Grow your app with App Actions

Extending your app to Assistant with App Actions lets users quickly engage with the key features of your app by talking to Google Assistant. Once you implement App Actions, you can use it to drive user retention and engagement for your app with the following features:

  • System shortcut suggestions. The Google Shortcuts Integration library lets Google Assistant suggest your dynamic shortcuts to users. This capability makes it simple for users to discover and replay shortcuts to your app's key features.

  • In-app shortcut suggestions. The In-App Promo SDK lets you easily suggest Assistant shortcuts to users in your app. Users can launch these shortcuts using their voice with Assistant and see them suggested on Google surfaces.

Enable system shortcut suggestions

To add the Google Shortcuts Integration library to your Android project and push dynamic shortcuts to Assistant, follow the instructions at Push dynamic shortcuts to Assistant.

These best practices maximize user exposure to your App Actions bound shortcuts:

  • Push a shortcut whenever a user completes a relevant action to help Google surfaces, like Assistant, suggest the shortcut to the user. You can push an unlimited number of shortcuts with the Google Shortcuts Integration library.

  • Define static shortcuts in shortcuts.xml for Assistant to suggest proactively to users. These shortcuts can only update by releasing a new version of your app to Google Play Console, so they are best for suggesting shortcuts that apply to all users, for example, "Send an email."

    Static shortcuts are useful for helping Assistant suggest app shortcuts to new users who have not yet taken actions in your app that have dynamic shortcuts.

Create in-app shortcut suggestions

The In-App Promo SDK lets you suggest Assistant shortcuts in your app. For example, if a user performs a search for "heavy metal workout" in your music app, you might suggest an Assistant shortcut directly to those search results in the future. The user can then launch the shortcut by asking Assistant, "Hey Google, Example App heavy metal workout."

Consider suggesting shortcuts during user onboarding or when a user performs an action you want them to quickly replay in the future with Assistant.

For more information about building suggestions for your app, see Implement suggestions.