The Golden State Warriors have announced a new way for fans to stay in touch with the team. They launched a chatbot on Rakuten Viber, the team’s official messaging and calling app partner.
The defending champs are the first NBA team to launch on the platform and will offer fans some unique opportunities. Weekly trivia contests offer the chance to win prizes like autographed merchandise and even tickets.
As for the chatbot itself, it’s available in 10 different languages: English, Bulgarian, Croatian, Georgian, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Russian, Serbian and Ukrainian. Those include the native languages of big men Omri Casspi (Israel) and Zaza Pachulia (Georgia).
The chatbot provides fans access to the team schedule, standings, news, video and live in-game updates on a global scale.
“Adding Rakuten Viber to our portfolio of digital marketing efforts is crucial for us to continue our global growth as a brand,” Jennifer Millet, Golden State Warriors Vice President of Marketing and Digital, said in a statement. “As the game of basketball expands around the world, and especially with the international players on our roster, Rakuten Viber provides the perfect vehicle for us to directly interact with our fans globally.”
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The team earlier this week also released a free sticker pack. Rakuten Viber users will have access to stickers of every player and will be able to send these back-and-forth via the messaging app.
“As a Warriors fan, working together to bring them front and center to a global audience on Rakuten Viber is amazing,” Viber CEO Djamel Agaoua said in a statement. “We are able to offer Warriors fans around the world something that truly enhances their fan experience and makes it easy to share their love for the game.”
Viber partnered with the Warriors as part of a multi-year deal that enabled parent company Rakuten to have its logo appear on Warriors game jerseys starting this season.