{"id":1211,"date":"2020-12-11T10:27:16","date_gmt":"2020-12-11T10:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alternative-spaces.com\/blog\/?p=1211"},"modified":"2023-05-12T09:05:00","modified_gmt":"2023-05-12T09:05:00","slug":"the-basics-of-alexa-skill-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alternative-spaces.com\/blog\/the-basics-of-alexa-skill-development\/","title":{"rendered":"The Basics of Alexa Skill Development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Conversational interfaces and virtual personal assistants are the future. They promise great advantages to businesses<\/a> by improving customer experiences and marketing unobtrusively. 18% of adults in the U.S. already own a smart speaker, and the number is growing. In the first quarter of 2018, Amazon alone sold 4 million items globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amazon Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Tap, Echo Show, and Echo Spot – all these devices are powered by Amazon\u2019s voice service Alexa. One of their strengths is the vast library of voice-driven abilities called Alexa skills. They help users with a variety of needs and wishes, from getting a ride with Uber to voice shopping with Amazon Prime. More than 30,000 skills are available on Amazon\u2019s website and Amazon Alexa app. The number will be increasing consistently due to growing demand and Amazon\u2019s strategy of facilitating the development of skills. Nowadays, it\u2019s accessible virtually to everyone thanks to Alexa Blueprints and other products of Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would you like to give your old girl Echo a unique capability? Or are you interested in creating a custom skill to grow your business\u2019 brand value? Even if your ambition is to become an Alexa skills developer, this article should offer some starter tips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Basic Alexa Skill Development<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A skill is, in essence, an application for an Alexa-enabled device, the interface between the voice service and the user. It must help the latter achieve a specific goal hands-free. (Although skills are called Alexa apps, they shouldn\u2019t be confused with the Amazon Alexa companion mobile application. It\u2019s used to set up Alexa devices, enable the use of compatible services and additional features, connect with smart home devices, etc.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The free Alexa Blueprints service allows owners of Echo devices to endow them with unique abilities without any programming. You\u2019ll only have to log into the Amazon account that you use for Alexa. The process is straightforward and user-friendly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It starts at the Blueprints webpage<\/a>. The service offers some 30+ \u2018skill blueprints\u2019. These are templates of the possible capabilities, currently ranging from an \u2018Adventure\u2019 to the \u2018World\u2019s Best Mom.\u2019 While most scripts seem to be about fun and games, others may prove to be really useful. For example, the \u2018Houseguest\u2019 looks like an excellent solution for Airbnb hosts. They can enable a smart speaker to answer the guests\u2019 questions about the home appliances, house rules, where they can find things, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\nEach blueprint has a description, a sample to listen, and a short instruction. Here is an example: the \u2018Babysitter\u2019 template should enable Alexa to help the babysitter or family member in charge of the small one when you are away.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\nIf an available template contains your desired functionality, select \u2018Make Your Own.\u2019 The service will walk you through customizing the script by following the \u2018blueprint.\u2019 You basically need to fill out an online form in three steps. For the \u2018Babysitter,\u2019 this means to provide the information on the child’s habits and schedule, any allergies or medications they take, emergency contacts, etc. Then, you may customize the default \u2018hello-goodbye\u2019 utterances if you want. Finally, you\u2019ll have to give your new Alexa app a title. The phrase will be used to trigger the skill. For best results, avoid using last and first names, because Alexa is still learning to recognize and pronounce them.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\nOnce you\u2019re done, click on the \u2018Create\u2019 button to save the new capability. That will push it live to your Amazon account and the associated Alexa device(s). The new skill will be ready to use in a few minutes. You can trigger it by saying something like \u201cAlexa, open the Babysitter Guide.\u201d You can also see your applications on the \u2018Skills You’ve Made\u2019 page and edit them as needed.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\nBy default, these blueprint-generated abilities are available only to your own Alexa devices, but you can share them if you want. After you\u2019ve shared a skill with another person, they can install it on their Echo device. In the same section of the Blueprints site, you can check who is using your skills and revoke access whenever you want.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Creating your own Alexa app using a blueprint is much simpler than making it from scratch. However, ready-made templates and answers have their limitations. Although Amazon is sure to add new scripts, they certainly cannot meet all of the users\u2019 individual needs and customization requirements. Moreover, if you happen to create a great commercial idea, you won\u2019t be able to realize it at scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Custom Skill Needed?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The scope is not the only difference between a template-based and a custom-made Alexa app. If you want to create an Alexa app from scratch, you first need to design a voice interaction. Alexa\u2019s conversations with users must follow some rules<\/a> to start with. Then, you\u2019ll also have to sign up for the Amazon Developer Portal and deal with the Amazon Web Services (AWS). (An important tip: throughout the development process, make sure to consistently use, or create, corresponding accounts with the same Amazon account that your Echo device is linked to.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every time you ask Alexa for something, it triggers an Alexa Skills Kit (ASK). It\u2019s a collection of self-service APIs, tools, documentation, and code samples that facilitate adding applications for the virtual assistant. ASK supports building several types of capabilities\/interaction models:<\/p>\n\n\n\n