This year marked our second year in attendance at SpeechTEK. While the space was hot and cramped, the technology was fresh and the booths were crowded. Between vendors, potential clients, and the old ladies who snuck into the conference just for the freebie Interactions flashlights, our booth seemed to be a hot commodity and our voices are shot from explaining our less-than-easy-to-explain business model. Here’s some reactions from a few of our attendees:

“The speech technology industry is mature, but there is still lots of optimism and great upside potential. However, the industry still faces significant challenges particularly in the customer care domain. The technology still has a long way to go before it matches the recognition and understanding capabilities of your average person. When it’s all said and done a large majority of consumers still find it easier and more effective to talk to a CSR, or use a Web site than to use a speech system. Improving the effectiveness of these systems for end consumers is the industry’s top challenge and I am confident we will make progress in this area.”
- Phil Gray (EVP Marketing, Interactions Corporation)

“There is a strong movement by leading edge companies to try and change the focus from using their voice portals to save money to leveraging that platform to deliver their customers a great and productive experience. It will be an exciting time in the industry for companies that are chosen to be involved in this transformation. Applications that can can closely mimic the experience and high level of understanding we achieve when we talk to a live agent will become the standard we are judged by. Time and time again we continue to hear people say if we can deliver our customers the experience the business benefit will surely follow.”
- Bill Mabry (Sales Executive, VP, Interactions Corporation)

“There was a certain excitement in the air at SpeechTEK this year regarding Interactions that reaffirmed my suspicions regarding the speech space - Interactions is truly in a unique position to revolutionize the industry. We are taking on all the pain points of the IVR head first and offering an authentic improvement to the customer care space. As a relatively new provider compared with the IVR offerings which have been prevalent for years, even decades, it was quite exciting when we posed attendees the question, “Have you ever heard of Interactions?” and they responded positively. What I’m really looking forward to is how much more excitement regarding Interactions there will be at SpeechTEK 2012.”
- Dan Fox (Marketing, Interactions Corporation)

“It was an exciting conference from a prospecting perspective. Great to receive that kind of validation and excitement.”
- James Nolan (VP of Professional Services, Interactions Corporation)

“What I learned at SpeechTEK is that a lot can change in a year, even in the voice self-service space, contrary to popular belief! I attended SpeechTEK 2010 last year as a new sales rep at Interactions in a new Industry that I did not know much about and I left SpeechTEK 2010 thinking that not a lot of people knew much about Interactions either. This year there was so much excitement and momentum around Interactions with new clients and new prospects that it truly showed at the show. Our booth was alive with activity from the opening night to the closing bell. All I can say is next year were going to need a bigger booth!"
- Steve Raftery (Director of Sales, Interactions Corporation)

“Attending SpeechTEK gives perspective on the industry. The promise of voice technology in many new modes, such as mobile is exciting. There is a drive to fix the fundamental problem of voice recognition with no clear answer. Listening to customers and experts, one realizes what a special offering Interactions has in the industry. It was clear to me, attendees want to make speech systems better and use more modes of communications. People who listened at our booth realize, at Interactions, our speech systems are better today, with human understanding -- they need not wait for the promises of tomorrow!”
- Yoryos Yeracaris (CTO, Interactions Corporation)