor. 
   
   
       9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein a fulfillment of said request is attempted in real time. 
   
   
       10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein said request is fulfilled offline if said request cannot be fulfilled in real time. 
   
   
       11 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein at least one of service provider preferred vendors and telephone carrier preferred vendors pays a commission. 
   
   
       12 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein said cost comprises a cost of fulfilling said request with a vendor. 
   
   
       13 . A method for selecting a vendor with which to attempt to fulfill a service request, comprising: (a) receiving first vendor selection criteria from a user in conjunction with a user request; (b) accessing stored second vendor selection criteria; (c) determining if one or more inconsistencies exist between two or more vendor selection criteria; (d) if no such inconsistencies exist, fulfilling said first request as a function of third vendor selection criteria; and (e) otherwise, if said one or more inconsistencies exist, obtaining information from which said inconsistencies can be resolved, and fulfilling said user request as a function of fourth vendor selection criteria and said information. 
   
   
       14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein said user request comprises a concierge request. 
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein said second vendor selection criteria comprise at least user preferences. 
   
   
       16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said second vendor selection criteria further comprise preferences of a service provider. 
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein said preferences of a service provider comprise one or more of: preferences of a concierge provider, and preferences of a telephone service provider. 
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein said third vendor selection criteria comprise at least said first vendor selection criteria. 
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein said third vendor selection criteria further comprise said second vendor selection criteria.