Product Variety, Consumer Preferences, and Web Technology: Can the Web of Data Reduce Price Competition and Increase Customer Satisfaction?

Product Variety, Consumer Preferences, and Web Technology: Can the Web of Data Reduce Price Competition and Increase Customer Satisfaction?
Product Variety, Consumer Preferences, and Web Technology: Can the Web of Data Reduce Price Competition and Increase Customer Satisfaction? September 2, 2009, Linz, Austria Martin Hepp http://www.unibw.de/ebusiness/
Part I: Diversity in Markets The specificity of exchanged goods has kept on growing...
Specificity How much you loose when you can‘t use a good for what it was designed. Martin Hepp, 3 mhepp@computer.org
Growth in Specificity Reason # 1: Division of Labor Martin Hepp, 4 mhepp@computer.org
Range of Production on the Level of the Overall Economy Parts = N * c x Similarity of components weakens the effect. N = Number of Commodities c = Number of Components per Level of Division of Labor x = Depth of the Division of Labor Martin Hepp, 5 mhepp@computer.org
Growth in Specificity Reason # 2: Technical Advancement and Innovation Martin Hepp, 6 mhepp@computer.org
1920: 5168 Types of Goods Martin Hepp, 7 mhepp@computer.org
Growth in Specificity Reason # 3: Logistics Temporal Constraints etc. Martin Hepp, 8 mhepp@computer.org
Growth in Specificity Reason # 4: Wealth Abraham H. Maslow (1908-1970) A Theory of Human Motivation (1943) Martin Hepp, 9 mhepp@computer.org
Examples Martin Hepp, 10 mhepp@computer.org
Specificity Increases the Search Space Martin Hepp, 13 mhepp@computer.org
Multi-Dimensional Trade-Off Problems • Product Features • Price • Services • Logistics • Preferences regarding business partners • Etc. Martin Hepp, 14 mhepp@computer.org
Part II: E-Commerce on the Web
History Lesson: Search for Suppliers 1992: 1 Week 2009: 1 Minute Martin Hepp, 16 mhepp@computer.org
But: Search for Suppliers, 2009 Martin Hepp, 17 mhepp@computer.org
Limitations of the Web, 2009
No Unified View: Jumping Back and Forth Across Data Silos Site Page Page Search Engine Results Search Engine Results 1 1 2 Search Engine Results Search Engine Results Page Page 3 4 Site Page 2 5 Site Page Page Page 3 6 7 8 Martin Hepp, 19 mhepp@computer.org
We know the best hits only when done. Site Page Page 1 1 2 Search Engine Results Page Page 3 4 Site Page 2 5 Site Page Page Page 3 6 7 8 Martin Hepp, 20 mhepp@computer.org
Specificity vs. Keyword-based Search • Synonyms • Homonyms • Multiple languages • No parametric search Martin Hepp, 21 mhepp@computer.org
Limited Ability to Reuse Data Martin Hepp, 22 mhepp@computer.org
The Web: A Bottleneck for Sharing Product Data Martin Hepp, 23 mhepp@computer.org
Challenge: Web-wide Product Search • Find all MP3 players that have a USB interface and a color display, and sort them by weight (lightest first). ...on a Web Scale! Martin Hepp, 24 mhepp@computer.org
Today: Loss of Variety and Detail Many Different Variety in Products Preferences Web Search Manufacturers & Consumers Retailers Martin Hepp, 25 mhepp@computer.org
What’s the Consequence? Martin Hepp, 26 mhepp@computer.org
Effect: Overly Price Competition Only 1 – 2 Product Models Considered Comparison Shopping on the Small Subset Martin Hepp, 27 mhepp@computer.org
This will change soon. Actually, very soon.
Deep Comparison Shopping Search Engine Results Site Site Site 3 1 2 Page Page Page 6 5 1 Page Page 7 3 Page 2 Page Page 8 4 Martin Hepp, 29 mhepp@computer.org
Part III: The Web of Linked Data
The World Wide Web, Essentially: Turn References in Documents from Road Signs into Roads Click! Martin Hepp, 31 mhepp@computer.org
The Web of Linked Data, Essentially: 1. Cluster Web links by what they mean 2. Use URIs to indicate the type of links 3. Use HTTP URIs so that it is quick and easy to explore what this URI means. 4. Make clear whether you are referring to something or its representation. Martin Hepp, 32 mhepp@computer.org
Technical Effects & Working Assumption • This will reduce the computational complexity of processing, combining, reusing data on a Web scale Martin Hepp, 35 mhepp@computer.org
Core Web of Linked Data Technology Pillars • URIs for everything • RDF: A data model for exchanging conceptual graphs based on triples – Triple: (Subject, Predicate, Object) – Exchange syntax: RDF/XML, N3, etc. • RDFS and OWL: Formal languages for that help reduce ambiguity and codify implicit facts – foo:human rdfs:subClassOf foo:mammal • SPARQL: Standardized query language and endpoint interface for RDF data • LOD Principles: Best practices for keeping the current Web and the Web of Data compatible Martin Hepp, mhepp@computer.org 36
Part IV: E-Commerce on the Web of Linked Data
E-Commerce on the Web of Linked Data Martin Hepp, 38 mhepp@computer.org
Discovery Effort Martin Hepp, 39 mhepp@computer.org
Both Sides Can Help Build a Bridge Martin Hepp, 40 mhepp@computer.org
What Do We Need? • Vocabularies • Tools – Product or service • Applications types – Businesses – Offerings • Data Sets – Product model data – Businesses, contact details, opening hours – Offering data Martin Hepp, 41 mhepp@computer.org
Part V: The GoodRelations Vocabulary and Data Space
GoodRelations: A Unified View on Commerce Data on the Web Extraction Arbitrary Query and Reuse Manufacturers Retailers Payment Delivery Product Model Warranty Master Data Shop Spare Parts & Offerings Auctions Consumables Martin Hepp, 43 mhepp@computer.org
On the Shoulders of Giants A Unified View of Commerce Data on the Web Martin Hepp, 44 mhepp@computer.org
The GoodRelations Vocabulary • A universal and free Web vocabulary for adding product and offering data to your Web pages. • Compatible with all relevant W3C standards and recommendations – RDF – OWL http://purl.org/goodrelations/ Martin Hepp, 45 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations Design Principles • Keep simple things Lightweight Heavyweight simple and make Web of Data Web of Data complex things possible LOD OWL DL • Cater for LOD and OWL RDF + a little bit DL worlds • Academically sound • Industry-strength engineering • Practically relevant Martin Hepp, 46 mhepp@computer.org
Albert Einstein on Schema Design "Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler.“ Albert Einstein Martin Hepp, 47 mhepp@computer.org
Basic Structure of Offers Object or Agent 1 Promise Happening Compensation Transfer of Rights Agent 2 Martin Hepp, 48 mhepp@computer.org
Data, Standards, Ontologies Martin Hepp, 49 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations: License • Permanent, royalty-free access for commercial and non-commercial use. http://purl.org/goodrelations/ Martin Hepp, 50 mhepp@computer.org
Domain Structure and Use Cases
The Minimal Scenario • Scope – Business entity – Points-of-sale – Opening hours – Payment options • Suitable for – Every business – E-commerce and brick-and-mortar Martin Hepp, 52 mhepp@computer.org
The Simple Scenario • Scope: Minimal scenario plus – Range of products or services – Business functions – Eligible regions or customer types – Delivery options • Suitable for – Any business: E-Commerce and brick-and-mortar – Specific products or services Martin Hepp, 53 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations Annotator http://www.ebusiness-unibw.org/tools/goodrelations-annotator/ Martin Hepp, 54 mhepp@computer.org
The Comprehensive Scenario • Scope: Simple scenario plus – Individual products or services – Product features – Pricing, rebates, etc. – Availability • Suitable for – Any business: E-commerce and brick-and-mortar – Specific products or services – Structured product database Martin Hepp, 55 mhepp@computer.org
osCommerce Extension http://code.google.com/p/goodrelations-for-oscommerce/ Martin Hepp, 56 mhepp@computer.org
Joomla/VirtueMart Extension http://code.google.com/p/goodrelations-for-joomla/ Martin Hepp, 57 mhepp@computer.org
Google Product Feed Converter http://tr.im/sLcX Martin Hepp, 58 mhepp@computer.org
Product Model Data Scenario • Scope – Individual product models – Quantitative and qualitative features • Suitable for – Manufacturers of commodities Martin Hepp, 59 mhepp@computer.org
Others Do Care: Pick-up in Industry • BestBuy • Smart Information Systems • ebSemantics • Yahoo! SearchMonkey • Virtuoso Sponger Cartridges for Amazon, eBay, and • Major German mail order companies • etc. Martin Hepp, 60 mhepp@computer.org
Yahoo Enhanced by SearchMonkey Martin Hepp, 61 mhepp@computer.org
Yahoo Enhanced SearchMonkey Martin Hepp, 62 mhepp@computer.org
Linked Open Commerce Dataspace http://loc.openlinksw.com/sparql Martin Hepp, 63 mhepp@computer.org
Linked Open Commerce Dataspace http://loc.openlinksw.com/sparql Martin Hepp, 64 mhepp@computer.org
Conclusion
Today: Loss of Variety and Detail Many Different Variety in Products Preferences Web Search Manufacturers & Consumers Retailers Martin Hepp, 66 mhepp@computer.org
2010: Point-to-Point Commerce Many Different Variety in Products Preferences Manufacturers & Consumers Retailers Martin Hepp, 67 mhepp@computer.org
Why Should I Bother? • Web Shops: Better visibility in latest generation search engines (e.g. Yahoo) – Same holds for any business that has a Web page, from A as in Amusement Park to Z as in Zoo. • Manufacturers: Allow your retailers to reuse product feature data with minimal overhead at both ends. • Software Developers: Help your customers to use and generate Semantic Web data. It’s easy! Martin Hepp, 68 mhepp@computer.org
What Should I Do? • Web Shops: Create a GoodRelations data dump of your range of offers (rather simple) • Vendors of Web Shop Software: Create GoodRelations import and export interfaces (we can help you with that) • Every Business: Ask your webmaster to create at least a basic description of your range of products or services • Entrepreneurs: Invent new business models based on GoodRelations data Martin Hepp, 69 mhepp@computer.org
Part VII: The Sky Is the Limit Semantics in Affiliate Models, Serendipity, Matchmaking
Thank you! http://purl.org/goodrelations/ Prof. Dr. Martin Hepp Chair of General Management and E-Business Universitaet der Bundeswehr University Muenchen Werner-Heisenberg-Weg 39 D-85579 Neubiberg, Germany Phone: +49 89 6004-4217 Fax: +49 89 6004-4620 http://www.unibw.de/ebusiness/ http://purl.org/goodrelations/ mhepp@computer.org Martin Hepp, 71 mhepp@computer.org
Bonus Track: Tools and Resources
Additional Information • Web Page – Ontology – Language Reference – Primer – Recipes – Wiki http://purl.org/goodrelations/ Martin Hepp, 73 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations User‘s Guide („Primer“) http://www.heppnetz.de/projects/goodrelations/primer/ 74
GoodRelations Cookbook: Recipes & Examples http://www.ebusiness-unibw.org/wiki/GoodRelations#Recipes_and_Examples Martin Hepp, 75 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations Annotator http://www.ebusiness-unibw.org/tools/goodrelations-annotator/ Martin Hepp, 76 mhepp@computer.org
GoodRelations Validator http://www.ebusiness-unibw.org/tools/goodrelations-validator/ Martin Hepp, 77 mhepp@computer.org
RDF2dataRSS Tool http://www.ebusiness-unibw.org/tools/rdf2datarss/ Martin Hepp, 78 mhepp@computer.org
osCommerce Extension http://code.google.com/p/goodrelations-for-oscommerce/ Martin Hepp, 79 mhepp@computer.org
Joomla/VirtueMart Extension http://code.google.com/p/goodrelations-for-joomla/ Martin Hepp, 80 mhepp@computer.org
Thank you! http://purl.org/goodrelations/ Prof. Dr. Martin Hepp Chair of General Management and E-Business Universitaet der Bundeswehr University Muenchen Werner-Heisenberg-Weg 39 D-85579 Neubiberg, Germany Phone: +49 89 6004-4217 Fax: +49 89 6004-4620 http://www.unibw.de/ebusiness/ http://purl.org/goodrelations/ mhepp@computer.org Martin Hepp, 81 mhepp@computer.org

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