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How Alexa can help Small Businesses

Bringing the voice commands to small businesses was made possible with the help of Amazon Alexa. Amazon has launched a variety of Alexa devices in the market. Some of these include Echo Plus, Echo, Echo Dot, and Amazon Tap. All these devices have helped businesses. However, these were developed for personal use only.

Small and medium businesses started using these devices for official uses. Looking at this demand and market trends, Amazon started to offer Alexa enabled devices that are not as perfect for business uses but could still be connected with the systems and used. These include Echo Spot, Echo Show, and Echo Look.

Alexa for Business

Amazon has integrated some additional features into its voice assistants to make them fit into the office environment. The devices can take care of tasks such as turning on the video conferencing devices, ordering new papers for printing, setting reminders, reporting and damaged equipment, joining video calls, and giving the office directions.

Before the new version of Alexa was released, employees could easily integrate their personal Alexa devices into their office flow. This was done by setting up the skills, integrating emails or calendars through IFTT. Amazon has realized all these and has expanded the use of Alexa. Alexa can now work beyond the single personal devices of the employees.

The employees can bring in their own devices that can later be linked with the Alexa device of the business and their professional account so that they can access all the emails and other accounts from work. Including Amazon Alexa in a small business totally depends on who are your employees, what type of business you are working in, and what are activities that you want it to run on the voice command.

Here are all the things you want to know about Alexa for business.

Alexa for Business

Amazon presents Alexa devices under two categories. The first one is a shared device. The second is a personal device. Shared devices work in the public area of the office, and anyone can use them. These are placed in conference rooms, kitchens, printing rooms, and lobbies.

On the other hand, personal devices can be used by individual users. Or it can be said that these devices have enrolled users with the Alexa account. These devices can do personal things such as completing the to-do list and setting reminders. They can also schedule meetings, initiate calls, manage calendars, and find information on places such as Salesforce.

How Much does it cost?

The cost of an Alexa device may range between $49.99 to $299.99. This price does not include a monthly subscription of $7 per shared device and $3 per enrolled user. The enrolled users are the users who will use personal devices at work. You can add any number of personal and shared devices at your workplace, depending on the type of purpose you want them to serve. Also, it is not necessary to enrol all the employees on all the devices.

What can Alexa do for Small businesses?

Businesses are using Alexa to help them accomplish some of the basic tasks. Here are some of the things that Alexa for business can do.

  1. Conference room booking: Even the small companies these days are looking for empty spaces to conduct business meetings and important discussions. Lack f proper collaboration between the teams makes the businesses suffer. In order to resolve this issue, the Alexa can sync with your office calendar and can book a conference room to hold meetings. The users can also control the conference room setting, such as setting the lights, turning on and off the projector, and drawing the blinds.
  2. Videoconferencing: The second most exciting feature of Alexa for business is, start videoconferencing. This can be done just with the help of a voice command. Just on the voice command, Alexa will help you to join a meeting.
  3. Business Console: Alexa offers a command centre for your company’s entire Alexa ecosystem. The console allows you to manage user devices, manage user accounts, manage video conferencing options, manage or add new users, and manage the shared devices.
  4. Open API: Alexa for business has an open API feature. Amazon is now allowing developers and engineers to create all the skills that the business needs. Developers can easily create skills and leverage the power of Alexa for the business.

Alexa Adding Value to the Business

Using Alexa for business can add a level of convenience to your business. However, it cannot revolutionaries your entire workflow. The success of the device also depends on the users. If the employees are comfortable in using the device and integrating it into their workflow, it can make things easier for them as well as for the business.

At the same time, the service will add an extra monthly cost for the business. Therefore, you need to consider a lot of things before you integrate Amazon Alexa into your business.

 

https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/10426-amazon-alexa-business-details.html

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