7 Must-Have Benefits of a Lead Generation Chatbot for Event Planning

Drift is a conversational marketing platform that has quickly become a go‑to solution for B2B event organizers looking to capture leads directly from their event landing pages. The platform’s strengths lie in its real‑time chat capabilities, AI‑driven message routing, and seamless integration with popular CRM and marketing automation tools. Drift’s chatbots can qualify prospects by asking pre‑screening questions, schedule meetings, and even push users to a webinar registration flow—all while delivering a conversational experience that feels less like a form and more like a personal assistant. With its visual bot builder, marketers can create branching dialogues without writing code, while Drift’s AI engine can automatically suggest the next best action based on user intent. Drift’s pricing starts with a free plan that includes basic chat and email automation, then moves to a Starter tier at $400/month for up to 25,000 conversations, a Growth tier at $1,200/month for 125,000 conversations, and an Enterprise tier for large-scale events that require advanced analytics and dedicated support. Drift’s biggest advantage is its tight integration with sales pipelines and its ability to convert visitors into qualified leads in real time. However, the platform’s cost can be prohibitive for smaller event teams, and the learning curve for advanced bot logic can be steep for non‑technical users.

Intercom is a customer messaging platform that blends live chat, automated bots, and help desk features into a single interface. For event planners, Intercom’s chatbot can be used to answer FAQs, provide ticketing information, and collect attendee details before the event. The platform’s visual flow builder allows marketers to create branching conversations without code, and its AI assistant can suggest responses in real time. Intercom’s pricing is tiered by the number of contacts: the Standard plan starts at $39/month for up to 2,000 contacts, the Pro plan at $99/month for up to 4,000 contacts, and the Premium plan at $149/month for up to 8,000 contacts. Each tier includes live chat, automated bots, and basic integrations with popular CRMs. Intercom’s biggest strengths are its unified inbox that consolidates chat, email, and in‑app messages, and its robust analytics that let event teams track engagement and conversion rates. However, Intercom can become expensive as contact lists grow, and some users report that the bot builder’s visual interface can be unintuitive for beginners.

ManyChat is a chatbot platform primarily focused on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, but it also supports SMS and web chat. The platform is popular among event marketers because it allows quick creation of broadcast messages, drip sequences, and interactive FAQs—all of which can drive registration and engagement. ManyChat’s visual flow builder lets users design conversations with drag‑and‑drop blocks, and the platform offers integrations with Zapier, Shopify, and various email marketing tools. Pricing starts with a free plan that supports up to 500 contacts and basic broadcast features. The Pro plan costs $10/month per 500 contacts, and the Pro Plus plan is $25/month per 500 contacts, offering advanced automation, custom fields, and priority support. ManyChat’s strengths include its ease of use for non‑technical users, deep integration with social media, and robust marketing automation. Its main limitation is that it is largely tied to Facebook and WhatsApp, which may restrict reach for events targeting audiences that do not use these platforms. Additionally, the free plan’s contact limit can be restrictive for larger events.

MobileMonkey is a multi‑channel marketing automation platform that focuses on Facebook Messenger, SMS, and web chat. It offers a visual chatbot builder that allows event marketers to design conversational flows for ticket inquiries, venue information, and registration prompts. MobileMonkey’s platform includes a live chat widget that can be embedded on any website, and it supports broadcast campaigns that can be scheduled across multiple channels. The free plan offers basic chat and broadcast features for up to 1,000 contacts. The Pro plan is priced at $19/month, while the Unlimited plan is $49/month and includes unlimited contacts, advanced analytics, and priority support. MobileMonkey’s key advantage is its ability to run cross‑channel campaigns, making it easy to reach attendees on the channels they frequent. However, the platform’s focus on social media and SMS can limit its use for events that want a purely web‑based chatbot, and some users find the interface a bit cluttered when creating complex flows.

HubSpot offers a chatbot builder as part of its free CRM suite, with paid tiers that unlock advanced features. The chatbot can be used to answer event‑specific questions, direct visitors to registration pages, and collect lead information to feed directly into HubSpot’s contact database. HubSpot’s visual workflow editor allows users to create branching conversations without coding, and the chatbot is tightly integrated with HubSpot’s email marketing, forms, and analytics tools. Pricing for the chatbot itself is free, but advanced chatbot features are available in the Starter ($50/month), Professional ($120/month), and Enterprise plans, which add AI‑powered responses, more conversational paths, and priority support. HubSpot’s biggest advantage is the seamless integration with its CRM and marketing automation, which makes it easy to nurture leads after the event. The downside is that setting up the chatbot can be time‑consuming, and users who are not already on HubSpot’s platform may find the learning curve steep. Additionally, the free version is limited to a single chatbot and basic flows.

Tidio is a lightweight live‑chat and chatbot platform that blends real‑time messaging with automated bot flows. For event organizers, Tidio can answer common questions about dates, venues, ticket prices, and registration procedures, all while keeping the chat widget visually consistent with the event website. The platform offers a visual bot builder, and it integrates with popular email services, CRMs, and e‑commerce platforms. Tidio’s pricing is tiered: the Free plan includes basic chat and one bot; the Basic plan costs $18/month, the Pro plan is $29/month, and the Unlimited plan is $49/month, each adding more chatbots, advanced automations, and priority support. Tidio’s strengths are its simplicity, fast setup, and affordability. However, the AI capabilities are relatively basic compared to specialized chatbot providers, and the free plan limits the number of bots and chat sessions. For events that need a quick, cost‑effective chatbot, Tidio offers a solid entry point, but larger teams may outgrow its feature set.