Item substitution for unavailable items relating to a customer order

Abstract

A technique is disclosed for automatically implementing item substitutions for unavailable items in a customer order. According to one embodiment, line item orders from selected customer orders may be aggregated and processed for substitution analysis. Substitutions for unavailable items of selected customer orders may then be automatically implemented based upon substitution instructions, business rules, and/or other predefined criteria.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer system for effecting substitution of at least one ordered item of at least one customer order at an online store via a computer network, the computer system comprising:
 a computing device; and   a storage device coupled to the computing device, the storage device storing instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to:
 analyze a plurality of customer orders placed by a plurality of customers, via the computer network, to the online store, to identify an item in a customer order from a customer having been oversold, before delivering items in the plurality of customer orders to the plurality of customers; and 
 substitute the oversold item with a substituted item for the customer order from the customer based on at least one substitution rule, 
   wherein another substitution rule to restrict substituting another item in the customer order based on an indication from the customer.   
     
     
         2 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to charge the customer a different amount in view of the substitute the oversold item in the customer order with the substituted item. 
     
     
         3 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on an input from a merchant that provides the oversold item to the online store. 
     
     
         4 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 , wherein to substitute based on the at least one substitution rule, the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to upgrade the oversold item based on size and/or brand. 
     
     
         5 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends at least in part on a prior interaction of the customer with the online store before the time the customer places the customer order. 
     
     
         6 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on an action by the customer at the time the customer places the customer order, to allow the substitute. 
     
     
         7 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 ,
 wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to retrieve a specific preference regarding item substitution entered by the customer in the customer order, and to retrieve a general preference from the customer regarding item substitution,   wherein if the specific preference corresponds to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the specific preference, and   wherein if the specific preference does not correspond to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the general preference.   
     
     
         8 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 ,
 wherein the at least one substitution rule includes a ratio rule,   wherein the customer order includes ordering a first number of the oversold item,   wherein the substitute the oversold item includes substituting a first number of the oversold item by a second number of the substituted item, and   wherein the first number of the oversold item and the second number of the substituted item are related by the ratio rule.   
     
     
         9 . A computer system as recited in  claim 1 ,
 wherein the customer order includes a delivery time set by the customer, and   wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to substitute the oversold item at a time that depends on the delivery time.   
     
     
         10 . A computer system as recited in  claim 9 ,
 wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to retrieve a specific preference regarding item substitution entered by the customer in the customer order, and to retrieve a general preference from the customer regarding item substitution,   wherein if the specific preference corresponds to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the specific preference, and   wherein if the specific preference does not correspond to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the general preference.   
     
     
         11 . A computer system as recited in  claim 10 , wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the computer system to charge the customer a different amount in view of the substitute the oversold item in the customer order with the substituted item. 
     
     
         12 . A computer system as recited in  claim 11 , wherein the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on an action by the customer at the time the customer places the customer order, to allow the substitute. 
     
     
         13 . An article for effecting substitution of at least one ordered item of at least one customer order at an online store comprising: a non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon instructions executable by a computing device to:
 analyze a plurality of customer orders collectively to identify an item having been oversold, based on information from the plurality of customer orders placed by a plurality of customers, before delivering items in the plurality of customer orders to the plurality of customers; and   substitute the oversold item in a customer order from a customer with a substituted item for the customer order based on at least one substitution rule.   
     
     
         14 . An article as recited in  claim 13 , wherein the instructions are executable to retrieve a specific preference regarding item substitution entered by the customer in the customer order, and to retrieve a general preference from the customer regarding item substitution,
 wherein if the specific preference corresponds to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the specific preference, and   wherein if the specific preference does not correspond to the oversold item in the customer order, then the substitute based on the at least one substitution rule depends on the general preference.   
     
     
         15 . An article for effecting substitution of at least one ordered item of at least one customer order at an online store comprising: a non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon instructions executable by a computing device to:
 retrieve a general preference from a customer regarding item substitution;   retrieve a specific preference regarding item substitution entered by a customer in a customer order that includes at least one item;   determine whether the at least one item has been oversold; and   determine whether the at least one item is to be substituted in accordance with at least one of the general or the specific preference if the determine determines that the at least one item has been oversold,
 wherein if the specific preference corresponds to the at least one item, then the determine whether the at least one item is to be substituted depends on the specific preference, and 
 wherein if the specific preference does not correspond to the at least one item, then the determine whether the at least one item is to be substituted depends on the general preference. 
   
     
     
         16 . An article as recited in  claim 15 , wherein the specific preference to restrict substituting the at least one item for the determine whether the at least one item is to be substituted. 
     
     
         17 . An article as recited in  claim 15 , wherein the instructions are executable to charge the customer a different amount if the oversold item in the customer order is substituted with a substituted item. 
     
     
         18 . An article as recited in  claim 15 , wherein the instructions are executable to analyze a plurality of customer orders placed by a plurality of customers to determine whether the at least one item has been oversold, before delivering items in the plurality of customer orders to the plurality of customers. 
     
     
         19 . An article as recited in  claim 18 , wherein the specific preference to restrict substituting the at least one item for the determine whether the at least one item is to be substituted. 
     
     
         20 . An article as recited in  claim 19 , wherein the instructions are executable to charge the customer a different amount if the oversold item in the customer order is substituted with a substituted item.