Conversational Design for Businesses

Conversational Design for Businesses

Conversational UX design is the concept of designing a natural, two-way interaction between a user and a system (via voice, text, etc.), based on the general principles of human conversation. Conversational design has been around for a while now, but the increased hype surrounding the technique certainly has to be credited to the rise of the conversational AI interfaces like virtual voice assistants and chatbots.

Apple’s Siri revolutionized the way users interact with their devices by becoming the first ever modern virtual assistant to be installed on a phone. Siri was closely followed by digital assistants such as the Google Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa and Microsoft’s Cortana. As of 2019, there were more than 3 billion voice assistants in use. According to Microsoft’s 2019 Voice Report, about 72% of the survey respondents reported using voice search through a digital assistant. Around 35% of respondents reported using voice search through a smart home speaker.

The foremost reason why these virtual assistants resonated so much with the users is that they sound/feel human-like by their style of interaction. And that is the primary goal of conversational UX design too: to make the interactions between a user and their device feel as natural as possible while also designing the user interface so that it’s easy to navigate.

As of 2020, a massive number of devices and applications have already implemented virtual assistants because of how critical they have proven to be in increasing user engagement by providing usage assistance, and expanding ecommerce sales. Notably, most online purchases users tend to make using voice assistants are digital entertainment products like movies and music. In 2018, 11% of smart speaker owners in the US said they used their devices to buy entertainment products. In 2019, that number rose up to 21%. Advertisers recognize this. Nearly 40% of people who heard a voice ads have proceeded to purchase the item that was being advertised.

As of 2020, a massive number of devices and applications have already implemented virtual assistants because of how critical they have proven to be in increasing user engagement and providing them with much needed assistance; furthermore, the use of digital voice assistants would potentially go up to 8 billion by 2023 from the 2.5 billion at the end of 2018. If executed right, integrating a digital assistant can help you carve out a space for your business online.  

Myths and Misconceptions Surrounding Conversational Design:

1. Conversational UX Design is Just About Voice

Perhaps the biggest myth about conversational UX design is that it only accounts for what’s being voiced by either party and so a conversation designer only has to focus on the words their agent responds with. However, in truth conversational UX design can take several forms, including voice-only, voice-forward and intermodal; conversation experiences can span multiple platforms and devices, ranging from mobile phones to smart speakers to the web.

For example, if you ask both Google Assistant and Google Home to perform the same task, Google Assistant can show you the results on the UI, something Google Home can’t do. Therefore, conversation UX design can take a cross-platform approach and conversational designers might have to work on accommodating a wide variety of devices/platforms - it’s not just about voice.

2. Conversational UX Design is Only About Speech Recognition:

Another common error a lot of businesses make is assuming that conversational design and the speech recognition/ speech-to-text function are similar in nature. Now, speech-to-text is the feature that allows a system to identify words spoken aloud, and convert them into written text. It’s mostly used by designers to help out people with visual impairments and for accessibility purposes. However, speech recognition software usually has a quite limited vocabulary, and it can only identify specific words and phrases, that too only if spoken very clearly.

On the other hand, conversational UX design requires an agent to understand not only what a user says, but also what they really mean, so that it can respond in context.  

Best practices for Conversational UX Design:

1. Develop a Suitable Persona for the Conversational Agent:

In conversational UX Design, creating a persona for the agent can prove beneficial in two ways: it can help users interact with the agent in a more natural and engaging manner, and the business gets to craft and communicate an effective brand persona by giving it a ‘voice’. Developing a persona for an agent can prove beneficial for the conversation designer as well, since they present a clear picture of who is communicating with the users, and what their tone and attitude is like.

Wally Brill, the Head of Conversation Design Advocacy & Education at Google, has outlined the process for designing a persona. Here’s what you should keep in mind before deciding on a persona for your conversational agent:

1. Define the purpose: Before designing a persona for a conversational interface, decide what the job of the agent is, who it might be interacting with and the context of the conversations, and how it can assist the users.

2. Understand the user: Consider the various requirements a customer might have, actively listen to them, and empathize with their expectations and needs.

3. Understand your brand’s characteristics: Create a persona that’s compatible with your brand image.

Writing sample dialogue can help you understand what your conversational agent persona might be like in action; additionally, you’d get to comprehend the user experience as well.  

2. Give Your Conversational Interface a Conversation Memory:

Providing your conversational agent with both long and short term conversation memories can be a great way to make sure the conversations are a smooth and natural experience for the users. The conversational interface should be able to recall what has already been exchanged in an ongoing conversation with a particular user, as well as remember all previous interactions with a user in a certain context.

3. Choice of the Medium:

Before picking a medium for your conversational interface (i.e., voice bots or text-based bots), here are three things you can consider:

1. In a set amount of time, voice bots can convey more information to users than chatbots, since listening to something is faster than reading it out.

2. Chatbots can convey images, videos, and other user interface elements such as quick replies. On the other hand, voice bots can only provide sonic information. So when it comes to, say, online shopping, a chatbot would be better than a voice bot since it would allow the user to look at product images and compare them. Alternatively, a voice bot would be better for car music systems, since it would allow a user to play/skip music while driving.  

3. Text-based bots are best if you require the user to select one among a lot of options. For instance, if a customer has to choose one from several options in a menu, chatbots are a far better UX than voice bots, because the user doesn’t have to remember which options are available. However, if the user journey is linear, voice bots are the better choice since they allow the users to be hands free and therefore are more convenient to use.

Ultimately, to decide between these two mediums, you have to see how, why, and where your customer is using your product. Pick the interface that works best in that context.

As a business implementing a conversational user interface, it’s critical to incorporate customer-centered solutions. The experienced team at Thence would be more than happy to assist, should you require assistance understanding conversational UX design and how it can elevate your business. Contact us through our website!

‍