Embodiments of system are disclosed in which selection strategies for a direct marketing campaign that identify consumers from a credit bureau or other consumer database can be planned, tested, and/or refined on a stable subset of the credit database. In some embodiments, once refined, consumer selection criteria may be used to execute the direct marketing campaign on the full consumer/credit database, which is preferably updated approximately twice weekly. In one preferred embodiment, the data for the test database represents a random sampling of approximately 10% of the full database and the sampling is regenerated approximately weekly in order to provide a stable set of data on which campaign developers may test their campaign. For each consumer in the sampling, the environment may allow a client to access and use both attributes calculated by the credit bureau and proprietary attributes and data owned by the client. The system allows for a plurality of clients to use the system substantially simultaneously while protecting the privacy and integrity of the client's proprietary data and results.

An online social network is provided. A sentiment is determined for each of a plurality of users of an online social network (OSN) in relation to a first product. A category is determined for each of the plurality of users based, at least in part, on the sentiment of each of the plurality of users, respectively. A group including a first user and a second user of the plurality of users is generated based, at least in part, on the category of each of the first user and the second user and a relationship within the OSN between the first user and the second user. An advertisement is presented to the first user. An indication is presented to the first user that the advertisement is also presented to the second user.

Computer-implemented method and apparatus for placing a request for an Internet chat session between a visitor and a chat persona. A client device displays to the visitor (i) a plurality of chat personas, and (ii) a plurality of chat actions determined by a visitor-identifier associated with the visitor. In response to visitor selections, a chat system server selects (i) at least one chat persona and (ii) at least one chat action. The client device sends to the chat system server (i) a chat request to begin a chat session, and (ii) the visitor-identifier. The chat system server receives the chat request and the visitor identifier. The chat system server retrieves from memory additional information corresponding to the received visitor-identifier. The chat system server generates a personalized chat session between the identified visitor on the client device and the selected persona on the chat system server, using the retrieved additional information.

A user device containing sensors is delivered customized services without utilizing private user data or while only using it in highly constrained ways. This is accomplished by sending one or more queries to the user device. Each query requests a binary response and each query inquires whether or not the user device has obtained one or more specified parameter values, or range of parameter values, from one or more sensors incorporated in or in communication with the user device. For each query a binary response is received, which indicates that the user device has or has not obtained the one or more specified parameter values, or the range of parameter values, about which the respective query is inquiring.

A system for assisting a customer is provided. The system comprises a database comprising multimedia files, wherein one or more tags are associated with one or more of the multimedia files. The system further comprises a virtual agent server 100 configured to receive input from a first user (customer) and a second user (customer service representative). Further, the virtual agent server 100 processes the received input to understand a context of the input. Subsequently, the virtual agent server 100 identifies one or more multimedia files based on the context and the tags associated with the multimedia files. Subsequently, the virtual agent server 100 shares at least one of the identified multimedia files with at least one of the first user and the second user to enable better understanding between the first user and the second user.

Systems and methods are provided for determining a quantity of network location visitors that are likely generated or encouraged by specific offline events. A corresponding number of leads may then be attributed to and associated with those specific events. Ongoing conversion activity of those visitors may be tracked and associated with the offline events. Conversions of those visitors may be attributed entirely or partially to one or more specific offline events. The effectiveness of each offline may then be evaluated based on aggregate lead and conversion information.

A system and method for presenting advertising, the method including but not limited to presenting on a first end user device, a first personalized advertisement in a first avatar's view of a virtual world and presenting on a second end user device, a second personalized advertisement in a second avatar's view of the virtual world. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, for serving content to a user. A method includes: receiving a request for content from a user, the content to be displayed in a slot associated with an online resource; determining an expected activity score for the user based at least in part on one or more criteria associated with a context of presenting the online resource to the user; comparing the expected activity score for the user to a threshold; selecting one or more content items to serve to the user based at least in part on the comparison; and serving the selected content items to the user responsive to the request.

Method and system for localizing an element present in a piece of content having a plurality of elements. A cost of localizing an element with respect to each of one or more localization sources is first computed. At least one criterion based on which a localization source for localizing the element is to be determined is obtained. A localization source for localizing the element is then selected based on an assessment with respect to the at least one criterion. The element of the content is then localized using the selected localization source.

A method, system and computer-usable medium for providing composite cognitive insights comprising receiving streams of data from a plurality of data sources; processing the streams of data from the plurality of data sources, the processing the streams of data from the plurality of data sources performing data enriching and generating a sub-graph for incorporation into a cognitive graph; processing the cognitive graph, the processing the cognitive graph providing a plurality of individual cognitive insights; generating a composite cognitive insight, the composite cognitive insight being composed of the plurality of individual cognitive insights; and, providing the composite cognitive insight to a user via a set of cognitive media content.