Welcome to the forefront of conversational AI as we explore the fascinating world of AI chatbots in our dedicated blog series. Discover the latest advancements, applications, and strategies that propel the evolution of chatbot technology. From enhancing customer interactions to streamlining business processes, these articles delve into the innovative ways artificial intelligence is shaping the landscape of automated conversational agents. Whether you’re a business owner, developer, or simply intrigued by the future of interactive technology, join us on this journey to unravel the transformative power and endless possibilities of AI chatbots.
2Mobile
In the last two years our world has become more digital and conversational artificial intelligence (AI) has fostered the development of “live” interactions between smart devices and humans. People have become fully connected and this new bond, established using AI, is now the new normal.
Even the fan experience has become more digital. Sports brands are fully alive and active in metaverses and are building relationships with communities thanks to conversational marketing.
Conversational AI is a term that describes technologies behind automated messaging and speech-enabled applications that facilitate human-like interactions between bots and people. Conversational AI can replace human communication by recognising speech and text, understanding intent, differentiating languages, and responding in a way that mimics human conversation. Hence it builds connections between brands and their customers and fans.
In the last two years chat bots have gained in popularity through the use of so-called conversational commerce and conversational marketing. Powered by deep learning, conversational solutions are now integrated into various chat tools (e.g. Apple Business Chat, Facebook Messenger, Viber, WhatsApp and web chat) which enable users to instantly access relevant information through simple messaging. 
Conversational commerce has opened new channels for customers to interact with brands across all stages of their journey. With the number of customer interactions from different messaging apps growing all the time, innovative companies are looking for ways to efficiently handle high volumes of messaging conversations while delivering a great customer experience. As such, many are utilising advanced conversational AI platforms, such as Liveperson’s partner 2Mobile, to offer an end-to-end orchestration of brand-to-consumer conversations and deliver the best experience.
Conversational commerce and conversational AI can strengthen your relationships with customers and fans, create stronger bonds, and therefore have a positive impact on your brand.
Conversational marketing is now fully reshaping our experiences in sport – from watching a game in the comfort of our homes and discovering facts about our team or keeping records about the latest game results, to purchasing tickets for the next live event and buying club merchandise from online stores. During live events, the fan experience is becoming fully digitalised, with technology enabling contactless purchases and in-seat delivery of food and beverage, chats with members of the team and live notifications for club news.
The best conversational AI offers a result that is indistinguishable from what could be delivered by humans. Moreover, it offers quick, personalised communication with the addition of payment services integrated through chat tools with the use of a chatbot.
Think about the last time that you were at a match and you were standing in a queue during half time, waiting for your beer to be served. Now imagine you’ve ordered a beer from the comfort of your seat at the arena, having paid for it with two clicks in a messaging app and a simple scan of a QR code.
All this can be delivered with less effort than if it was done by a human. That’s conversational AI at its best and something we at 2Mobile made happen in cooperation with Mastercard.
The global payments company was the first brand to recognise the potential and usefulness of conversational AI and sports chatbots, hence it used them to activate their brand in sports marketing using messaging apps. To develop a unique communication platform a partnership was formed between Mastercard and 2Mobile, the developer of the platform powered by LivePerson conversational technology.
In 2021, when restrictions and measures in the physical world due to Covid-19 encouraged the emergence of the low-touch economy and cashless payments, Mastercard decided to launch an innovative service to allow customers to order food and beverages from the comfort of their seats at sports events.
Mastercard Slovenia, in cooperation with 2Mobile, developed innovative sports chatbots for football clubs Bravo and Maribor, and the handball club Celje, and kickstarted the development of a new business model in sports marketing.
The innovative sport bot solution, powered by LivePerson’s conversational AI, allows customers to order and pay for services on a single platform. It is currently in use at two Slovenian soccer stadiums and one sports arena. Chatbots are available to users on three different chat platforms: Apple Business Chat, Facebook Messenger and Viber.
Sports clubs use chat to encourage fans to buy tickets online and order food and drink from their seats while promoting contactless payments to reduce queues during matches. Personalised communication with fans promotes chatbots as a friend that helps them realise their purchase intent.
Chatbots also allow fans to keep up with current news during the match, chat with other fans, follow events, discover team line-ups and purchase tickets or merchandise online in the fan store. What’s more, conversational AI allows clubs to proactively engage with users using push messages delivered to those who have opted in for notifications.
Push messages also serve as a great channel for various sponsorship activations. Conversational marketing is a new communication channel, which offers extensive possibilities for sponsorship branding and direct communication with fans through things like messaging, QR codes, coupons and prize competitions.
2Mobile’s sport bot solution, powered by LivePerson’s conversational AI, allows customers to order and pay for services on a single platform.
Nowadays it is more important than ever to interact with fans in the moments that matter to them and in the ways that are relevant to them. For that reason, experiences and transactions are becoming more conversational.
The responsiveness of bots is an advantage when it comes to customer acquisition through chat experiences powered by sports clubs. In a fully connected world, when interactions with sports fans have migrated to digital, meaningful interactions powered by conversational AI are shaping the fan experience and strengthening the sense of belonging to the online sports community.
For example, Mastercard created a great sponsorship activation during a recent football final. They connected taxi services to their conversational platform and proactively offered free taxi rides to all fans who had consumed alcohol during the match. This was communicated through short messages using chat and fans were able to order a taxi with the help of a chatbot. And last but not least, the cost of this taxi service was fully covered since it was sponsored by Mastercard.
This is just one of the ways in which conversational experiences in sports marketing can help achieve better brand visibility and improve fan engagement, with personalised and direct communication that remains empathetic to fans’ needs. The Mastercard case was recognised as outstanding and awarded with several prizes for its creativity and effectiveness.
Conversational commerce and conversational AI can strengthen your relationships with customers and fans, create stronger bonds, and therefore have a positive impact on your brand. It can level up your sponsorship activations and consequently establish new income streams.
As a result, investing in conversational marketing and conversational experiences represents the future of sports marketing and fan activations. Are you ready for the next level?

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