Research Report

The Business Value of Customized Voice Assistants

A survey of 320 leaders in 8 industries revealed that top companies recognize the value of custom voice assistants for their customers.

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67%

are currently deploying voice assistants

Source: Opus Research

77%

are measuring end-user benefits of voice by CSAT scores

Source: Opus Research

74%

agree that controlling their brand identity and user experiences are the greatest drivers of value

Source: Opus Research

RESEARCH REPORT

Global Survey: The Business Value of Customized Voice Assistants

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The Shift to Customized Voice Assistants: How Will You Compete?

“For a brand (and as a brand) to stand out of the crowd, we need a distinctive identity. So, companies have to invest in voice technology. With the increasing demand from users, it is very important—the potential in this technology is enormous.”

Opus Research Participant

Voice AI adoption poised to expand

When infotainment devices—radios, TVs, smartphones—were first available, new content and services followed mass adoption. Market expansion resulted from user comfort, improved experiences, and new benchmarks to measure success. Today, the shift to voice is following the same trajectory. If you're sitting on the fence, the time to act is now—before you lose market share.

Customer satisfaction a major benefit

An overwhelming majority of business leaders understand the connection between voice assistants and increased customer satisfaction. Putting the consumer at the center of the voice roadmap is driving companies to develop branded voice assistants that serve the unique needs of their customers and prospects with natural language interfaces and custom content domains.

Controlling brand identity drives implementation

Brand identity and user experiences are the most common reasons companies are implementing voice assistants. While some have not yet taken action to create a custom voice solution that promotes brand sovereignty, further education will help surface the benefits and lead brands to move away from reliance on smart speaker-based ecosystems.

“Offering voice assistants allows brands to connect closely with their clients, and provides better prediction, which helps in developing personalized, trustful, and sustainable relationships.”

Opus Research Participant

Industry Insights

Our findings confirmed that voice assistants are becoming ubiquitous. The benefits for users—including increased customer satisfaction—are understood across industries. While the end goal may be to have an omni-channel experience, industries are placing their immediate attention in different channels, dependent on current customer demands and desires.

Telecom | Contact Centers

Leading the way with the implementation of voice-enabled contact centers, the telecom industry is pursuing an omni-channel experience to a higher degree than other verticals, most of which are focusing the majority of their efforts on single-channel voice experiences.

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QSR/Restaurants | Hygiene

QSR and fast casual restaurant decision makers are focused on hygiene and safety at a much higher rate than their peers in other industries. The impact of COVID-19 will continue to drive hands-free solutions for more than just the food service verticals.

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IoT Smart Home | Efficiency

Like the other industries, convenience, customer support, loyalty, and controlling the brand identity ranked as top value drivers for voice. Unlike their peers in other markets, leaders in the IoT Smart Home cohort also ranked operational efficiencies in the top five.

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Retail | Supply Chain

The top three functions of voice AI in retail are sales, store operations, and customer service. Industry leaders also indicated a strong focus on creating convenient and efficient experiences for their supply chains.

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Financial Services | Accessibility

While the majority of business leaders identified better customer experiences and customer satisfaction as the key benefits to end users, respondents in the financial services chose, “Accessibility for those with disabilities, seniors, and children” as a strategy that will lead to market growth.

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Transportation | Branded Experience

"We want our voice assistant to be customized and branded" rated as a higher priority among the transportation industry than any other industry and tied with increasing accessibility, followed closely by the desire to have all customer interactions start with voice.

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Hospitality | Uncertainty

The hospitality sector is facing more uncertainty than other industries. Specifically, respondents cited, "Lack of understanding of the changing needs of customers," and "Recession and uncertain global economics in 2021" as their greatest challenges to creating a voice strategy.

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Media/Entertainment | Voice-First

"We want all customer interactions to start with voice" is how leaders in this vertical describe their voice assistant strategy. A true voice-first industry, leaders in media, entertainment, and social media are entrenched in the second phase of mass adoption—better content and experiences.

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“Customers today demand effortless support on their channel of choice, hence VR and AI come into place to add value to the services—thus increasing the brand value and customer loyalty.”

Opus Research Participant

The Business Value of Custom Voice Assistants

Organizational and team leaders agree that voice assistants provide business value through convenience and speed for end users, improved customer relationships, and brand loyalty.