With One Voice: Unifying Conversational Interfaces

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Hi. We’re conversation designers at Allstate.

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Diﬀerent technologies. Same goals. Katie Lower Conversation Design Lead for Voice Michael J. Metts | @mjmetts Conversation Design Lead for Chat

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We’re veterans of design. And new to conversation design.

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What have we designed? • Large web platform for a nonproﬁt • Food delivery mobile app • Responsive web app for insuring personal items • Machine modeling software • Interactive hospital information displays • Software development platform (IDE) • Online sales and support experience for durable goods brand • Interactive retail kiosk • Employee-facing digital HR experiences

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How does this experience help?

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No content

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It taught us that design is all about words.

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We support… Automating Manual Processes Call Centers Digital Products

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Useful. Useable. Accessible.

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! " “We’ve already created this design for chat. Can we just use the same design and code for voice?” “Let’s talk about how that would work.” #

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It makes sense. If it could work, it would save a lot of time and money. However, we need to account for the uniqueness of each channel. “We need content that can be reused across different outputs, yet that feels not just in its medium, but of its medium, everywhere it goes.” - Sara Wachter-Boettcher in ’Content Everywhere’ * This book was published in 2012, well before the rise of Messenger, Alexa, Siri, and other assistants became mainstream.

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1. FIND YOUR SHARED GROUND 2. SHARE THE UNDERSTANDING 3. CREATE CONVERSATIONS TOGETHER

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1. FIND YOUR SHARED GROUND

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! " # ☎ Different channels % & ' ( ) * Diﬀerent teams Diﬀerent timelines Q4 Q3

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! Same user goals Get the right help the first time Same business objectives Improve service for users "

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! "

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! "

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! " # ☎ Different channels % & ' ( ) * Diﬀerent teams Diﬀerent timelines Q4 Q3

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Other people in your organization have the same goals and users as you. Pop up and find them.

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2. SHARE THE UNDERSTANDING

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- Inspired by the British Design council’s ‘Double Diamond’ approach to the creative process DISCOVER DEFINE DESIGN DEVELOP Solution Problem Problem D efinition Diamond 1 Diamond 2

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Design & Develop - Inspired by the British Design council’s ‘Double Diamond’ approach to the creative process Solution Problem Problem D efinition focus on Understanding designing the Right Thing focus on Creating designing the Thing Right Diamond 1 Diamond 2

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Map the customer journey Dig into IRL conversations Assess, “Is a bot conversation right?” Sharing the User Story Diamond 1 Methods to understand

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Dig into in-real-life conversations “Conversation is the original interface.” - Erika Hall in ’Conversational Design’

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Dig into in-real-life conversations Chances are, conversation is being used right now to solve the same problems you want to solve. Find those conversations, and the people having them. Soak in their expertise. Why share it? • Understand what rep questions drive the conversation forward • Reveal common customer questions • Identify patterns for the conversation

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Send Password Reset Link Standard Closing Before digging in After digging in Capture Intent Send Password Reset Link Quick Closing Offer User ID Capture Intent Login assistance patterns

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Capture Intent Send Password Reset Link Quick Closing Offer User ID A good pattern for IRL, IVR and chat

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A customer journey map is a visualization of the process that a customer goes through in order to accomplish a goal. It takes into account not only their actions, but also their mindset and emotions. Why share it? • Create empathy among and between project teams for the current state experience • Think beyond a singular touchpoint Map the customer journey

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Customer journey example Customer journey example

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Understanding is an ongoing event. Stay open.

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Assess, “Is a bot conversation right?” Automating a conversation isn’t always the right path forward. If you determined it would or wouldn’t work for you, share your evaluation with other teams working on conversations. Why share it? • Efficiency • Candid discussion about conversational interfaces

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Assessing intents for the enterprise Do reps talk about this topic (intent) with customers? Can the topic be covered in a few turns? Is the topic usually covered the same way? Do users have trouble finding information about this topic elsewhere? Would the bot have access to the same data / info reps have, to provide an answer? - Inspired by the Gartner’s channel mapping tool and the Google Design Guidelines, “Is conversation design the right fit?” https://designguidelines.withgoogle.com/conversation/

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Share the User Story User stories are frequently used to define requirements from a user or customer perspective instead of the solution. Why share it? • Reinforce user focus throughout and across projects

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As a customer using chat, I want help logging in to my account So that I can [pay my bill] ! " ☎

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Shared understanding gives us the best chance to meet user needs.

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3. CREATE CONVERSATIONS TOGETHER

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A unified approach saves time and provides a strong experience, but each channel has unique needs.

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Design & Develop - Inspired by the British Design council’s ‘Double Diamond’ approach to the creative process Solution Problem Problem D e ﬁnition focus on Understanding designing the Right Thing focus on Creating designing the Thing Right Diamond 1 Diamond 2 This happens for voice and chat.

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Diamond 2 Methods to create Get alignment on the vision Design Conversations together Iterate through technical constraints

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"The notion of the academically-trained, experienced designer holding the keys to the design outcome fades with this definition. In fact, when we think about design in these terms, it becomes clear that many of the people rendering their intention don’t know they are designers. This implies the role of the experienced designer shifts from owning the design outcome to educating all the other designers on the team on how to best render their own intentions." - Jared Spool Design is the rendering of intent. Source: https://articles.uie.com/design_rendering_intent/

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Visibility creates shared understanding (and rationale).

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Critique strengthens design. Do it together.

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AUTHENTICATE GIVE PASSWORD RESET LINK QUICK CLOSING EMAIL USER ID Establish a shared ﬂow.

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Chat Voice Design for the differences. It sounds like you need help logging in. Is that correct? ☎ Yes. " # To help you get logged in, I can email your User ID, password, or both… ☎ It looks like you’re having trouble logging in. I can help you recover your User ID or password. Which do you need help with? User ID Password Both $

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Chat Voice Design for the differences. OK, I’ve sent your User ID to your gmail.com address. If you don’t get it, give us a call back. ☎ " OK, I’ve sent your User ID to your gmail.com address. Was I able to resolve your issue? Yes No # -------- short delay --------

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Other people in your organization have the same goals and users as you. Find them. 1. FIND YOUR SHARED GROUND

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Shared understanding gives us the best chance to meet user needs. 2. SHARE THE UNDERSTANDING

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A unified approach saves time and provides a strong experience, but each channel has unique needs. 3. CREATE CONVERSATIONS TOGETHER

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Thank you!