Hey Google, Tell me about AOG!
If you’re an active member of our community, you must have covered the very basics of Actions on Google more than once. For the very first time, DSC KIIT had introduced AoG to the participants of DevExpo19. Since then, we saw a steady increase in the use of voice alternatives to find technical solutions around the state. Since we just had a two-day session on AoG on 4th and 10th of August, let’s go through some of what we covered about AoG.
Ok, Google why exactly do we need Assistant?
So if you’re techy and you’re reading this, you must already know that we see a major shift in tech every decade or so. And with the adaptation period going on, we see an explosion of devices that pop out for users. I started using my first smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Y around Feb 2012. And we were introduced to Assistant in 2017. The evolution of technology is a neverending process and thanks to the creators of Assistant, we are using some awesome tech at the moment.
So that is why we are so excited about Assistant because we believe it can solve our daily life problems with the enormous numbers of devices around us. And it is doing it in a uniquely natural way- you can just literally say it out loud! So this is Google’s offering for conversational computing.
Ok, Google how can we build for Assistant?
So when you want to build technical products, coding is the first thing that comes to your mind. For assistant, the scenario is kinda different (this is also one of the reasons for the downfall of coding as a whole). For starters, you can build a basic action for assistant and host it on the Assistant Explore without writing a single line of code. All you have to do is get started on the actions console, select a custom intent or from plenty of the pre-defined ones. And then Wren and Martin to the rescue.
So, Actions on Google is the developer platform for the Google Assistant. With Google’s inter-app ecosystem being so damn good, it can automatically interact with your Maps, Photos, Calendar, etc. Basically, if you already have a website and an app ready for let's say your company or startup, you can try bringing it on to the Assistant. And this powerful new ecosystem will help you engage with your users in ways you’ve never imagined before.
We, at DSC KiiT, try to make things as easy as possible for newbies to grasp new technologies. Here’s a detailed video of how to get started with building your very first Action for the Assistant. It covers intents, entities, follow-up intents and more. If you have any queries regarding AoG, you can directly comment on the video below and we will get back to you soon.
Ok, Google, what will I get if I build for Assistant?
Apart from first movers advantage for your startup or company, you will get to try out some awesome tech that will exponentially increase user experience. You can make your product ready for the upcoming years with a good voice user experience and even try to use interactive canvases to add on to them. Keeping the tech side aside, you will be benefitted with:
- Reach, access to more than a billion devices around the globe
- Monetization, get an E2E transactional experience
- Reengagement, you’ll get to have amazing user journeys!
So we really believe that there is an amazing opportunity here to reach to a wide audience, make money and then get more loyalty and attention. So, if you are about to make an action, we’d suggest you think about your use case. What’s the easiest way to get started? (Smart Work > Hard work). Templates are a great way to dip your toe in the water and you should definitely try them out. Here are a few resources that might be handy:
If you learned anything new today, clap 👏 as many as 50 times to show your support! And if you are still with me till now, I’ve got a small surprise for you. Win a $200 monthly Google Cloud credit and an Assistant t-shirt when you publish your first Action, the perks and opportunities available to you will grow as you hit milestone after milestone.
