Smart speakers such as the Amazon Echo, Google Home and Apple HomePod are close to becoming ubiquitous consumer products. They are now in nearly 50 million homes and a number of publishers have recognized their potential for some time. Now, there is growing roster of publishers that are getting a crash course in developing engaging content that can take full advantage of a nascent platform that’s wholly unique in media. They're not for podcasting Arguably one of the most ambitious projects in the space over the past year has been Hearst’s twice daily “My Beauty Chat” on Alexa. It’s already launching a second, substantially revised version. “The data we saw coming back from users indicated people were really engaging with the daily tips,” Chris Papaleo, Hearst's executive director of emerging technology, tells Folio:. Among the findings: users were willing to drill deep into the daily tips. Instead of offering a random tip when queried, this iteration of the service lets users choose among skin, makeup and other categories and opting into ever more tips in a given session. A key learning here is that smart speakers need to be seen principally as a service medium and that when the content is useful and relevant, users are willing to thoroughly engage with it. But just as important was Hearst’s deeper understanding on the importance of the context of smart speaker consumption. “In a living room or kitchen it is difficult to listen to long-form content,” says Papaleo. Even... Continue reading at 'Folio Magazine'
[ Folio Magazine | 2018-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]