Accessibility
According to the NHS’s latest figures, there are
almost two million people in the UK who suffer
with sight loss, meaning it can be a struggle to use a
graphical user interface (GUI). For these individuals,
voice assistants could offer a new medium through
which people can communicate with online services.
Simple tasks like checking the weather through to
more complex tasks like checking a bank balance
and managing payments can be all actioned through
the power of voice.
It’s not just the sight impaired who can benefit
from voice assistants. A person with limited mobility
or who experiences pain during movement can
complete tasks without causing discomfort. By
optimising a checkout process for voice, for example,
you can reduce the process down to a few voice
commands using customer data already captured and
add any additional questions necessary.
When designing for voice, start with the end
goal and work backwards from there. You want to
optimise the experience for your most frequent users
but don’t forget about other customers who may use
your app.
Your voice app should consider emotions like
empathy and humour. Having a voice element
showing empathy reduces frustration and stress,
which increases user satisfaction. If you want to add
some humour, find a balance between annoying and
playful – you wouldn’t want Alexa to joke about your
bank balance!
One problem with voice assistants involves people
who have speech impairments where the voice
assistant struggles to recognise their speech – even a
really strong accent has been known to confuse Siri.
Additionally, voice assistants usually have a timeout
period when listening for a reply, which might prove
hard for someone who needs longer to respond.
People with hearing difficulties might also have
trouble trying to listen to the assistant’s response.
To set up a voice assistant speaker, users will
need to download a GUI app, so if a person couldn’t
use a mobile device they would require help to get
started. This is one of the biggest hurdles for voice
assistant usage and highlights why it’s important for
companies to ensure that the end-to-end experience
is designed for all.
There are plenty of new opportunities that voice-
enabled devices may bring but it won’t be the right
tool for everyone. As with designing screen-based
experiences, it’s important to understand your users’
needs and make accessibility a top priority, both for
GUIs and voice assistants.THE POWER OF VOICE
Michael Gearon explains how voice assistants can open up new
opportunities for those with disabilitiesP
ROFI
LEACCESSIBILITY
Gearon is a UX designer at BrandContent, which is based in Cardiff and
specialising in voice assistants and emerging technology.
t: @michaelgearon