Adobe adds data analysis for voice queries

Adobe said it allows brands to capture and analyze voice data for all major voice platforms, including Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana, Apple Siri and Samsung Bixby.

“If other platforms emerge, we will support them, too, but we’re trying to stay agnostic and see how the ecosystem pans out,” said Colin Morris, director of product management at Adobe Analytics.

The voice data includes user identity, intent (“play me a song”) and parameters (“from the Beatles”), the number of users and sessions, session length, actions taken after a voice request, frequency of use, return frequency and error rate, or the queries that don’t work.

Morris said this offers two immediate applications:

1. Figuring out what consumers do after they make a given voice request, which, in turn, can help brands determine how much, say, the Beatles fans in its customer base are worth, as well as to get a better picture of the true customer journey;
2. And voice data can be applied in aggregation – i.e., looking into how many times a Beatles song was played in a given region in a given a time period.

Voice data can also be merged with other channel data, which potentially means better audience profiles, personalization, email marketing, A/B testing and retargeting.

Morris pointed to the resort and casino Wynn Las Vegas, which as committed to putting Alexa in every hotel room and, in turn, can pull data about users and rooms and then anticipate guest needs, as well as offer more personalized promotions and offers and more intuitive engagement on other channels.

Adobe said integration of voice analytics data with other Adobe offerings ensures every digital interaction a consumer has is consistent and relevant.

“For instance, Adobe Target insights from a voice device will automatically be leveraged to shape a consumer’s experience on other channels,” Adobe said in a release. “A known food enthusiast interacting with a travel app on an Amazon Echo, for example, will see that his mobile app or connected car experience displays the most popular food destinations.”

Adobe said its latest Adobe Analytics data shows online sales of voice-enabled devices grew 39% year-over-year.

“One of the most important trends in modern technology is how quickly consumers adopt new ways of interacting with content, as we’ve seen with mobile and video,” said Bill Ingram, vice president of Adobe Analytics Cloud, in a statement. “We expect a similar trajectory with voice interfaces. In the same way Adobe has shaped web, mobile and customer analytics, Adobe Analytics Cloud will enable brands of all sizes to leverage voice data insights across the customer journey.”

What’s more, the addition of artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities in Adobe Sensei means brands can automate manual analysis and take action on insights more quickly, Adobe said. In particular, Adobe Sensei for voice can help detect and flag data abnormalities, auto-segment the highest value customer groups and map the user journey with attribution modeling. It can also generate recommendations.

“This frees up teams to focus on crafting interactions that improve voice experiences for their customers, such as creating content that is more relevant,” Adobe said. “A pizza chain, for example, is able to anticipate customer preferences when they engage with a voice-enabled device. Knowing that a customer frequently orders a cheese pizza, a specific promotion or quick re-order option can be offered. Loyal customers could also be targeted with a follow-up email or a social ad that features a promotional word that unlocks a discount when spoken with the next order.”