Voice

Chatbot welcome screen
Chatbot first message
Chatbot second message
In-chatbot anonymous post submission
Text entered in to in-chatbot post submission
Chatbot acknowledges the post has been submitted
In order to post again, the member can ask for further help
As a poster, I can choose to delete the post once I have submitted it
Group admin user interface with one anonymous message submitted and ready for posting
Chatbot message delivered when the post is rejected
In the user interface you can provide feedback to the poster here
Chatbot message when the post is accepted and posted to the group
Example of anonymous post in our group through our Admin account Philip Doueili

Inspiration

Imagine you're a nurse who has a substance abuse issue and you fear seeking help because you may lose your license. Or you're a worried parent who is seeking advice to understand your child's mental illness and can't turn to your friends.

This is why Voice was born.

What it does

Voice is a messaging experience in the form of a chatbot that assists members of a group in posting their problems anonymously, in a safe and comforting way.

Voice centralizes the anonymous posts, allowing multiple admins and moderators to easily filter through the messages, reduce their time commitment and provide further security to group members in preserving their anonymity.

Approving anonymous posts will become as easy as the existing post approval.

How we built it (process)

We combined the expertise of Facebook community leaders and developers and began brainstorming the challenges that keep us up at night. The essential elements of a group’s success may also be the stickiest problems that take precious time and energy away from admins. These leaders could instead be creating this real feeling of presence for their group members. The current process for admins to post their group member’s messages anonymously, as our group member Lisa Enlich Heffernan, put it: “It is utter chaos because there is no system”.

We then had one back-end developer and one front-end developer who utilized React and Facebook messenger to create the prototype, combined with product managers and copywriters to bring Voice to life!

Challenges we ran into

Initially deciding what technologies to use Using botsociety - Facebook should create their own chatbot mockup software

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Giving people a way to ask questions they can’t otherwise voice. Creating a chatbot that has a personal feeling. Addressing a generic issue that runs across all groups.

What we learned

Some community groups don’t have a mechanism for dealing with anonymous posts, so some of the most important topics don’t get raised. Some of the most vulnerable members of the group with no place to turn are left without a voice. Some people are so in need of answers they risk losing their jobs seeking them.

What's next for Voice

Anonymous commenting on posts The original poster will have the ability to remove their own “anonymous” posts Admins and moderators will have the ability to edit anonymous submissions to assist with the privacy of the individual

Built With

Submitted to

2018 - F8 Hackathon
- Winner Best in Show

Created by

I pitched Voice and developed the web administration interface using React & Firebase.

Philip Doueihi
Hacker @ Cisco Systems
I collected stories from community leaders who have immense amounts of anonymous posts and helped to craft the story we tell about Voice.

Jen Riedel
I helped create the chatbot and helped the group understand the issue being solved with insights during the iterative design process.

Elliott Rogers
Hi! I'm a Master of Chemistry graduate from Oxford University now focusing on developing tech for underserved communities around the world.
I worked on the design for the web application as well as the bot interface and the branding. Additionally I tried to keep communication within the team as streamlined as possible.

David Pfluegl
I helped create the bot conversation flow and script, also with writing the pitch and the naming.

Andra Bria
I helped the group understand the use case for anonymous posts and shared real world examples of how a group (Grown and Flown Parents) would use this functionality.

Lisa Heffernan
I developed the Messenger Chatbot including the Webview using node.js, React and Firebase.

silvio doblhofer