VUX World

In this episode, we’re going to show you how you can build an Alexa Skill from right within Wordpress.

Wordpress powers almost a third of the internet and now millions of websites running Wordpress can all have a presence on voice. It’s all thanks to VoiceWP, the Wordpress plugin that lets you build an Alexa Skill from within the most widely adopted CMS on the planet.

You can create Flash Briefings with ease and even have Alexa read the content of your website. We all know about audio books, but this could be the first opportunity to have your website content turned into audio form and read aloud as soon as its published, without you having to go through much effort at all. It’s super simple to set up.

Our Guest

VoiceWP was built by our guest, Tom Harrigan, Partner and VP of Strategic Technology at Alley Interactive, a full service digital agency that specialises in helping publishers succeed online. We speak to Tom about VoiceWP, which is allowing brands such as People.com and Dow Jones’ Moneyish.com build Alexa Skills and establish a presence on voice with ease.

And you can use it too, because it’s free and super-simple to set up.

So, if you use Wordpress as your CMS and you’re interested in testing the waters in voice, or if you’re looking for a starting point Alexa Skill building, then this episode is for you.

We’re speaking to Tom about:

• Where the idea for VoiceWP came from and how it was built
• What is the plugin all about and what features does it have
• Who’s using it right now and who is it targeted at
• How can you get up and running with the plugin and try it out for yourself
• What does the future look like and what’s coming up

Links

• Check out VoiceWP
• Download VoiceWP at Git Hub
• Follow Tom on Twitter
• Visit Tom's website
• Find out more about Alley Interactive

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In this episode, we're talking about voice first user testing, why it's so imperative and how you can get started doing your own voice user testing.

Why voice first user testing?

Although usability testing graphical user interfaces is as common as a trending tweet, it's a seed that’s yet to be greatly sewn in the world of voice. There are many services that will provide technical testing, but those specifically offering voice first user testing in person with real users are few and far between. Enter, Userfy.

Whether you create Alexa Skills, Google Actions or any other voice user experience, this episode will help you make sure that your voice user interface (VUI) works for the people that use it through teaching you how to approach a voice-based user testing project.

We’ll cover things like:

• The current state of user research in the voice industry
• Why is usability testing important?
• What kind of users should you test with?
• User testing processes and planning
• How to approach a voice-first testing project
• Validating assumptions
• The difference between graphical and voice user testing
• What tools and equipment you need

Introducing Sam Howard

Our guest is Sam Howard, co-founder and Director of user research agency, Userfy, which specialises in user testing. Sam has a PhD in Human-Computer Interaction and a degree in Psychology. That, mixed with a love of technology and a passion for helping people, puts Sam at the forefront of the user research field.

Links:

Sam Howard on Twitter

Userfy website

Userfy on Twitter

Sam's 'Usability challenges facing voice-first devices' article

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Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to VUX World.

This introductory episode is all about what VUX World is all about. Here, I'll take you through:

• the aims of the show
• how we intend to meet those aims
• why it exists
• who would find it useful
• what's in store over the coming months

The aims of VUX World

This is an ambitious show that intends to cover three core aims for three primary groups of people:

1. To help VUX pros create better voice experiences through bringing together people from throughout the industry to share insights, tools, tips and tricks
2. To help brands create voice first strategies and implement voice first solutions through learning from companies and agencies who're doing it right now
3. To help grow the VUX industry by introducing people such as creatives, scientists, technologists, strategists, linguistics, developers and anyone else to the voice first world

How we'll meet our aims

We'll reach those aims through focusing on three core pillars of content.

• Why? We'll cover the 'why' aspect of the argument for voice. Why should you take this area seriously? Why develop your skills here? Why voice?
• How? We'll extensively cover the 'how' side of things, too. How can you get started? How does the voice industry work? How can you develop here? We'll cover things like tutorials, guides, tips, hints and tactics to help you learn, develop and grow to create epic voice experiences.
• What's stopping you? Every industry has its challenges. We want to delve into those challenges and uncover opportunities to push past the barriers and find opportunities to move forward.

The host of VUX World

Your host for this journey is me, Kane Simms. I have a history in sound design and music production as well as extensive experience in marketing, UX and agile project management. My love for all things audio and passion for understanding user behaviour and technology culminate perfectly right here in the world of voice.

So, strap in, hold tight and brace yourself for the rapidly expanding world of voice. I'm glad to be your guide.

Now, without further ado, you should totally check out the first proper episode of the podcast: User testing on voice-first devices with Sam Howard.

Enjoy :)

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