Unlike traditional brick-and-mortar businesses, companies utilizing e-commerce websites often do not have a physical store or location where a salesperson can help both novice and knowledgeable customers find sought-after products. Instead, a customer navigating an e-commerce website typically attempts to identify a product that meets the customer's needs. Even a customer with considerable experience navigating e-commerce websites sometimes experiences difficulty in locating a desired product from among hundreds or thousands of offered products. For novice customers, meanwhile, the task of shopping online via the web can be unproductive and even frustrating.
In response to these difficulties, these companies continually strive to make their e-commerce websites more dynamic, compelling, and easier for users to navigate and locate products. To help meet these goals, these companies endeavor to not only simplify a customer's experience in locating a particular product, but also endeavor to simplify a customer's experience in locating relating products. For instance, if a topic of “fitness” interests a particular customer, then an e-commerce company typically desires to display to the particular customer a variety of related products that relate to this topic.
One recent innovation allows customers to search for a product by tags associated with that product. Tags essentially enable customers, the e-commerce company, or some other entity the ability to easily categorize products. For instance, a customer who has purchased a certain fitness-related book may tag this book as relating to “fitness”. When the particular customer discussed above then conducts a tag search based on “fitness”, this book will appear in a returned listing of products along with other related products. While tagging and other recent innovations have proven very successful, e-commerce companies continue to explore techniques to enable customers to more easily locate related products.
The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The use of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similar or identical items.
Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to, among others, enabling users to annotate an image as well as elements illustrated in the image. As an overview, elements may be a product, a service, a sellable unit, a user profile, customer-created content (e.g., artwork), or anything else that an image may somehow illustrate. Annotating, meanwhile, may include commenting on the image, commenting on elements illustrated in the image, or associating hyperlinks to web pages associated with the illustrated elements, among other possibilities. With use of these annotations, a particular user may create a catalog page that is made available to other users over a network such as the Internet. These other users may then further annotate this catalog page or comment on the existing annotations. In addition to enabling further annotations, making this page available over the network enables these other users to view potentially-related elements that together appear in the image.
In some instances, a user uploads to a website an image that illustrates one or more elements. In other instances, an operator of the website provides the image. The user, another user of the website, the website operator, or some other entity then describes the scene that the image generally illustrates. In addition, one or more of these actors describe or comment upon an element within the image. In instances where the image contains an element listed in an electronic catalog, one or more of these actors associates the illustrated element with a link to the element within the electronic catalog. Therefore, the image may display this link or some other metadata relating to the element when a user's cursor hovers over the illustrated element in the image. If the user selects (e.g., clicks on) the element or the displayed link, then the website serves a webpage that corresponds to the element within the electronic catalog. If the image illustrates multiple elements within the electronic catalog, then each of these elements may be similarly associated with a link to a respective element within the electronic catalog.
For purposes of discussion, customer-annotated catalog pages are described in the context of an item catalog hosted by a merchant website. One illustrative implementation of this environment is provided below. However, it should be appreciated that the described catalog pages and associated techniques may be implemented in other environments.
Illustrative System Architecture
One or more servers 110(1), . . . , 110(N), perhaps arranged in a cluster or as a server farm, host website 106. Other server architectures may also be used to host the site. Website 106 is capable of handling requests from many users and serving, in response, various web pages that can be rendered at user computing devices 104(1)-(M). Website 106 can be any type of website that supports user interaction, including online retailers, informational sites, social networking sites, blog sites, search engine sites, news and entertainment sites, and so forth.
In the illustrative environment, website 106 represents a merchant website that hosts an electronic catalog with one or more items. An item includes anything that the merchant wishes to offer for purchase, rental, subscription, viewing, informative purposes or some other form of consumption. In some embodiments the item may be offered for consumption by the merchant. However, in some embodiments the merchant may host items that others are selling using the merchant's website. An item can include a product, a service, a digital download, a news clip, customer-created content (e.g., a customer review), information, or some other type of sellable or non-sellable unit.
In
An item manager 116 facilitates access to and management of item records 114 in item catalog 112. Item manager 116 allows the website operators to add or remove items to item catalog 112, and generally maintain control of the items offered on website 106. When a user requests information on an item from website 106, one or more of servers 110(1)-(N) retrieve the item information from item catalog 112 and serve a web page containing the information to the requesting user computing device. Item catalog 112 may therefore contain static web pages that are pre-generated and stored prior to such requests, or may alternatively store data that is used to populate dynamic web pages that are generated in response to such requests.
In addition, each item record 114 within item catalog 112 may be associated with multiple pages, such as an item review page, an item detail page, and the like. The item detail page displays metadata about the particular item and stored within items records 114. This metadata may include the item's name, manufacturer, specifications, price, availability, and the like. Imagine, for instance, that one of customers 102 searches item catalog 112 for a particular item via a search tool. Website 106 would serve, to one of computing devices 104(1)-(M), a webpage that lists items that match the search criteria. If the customer selects (e.g., clicks on) one of the returned items, then website 106 likely serves the item's item detail page to the computing device.
Web servers 110(1)-(N) also include and/or can access a customer catalog 118, which itself includes one or more customer catalog pages 120. Customer catalog 118 may group catalog pages 120 according to categories. For instance, each of a group of catalog pages 120 that relate to home and garden activities may be indexed under “Home and Garden”. In some instances, customers 102 may create some or all of these categories and may index some or all of catalog pages 120 within these categories. In other instances, web servers 110(1)-(N) analyze some or all of catalog pages 120 to determine a proper category in which to index the pages.
As illustrated, web servers 110(1)-(N) also include a catalog page annotator 122 to enable customers 102, an operator of website 106, or some other entity to create and/or annotate customer catalog pages 120. Customer catalog pages 120 may comprise a webpage, document, or any other file or media file that is configured to include one or more images illustrating and/or visually-representing one or more of items 114. For instance, one of catalog pages 120 may include an image that one of customers 102 uploaded onto web servers 110(1)-(N). This image may be a digital photograph taken by the customer, an image taken off of the Web, an animation, or any other type of file capable of being rendered on one or more of catalog pages 120. This image may thus comprise any suitable file format, such as JPEG, PDF, HTML, or the like. Conversely, an operator of Website 106, a distributor or manufacturer of an item, or some other entity may instead provide this image.
Whatever its source, this image may include annotations about the image or the item(s) illustrated in the image. For instance, one of customers 102 may employ catalog page annotator 122 to describe an image included as a part of a catalog page. If, for instance, the image comprises a digital photograph of one of customers 102 in her running gear, this customer may describe the image as “My Favorite Running Outfit”. This customer may also describe benefits of the outfit or may express any other personal message. In addition, this customer may associate an item illustrated in the image (e.g., her running shoes) with a hyperlink to a page associated with the running shoes within item catalog 112. This hyperlink may also correspond to a page hosted by a website other than website 106. This customer may similarly associate other items illustrated in the image with hyperlinks to the respective items within item catalog 112 or with hyperlinks to pages associated with the items and hosted by other websites.
Additionally, other customers, the website operator, or some other entity may annotate this image. For instance, one of customers 102 may associate an illustrated workout shirt with a hyperlink to a page associated with the shirt within item catalog 112, such as an item detail page or item review page. This customer could also comment on her experience with the workout shirt and/or the running shoes, or could provide a link to an address containing comments she has previously made about the items. This customer, the author of the page, the website operator, or some other entity may also suggest items to serve as alternatives to the illustrated items. In some instances, a hyperlink to the alternative items may be provided as a part of the catalog page.
Once a catalog page has been created, customers 102 may utilize user computing devices 104(1)-(M) (also referred to as “client computers” or simply “clients”) to view the created page. User computing devices 104(1)-(M) may be implemented as any number of computing devices, including as a personal computer, a laptop computer, a portable digital assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, a set-top box, a game console, and so forth. As illustrated, each user computing device is equipped with one or more processors 124 and memory 126 to store applications and data. According to some embodiments, a browser application 128 is shown stored in memory 126 and executes on processor(s) 124 to provide access to website 106. Browser 128 renders web pages served by website 106 on an associated display. Although embodiments are described in the context of a web based system, other types of client/server based communications and associated application logic could be used. In addition, note that software applications other than a browser may similarly be employed.
When one of customers 102 accesses website 106, user computing device 104(1) submits a request to servers 110(1)-(N). Upon receiving the request, servers 110(1)-(N) return a web page 130 back to the requesting client computer. Here, web page 130 represents an example one of customer catalog pages 120. The customer operating computing device 104(1) may receive web page 130 in a number of ways. First, this customer may merely enter a uniform resource locator (URL) address into a browser toolbar or the like. Conversely, website 106 may include a catalog search page, from which the customer may search for a particular topic (e.g., “running”). If included in the search results, the customer may then select a link or an icon representing web page 130.
Additionally, a link to web page 130 may appear in an item detail page corresponding to an item illustrated in the image of web page 130. If, for instance, the customer navigates to an item detail page for a pair of running shoes, then a link to a catalog page that contains an image that illustrates the shoes may appear on the item detail page. From that page, the customer may select the link to the particular customer catalog page. The customer may also sort customer catalog 118 by categories and/or sub-categories. To retrieve a catalog page with the running shoes, for instance, the customer may search for a category entitled “Fitness” or the like. Finally, the customer could receive links to customer catalog pages via email, possibly sent by website 106.
Customer Catalog Pages
Here, image 208 includes three items included within an electronic catalog such as item catalog 112. As illustrated, this image includes speakers 212, an MP3 player 214, and a set of headphones 216. Because this image comprises a digital photograph, the image also illustrates a door to the user's dorm room and may also illustrate other articles or scenery that a typical photograph would illustrate. In addition to illustrating the three items 212-216, customers 102 of the merchant website, an operator of the merchant website, and/or some other entity may associate one or more of these items to their respective item detail pages within item catalog 112. For instance, speakers 212 may be associated with a page that is associated with speakers 212. This associated page may include, for instance, an item detail page for speakers 212, an item review page for speakers 212, a page hosted by another website that includes speakers 212, or any other page that pertains to these speakers.
In the illustrated implementations, the associated page is an item detail page for speakers 212. Therefore, when a user rolls a cursor over the speakers, a link (e.g., a hyperlink) to the corresponding item detail page may appear. Alternatively or additionally, if a user selects (e.g., clicks on) speakers 212 within image 208, the item detail page may be served to the user's computing device.
Content area 204 also includes information 218 “About the Author” of catalog page 200. This author may comprise the user who uploaded image 208, the user who first annotated image 208, the user who last annotated image 208, or some other individual or entity. In instances where multiple users annotate the image, catalog page 200 may include multiple authors, some or all of which may be recognized by information 218. In the illustrate embodiment, the user who uploaded image 208 is the author. Here, the author consists of the user who initially uploaded and annotated image 208 (i.e., the user that “created” customer catalog page 200).
As illustrated, information 218 includes a picture 220 representing the author. Picture 220 may alternatively or additionally comprise an icon or other symbol representing or chosen by the author. Information 218 also includes an author's name 222, which may comprise a legal name, screen name, and/or some other identifier. Here, the author's name is shown to be “Jonathan Cho”.
Image 208 also includes information 224 “About the Scene”. Information 224 may include a description 226 of image 208, or may include any other personal message chosen by the author, one or more other users, the website operator, and/or some other entity. Here, the author entered description 226, which states the following: “If you have a noisy roommate or neighbor, then this is for you. Listen to your favorite studying music as CD quality in your room or on the go!” In addition, the author may associate the catalog page 200 with a set of tags (e.g., “sound system”, “dorm room”, etc.).
Catalog page 200 thus enables a user of a merchant website to upload and annotate an image or annotate an existing image. This user entitles and describes the scene, and may also associate links (e.g., hyperlinks) to pages associated with the illustrated items. Additionally, other users or the website operator may also annotate image 208, as discussed immediately below.
In addition to providing description 226 entered in by the author of page 200, content area 204 includes an area 228 that enables users such as customers 102 to “View Other Comments” about image 208 and/or illustrated items 212-216. Here, area 228 comprises a link that, when selected, shows one or more comments about the image and/or items, possibly made by one or more of customers 102. In other instances, however, area 228 may list the comments themselves within content area 204 (e.g., in an order determined by the date that each comment was posted).
Additionally, content area 204 includes an area 230 that enables users such as customers 102 to “Annotate this Scene!” That is, selection of area 230 allows a user of the merchant website to annotate image 208. This user may choose to describe her previous experience with one of the items (e.g., MP3 player 214), or may choose to associate one of the items (e.g., MP3 player 214) with a link to a page such as an item detail page for that particular item. While
In some embodiments, the merchant website may employ certain barriers to entry before allowing users or other entities to annotate images such as image 208. For instance, the merchant website may require that a user has not previously been cited for inappropriately annotating images (e.g., once or a threshold number of times). The merchant web site may alternatively or additionally require that a user have purchased an item generally from the merchant website or may require that the user have purchased the item for which the user wishes to annotate.
As illustrated, content area 204 further includes an area 232 to allow a user to voice her opinion on the helpfulness of catalog page 200. Here, area 232 comprises the question of: “Is this Page Helpful?”, and includes a “Yes” and “No” icon that the user may select in response to the question. Content area 204 also includes a results section 234 indicating the number of users that have found catalog page 200 helpful. Here, ten of fifteen users have found this page helpful. In some instances, the merchant website may take down catalog page 200 or may take other action responsive to receiving a certain percentage or threshold of “No” votes.
Additionally, content area 204 or another web page may track and display a number of times that users have visited catalog page 200 and/or selected or purchased items illustrated in image 208. In some instances, this tracking enables generated revenue to be shared amongst the merchant website and another individual or entity. For instance, if a user purchases an item after selecting the item from image 208, the merchant website may share a portion of the generated revenue with the author of the page. If a third party (e.g., one of customers 102) annotated image 208 to include a link to the item detail page, meanwhile, then that third party may additionally or alternatively share in this portion of the revenue. Finally, imagine that the link leads to a webpage that is not controlled by the merchant website but rather by a third party seller. Here, if a purchase is made, then the third party seller may agree to share generated revenue with the merchant website in exchange for the merchant website enabling the annotated link on image 208.
Catalog page 200 also includes a discussion link 236 that, when selected, allows the viewing user to navigate to a chat room or the like to discuss catalog page 200 as well as potentially other features of the merchant website. Catalog page 200 also includes a permalink 238 that enables the viewing user to bookmark catalog page 200 in the page's current state.
A link 240 to report the catalog page as inappropriate resides near permalink 238 in the illustrated embodiment. A viewing user may decide to select this link for a variety of reasons, such as if image 208 contains disagreeable content (e.g., violent images) or if an incorrect link has been associated with an illustrated item. For instance, imagine that a particular company (“ABC”) markets and sells MP3 player 214. Imagine also that a user associates, with MP3 player 214, a link that corresponds to an item marketed by a competitor of the ABC company. Here, a user that views catalog page 200 may select link 240 to report this inappropriate association. Responsive to receiving this selection (or a threshold number of selections), the merchant website may take down catalog page 200, may investigate annotations within the page, or may take other investigative or remedial action.
As illustrated, content area 204 also includes a list 242 of those items that image 208 illustrates and that have been associated with a link to a respective associated page, such as an item detail page. Here, each of items 212-216 has been associated with a link to a respective item detail pages within item catalog 112. List 242, therefore, depicts each of items 212-216, and also includes a name 244, 246, and 248 for each item. Here, each of names 244-248 specify the item as well as a brand name under which the item is sold. Although list 242 depicts illustrations and names of items 212-216, other embodiments of catalog page 200 may instead list one or the other, or may exclude list 242 altogether.
Content area 204 may also include an icon entitled “Buy it All!” or the like. When selected, this icon enables the user to purchase each item within list 242. Content area 204 may accordingly also illustrate a total price of the collection. That is, content area 204 may illustrate the total cost associated with purchasing the collection of items within list 242. In some instances, this total cost may include a discount when compared with purchasing each of the items individually. Content area 204 may also include an icon entitled “See Alternative Collections at Different Price Points”. When this icon is selected, another list similar to list 242 may appear with items to serve as alternatives to items 212-216.
A price slider 256 for the collection may also be illustrated. When slid to the left, for instance, content area 204 may illustrate less expensive collections, while content area 204 may illustrate more expensive collections when a user slides the slider to the right. This price slider may also include multiple sub-sliders that relate to each item within list 242. For instance, a user may slide a sub-slider corresponding to speakers 212 to the right if the user wishes to view high-end speakers. Conversely, the user may not place as much value in headphones. The user may accordingly slide this sub-slider more to the left. As such, when the user slides the collection price slider left and/or right, content area 204 will illustrate different collections at different price points, while at the same time taking into account the user's preference for higher-end speakers and lower-end headphones. Users, the website operator, or another entity may choose alternative items to illustrated in response to a user altering price slider 256 and/or another sub-slider. These alternative items may be determined by looking to the specifications or other characteristics (e.g., brand, color, model, etc.) of the illustrated items and choosing items with similar or the same specifications and/or characteristics. Of course, items having differing specifications may also be included as alternatives. While price sliders have been discussed, other mechanisms may also be employed and are similarly envisioned to enable the user to view alternative but similar item collections at differing price points or the like. Finally, note that if the catalog page illustrates a total price for the collection of items, this price may change as the user modifies the slider and/or sub-sliders.
If a user wishes to search for catalog pages other than catalog page 200, meanwhile, content area 204 includes a search tool 250. Search tool 250 includes a text box that allows a user to enter a search term or phrase and search customer catalog 118.
As stated above, a highlight may identify an item that a user, website operator or other entity has annotated. That is, a highlight may identify those items that some individual or entity has described, commented on, or linked to an associated page such as a respective item detail page within item catalog 112. In some embodiments, highlights serve to identify items that have been associated with a link to associated pages within the item catalog or otherwise, but do not identify items that have only been commented upon.
In the illustrated embodiment, pop-up box 402 includes metadata about MP3 player 214. In instances when the item has been associated with a corresponding link to, for example, an item detail page, catalog page 200 may pull and display metadata from the item detail page. Here, pop-up box 402 includes an illustration of MP3 player 214, name 246 of the player, and a rating 404 of the MP3 player. Rating 404 may comprise a community-generated rating or the like and is pulled into pop-up box 402 from the MP3 player's item detail page. Here, rating 404 shows that MP3 player 214 has received four stars and has been voted on by 46 users. In addition, pop-up box 402 illustrates a price 406 of MP3 player 214 on the merchant website. Again, catalog page 200 (and, more specifically, pop-up box 402) likely pulls this data from the player's item detail page. That is, catalog page 200 likely pulls this data from the item catalog, similar to how the item detail page pulls this information in response to receiving a request for the item detail page.
As
As discussed above in regards to
Description 414 not only includes a message about the player as provided by Jonathan, but also includes a hyperlink 416 (“ABC MP3 Player”) to the item detail page corresponding to the player. Hyperlink 416 has thus been associated with MP3 player 214, possibly in a manner as discussed below with reference to
In addition to illustrating potentially-related products within image 208, catalog page 200 also enables a user to view alternative items. Links 418 and 420, for instance, enable a user to view items to serve as an alternative to MP3 player 214. Link 418, here entitled “See Alternative Items at Different Price Points”, comprises a hyperlink to alternative items generated by the merchant website. These alternative items may comprise items having similar characteristics of the illustrated items, but having different colors, brands, or the like. The merchant website may not only suggest similar items having varying or similar prices than that of the illustrated item, but may also suggest newer models or the like. The merchant website may particularly wish to make such suggestions for alternative items when the illustrated item is out of stock, no longer available, on backorder, or the like.
In addition to link 418, pop-up box 402 may include a price slider similar to price slider 256. This price slider allows a user to slide a dial to the right or the left, for example, to view more expensive alternative items and less expensive alternative items, respectively. In some embodiments, pop-up box 402 illustrates these alternative items as the user slides the dial of the price slider. Again, these items may be determined with reference to specifications and/or characteristics of the items. For instance, imagine that a brand carries a less-expensive MP3 player with specifications (e.g., memory, functions, etc.) that are similar to MP3 player 214. This less-expensive MP3 player may be illustrated in response to a user moving the price slider to the left. Again, users, the website operator or some other entity may suggest these differently-priced items.
Link 420, meanwhile, enables a viewing user to view alternative items suggested by other users such as customers 102 of the merchant website. Similarly, pop-up box 402 includes a link 422 entitled “Suggest an Alternative Item”. When selected, link 422 allows the viewing user to navigate item catalog 112 to find an item to serve as an alternative to MP3 player 214. In some instances, catalog page 200 enables this action in a way similar to that described below with reference to
Finally, pop-up box 402 includes a link 424 that, when selected, allows a viewing user to annotate MP3 player 214 by “Comment[ing] on This Item”. If, for instance, the viewing user owns MP3 player 214, this user may wish to share her experience with the player. Pop-up box 402 thus includes a link 426, entitled “View Comments by Others”, to allow this user to view other user's comments. In other embodiments, meanwhile, pop-up box 402 illustrates some or all of these comments without requiring a viewing user to select link 426.
A user of the merchant website may navigate to catalog pages such as page 200 in multiple ways. First, customer catalog 118 may organize catalog pages 120 according to categories. The user then either peruses through a category (e.g., “Home and Garden”) or searches within the category. In some instances, the user may view catalog pages within a category according to the “helpfulness” of each page as voted on by other users. Again, users of the website may create categories and/or may upload catalog pages into one or more categories to which the users believe the pages belong. Second, the user may search for catalog pages via search tool 250. Again,
As illustrated, cursor 302 currently hovers over image 208 and, as such, the item detail page illustrates a pop-up box 508. Similar to pop-up box pop-up 402, pop-up box 508 includes metadata about catalog page 200. Pop-up box 508 may pull this metadata from catalog page 200. Also similar to pop-up box 402, other implementations of pop-up box 508 may include more or less information than the illustrated implementation.
Here, pop-up box 508 includes a list 510 of items that appear in the illustrated scene of catalog page 200. List 510 thus depicts speakers 212, MP3 player 214, and headphones 216. This list also identifies these items by names 244, 246, and 248, respectively. Pop-up box 508 also includes title 210, results section 234 (indicating the number of users that have found catalog page 200 helpful), and description 226.
As illustrated, search results 604 include image 208 corresponding to catalog page 200. Again, image 208 may be hyperlinked to catalog page 200 such that selection of image 208 results in catalog page 200 being served to the user's computing device. Additionally, when cursor 302 hovers over image 208, pop-up box 508 appears. Again, pop-up box 508 illustrates metadata about catalog page 200. Pop-up boxes containing similar data may also appear over different illustrated images responsive to cursor 302 hovering over these images.
Creatine Customer Catalog Pages
While
Image 700 includes an item (diamond 702) that is found within an electronic catalog such as item catalog 112. As illustrated, a user of the current example chooses to describe diamond 702. This user thus drags a box 704 around diamond 702, or around an area of image 700 that approximately frames diamond 702. When box 704 approximately frames an item, the item such as diamond 702 typically comprises at least 25% of the area framed by the box.
After dragging box 704 around diamond 702 to select the item, the user then selects an icon or otherwise chooses to comment on the diamond. In response to this choice, a text box 706 appears. Text box 706 allows the user to provide a description 708 of diamond 702. In some instances, text box 706 may limit the size of the comment and, hence, may include an indicator 710 that indicates to the user a remaining allowable size of description 708. Text box 706 also includes an icon 712 that allows a user to save description 708, an icon 714 that enables the user to cancel the description, and an icon 716 that enables the user to delete the description.
Finally, text box 706 includes an icon 718 that enables the user to “Insert [an] Item Link”. When selected, icon 718 enables the user to associate selected item (here, diamond 702) a hyperlink. This associated hyperlink may, for instance, point to a webpage, either within the electronic catalog or otherwise, that is associated with the diamond. In instances where item catalog 112 includes diamond 702, the user may select icon 718 to associate a hyperlink to, for instance, an item detail page for diamond 702 with illustrated diamond. In other implementations, the user may instead associate a hyperlink to item review pages, discussion forum pages, pages hosted by a third party website, or any other page somehow associated with diamond 702.
With reference to the first diamond ring illustrated by category 906, user interface 802 includes an illustration 910 of the item, a description 912 of the item, and an icon 914 to enable the user to select the corresponding item. Here, if the user believes that this first diamond ring illustrated and described by illustration 910 and description 912, respectively, represents the illustrated diamond, then the user selects icon 914. By selecting this icon, the user associates diamond 702 (illustrated within image 700) with a link to an item detail page for the diamond represented by illustration 910.
Item Manager and Tag Score Calculator Implementation
As illustrated, item catalog 112 stores item records 114, as well as item metadata 1306. Item metadata 1306 comprises information about items represented by item records 114. This information includes, for instance, price, color, availability, specifications, etc. Customer catalog 118, meanwhile, contains catalog pages 120 as well as catalog categories 1308. Catalog categories 1308 may include categories generated by the merchant website, as well as user-created categories. Each of catalog pages 120 resides or is otherwise associated with one or more of catalog categories 1308. Catalog page 200 discussed above, for example, may be associated both with a category entitled “Home Stereos” and a category entitled “Digital Audio Players”.
Item manager 116 and catalog page annotator 122, meanwhile, are implemented as software or computer-executable instructions stored in memory 1304 and executed by one or more of processors 1302. Item manager 116 includes search tool 1310 to enable a user to search item records 114 within item catalog 112. Search tool 1310, or another similar search tool, also enables the user to search for catalog pages 120 within customer catalog 118. Item manager 116 also maintains links 1312 to item detail pages for item records 114.
Catalog page annotator 122 includes a link association tool 1314, an alternative item tool 1316, and a comment tool 1318. Link association tool 1314 allows a user to associate an item illustrated within one or more of catalog pages 120 with a link to a page that is associated with the item within item catalog 112. In some implementations, link association tool 1314 operates in a manner similar to that described with reference to
Finally,
Operation
Process 1400 includes operation 1402, which represents receiving an image that illustrates an item having an item detail page within an electronic catalog. A user of a website, the website, or some other entity may provide the image. Operation 1404, meanwhile, represents displaying the image to the user. At operation 1406, a first selection of the illustrated item is received from the user. Operation 1408 then represents displaying a user interface to allow the user to search the electronic catalog for the illustrated item. At operation 1410, a selection of the item within the electronic catalog is received from the user and, at operation 1412, the illustrated item is associated with a link to the item detail page within the electronic catalog. Process 1400 also includes operation 1414, which represents receiving a second selection of the illustrated item after the associating. Responsive to this second selection, operation 1416 enables selection of the link to the item detail page or, in some instances, serves the item detail page.
Operation 1506 represents enabling the user or other users to comment on or associate text with the illustrated item. At operation 1508, the user, other users, or the website may suggest and/or generate items to serve as alternatives to the illustrated item. At operation 1510, the illustrated item is highlighted responsive to detection of a cursor hovering over the image. Similarly, operation 1512 presents the hyperlink to the associated page, presents text, and/or presents alternative items responsive to detecting the cursor hovering over the illustrated item. When presenting some of this data, operation 1514 pulls metadata from the associated page.
Operation 1516 then represents receiving a selection of the illustrated item, while operation 1518 represents serving the associated page responsive to the receiving of the selection. Operation 1520, meanwhile, tracks a number of times that the hyperlink is selected or the number of times that the hyperlink is selected and the illustrated item is purchased. At operation 1522, the user that uploaded the image and/or the user that associated the illustrated item with the hyperlink are compensated by, for example, sharing revenue of the sale. Finally, operation 1524 represents enabling the user or other users to associate a second illustrated item with a hyperlink to a page that is associated with the second item.
Operation 1606 similarly represents associating a second item with a link to a page that is associated with the second item n the electronic catalog. Again, this operation includes sub-operation 1606(1), which associates the link with an area of the image that approximately frames the second item. Operation 1608 then represents associating a user-generated annotation with the first and/or the second item. Finally, operation 1610 presents a user interface to enable a user to search the electronic catalog for the first item in instances where the associated page is within the electronic catalog. Presentation of this user interface enables the association of the link with the illustrated first item.
At operation 1706, a cursor is detected as hovering over an identification of one of the returned customer-annotated catalog pages. Operation 1708 then represents displaying metadata associated with the items illustrated in the identified catalog page over which the cursor hovers. This metadata may include some or all of the metadata discussed above. For instance, operation 1710 represents displaying a hyperlink to the page that is associated with the currently-underscored item. Finally, operation 1712 represents listing each item illustrated in the currently-identified catalog page and having been associated with a hyperlink to a respective associated page within the electronic catalog or otherwise.
Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as illustrative forms of implementing the claims.
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