As more customers engage with Alexa skills, their desire for more delightful voice experiences increases and they continue to raise the bar for skill developers. New customers, for starters, expect an immaculate experience when visiting a skill for the first time. They are hoping for a fully functional skill that can meet – and exceed – their expectations, and with no hindrance in functionality.

However, some developers may have a product roadmap on which they plan to start with a minimally scoped skill and then add functionality. This is especially common for smart home skills that support new smart home devices over time. Also, some developers need to launch a skill in one language first then add other supported languages and regions later.

This is the type of information that’s important to share with your customers, especially new ones, before they begin to interact with your skill. This will ensure they are satisfied with the experience and avoid potential frustrations with your skill. By properly setting your customers’ expectations before they try to enable the skill, you will help them focus on the quality of your skill and the content you’re delivering.

Here are a few things you can do to set expectations for what your skill can do to ensure customer satisfaction from the beginning.

Choose an Accurate Skill Name

Use the skill title to provide a sense of the overall scope of the skill. If your brand has many products, make sure the skill name reflects the product or service it supports.

Example: Wraithbrand Gaming Company has two popular games, Snadeawynn – Blueflight and the newer release Snadeawynn - Salvation. The company released a skill that supports only the latest release. The recommended skill name should be “Snadeawynn - Salvation.”

Use the One-Sentence Description Thoughtfully

If your product or service has a broader set of features that are available with your skill, use the quick, at-a-glance sentence in the skill description to align the customer’s expectations to those capabilities.

Example: “The GreatBrand Skill to control GreatBrand devices (2018 models only).”

Provide a Detailed, Keyword-Rich Skill Description

When customers visit the Alexa Skills Store, they have tens of thousands of skills to choose from. A well-written skill description will go a long way in setting customers’ expectations. Include keywords that match the key phrases customers are likely to search when looking for your skill. We recommend doing thorough keyword research to understand which search terms your audience uses.

Try to get into the heads of your potential customers. What will these users be looking for? What kind of search terms could they be using while looking for your service or product? Ask yourself these questions and write down as many answers as possible. Choose keywords that are specific to your product and business, but that often appear in searches.

For example, if a customer searches for your organization with the text “The Red bank in Canada”, you should add “Red bank”, “Canadian banking”, and “Canada” to the keywords.

You should also use your skill description to list what products or services (specifically names and model numbers) your skill supports.

Example: “ThisGoodSkill is a new way to manage your mybank.com Credit Card by simply using your voice. You can use this skill to check your account balance, get details about your latest transactions, hear recent purchases and much more. However, at this time, you cannot make a payment using the skill. ”

It’s also helpful to mention if there is a noticeable or frequently requested function that is currently missing from the skill.

Example: “Our security system skill does not currently support disarm for security reasons."

Also consider the domain, common industry functions, and expected voice-control capabilities. To keep your customers engaged with the skill, let them know which functions the skill supports today and what capabilities you plan to add in the future.

Example: “Coming soon, support for our automatic dog feeder and water dispensers.”

If you have another skill that supports another set of products, mention that to direct your customers to the skill they might be looking for. 

Example: “If you want to use the scheduling features, please check out our premium skill OurPremiumSkill."

Educate Customers through Promotional Channels

Your company’s website, forums, and social media accounts are effective channels to promote your skill and educate customers about its scope and functionality. Use these platforms to introduce your skill and explain its capabilities, including what it can and cannot do. List any required account types, supported device models, and the supported regions and languages. You should then set up the device model instructions to incorporate your skill and provide FAQs to guide customers on common issues and how to get customer service.

As you continue to add more capabilities to your skill and make it available to customers in more regions and languages, it’s important to maintain a positive customer experience. Follow these tips to set customers’ expectations, inform them about your skill roadmap, and keep them engaged with your skill and your brand.

More Resources

• Smart Home Skill Publishing Guide
• Tips for a Successful Alexa Smart Home Skill Certification
• How to Add Contextual Help to Your Alexa Skill
• Tips on Promoting Your Alexa Skill
• 5 Tips for Building Multi-Language Alexa Skills

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