Carly: Endurance Event Discovery Chatbot
Carly is a Facebook Messenger chatbot that helps endurance sports enthusiasts discover their next event, with personalised notifications and direct links to Active Network listings.
Key Facts
Product
Facebook Messenger chatbot for discovering endurance events including running, cycling, triathlon, and obstacle courses.
Integration
Active Network search API integration providing direct links to event directory listings with real-time availability.
Engagement
Messenger chatbots deliver 4-5x higher open rates and 3-5x higher click-through rates compared to email marketing.
The brief
The team aimed to develop a chatbot leveraging the Active Network search API to assist people in discovering endurance events. The chatbot needed Facebook Messenger menu integration, event notification management for last-minute events and upcoming events, and advanced search capabilities by event type, location, free search, and date.
Users needed to save and update location preferences, manage notification frequency, and access a sporty chatbot persona that felt natural and encouraging. The solution also required help resources and seamless navigation within the Messenger experience.
What we built
Event Discovery Engine
Carly integrates within Facebook Messenger, accessible through private messages or the Messenger app directly. The chatbot connects to the Active Network search API to provide real-time event discovery and direct links to listings.
- Advanced Search: Find events by type, location, free text search, or specific dates
- Event Notifications: Daily or weekly alerts for new events matching user-specified criteria
- Last-Minute Events: Alerts for upcoming events with available spots
- Location Preferences: Save and update location settings for personalised results
- Direct Listings: Links to Active Network directory listings for instant registration
- Sporty Persona: Encouraging, energetic chatbot character tailored to the endurance sports audience
Messenger-First Approach
By building on Facebook Messenger, Carly takes advantage of significantly higher engagement rates compared to traditional email marketing. Messenger chatbots deliver 4-5x higher open rates and 3-5x higher click-through rates, making it the ideal channel for time-sensitive event notifications.
Impact
Carly provides endurance sports enthusiasts with a convenient, always-available channel for discovering events, outperforming traditional email marketing on engagement metrics.
4-5x Higher Open Rates
Messenger chatbot notifications significantly outperform email open rates for event discovery.
3-5x Higher Click-Through
Click-through rates on event recommendations far exceed traditional email marketing benchmarks.
Personalised Discovery
Users receive tailored event recommendations based on their preferences, location, and notification settings.
Direct-to-Registration
Seamless links to Active Network listings enable instant event registration from within the chat.
Ready to build something brilliant?
Book a short call and we will map the fastest route to impact.