Voice Tech is More Than Just a Quick Buy

Continuing this week’s series on voice technology, today’s chart looks at how much owners of voice-enabled devices are motivated by convenience when buying online.

One of the frontiers opened up by voice tech is an ultra-streamlined path to purchase, something Amazon Echo owners in San Diego discovered to their cost when a news story on it led to their devices accidentally ordering dollhouses.

Free delivery leads across most audiences for online purchase drivers, and voice tech users are no exception. But this audience aren’t that much more motivated by quick and easy purchases than the average internet user, and in some regions, these convenience factors actually under-index.

Ahead of convenience factors are coupons/discounts and consumer reviews. Users of voice tech could therefore be stimulated to buy by offering voice tech specific discounts, as with Alexa’s daily deals, or through being able to hear consumer feedback about products and brands read out to them.

The biggest over-indexes are quite surprising, but they also point towards a deeper engagement with products bought through voice; click and collect delivery shows that delivery should be flexible and not just geared towards the home, and a live-chat box shows that customer support is appreciated during the purchase journey as well.

It’s worth repeating that convenience drives a third of voice tech users to purchase, but as these over-indexes show, using voice tech as a purchase channel requires thinking beyond the buy. The path to purchase may be quicker than ever, but brands shouldn’t overlook the engagement consumers want from products around the purchase.

Voice Tech Adopters are defined as internet users aged 16-64 who used a voice search or command tool last month, or currently use a voice-controlled smart assistant/speaker.