“Voice User Interface (VUI) Designer” is an increasingly prominent job title in the tech world. A VUI designer typically writes the conversation and designs the flow between a VUI — an invisible interface that communicates through the medium of voice, like Alexa or Google Home — and the end user. The discipline of VUI Design, a subset of conversation design is, as leading VUI designer, Cathy Pearl explains on her website, “about teaching computers to communicate like humans, and not the other way around.”

“語音用戶界面(VUI)設計器” 在科技界越來越重要。 VUI設計人員通常會編寫對話并設計VUI(即通過語音介質(例如Alexa或Google Home)進行通信的不可見界面)與最終用戶之間的流程。 正如VUI首席設計師Cathy Pearl在她的網站上解釋的那樣，VUI設計這一學科是對話設計的一個子集，“關于教計算機像人一樣交流，而不是相反。”

As the world has found increasing value in VUIs, the tech industry in turn has invested more in producing voice-forward products.

隨著世界范圍內VUI的價值不斷增長，技術行業反過來又在生產語音轉發產品上投入了更多的資金。

Designers with a background in only screen-based products, also known as Graphic User Interfaces (GUIs), will find that designing for VUIs is quite contrast. While there is plenty of overlap in the necessary skills to design for both formats (having empathy for users, etc.), the two interface types have a very different communication landscape.

僅在基于屏幕的產品(也稱為圖形用戶界面(GUI))中有背景的設計人員會發現，針對VUI進行設計是完全相反的。 雖然兩種格式的必要技能有很多重疊(對用戶有同感等)，但兩種界面類型的通信方式卻大不相同。

通過GUI與VUI進行交互 (Interaction over GUIs versus VUIs)

Interaction between a system and a user looks (or sounds, rather) very different when it takes place over a VUI versus over a traditional GUI.

當系統和用戶通過VUI與傳統GUI進行交互時，它們之間的交互(或聽起來)相當不同。

A GUI communicates to a user via screens comprised of visual design and text, whereas a VUI communicates via audio. Consequently, a user’s senses (visual, haptic, audio, etc.) that these two interfaces signal to in order to help send a message, are different.

GUI通過包含視覺設計和文本的屏幕與用戶通信，而GUI VUI通過音頻進行通信。 因此，這兩個接口發信號通知以幫助發送消息的用戶感覺(視覺，觸覺，音頻等)是不同的。

When it comes to absorbing and processing information laid out on an interface, a user does so very differently on a GUI versus on a VUI. On a GUI, a user moves at their own pace; they ponder, review, and skip ahead at their own leisure. On a VUI on the other hand, a user is less in control when it comes to how they receive information. James P. Giangola and Jennifer Balogh explain in their book, Voice User Interface Design, that a VUI “present(s) information serially and non-persistently” which makes a higher cognitive demand on users than does a GUI by “further challenge(ing) human memory and attention.” Moreover, when it comes to audio, listeners’ “ears can only handle one fact or idea per sentence” according to NPR, less than our eyes can handles when reading.

當涉及到吸收和處理界面上布置的信息時，用戶在GUI和VUI上的操作截然不同。 在GUI上，用戶按照自己的步調移動 ； 他們思考，回顧并在閑暇時跳過。 另一方面，在VUI上，用戶在接收信息方面的控制較少。 James P. Giangola和Jennifer Balogh在他們的《 語音用戶界面設計 》一書中解釋說，VUI“連續且非持久地呈現信息”，與GUI相比，通過“ 進一步挑戰 ，VUI對用戶的認知要求更高”。 )人類的記憶力和注意力 。” 此外， 在音頻方面，聽眾的“耳朵每個句子只能處理一個事實或想法” 根據NPR ，比閱讀時我們的眼睛所能承受的少。

To send input back to a GUI, a user interacts with what is laid out on the screen, often responding back with taps and other motions. When a user wants to respond to a VUI, they are not bounded by buttons and character limits like they are on a GUI. They speak their responses back, which allows them much more freedom.

為了將輸入發送回GUI，用戶需要與屏幕上顯示的內容進行交互，并經常用敲擊和其他動作來響應。 當用戶想要響應VUI時，它們不受GUI上的按鈕和字符限制的限制。 他們說出自己的回答 ，這給了他們更多的自由。

With a new communication landscape comes new Best Practices. I’ve compiled a list of tips for GUI designers who want to design for VUIs that will engender a positive user experience.

新的溝通方式帶來了新的最佳實踐。 我為希望為VUI設計將帶來積極的用戶體驗的GUI設計人員匯總了一些提示。

1. CTAs應該做好準備 (1. CTAs should set the stage)

Write calls to action that specify what exactly your VUI can do.

編寫號召性用語，以指定您的VUI可以做什么。

When interacting with a voice assistant, a user is unbounded in the range of responses with which they could reply. Just about the worst prompt you can program your assistant to begin with is the open-ended “How can I help you?” question.

與語音助手交互時，用戶在可以回復的響應范圍內不受限制。 您可以為助手編程的最糟糕的提示是：不限成員名額“我如何幫助您？” 題。

As an example, let’s say you’re designing “Substitution Sidekick,” a cooking and baking skill that can offer a user substitute ingredients if they are out of the original ingredient that a recipe calls for. Your assistant opens with “What can I help you with today?” and your user responds with “Where can I buy ghee?” Your skill isn’t here to inform users about the whereabouts of certain grocery items, and so you never programmed it to respond to these types of questions. This “edge case”, a rare situation that threatens to break the user experience, could have been avoided if you had begun the conversation with a more targeted call to action, like:

舉例來說，假設您正在設計“ Substitution Sidekick”，這是一種烹飪和烘焙技能，如果用戶使用的配方不需要原始成分，則可以為用戶提供替代成分。 您的助手將打開“今天有什么可以幫助您的？” 然后您的用戶回答“我在哪里可以買酥油？” 您的技巧不是在通知用戶某些雜貨的下落，因此您從來沒有編程它來回答這些類型的問題。 如果您以更具針對性的號召性用語來開始對話，則可以避免這種“邊緣情況”，這種罕見情況有可能破壞用戶體驗，例如：

“Tell me the ingredient you’d like to substitute today.”

“告訴我您今天想替代的原料。”

2.設置成功的用戶 (2. Set the User up for Success)

Be strategic with how you frame prompts.

制定提示框架時要有策略性。

Frame your VUI’s lines in a way that will elicit the response your system needs to hear to be effective. Humans and computers communicate in different ways. Conversation designers are here to bridge the gap between the two and ensure we create experiences that don’t force humans to adapt to computer-speak.

對VUI的線路進行構架，以引起系統需要聽到的有效響應。 人與計算機的通信方式不同。 對話設計師在這里彌合兩者之間的鴻溝，并確保我們創造的體驗不會強迫人類適應計算機語言。

Say your user tells “Substitution Sidekick” they are out of milk. Your VUI probes them further and says, “Ok, you’re looking for a substitute for milk. Is this for a cooked dish, a baked good, or a fresh meal?” and your user responds with “yes.” Which one were they responding “yes” to?

假設您的用戶告訴“ Substitution Sidekick”他們沒有牛奶。 您的VUI會進一步探查它們，并說：“好吧，您正在尋找牛奶的替代品。 這是煮熟的食物，烤制的食物還是新鮮的飯菜？” 并且您的用戶回答“是”。 他們對哪個人回答“是”？

Be explicit, but still conversational; have your VUI note how a user should respond. Instead, try something like this:

要明確，但仍要交談； 讓您的VUI記錄用戶應如何回應。 而是嘗試這樣的事情：

“Ok, you’re looking for a substitute for milk. What kind of dish is this? Cooked, baked, or fresh?”

“好吧，您正在尋找牛奶的替代品。 這是什么菜？ 煮熟，烘烤還是新鮮？”

3.會話標記 (3. Conversational Markers)

Sprinkle in words and phrases that help orient your users.

撒上有助于定位用戶的單詞和短語。

Timeline-related markers such as “to get started” or “next” help set users’ expectations regarding duration and subsequent steps. Acknowledging language like “got it” or “sure thing” let the user know they’ve been understood.

與時間線相關的標記(例如“開始”或“下一個”)有助于設置用戶對持續時間和后續步驟的期望。 諸如“明白了”或“確定的事情”之類的確認語言使用戶知道他們已被理解。

Just like visual cues such as progress bars on GUIs, conversational markers give a user a sense of what they’ve done, where they are, and what’s to happen next. Furthermore, these markers help divide the conversation into more comprehensible chunks.

就像可視化提示(例如GUI上的進度條)一樣，對話標記使用戶可以感覺到他們做了什么，在哪里以及接下來要發生什么。 此外，這些標記有助于將對話分為更容易理解的部分。

If your VUI responded to your user’s question about baking substitutions for milk by rattling off every answer, it would likely overwhelm the user. Instead, try something like this:

如果您的VUI回答了每個答案，從而回答了用戶有關烘焙替代牛奶的問題，則可能會使用戶不知所措。 而是嘗試這樣的事情：

“I found four milk substitutes for baking. Try replacing with yogurt, sour cream, sweetened condensed milk, or finally evaporated milk, mixed half and half with water.”

“ 我找到了四種牛奶替代品進行烘焙。 嘗試用酸奶，酸奶油，甜煉乳或 最后蒸發的牛奶代替，并與水混合一半。

Intro your answer with the number of substitutions you found to establish your user’s expectations, then pepper in the adverb, finally, to divide up the information you’re sharing.

向您介紹答案，以找到可以建立用戶期望的替代數目，然后在副詞中加入胡椒， 最后分割您共享的信息。

4.留下行動項目結束 (4. Leave Action Items for the End)

If you want your user to retain an important instruction, don’t mention it at the beginning of the sentence — save it for the end.

如果您希望用戶保留重要的說明，請不要在句子的開頭提及它-請將其保存在末尾。

Prioritizing information looks different on visual platforms than on audio platforms. This is because users digest information differently when they hear it and when they read it. While the rule of thumb when designing for GUIs is “put all important concepts first,” the opposite tends to be true when designing for voice.

在視覺平臺上，信息優先級在音頻平臺上看起來有所不同。 這是因為用戶在聽信息和讀信息時對信息的消化方式有所不同。 雖然在設計GUI時的經驗法則是“ 將所有重要概念放在首位 ”，但在設計語音時卻恰恰相反。

During one episode of his podcast, The Voicebot Podcast, Bret Kinsella talks with Ben Sauer, a conversation designer at Babylon, about user memory as a factor that VUI designers must accommodate. “If you say…a piece of information you want a person to remember at the start of the sentence,” Sauer explains, “then by the end of the sentence, they’ve forgotten it.” Kinsella remarks about journalists transitioning into VUI: “Radio people always knew that…you always put the main point in the end.” For print and television journalists, though, adopting this best practice required a steeper learning curve.

Bret Kinsella在其播客的一集中， Voicebot播客中 ，與巴比倫的對話設計師Ben Sauer進行了交談，談到用戶記憶是VUI設計師必須考慮的一個因素。 索爾解釋說：“如果您說的是……某條信息，那么您希望人們在句子開頭記住這些信息，然后，在句子結尾時，他們已經忘記了。” 金塞拉(Kinsella)關于記者過渡到VUI的評論：“廣播人一直都知道……您總是把重點放在最后。” 但是，對于印刷和電視新聞工作者來說，采用這種最佳做法需要更陡峭的學習曲線。

Going back to the previous example, one would assume that after hearing a list of four milk substitutes, a user might like for the VUI to repeat themselves. Rather than explaining to a user that they can ask the system to repeat at the beginning of the VUI’s line, where it’s not yet relevant to a user, mention this instruction at the end, like so:

回到上一個示例，將假設在聽到四種牛奶替代品的列表之后，用戶可能希望VUI重復自己。 除了向用戶說明他們可以要求系統在VUI行的開頭(與用戶無關)之外重復之外，還請在結尾處提及此指令，如下所示：

“I found four milk substitutes for baking. Try replacing with yogurt, sour cream, sweetened condensed milk, or finally evaporated milk, mixed half and half with water. Let me know if you’d like me to repeat these substitutes.”

“ 我找到了四種牛奶替代品進行烘焙。 嘗試用酸奶，酸奶油，甜煉乳或 最后蒸發的牛奶代替，并與水混合一半。 讓我知道您是否要我重復這些替代品。”

These are my pointers for designers transitioning from screen to voice — what are yours? Give conversation design a shot by designing a skill on Google or Amazon, then share the new tips and tricks you picked up in the comments section.

這些是設計師從屏幕過渡到語音的我的指點-您是什么人？ 通過在Google或Amazon上設計技能，為對話設計做個嘗試 ，然后分享您在評論部分獲得的新提示和技巧。