Conversational Interfaces

Welcome to Episode 3 of The Future is Spoken! Before we jump into this episode, a quick note to say you can get 15 percent off course fees at The Digital Assistant Academy before Oct. 16, 2020. Register for the Voice Interaction Design course and use the code DALAUNCH to obtain your discount.In Conversational Interfaces, we speak with Keri Roberts, owner of Branding Connection. Based in New Jersey, Keri helps brands and businesses discover what they are great at and amplify it. She is a content marketer, and this includes a lot in the audio space, such as chatbots, voice interaction, and podcasts. What makes a company great?Keri loves talking about what makes companies unique, how they amplify that, how do you put that into your conversation, into your content, into your audio. For her, it has streamlined into one approach - whether someone's interacting with you on a chatbot, on a voice skill, on a podcast, on a blog, they have the same feeling about you and your brand throughout.What is a conversational interface?Keri says that a good definition of a conversational interface is an AI conversation with a human element. She explains: “Whether it's a voice or a chatbot generally, it's really about the conversation that that AI is having, that a computer system if you want to think that way, is having with an individual.”A chatbot or any other interface we engage with is obviously not actual human being, but when we interact with it, we want it to feel a little bit human, and that's similar with a voice skill interaction as well. “So that's how I look at it is how do we interact with an AI with a computer in a way that has somewhat of a human quality,” she adds. What makes a good interface?Keri also explores what makes a good conversational interface. In her view, it’s one that really signifies the brand of the company that created it. So the conversational interface is really unique to them, so that when we are interacting with it, we feel like we are interacting with the personification of somebody who might work there. The other piece that makes a conversational interface really good is that it has to be efficient. In other words, it has to be helpful to the user who is interacting, and it has to give them what they need and want in that moment. Inclusion and representation in voiceIn addition, Keri is big on inclusion and community and making sure all voices are heard, and everyone is thought about. She works to ensure that in her work everyone is included. Keri explains: “When we're talking about conversational interfaces, we want to think about who is interacting with that when you're talking about people of different cultures, different backgrounds, different languages, different genders, and then of course different disabilities.”In this episode, Keri also talks about the importance of brands being clear about their identity before working on a conversational interface, and how to work with other members of a conversational design team when working on an interface. Show notesFind Keri Roberts:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerinroberts/Twitter: https://twitter.com/kerinrobertsPodcast: http://thebrandingconnection.com/podcastshow/The Digital Assistant AcademyThe Academy’s podcast: https://www.thefutureisspoken.com/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shyamalaprayaga.substack.com