The number of devices that are featuring and enabling voice assistants is consistently growing. Experts are expecting a growth of the market for digital assistants of up to $3.6 billion until 2020. This definitely reminds us of other life-changing technologies like the social web.

With the creation of the Web 2.0 and applications like Facebook or Twitter the foundation for a socially connected internet was laid. We can experience the impact of this social technology every day in the way we interact and communicate with each other. The growing AI industry and ever-evolving voice assistants and chatbots are going to cause similar changes in our world.

Click on the button to load the content from www.slideshare.net. Load content

Computers and machines that we can talk to have become more than a futuristic idea and have made their way into our lives already. The ability to interact with technology simply by using our voice is a big step in making the social web even more connected and engaging. This is a development that businesses must be ready for as these new technologies enable new business models and ways in which businesses interact with their customers.

Download our free e-book to learn everything you need to know about chatbots for your business.

Let’s have a closer look at how voice assistants, chatbots and AI are transforming businesses and lives.

Artificial intelligence helps to build connections

Humans talk, this is our core way of connecting with each other. Granted that we still have to learn to communicate more effectively sometimes. By combining the vast capacities of human speech with computing of machines, possibilities similar to a paradigm shift are arising.

That’s why it is of utmost importance for businesses to have a clear strategy around the use of voice assistants and chatbots. These new technologies are both able to transform human speech into actionable results. We can think of voice assistants and chatbots as an evolution of the social web because they are able to simultaneously converse with millions of potential customers at the same time.

Embedding conversational technologies will enable businesses to deliver personalized and instant service customers are expecting. Without their help, real-time communication and support are not going to be manageable anymore at the needed level.

Voice substitutes screens

Screens are only as present in our lives because they are needed to interact with computers. If we could talk to a machine, we could bypass the need to type out our commands and simply communicate with our voice.

For businesses, this implies the exploration of innovative communication concepts. Catering to the ever-expanding growth of voice-enabled devices, businesses must be ready for the next wave of human-to-machine interactions. A time when people will expect to be able to seamlessly talk to voice assistants or chatbots.

Voice apps or Alexa Skills are smart investments right now, as they will be substituting many screen-based apps in the future.

Processes are changing in the front and back end

Not only customer interactions are affected, but internal processes are also going to be changing at a rapid pace. Some businesses are already using smart speakers as assistants during their meetings to directly get them to take notes, summarize action steps or appointments.

Amazon’s developer platform further allows creating apps or Alexa Skills that can be individually programmed for a specific business use case.

Integrations with other team management and communication tools are possible. Making the use of apps like Slack, Asana, Trello, Clickup and more a lot easier and above all, voice-enabled.

Get weekly updates, tips, and tricks just like that into your inbox.

Service and data analytics all in one

Messaging Apps have become a substitute for internet browsers to directly access the internet. They function as a gateway to socially curated content. For this reason, they hold tremendous potential for the integration of chatbots. As this is where people spend their time online and businesses can directly engage with them to solve their needs.

Yet again, aiming to build conversation-based relationships with customers and gaining their trust. This is a way to add a more human layer to business interactions for customers.

Chatbots can be seen as prototypes for even more sophisticated digital personal assistants that businesses are offering to their customers. Not only having conversations with them but at the same time being able to gather data and insights into the needs of customers.

Chatbots and voice assistants are still in the pioneering phase. Having a clear strategy will take your business one step ahead of the competition that is too slow to execute on this fast-moving technology. Many interesting use cases are emerging, and the future of digital/virtual assistants is being built right now.

At Onlim we are specializing in the integration and development of voice assistants and chatbots for businesses to help you take the next step towards a voice and conversation-driven future. Click here to learn more about our offers and solutions to make sure your business will not be left behind when it comes to the exciting developments of voice technology and chatbots.