Smart speakers in UK advertising: formats, rules, costs

What to take away

Why the audience runs ahead of the ad options

Smart speakers sit in a large share of UK homes, yet that reach does not translate into a mainstream ad slot. The device is built for commands rather than interruptions, so there is no equivalent of a radio spot or a display banner.

That mismatch explains why the guidance is thin. Advertisers search for smart speaker advertising, find US posts about building Alexa skills, and cannot map any of it onto a UK media plan.

The category is broad. A smart speaker is a voice-controlled device with a built-in assistant, and in the UK that means Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant in nearly every case.

What you can buy, and how it is sold

Amazon and Google both publish the content policies that govern what developers may put inside skills and actions — Amazon's Alexa Skills Kit (ASK) policies and Google's Actions on Google policies — and neither runs a self-serve marketplace for third-party voice inventory. In practice you email a publisher, agree a script and buy a defined period.

Audio ads played by the assistant itself are rare in the UK. Where they exist, they sit inside Amazon's own surfaces or inside a skill whose publisher has struck a separate deal.

How to find a UK publisher to sponsor

Start in the stores, not in a media plan. Search the Alexa Skills Store and the Google Assistant directory for the jobs your customers already use voice for, and shortlist the skills and briefings that answer them.

Each listing names the developer or publisher behind it and usually links to their website or contact page. That publisher is the person you negotiate with: they own the skill, decide what runs inside it and set the fee.

Approach them the way you would a small podcast. Say which slot you want, how long you want it, what the script will say and how you will track the response. Agree a fixed fee for a defined period and put the sponsor credit in writing before anything is recorded.

A four-step test before you spend

The assistant hands back almost no reporting, so a short test answers the only question that matters: does anyone act?

Getting the rules right

Anything that promotes a product inside a skill or a briefing is a marketing communication, so the CAP code applies to the wording, the claims and how clearly the sponsor is identified. The code's full name is the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing; it is written by the Committee of Advertising Practice and enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority.

If a skill asks for a name, an email address or a voice recording, that is personal data, and the ICO's Guide to the UK GDPR sets out what you must tell people before you collect it. The Information Commissioner's Office enforces the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and the rules on lawful bases and privacy information apply to voice exactly as they do to any other channel.

Our guide to podcast advertising regulations UK covers the disclosure rules that on-demand audio inherited from radio.

What a small test costs

Voice inventory is negotiated, so any figure here is a planning assumption rather than a market rate. Worked example: £1,500 (GBP) for a four-week flash briefing sponsorship, £600 (GBP) for scripting and voice recording, and £400 (GBP) for a landing page and tracking.

That is £2,500 (GBP) in total. If the sponsorship produces 200 sign-ups, the cost per sign-up is £12.50 (GBP), which you can compare with the same figure from a search or social campaign.

Judge the test on actions taken after the voice prompt, not on impressions. Reuse the script and the landing page in month two to keep the cost per sign-up down.

Where voice fits in your audio plan

Voice is a sideshow next to streaming and podcast inventory, and it should be funded from a test budget rather than your main radio buy.

If you need reach, our comparison of streaming audio advertising platforms UK explains how the main buying routes differ on audience and cost. Smart speaker work sits on top of that plan as a small experiment.

Common questions

Can I buy Alexa audio ads in the UK?

Not as a self-serve product. Amazon sells its own ad formats on its own surfaces, while audio inside third-party skills is sold by the skill publisher, usually as a sponsorship.

Does the CAP code cover smart speaker content?

Yes. Any promotion inside a skill or flash briefing is an ad, so it must be identifiable and every claim must be substantiated.

Is a branded skill worth the build cost?

Only if customers already use voice for the job you solve. Otherwise a sponsored flash briefing is the cheaper way to learn whether the audience responds.