Voice dictation services are booming. Although 70% of voice requests to either Alexa and Siri are about weather, 30% of smart phone users also use voice dictation every day. (source: BDM media). Each month, Siri (Apple) has 500 million worldwide active users. Where does retail services fit into this new domain?
“The demand for a voice interface from all types of business is immense, including retail, hotels, banks, transport, Internet and stores”, said William Simonin, C.E.O. of Vivoka at the Parisian ‘Voice Tech’ conference on November 26th. Launched in 2015 and now with a staff of 30, Vivoka designs digital artificial voice assistants and integrates with all types of media. “We are very much in demand and often unable to bid for 50% of tenders” continues the co-founder. “We focus on customers for whom voice projects are structuring and transformative rather than hardware options. No-one develops any “app” without also considering how a digital voice assistant will optimise a customer experience”.
Retail is a strategic priority for Vivoka. The business partners with SES Imagotag, the global leader in electronic labels with a turnover of €188 million in 2018, a rise of 23%. Pilots are under way within Orange (telecom) shops and food branches of the Casino Group. There are multiple applications. Store staff are using digital voice for back office stock management, a generation of a daily vocal “To Do List” and processing of email with automatic response proposals. The range of facilities for customers are significant. Customers are expected to dictate a shopping list to a smart phone, ask for voice directions via a mall terminal or request a flashing electronic shelf label in a D.I.Y. store when asking a smartphone “where are the 5mm aluminium nuts and bolts. ”
There is debate about the real potential of voice technology for retailers, considering the infrastructure and technology constraints. According to a study by Sapio Research, 47% of sales staff must leave customers alone whilst they check on actual stock availability. “Retailers need to be more efficient so store staff can focus on customers, not on departmental errors,” says Loïc Oumier, V.P. of Marketing at SES Imagotag. “Retail is very competitive. It is essential to remove the frustration for customers, such as out-of-stock. technical failures or unavailable staff. We are convinced that the smart mobile is the future device. With digital voices, product displays and labels will be offering a range of detailed information to ensure a seamless and informed purchase for customers.”
This type of deployment has to consider new parameters. If a customer asks for a product like Nutella but it is out-of-stock, should the Artificial Intelligence offer a second choice. Should the 2nd-choice algorithm priorities be for a white label store brand, the most sold product or the one that matches the customers’ buying history? “It’s up to the retailer to decide by integrating all the purchasing parameters like hesitation, decision, best-case scenario”. concludes Oumier. “We focus on operational efficiency and customer experience at the point of sale”.