Virgin Pulse is joining the Amazon Alexa craze with what it says is the “first-ever fully integrated corporate wellbeing skill” for Amazon’s voice-powered service.
The Virgin Pulse Skill, which will enable voice commands for Alexa, will be available to all members who have an Alexa-enabled device; it will provide users with the ability to seamlessly and effortlessly track their activity, check in on their goals, and receive wellbeing reminders, without having to log into a device.
“Right now, nearly 70% of our members interact with our platform through mobile devices, and we expect that number to both increase and evolve as new technology enters the marketplace,” Ron Hildebrandt, SVP of Products at Virgin Pulse, said in a statement. “With the Virgin Pulse Alexa Skill, we’re providing employees with another pathway to better engagement and wellbeing, removing barriers by offering a truly seamless, no-touch way to track goals, activity, and results.”
Members can interact with the Virgin Pulse Alexa Skill in three primary ways:
- Receive updates on progress towards goals. Skill: “Alexa, ask Virgin Pulse how I’m doing today.”
- Track healthy habits to the Virgin Pulse platform. Skill: “Alexa, tell Virgin Pulse I took the stairs today.”
- Get reminders and prompts to check in on additional healthy habits that may have been overlooked. Skill: “Great job taking the stairs. Did you bring your lunch today?”
The Virgin Pulse Alexa Skill will provide screenless tracking for the program’s most popular and important habits, like nutrition, sleep, activity, and water intake. In the coming months, the skill will continue to advance, incorporating more of Virgin Pulse’s 150+ trackable health habits.
The Virgin Pulse Alexa Skill is available for all Alexa-enabled devices, including Amazon Echo, Amazon Tap, Amazon Dot, and Amazon Fire.
According to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, more than 5 million Amazon Echo devices have been sold since their debut in 2014.