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Alexa and the DVLA Conversational Bot

We recently used this example of how NOT to build a digital voice application at the London AI and Robotics conference. It was well received so we decided to animate and share it.

This Alexa skill by the DVLA illustrates many things to avoid, whether you’re building a home voice assistant skill or implementing a full digital self service application on your phone channel. The key things to watch out for in the animation are:

1. Create solid customer intent recognition – if your customers struggle to access your service all your efforts are wasted.
2. Don’t build menus instead of a conversation – this technology is not ‘the new IVR’.
3. Anticipate all forms of customer response – you won’t get it right at the start but continuous improvement is an essential part of the operational success.
4. Allow customers to take control – design it for novice and frequent users so that both get a good experience.
5. Don’t overload the customer with information…use the right channel – combine voice and digital channels to communicate information back to the customer.
6. Let the customer decide when the conversation is over – allow the customer to pick up where they left off.

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