Title | AUSSIES, GET ALEXA. BECAUSE ALEXA GETS AUSSIES. |
Brand | AMAZON ALEXA |
Product / Service | AMAZON ALEXA |
Category | D05. Cultural Insight |
Entrant | HOST HAVAS Sydney, AUSTRALIA |
Idea Creation | HOST HAVAS Sydney, AUSTRALIA |
Idea Creation 2 | ONE GREEN BEAN Sydney, AUSTRALIA |
PR | ONE GREEN BEAN Sydney, AUSTRALIA |
Production | HOST HAVAS Sydney, AUSTRALIA |
Name | Company | Position |
---|---|---|
Jon Austin | Host/Havas Sydney | Executive Creative Director |
Matt Ennis | Host/Havas Sydney | Creative Director |
Gwen Thomas | Host/Havas Sydney | Jnr Creative |
Al Ferrier | Host/Havas Sydney | Head of Production |
Simone Gupta | One Green Bean | CEO |
Hannah Stalder | One Green Bean | Head of Creative Services |
Rebekah Allison | One Green Bean | Senior Account Director |
Molly Dodwell | One Green Bean | Account Manager |
Aimee Steadman | One Green Bean | Junior Project Manager |
Courtney O’Shea | One Green Bean | Account Executive |
Bridget Patterson | One Green Bean | Account Coordinator |
Jen Beirne | Amazon Alexa & Devices | Marketing Director Amazon Alexa ANZ |
Megan Ormbsy | Amazon Alexa & Devices | PR Manager |
Will Moore | Host/Havas Sydney | Senior Planner |
Our uniquely Australian take on the English language isn't just slang – our conversational idiosyncrasies are a crucial part of how Australians connect with each other. The problem is, it's also harder to understand for those outside the Aussie bubble; even for the world's most skilled voice assistant. To solve this, we worked directly with the Amazon Alexa product team to enhance the voice assistants' language muscle by teaching Alexa 100s of the most frequently used Australian slang, idioms, and Aussie-isms. We then linked these catch-phrases and terms to a vast array of routines, skills, and actions; bringing Alexa’s new language skills to life.
Alexa can now recognise over 100s of unique Australian phrases from “flick it on” to switch on the lights, “bucket down” to get a weather check and even “sparrows fart” when you need to set an early morning alarm.
When Alexa enters a new market, it's given an accent to make it feel more accessible and local. But simply giving Alexa an Australian accent isn't making Alexa a true voice assistant. In Australia, it's not just how we speak; it's what we say. Our slang serves as a proud cultural identifier, and we like that those colloquialisms separate and define us. Sure, we can speak to a voice assistant, but we can't speak naturally. We can't use the cultural colloquialisms that make us truly Australian. And so we went beyond simply giving Alexa an Aussie accent and taught it the phrases and words that allowed Aussies to overcome smart speaker hesitancy and communicate naturally and effectively, allowing for a brand experience that proved Alexa gets Aussies.