When you integrate Amazon Alexa directly into your device, you offer customers a way to interact with your product – and access Alexa features – with just their voice. Over the past year, we have helped dozens of device makers to test and elevate the user experience (UX) of their products. Throughout this work, we identified the need to provide additional guidance on what makes a high-quality, voice-forward UX on devices integrated with the Alexa Voice Service (AVS). We're excited to introduce a new series of guides to help you build a voice-forward product that customers will love. These new resources can help you navigate some areas where developers have asked for more help.

Authentication, setup, and customer education

A customer’s first experience with Alexa on your product occurs during setup and account authentication. Some customers need a little extra help with suggestions about what to try with Alexa. To ensure you implement the easiest way for customers to setup Alexa on your device and immediately try Alexa features, we’ve created a dedicated resource for Setup & Authentication. This document provides guidance for setup flows, including code-based linking, alternative things to try screens, and text examples alongside their translations. Read more.

Companion App Guide and UI branding

Device makers are integrating Alexa into a variety of products, some with and without screens. Whether you’re building an Alexa-enabled TV or creating a companion app for your smart speaker, it’s helpful to have guidance on how to build the best possible customer experience. To ensure this, we’ve created a new guide and updated existing documentation:

• AVS Companion App Guide: A successful companion app should enable quick and easy setup, while educating and engaging customers. This guide covers the branding, best practices, and customer experience requirements to create a great Alexa mobile companion app. Read more.
• AVS Logo & Brand: Consistent and diligent use of the Amazon Alexa brand assets protect your product integrity and help customers instantly recognize references to Amazon Alexa. This document now includes app-specific brand guidance, including app naming and title information to ensure you know how to appropriately brand your app. Read more. 

Smart Speaker Guide

Many device makers are interested in building Alexa-enabled smart speakers that allow customers to control their smart home devices, access Alexa skills, get the news, and more. We recently published a new resource that covers the materials and best practices for creating a great customer experience on an Alexa-enabled smart speaker. The document discusses the customer journey for an Alexa-enabled product from the Out of Box Experience (OOBE) through to ongoing use, and outlines what it takes to make a great voice-forward product. Read more.

Get Started

We will continue to publish new resources to ensure you have the information you need to build high-quality products with Alexa. You can learn more about our design philosophy and resources on our AVS Developer Portal.