How Alexa Can Benefit Your Business

Needless to say, the ongoing global health crisis has posed a lot of challenges to businesses, big and small. From exposing the pitfalls of economic global interdependence to amplifying existing trends and vulnerabilities, the problems the pandemic has presented are endless. Thankfully, we are now living in a world where technology is so advanced that it can offer a myriad of benefits and support to businesses, pandemic or not. A great example of such a technology is the voice-operated virtual assistant Alexa. Here are some of the advantages Alexa can provide for you and your business:

Email management

Now that the pandemic has created new norms that completely revolutionize the way we shop, email management is growing even more important. After all, with in-store interactions being minimized and traditional advertising like billboards growing less effective, email marketing is now the key to reaching your customers. This is where Alexa can be of great help. Michael Guta of Small Business Trends mentioned how Alexa’s Astrobot can help you manage your emails through a variety of features that let you read, reply to, prioritize, manage, delete, and archive your emails and much more.

Schedule organization

Alexa’s FreeBusy Scheduling Assistant can also help you stay on top of your business appointments, as it coordinates meetings and utilizes Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar and other similar apps to check the availability of individuals. Through this feature, you can make sure that your business is able to accommodate the right amount of customers without placing them at risk.

Update provision

Now that the world is rapidly shifting into the digital space, having relevant insights related to business data and staying updated on KPIs is of utmost importance. However, there's no denying that reading them off of applications can be an extremely tedious, boring and overwhelming task. Thanks to Alexa’s Voice Metric Skill, you can save yourself the hassle of manually doing such responsibilities. In his article “Alexa for Business: What it does, how to use it", Matthew Finnegan noted how this feature allows the popular voice assistant to just read data out from a wide array of apps, including Google Sheet and Slack.

Making the most out of Alexa

Using Alexa-compatible devices

One of the best ways business owners can make full use of Alexa is by using Alexa-compatible devices. Depending on the kind of business you have, Alexa-compatible devices can range from simple room lighting, thermostats, and plugs to microwave ovens, televisions, refrigerators and security systems. In his list of "30 Tips for Professionals Working from Home During the COVID-19 Pandemic", digital nomad and tech writer James Gonzales mentioned how the use of the best technologies out there can streamline your business operations, significantly improve productivity and encourage efficiency in more ways than one.

Creating tailored skills

Unlike other voice assistants, Alexa has an open API feature. This allows users, along with help of skilled developers, to create whatever Alexa skills they need for their business. To make sure that you are able to enjoy the endless advantages that Alexa offers, consider securing the services of seasoned developers. Creating a new Alexa skill may not be that difficult, but Business News Daily emphasized how some assistance from a professional will ensure that your new skill is able to function at its best.

Getting your business on Alexa and Google Voice Search

A lot of customers begin their online shopping journey through popular search engines like Google. This makes it imperative that you optimize your business for voice search. As highlighted in our previous post "How Can I Get My Business on Alexa and Google Voice Search?", one of the ways this can be done is by claiming your business on listings such as Google My Business, Apple Maps Business, Bing Places and Yelp.

Written by Eliza Margery Parks
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