presentation whatsapp business

The Ultimate Guide to Using WhatsApp for Business in 2021

Updated: February 04, 2021

Published: April 16, 2020

Does your business offer international services, but you've found it hard to connect with global customers in a personalized, cost-effective way? Do you, as a marketer, struggle with offering one-on-one experiences with customers when you're not online?

Marketing messages are hard, right? But they don't have to be. Allow me to introduce you to your new favorite app for customer relationships: WhatsApp .

Now, if you've just read that and thought, "WhatsApp? What's that? And how is an app going to help?" That's understandable.

Allow HubSpot's Head of Conversational Marketing, Connor Cirillo, to break it down: "WhatsApp has become the center of gravity for billions of users around the world. It's where we message the people we care about most — like our friends and family," he says.

He continues by noting that, "Businesses always want to build relationships and meet customers where they are. WhatsApp can become one of the most important marketing channels."

Even though the app is the most popular global mobile messaging service , WhatsApp commonly isn't known as a tool for businesses. For instance, just over 7% of marketers use WhatsApp for business .

However, while on the surface it may seem like WhatsApp is just another messaging service, there are tools built in the app that are great for maintaining strong customer relationships and cultivating lead generation.

But, what exactly is WhatsApp, and what does it do?

What is WhatsApp?

WhatsApp is a free mobile messaging app that allows users to communicate with friends and family. WhatsApp is used for group messaging, calls, and multimedia sharing, regardless of mobile device type. The app also allows for international communication between users.

To use WhatsApp, you have to download the app on your phone, or scan the QR code from a computer with your phone's camera. The app is available for desktop, but you need a phone in order to sign up.

Image Source

WhatsApp is appealing because, in most cases, the app is free to use, depending on your phone service's messaging rates. Additionally, it provides a centralized location for multiple group chats, multimedia sharing, and voice messaging.

Here, let's explore some ways those benefits can be used in WhatsApp for marketing efforts.

WhatsApp Marketing

If you want to remind your customers about promotions, offer accessible customer service options, or increase visibility, WhatsApp is a perfect tool for you. And, with the addition of WhatsApp Business , it's now easier than ever to build positive customer relationships.

More of a visual learner? I've got you. This video will walk you through everything you need to know about leveraging WhatsApp for business. 

With WhatsApp Business, you'll be able to offer personal customer support to your audience with automated messages and chatbot-like capabilities. So, if you're launching a new product, WhatsApp can automatically send the messages you've created to the customers you select.

Think of selecting customers being synonymous with audience segmentation — which you can do in the app using a broadcast list .

Additionally, if you have a global audience or customer base, you'll find it easy and cost-effective to connect with your international customers, since WhatsApp doesn't charge a fee for international communication. This helps you strengthen customer relationships abroad, and allows for quick-problem solving.

Next, we'll show you how you can use the tools provided in WhatsApp Business to make an effective WhatsApp marketing campaign.

How to create a WhatsApp Business profile

Making a WhatsApp Business account is easy, especially if you have the app already downloaded. If not, head over to your local mobile app store and type in " WhatsApp Business. " If you've already set up an account, the app will connect your account to a Business profile.

Next, accept the Terms and Conditions, and enter a phone number. (If you want to refrain from using your personal number, this is something you can change letter in Settings).

And then, you're all set! You can make your Business account look polished and professional from here. You can also begin to explore some of the business-specific functions available to you, like contact labels and short links.

Let's talk about some of the features you'll have to work with in WhatsApp Business.

First, you can list your company's contact information, such as email, address, and website link, in the "Business Profile" section, accessed by clicking "Business Settings". If you've ever seen a Facebook or Google Business profile, they're very similar. Your WhatsApp Business profile will be a quick view of your company.

Your Business profile will also be listed as one, so when you communicate with leads and customers, they will know they're talking to your business. Another identifier for customers is a green checkmark:

You'll see it added when your account is verified by WhatsApp, which involves the app making sure the information you've given to set up your profile is accurate.

You'll also be able to use labels to organize sales functions, access messaging metrics (such as stats on when messages are sent, delivered, and read), and build a catalog of products from your business. We'll get more into how these features can help your marketing strategy in the next section.

How to Use WhatsApp for Business

You can use WhatsApp for business efforts in a couple of different ways. Mainly, the app is used for communication and sharing, and that's the basis of using WhatsApp to your advantage. If you would like to incorporate WhatsApp Business into your own app or platform, you can also consider using WhatsApp Messaging API for your developers.

WhatsApp can be a powerful app to have in your toolkit. You can improve visibility, automate communication, and keep your workflow organized.

The app is also free to use and manage, so you won't be spending money downloading new software. Let's cover how some other ways to use WhatsApp as an asset for your company. 

1. Improve your business's visibility.

Similar to Facebook, WhatsApp allows businesses to have a Business page on the app. Your profile will offer important information for customers, such as location, description, website, and contact details. You can also add a catalog to your WhatsApp, like shown below:

Image S ource

The catalog tool lets you upload your products in bulk, so users can browse your offerings through the app. This tool is an easy way for customers to get an idea of what they can purchase from your business. Having a business page for your company increases the amount of possible customers who can interact with your business using the app.

For instance, let's say your customers want to know what your business offers, but don't feel like Googling it. If your catalog is set up, they'll be able to access your offerings before their attention is diverted to something else.

You can use catalogs to display a new product line, or feature your most popular products to entice your audience members.

2. Lessen the response time.

When you use WhatsApp Business, you can engage with customers directly. You can also automate messages using a chatbot, so your audiences can have their questions answered quickly.

Notice how you can save a few quick replies for your customers. This interactive "FAQ" undoubtedly cuts down on having to type, or copy-and-paste answers to common questions.

Think about providing a content offer with quick replies. For instance, you might configure your welcome message to ask about your new offerings, ( "Welcome! Would you like to know about our new sale?") , and include a quick reply that links back to your catalog, or another page or promotion.

3. Organize your duties.

WhatsApp offers different options for organization. First, you can organize your contacts using their label system. Alternatively, if you use a CRM that integrates with WhatsApp, like HubSpot, you can import your contacts directly from the CRM to the app, and manage conversations from there, like shown below:

If you can integrate WhatsApp with your CRM, you won't have to manually add contacts into the WhatsApp account. The two platforms will work together to import contact information onto your business dashboard.

Additionally, if you want to save the conversations you have with customers, you have that option with an integration. For example, HubSpot customers can access previous conversations on their HubSpot dashboard:

This will help you keep track of your customers and the relationships you grow with them. For more information about how to integrate your contact information with HubSpot, refer to this instructional post .

WhatsApp Marketing Campaign Examples

If you want to fit WhatsApp into a larger brand campaign, but are unsure how that will look, think of the app as a way to streamline communication in a way that's a little more personal, and easier to access, then email or a product page. Let's look at how some companies use WhatsApp.

1. Hellmann's Brazil

Tactic: Story-based chatflow conversations.

To help teach their younger audiences how to cook, the team at the Brazil headquarters of Hellmann's got to work, marketing through WhatsApp. This was an optimal choice for the team: WhatsApp is popular in Brazil , so their Brazilian audience would most likely already use the app.

This tool was a perfect addition to use in the campaign:

Here's how it works: After texting the Business profile, WhatsCook, with WhatsApp, users can ask the profile for recipes based on what they have in their fridge. Then, they can message the profile to get more direction, video-based instructions, or send photos of progress.

The profile offers multimedia directions, such as photo and video, to make the learning experience personalized. The app even texts you to remind you when the dish is done. With less than $900 invested, and four million people satisfied, Hellmann's had a home run.

The company used chatflows and labels to provide a choose-your-own-adventure story to connect with customers as part of their campaign to educate youngsters about cooking, all through text messages.

Think of how your customer service team would have an easier time organizing their contacts and helping customers with WhatsApp's quick messaging capabilities. They can create customized workflows using integrated software and upload them into WhatsApp.

Finally, if leads want to check out your business, they won't have to give it a Google search. They can just click on your user profile. These scenarios work for any type of business, and are some cost-effective alternatives to email marketing and international marketing.

2. Beck's Brewery

Tactic: Secondary app integration.

Beck's Brewery is an alcohol company that's popular in Europe, and focuses on legendary experiences. To make one for mobile phone users, their team created an app that integrates to WhatsApp, and offers a comic book theme for their chats:

This app promotes longer chats on WhatsApp, and increases brand awareness for Beck's Brewery as a brand. For instance, if a friend of a fan had never heard of the company before trying out the app, they'll learn about the brand when they try out the comic book-themed integration.

Maybe your company offers graphic design services, or is a software development company. The bright, designing minds at your company can use the WhatsApp API to come up with similar integrations to use as a promotional tool in part of your next campaign.

Tikkie is an app, available only in Europe, that lets its users repay small loans on their phone. The app is most notably used by global bank ABN AMRO to let users in the Netherlands make bank payments.

This can be done for customers using WhatsApp. To market this function, Tikkie's developers created a line of stickers that messengers can use in their chats to make them customizable, such as the ones shown below. Like other messaging apps such as Slack, these stickers add a funny, meme-able addition to chats:

These phrases, "Takes a long time," and "Paid!" are vague enough to be used in general conversations, funny enough to make an impact with younger customers, and branded enough to increase brand recognition with users choosing these stickers.

Though Tikkie isn't the first brand to use stickers for WhatsApp marketing ( For instance, these Star Wars stickers celebrated the franchise's 40th anniversary ), they highlight how you can use the money you save with a free app. This makes marketing messages more delightful for your customers.

To create a sticker campaign of your own, you can use this sample code provided by the app, after you read up on some best practices for creating stickers. Basically, make sure your sticker images have transparent backgrounds, is less than 100kb, and measures exactly at 512 x 512.

For more examples like these, be sure to check out these extra WhatsApp campaign examples .

Ultimately, it's important to keep in mind that WhatsApp shouldn't be a primary marketing tool, like a CRM or email marketing software. Instead, it should be a partner to advance your marketing messages.

If you have disorganized chatflow structures, and feel as if you can do more to build customer loyalty, give WhatsApp a try. You'll find a platform that's easy to use, integratable, and provides metrics about your performance to help you increase effectiveness over time.

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16 unexpected ways to use WhatsApp for business

Written by by Jessica Coleman

Published on  November 30, 2022

Reading time  9 minutes

Conversational marketing is on the rise, driven largely by consumers’ increasing expectations for convenience and tailored digital experiences. In fact, 90% of global consumers say they’ll spend more with companies that personalize the service they offer.

Coupled with recent government- and self-imposed restrictions on in-person shopping, more brands than ever before are turning to WhatsApp and similar messaging platforms to interact with customers in meaningful ways.

Today, millions of brands are using WhatsApp Business to build personal connections with consumers at scale. In this article, we’ll establish the growing importance of WhatsApp across business functions (not just marketing), showcase the ways some brands are using the app and highlight a few innovative tips for making the most of the network.

The benefits of using WhatsApp for business

• Inventive ways to use WhatsApp for business

7 WhatsApp Business account features to use

Whatsapp business account vs. whatsapp business api, customer service, financial services, marketing campaigns, human resources, pipeline growth.

For brands that use WhatsApp to engage with customers, there are a number of clear benefits.

• Expand your global reach. WhatsApp, the most popular messaging app worldwide , has upward of two billion active users across more than 180 countries. With a potential audience that large, it’s easy to engage with new prospects that may not yet be aware of all your business has to offer.
• Improve the customer experience. Research from Zendesk found that leading companies offer customer support across twice as many channels as their peers. If you are looking to expand your opportunities to support customers, WhatsApp provides a seamless platform for doing so.
• Enhance employee satisfaction. WhatsApp’s messaging capability can also be a win for your internal team as customer support personnel report that they are 50% more likely to want to engage with customers via messaging platforms versus more traditional methods because it affords them the freedom to multitask.
• Increase profitability. When customer service is streamlined, operating expenses often shrink. Gartner predicts that by 2025, 40% of customer service will go from a major organizational expense to a significant profit driver as direct messaging streamlines sales pipelines.

Once you create your WhatsApp Business profile, you’ll find a suite of tools you can use to scale your 1:1 messaging strategy on the platform. Here are seven that can help you make the most out of your presence on WhatsApp:

1. Quick replies

Quick replies are a great way to take some of the work out of addressing those frequently asked questions, like “when are you open?” or “is this in stock?”.

To set one up, all you have to do is click Quick Replies under the Business Tools section of WhatsApp. From there, you can create up to 50 unique replies that you can access via keyboard shortcuts.

A word to the wise: Start with 5-10 Quick Replies and add more as needed. That will make your new shortcuts easier to remember and use when talking to customers.

2. Automatic away messages

Adding 1:1 messaging to your strategy doesn’t mean you need to be available 24/7. You can use away messages to set appropriate expectations with your customers and to give yourself a break as needed.

Away messages can be triggered by a few different scenarios, including:

• When a customer messages you outside of business hours
• During specific periods, like holidays or extended closures
• When receiving high volumes of inbound messages

When you set up an away message, be sure to clearly state when a customer can expect to hear back from you. Remove as much ambiguity from the situation as possible for an improved customer experience.

3. Contact and message Labels

You can use labels to organize inbound messages and contacts on WhatsApp, similarly to how you might use labels to organize your email inbox.

When it comes to creating a label strategy, it’s a choose your own adventure game. However, if you want to keep your social media response times low, we recommend that you create a label specifically for unresolved issues. This will help keep them top of mind as you work to find the answer to a customer’s question.

4. Catalogs and collections

Use your WhatsApp Business account to drive social commerce sales by creating an inventory catalog within the app. Aside from the product title, all additional fields—price, description, website link, product code—are optional, so you can make your listing unique to your sales process.

You can also use collections to sort your catalog for easier browsing. For example, you can create a holiday-specific collection or one that features products currently on sale.

5. Catalog links

Once you create a catalog, you can share items in your catalog in conversations with customers. All you have to do is find the item you’d like to share and click Send link via WhatsApp Business.

Use this tool if a customer is asking about a specific item or to provide alternatives for items that have sold out. You can also use it to send loyal customers updates on items that have gone on sale.

While you can drive customers directly to your site using WhatsApp Business’s catalog feature, you can also create a more seamless checkout experience by encouraging them to complete their purchase in-app using the cart tool.

All you have to do is enable the Add to Cart feature within your catalog and your customers can handle the rest from there.

7. Broadcast lists

If a customer adds your business to their address book on WhatsApp, you can add them to a broadcast list. These lists help you send the same message to multiple customers at once, saving you a lot of time and effort.

Use this tool sparingly and with SMS marketing best practices in mind. If you use it too often, you risk alienating customers who appreciate your business enough to consider it a personal contact.

If you’ve been looking into setting up a WhatsApp Business account, you’ve probably also come across information on the WhatsApp Business API (also known as WhatsApp Business Platform).

Think of this as the next evolution of a WhatsApp Business account, designed for medium and large businesses to manage conversational marketing at a wider scale. The WhatsApp Business API provides access to the tools listed above, along with advanced marketing and customer care features, including:

• Multi-agent access
• Profile verification
• Multimedia message templates
• Message variables for personalization
• Interactive messages

Of course, advanced tools come at an advanced price point. WhatsApp Business API also has a conversation-based pricing model whereas WhatsApp Business Accounts are free. Businesses using the WhatsApp Business API receive 1,000 free conversations per month, with monthly rates increasing depending on the number of user- and business-initiated messages sent within the billing period.

16 brands that demonstrate how to expertly use WhatsApp for business

Brands are using WhatsApp in a variety of ways that expand their customer-facing and internal capabilities. The following examples highlight use cases in customer service, financial services, marketing, human resources and pipeline growth.

1. Vodafone , a German telecommunications company, has embraced WhatsApp for customer messaging, reaching more than 200,000 customers via this channel each month. Their artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, TOBi, recognizes more than 250 customer needs and will only pass requests over to employees if it encounters an issue it is not equipped to solve. More than half of these interactions result in a solution for the customer, removing the need for live customer service support in many cases.

2. Estée Lauder was the first major beauty brand to use WhatsApp to offer personalized skincare consultations for customers. Liv, an AI chatbot, was developed in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to replace over-the-counter consultations customers previously had in department stores. These digital conversations help customers understand how to use the company’s products and gather tips for maintaining an effective skincare regimen.

3. Nissan Saudi Arabia , looking to engage younger customers and reduce its reliance on call centers, began using WhatsApp to handle inquiries and nurture sales. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, people under 30 years old make up nearly three-fourths of the population. To reach that market, Nissan developed an automated chatbot powered by WhatsApp that could answer simple customer questions without the need to transfer them to the call center. After the launch of the chatbot, leads increased 390% and inbound calls were reduced by 33%.

4. One of Spain’s leading insurance providers, Mutua Madrileña , offers personalized messaging for customers via WhatsApp on more than 1,000 topics. In the first six months of using this new channel for customer support, the company had received nearly half a million messages, making up 23% of digital customer inquiries. In late 2020, the brand became the first insurer in the country to allow customers to submit automobile accident claims via their WhatsApp virtual assistant, resulting in a process that is now 30% faster.

5. WhatsApp banking is also a thing. Many banks, primarily in Europe, the Middle East and Asia are using the app to make banking simpler and more convenient for customers. India’s ICICI Bank and Pakistan’s HBL Bank both use the app to answer customer questions and to conduct basic transactions.

6. Mukuru , one of the largest money transfer providers in Africa, realized more than $1 million in reduced SMS costs after implementing customer service via WhatsApp. It also improved the reliability and security of wire transfers for the financially excluded communities it serves across the continent. With WhatsApp available, consumers can reduce their dependence on mobile banking apps that traditionally use more unpredictable unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) protocols that don’t require an internet connection. Since the introduction of WhatsApp, the brand’s customer satisfaction has jumped from 65% to 80%.

7. Tikkie , a Dutch peer-to-peer payment app (similar to Venmo or Zelle), created their own set of 11 stickers for their WhatsApp users. The stickers allowed customers a fun way of communicating with each other to thank someone for paying or to remind them to do so.

8. Absolut Vodka , a Swedish spirits brand, used WhatsApp to publicize an in-person product launch event in Argentina. Customers were encouraged to message a chatbot doorman named Sven to try to convince “him” they deserved one of two available tickets. This campaign resulted in more than 1,000 messages from 600 individuals over three days.

9. Carrefour Group , a French-based big box store chain, uses WhatsApp to provide digital coupon catalogs to its client base. These offers were previously printed, but the company wanted to offset those costs and have better targeting capabilities based on customers’ locations and preferences. By inputting their zip code into a chatbot, customers can be directed to their nearest store and also receive tailored deals straight to their phone. According to Meta, 45% of users now engage with the digital catalog versus 10% who open the catalog via email.

10. The Brazilian arm of Hellmann’s , a mayonnaise brand, launched a campaign via WhatsApp to provide its users with on-demand cooking advice delivered by culinary professionals. The campaign, called WhatsCook, allowed customers to converse in real time with chefs to get detailed instruction, answers to their questions, or specific assistance for preparing their meals.

11. Adidas’ 100% Unfair Predator campaign, launched via WhatsApp, helped the brand engage with a core set of customers: footballers. Users were allowed to chat with Adidas to request a professional athlete join their local teams for a single game. For the lucky teams chosen, Adidas-sponsored players showed up in the company’s new Predator20 Mutator shoes.

12. BASF Group , a German chemical production company, uses WhatsApp to engage potential recruits. Anilina, a digital career assistant in the form of a chatbot, helps to answer candidates’ questions quickly and on the spot. For more involved conversations, candidates can reach out to representatives Monday through Friday via WhatsApp chat.

13. Logistics company Deutsche Post DHL Group allows candidates to apply to open positions directly from WhatsApp, eliminating the need to fill out lengthy and cumbersome online forms. The company deployed the chatbot to reach their target candidates where they are via a more user-centric application process.

14. French newspaper Le Monde used WhatsApp’s status feature to target customers in French-speaking African countries. The company posts content to its status, which is viewable for 24 hours (similar to an Instagram Story), three to four times a day. About 20% of the brand’s follower base typically consumes this content, and over time, Le Monde Afrique has grown its WhatsApp followers by 10,000.

15. Triya , a Brazilian beachwear brand, uses WhatsApp to converse with its customers and also to send order information like receipts and tracking information. After doubling down on their presence on the app, the company 5Xed their annual sales.

16. Centaline Property , one of Hong Kong’s largest real estate brokerages, uses WhatsApp to qualify leads more quickly and increase their sales pipeline. The company integrated the network with its property recommendation engine to allow leads to be funneled to the appropriate agent, along with each customer’s information and communication history. The use of key WhatsApp features like List Messages and Reply Buttons help Centaline Property personalize their outreach, resulting in a 27% increase in sales conversions.

How will you use WhatsApp for business ?

Conversational marketing is here to stay. The majority of customers expect it, and companies that strategically engage their audiences via channels like WhatsApp are better positioned to take advantage of the growth it makes possible.

If you’re looking for even more opportunities to use social messaging to build stronger customer relationships, this interview with Martha O’Byrne-O’Reilly , head of messaging developer partnerships at Meta, should give you some ideas.

• Social Media Engagement

Link in bio: The complete guide to maximizing engagement

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Audience engagement: What it is and tips to improve it

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Social media personalization: The opportunity and risks to consider

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How To Connect With Your Audience Using WhatsApp Marketing

Interested in adding WhatsApp to your marketing strategy? Discover how to get started with WhatsApp marketing today.

Table of Contents

While you’ve probably already included platforms like X and Facebook in your social media strategy , WhatsApp could be equally important to your brand.

That’s right: WhatsApp isn’t just for texting your coworkers or video chatting with your family in a different city. It can be used for business, too.

In fact, WhatsApp Business was created specifically with small business owners in mind. It can help you connect with your customers and support them with immediate, personalized customer service.

If you’re considering adding WhatsApp to your brand’s marketing strategy, we’ll explore why that might be a good idea.

Bonus: Download our free WhatsApp for Customer Care guide to get more pointers on how to use WhatsApp Business to get higher conversion rates, better customer experience, lower costs, and higher customer satisfaction.

What is WhatsApp?

WhatsApp is a free messaging app owned by Meta.

WhatsApp is often used for messaging over wi-fi, creating group chats, and marketing by brands. You can download the app from the App Store or Google Play Store to communicate with friends, family, and businesses.

Its two billion monthly active users access the app for business or personal use because:

• It’s free. The only charges you might get are data roaming charges.
• It’s reliable. You can use WhatsApp to communicate with users all over the world—you just need access to mobile data or a wi-fi connection.
• It’s widely available. There are WhatsApp users in 180 different countries.
• It’s not just about texting. You can use WhatsApp for voice and video calls and share photos, videos, documents, or your location.

Manage all your messages stress-free with easy routing, saved replies, and friendly chatbots. Try Hootsuite’s Inbox today.

How can you use WhatsApp for marketing?

Interested in using WhatsApp as a marketing channel? Use these tactics to seamlessly bring this messaging app into the fold.

Send promotional messages

Have you invested in SMS marketing for your business? If not, consider using WhatsApp instead.

You can still connect with potential customers via short, text-like messages—but unlike standard texting, it’s free for your subscribers.

Source: WhatsApp Business

Send out product updates, marketing messages, shipping updates, and more through WhatsApp’s business platform.

Automate communication

You can easily automate conversations with your target audience using WhatsApp.

WhatsApp’s integrated chatbots allow you to send customers pre-made answers to commonly asked questions.

Here’s a great example of what this could look like:

Elevate your customer service

With a WhatsApp Business account, you can make your social media customer service more efficient and personal.

On top of serving as a channel for direct messaging, WhatsApp Business has several tools that you can use to improve customer experiences:

• Quick Replies : Save answers to commonly asked questions as templates and set up shortcuts. This will give you back the time you would spend typing out the answers to repeating questions. Plus, your customers will get their questions answered faster.

• Labels : Use labels to organize and categorize users and messages. This will help you sort messages by urgency and recognize returning customers. You can use pre-programmed labels or create new ones that make sense for your business.

• Away Messages and Greeting Messages: Set up these automated messages so your customer gets a response immediately, even if you’re unable to respond. This is a great way to set expectations for response times if a customer reaches out outside your business hours.

It doesn’t hurt that it’s easy and affordable to communicate with international customers via WhatsApp Business, either.

Showcase your products in a catalog

You can think of WhatsApp Business’s catalog tool as a mobile storefront. It lets your customers browse your products without leaving the app.

This tool is useful for highlighting new products, seasonal collections or bestsellers.

Here are a few key facts about the catalog:

• You can upload a maximum of 500 products or services.
• Each product or service can include a title, price, description, product code and link to the product on your website.
• Each product has an image.
• You can share links from the catalog in WhatsApp conversations.

Communicate with colleagues or employees

WhatsApp Business isn’t just for communicating with customers. It’s also a useful way to stay in touch with employees. More than 50% of workers use messaging apps like WhatsApp to communicate in the workplace.

The group chat feature lets you message up to 256 people at one time. It’s possible to send PDFs and other documents over WhatsApp business. Files can be up to 100MB.

Network with other professionals

Finally, you use WhatsApp to communicate with others in your industry. The app’s video call tool can be used in a professional networking capacity, just like Zoom or Skype.

You can even sync WhatsApp Business with your desktop, so those professional networking calls can be done from your office computer rather than your phone.

3 great examples of WhatsApp marketing

Wondering how WhatsApp can fit into your marketing and customer engagement strategies? Here are three examples and success stories from brands using WhatsApp.

Benefit Cosmetics

Benefit Cosmetics used the WhatsApp business platform to create a process that can automate bookings for brow and lip waxes, send appointment reminders, and offer additional customer service features.

WhatsApp makes it easy to send appointment reminders and info the client needs to remember for their appointment. If the client wants to modify or cancel their appointment, each message includes a link to the Benefit Cosmetics website.

Connecting this process to WhatsApp helped Benefit Cosmetics increase appointments by 30% and generate a 200% YoY increase in sales.

HolidayPirates

HolidayPirates is an international travel company that finds and shares travel deals with its audience.

The team recently incorporated WhatsApp into this process, quizzing subscribers on the types of trips they’re interested in so they can send the most relevant offers possible.

Once the results are in, HolidayPirates sends links to deals through WhatsApp so recipients can find and book the deal if interested.

This strategy works for HolidayPirates: their WhatsApp messages get a 97% open rate, 40% click-through rate, and 10x more subscriber engagement than email.

The State Plate

The State Plate is a food delivery company that operates throughout India. The company wanted to incorporate WhatsApp into its customer support strategy, making it easier to answer customer inquiries without requiring a hands-on approach.

The team uses several pre-set WhatsApp templates and messages so that customers can select their questions and get an immediate, automated answer.

Using WhatsApp allows the company to resolve 85% of its queries with a 90% decrease in response time.

How to get started with WhatsApp for business

Ready to start using WhatsApp for your company?

Before getting started, you need to decide what’s right for your company: the WhatsApp business app or the WhatsApp business platform.

WhatsApp Business App

The WhatsApp business app is just like the regular consumer messaging app, but it allows small businesses to message customers 1-on-1 about customer service issues, appointments, and more. However, unlike the consumer app, the business app supports up to four people using the same account to respond to messages.

If you’ve got a smaller team and want to get started with WhatsApp marketing immediately, the business app may be a better choice.

To get started with the WhatsApp business app, head to the App Store or Google Play Store to download it onto your smartphone.

Set the app up your business phone number—yes, even if it’s a landline—so you can start messaging directly from the number already associated with your business.

Add your business name, then make sure your customers know they can message you on WhatsApp.

WhatsApp Business Platform

The WhatsApp business platform is an API that businesses can use to integrate WhatsApp with their CRMs, bots, and other tools to create automations, promotional messages, and more. Most of the examples we’ve included above are using the business platform.

If your company has the resources available, the complex conversational tools available on the WhatsApp business platform might be right up your alley.

To get started with the WhatsApp business API, head to business.whatsapp.com . Then, click the Get Started button in the top right corner of the site.

You’ll then be greeted with the below screen:

Fill out the form to be contacted by a member of the WhatsApp sales team. They’ll fill you in on everything you can do with the WhatsApp business platform/API, talk about your planned usage, and get you set up with an account.

Then, you’ll be able to create your first message templates and start automating your customer support, sales, and marketing strategies through the WhatsApp messaging platform.

3 top WhatsApp business tools

WhatsApp tools can help you make the most of the messaging app. Use these tools to help streamline your WhatsApp marketing strategy.

Hootsuite Inbox

Hootsuite’s Social Inbox enables your team to manage all of your social media customer conversations in one easy-to-navigate inbox.

Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn—and even WhatsApp!—can all be viewed, responded to, and organized right inside your Hootsuite dashboard.

Assign conversations to different users, keep track of what you and certain customers have already discussed, and make sure that no online conversation goes unnoticed.

Want to add WhatsApp to Hootsuite Inbox? Here’s to get started :

• First, make sure your business is verified on Meta . You’ll need to be verified to add a Business Account and number, so don’t skip this step! (If you need help, Meta’s got you covered .)
• Connect your WhatsApp Business Account to Hootsuite . If you don’t already have a WhatsApp Business Account, you’ll be prompted to create one.
• Provide and confirm a valid phone number for WhatsApp, then authorize Hootsuite’s access to your account. (We just need this to help you manage your messages!)
• Click Finish and you’re done! As soon as the WhatApp channel has been successfully connected, messages will automatically start coming into Inbox 2.0.

Note : Meta limits free conversations to 1,000 WhatsApp messages per month. To see more conversations, add a payment method to your WhatsApp account .

WhatsAuto is a third-party tool you can use to create chatbots and build better auto-replies. It integrates with multiple messaging apps, including WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram, and more. You can use WhatsAuto to schedule auto-replies and easily turn auto-replies on and off.

Cleanup for Business WhatsApp

Download Cleanup for Business WhatsApp if you don’t want to spend time manually deleting old files off of WhatsApp. Cleanup makes cleaning up WhatsApp Business easy—you can select multiple files at once and quickly delete old images, videos, audio files, notes and profile pictures. The app works offline, too.

Save time building an efficient customer support system on social media with Hootsuite. Respond to questions and complaints, create tickets from social conversations, and work with chatbots all from one dashboard. Try it free today .

With files from Karin Olafson .

Save time on social messaging with automated responses, smarter workflows, and friendly chatbots — all in the Hootsuite Inbox.

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Chloe West is a digital marketer and freelance writer, focusing on topics surrounding social media, content, and digital marketing. She's based in Charleston, SC, and when she's not working, you'll find her playing card games or watering her plants.

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WhatsApp for Business: Everything You Need to Know

posted on March 4, 2020

The secret to making an impact with any marketing is to hit two simple criteria. 

• Go where your customers are
• Stand out from the competition

The question for today’s brands is how can you quickly and easily hit both of those criteria? 

The answer’s simple. Messaging apps, and in particular, WhatsApp’s Business App and API.  

Messaging apps see far higher engagement than traditional social media. And at the top of the pile is WhatsApp (which is showing no signs of slowing down ).

The added benefit of WhatsApp is that very few brands out there are using it for marketing yet. 

That’s not to say no one is. There are plenty of use cases and success stories of brands using WhatsApp. For example;

• Atlético Madrid used WhatsApp Business API to support their fans and answer their questions to great success. 35% of the questions they received through WhatsApp could be handled automatically outside of business hours. However, more impressive is 36% of traffic from customer conversations were redirected to a sales page.
• After implementing a WhatsApp strategy BMW managed to reduce callback requests by 60%. Their support approach through WhatsApp also achieved a 90% approval rate from their customers.  
• Vodafone Germany used WhatsApp to make its call center more efficient. After implementing the strategy they served over 350,000 customers throughout 5 months where they managed to achieve a 45% higher opt-in rate when compared to SMS.  

Despite the obvious effectiveness of the platform, there are still very few companies truly leveraging the platform (I should know, I had to conduct a lot of research just to find the above 3). 

But that’s a benefit for you . Because it means there is a lower level of competition for brands who get started with WhatsApp marketing today.  

And best of all, WhatsApp can be used across the entire customer journey. Whether you’re looking to attract new leads or engage past customers and bring them back into the loop. 

To help you decide if WhatsApp marketing is right for you, we’re gonna run through everything you need to know.  

A Brief Overview of the Tools WhatsApp Offers

Before we get into the nitty-gritty we’re gonna take a quick look at the tools available to brands – both large and small – with WhatsApp. 

Small Business WhatsApp Tools: WhatsApp Business App

The WhatsApp Business App is free for small businesses and comes with a couple of tools to help you better engage your customers.  

Business profile

You’ll be able to set up a business profile. It’s very similar to the business listings on Google and Google Maps in the information it provides .  

Quick replies

WhatsApp Quick replies are basically canned responses to the most often asked questions. They allow you to quickly send messages you find yourself typing out time and time again. 

Automated Messages

There’s limited functionality allowing for basic automated messages to be sent. This isn’t the full automation you might be used to, but it can tackle some of the more common and frequently needed tasks.  

Labels are a simple tagging solution helping keep your inbox a little more organized.  

Product Catalogs

Product catalogs allow you to offer a quick and easy way for users to see what it is you’re offering, along with prices and other relevant information. 

Limitations of the Small Business Suite

Whilst the tools provided to small businesses are useful, they’re not everything you might need. There are a number of limitations that will make it difficult for you to scale beyond the small business stage. 

A quick run-down of the issues include;

• You’re only permitted a single agent to handle your business account
• The quick reply automation is extremely limited in scope and ability
• The number of messages you’re able to send is also limited
• The small business app cannot be integrated with any other business tools, meaning it cannot be linked to anything like your CRM.

The above limitations aren’t exactly deal-breakers for small businesses operating almost as soloist. 

However, if anything in the above is a dealbreaker for you, you’ll want to look at WhatsApp for medium and large businesses. 

WhatsApp For Medium and Large Business Tools: WhatsApp business API

If you need a larger message send limit or to have your WhatsApp campaigns fully integrated with your other business tools this is what you’ll need.

WhatsApp’s business API gives you everything you need to turn WhatsApp into a conversion powerhouse of a channel… including;

• Team inbox – so you can have multiple agents assisting users with everything from support to product recommendations through chat
• Unlimited exchange of messages are free within a 24-hour window since the last interaction with the customer. 
• Use automated notifications to send payment, order, delivery updates etc outside of the 24-hour window
• The ability to scale with your business as there’s no limit on message sends
• Unlimited customer support message sends so you can check in with customers at any point in the future
• And the ability to sync with any of your existing marketing tools and services through the WhatsApp API

In short, WhatsApp business is for small, independent brands who are just starting to experiment with the possibility of conversational marketing. 

WhatsApp API is aimed at larger brands that need a more full-stack solution to everything conversational. 

What you need to figure out now is if you are eligible for a business account at all. 

The Eligibility and How to apply for WhatsApp Business and WhatsApp Business API

Let’s first begin with the kind of businesses that are outright out of luck when it comes to WhatsApp business. 

If you’ve spent any time with any of the large PPC services, this list will seem awfully familiar.  

• Real cash gaming (gambling)
• Adult content
• Alcohol/tobacco/drug-related products – including pharmaceuticals

In addition, WhatsApp policies also don’t allow the following categories of businesses to use the platform. 

• Independent software vendors
• Digital products or services
• Health care products/supplements
• And any other categories that aren’t in line with Facebook’s and WhatsApp’s policies .  

WhatsApp Business – Who Can Apply? 

For the small business service, all you need is the WhatsApp business app on your phone. 

A few steps of setting up your business and you’re good to go.  

It’s more complicated when it comes to the business API as it’s aimed at Enterprise brands.  

WhatsApp Business API – Who Can Apply

This is for larger businesses out there. 

There are no hard and fast rules for things like revenue, employee count, or offices for this. At least nothing explicitly stated. 

You have to apply to be given access to the Business API services though, and it’s unlikely those with independent or small businesses will be given access.  

You have two options when signing up for the Business API. 

• Do it yourself 
• Use an approved Whatsapp Business Service Provider like Jumper

We’d recommend running with the second option here for a number of reasons. 

Primarily that creating your own Business API account is a complex and confusing process that, if you don’t have the existing knowledge, can take weeks to get everything running smoothly. 

However, with a WhatsApp Business API service Provider, you could get up and running in just a few hours. 

I should clarify why this is the case (it’s not just us trying to convince you we’re the best solution for you). 

WhatsApp requires end-to-end encryption on all messages for privacy purposes. To maintain that encryption, users of the Business API need to host their own headless version of the app.

That hosted version needs to include its own SQL database, block storage, and an ever-changing API.  

It’s incredibly complex. And for most brands, the time and financial investment to establish and maintain this is simply too much. 

However, with a WhatsApp Business API Service provider like Jumper, you don’t have to manage any of that. 

You simply log in to the Service Provider’s dashboard and focus on your campaigns.  

WhatsApp Business Basics

Now let’s take a look at the absolute basics of WhatsApp Business. The kind of foundational knowledge you need to know. 

We’re gonna start off with the policies you need to be aware of.  

WhatsApp Business Policies

Let’s get into the details of what WhatsApp outlines in their policy rules. 

Create a quality experience

This seems like a weird one to include because you should be aiming to create a quality experience regardless of WhatsApp’s oversight. 

WhatsApp specifically are referring to the below though;

• Maintain at least one customer support channel at all times through your business account
• Do not mislead people, and only contact them on WhatsApp if they have specifically opted in to hear from you on that channel (i.e, don’t get an email opt-in and send WhatsApp messages)
• Offer support. Do not turn a support channel into one that sends promotional messages or advertisements
• You must respect all requests to stop sending messages
• You cannot create or support the playing of games within WhatsApp

Those are the general rules. However, there are also a number of WhatsApp API specific rules which I’ll outline below.  

WhatsApp Business API specific policy rules

In addition to the above, those utilizing the business API should also be aware of the following.

• Any WhatsApp messages must have been opted in to through a specific, relevant flow. For example, if you want to send a person a purchase receipt, they must have opted in to receive WhatsApp messages through the purchase flow for that product. Basically, you can’t send a purchase receipt if, earlier in the purchase journey, the user reached out for support on WhatsApp
• Be extremely clear on the opt-in and what you’ll send to your users. That means a clearly marked checkbox for “receive updates through WhatsApp” and a breakdown of what kind of messages you’ll send

Acceptable WhatsApp message types

• You’re only able to initiate chats if you’re sending a transactional notification. And any messages that are sent must make use of an approved WhatsApp Structured Message Template (more on that later). 
• Much like Facebook Messenger, you’re only able to respond to a user with any kind of message within 24 hours of their last message to you. Outside of that 24-hour window you must use WhatsApp approved Message Templates (like receipts or fulfillment updates etc)
• Automation during customer service is OK, however, there must be a clear prompt to redirect the user to a real customer service agent

Data protection

• It’s down to you to acquire and check the necessary permissions and consents to use the data you’ll need (in accordance with your local laws and regulations)
• You can only use the data collected in WhatsApp for WhatsApp message support functions. You cannot use it to inform other channel marketing
• No asking for full card numbers or payment details
• You must not request or send anything regarding health information of users
• You must not share the information or content of messages of one user with any other

Prohibited uses

In short, you cannot send messages for any of WhatsApp’s prohibited products or services. If you need a reminder, we listed them out a short space above this in this very article.  

If you break these rules, you could lose your current and future access to the WhatsApp platform for marketing purposes. 

What are the Limitations of WhatsApp Business?

I’m going to focus here on WhatsApp Business API because the basic WhatsApp Business account has already been covered. 

And the reason I want to focus on that enterprise-level offering is because it truly is built for enterprise-level use-cases. The database support, block store and API’s are built to handle large volumes of messages with burst protection.

However, the setup and maintenance costs of these necessary elements are comparatively high, making WhatsApp marketing currently affordable only to large businesses with decent channel budgets.

But given the opportunity, size, and engagement of WhatsApp users, the benefits far outweigh the costs. 

• WhatsApp is a huge channel with billions of users. 
• It comes with engagement rates that put email and other messaging channels to shame. 
• And it’s one of the most sought after brand engagement channels by consumers. 

Whatever your business and whatever stage your customer is at, WhatsApp has the potential to massively increase the engagement and effect of your marketing.  

And with a WhatsApp business Service provider like Jumper, you can minimize the effort required to launch and scale your operations whilst still enjoying all of the benefits.  

Additionally, as a BSP, Jumper makes sure it’s affordable for you with our competitive pricing.

Since each messaging app has a different interface, you’d need to be mindful of the limitations to design the optimal CX for each messaging channel.  For WhatsApp, there are a few other limitations you should be aware of. 

Lack of Cards

Facebook Messenger allows you to add product cards to chat, which basically shows a number of different products to users.  

That functionality has not yet made it to WhatsApp.  

Lack of Button for Payments

This also makes it more difficult to get the final conversion. Users are a little more apprehensive to click raw links in chat over a highly optimized payment card.  

It will apparently come later this year.

WhatsApp Ad Targeting

Ads that click to WhatsApp give your business a fast and convenient way to answers questions, drive transactions, and generate leads. 

When a person interacts with your ad on Facebook or Instagram, a conversation with your business will immediately open in WhatsApp​

Much like they do within click to Messenger ads.  

You’re able to create these ads through the ad objectives Traffic, Messages, Conversions, and Post Engagement.

If you’re already running Facebook ads, setting up Click to WhatsApp ads will be a relatively easy switch for you. 

After linking your WhatsApp account, you’ll be able to set up the ads your used to, but respond through WhatsApp. 

This gives brands the opportunity to leverage multiple campaigns through WhatsApp. 

You could use Message ads to engage with new customers, using an automated bot to find out what you can do to best help them. 

A Better customer experience

Thanks to its reach and engagement, WhatsApp is definitely the #1 messaging channel for connecting with customers.  

Unfortunately, the level of success WhatsApp can help brands attain is unquestioningly going to attract spammers and system abusers.  

The same happened with Messenger when it initially took off. The majority of marketers started using other bot-builders to send unsolicited, spammy messages to people.

Facebook has thankfully taken great efforts to combat this with a view to improving the customer experience.  And those same guiding principles have been reused on WhatsApp. 

Here’s what you need to know to ensure you stay compliant, and provide your customers with the kind of experience that brings them back time and time again. 

Utilize 1-to-1 conversations:

Responding to people who want to learn more about your products will increase your sales.  

It’s easy to simply run all of this through a bot as it’s scalable. 

However, you should – at the least – offer a direct escalation to a person option. That could be through chat, phone call, email, web support, or a form.

It can be difficult to implement something that allows each and every customer to request 1-to-1 assistance. So first start out with a small test audience.

This will help you understand the demand from your customers and figure out the best processes, preparation, training, and channels for this level of support. 

And be certain that all you’re offering is support when it’s requested. 

If you take the opportunity to promote your other products or services it could land you in hot water. It’s classed as a negative user experience and – if enough users report you for it – could lead to WhatsApp limiting your access to the Business API. 

The best practices for implementing these 1-to-1 support messages include the below;

• Endure your human agents can support answering detailed pre-sale questions (train their product knowledge)
• Start small. Both with the users you offer 1-to-1 support to, and the internal team who’s able to help. Refine the process before scaling up. 
• Integrate support with inventory management, and your CRM so they have the information they need to offer assistance at every stage of the purchase journey

When you’re following these best practices, you can add a little automation to help scale your operation beyond your live agent support.  Just be sure you’re following WhatsApp Policy Guidelines.  

2. Make full use of Message Templates 

You can only send Message Templates that have been approved by WhatsApp. By leveraging them to their fullest, you can ensure that the experience you’re providing to your customers is the best it possibly can be. 

Click here to go to the section that lists the various Message Templates available to you.

3. Be crystal clear with your opt-ins

Your opt-ins shouldn’t just include te basic information like “get updates on WhatsApp”. 

You need to let the user know what they’re going to receive, how they’re going to receive it, and to which number. 

The Facebook Developer site has a good image to show you how you should present this information. 

4. Stick to the 24-hour window

The free send 24-hour rule is one of the most effective ways WhatsApp are reducing the possibility of spam. 

And you need to stick to it. 

In short, you can send any information within 24 hours of the customer’s last engagement with your brand through WhatsApp. 

Beyond that 24 hour limit, you can only send messages using pre-approved templates (order updates etc), or you’ll have to make use of the paid notifications where you’ll be charged per message sent. 

WhatsApp Message Send Limits

This is how many users you can message within a 24-hour period . NOT the number of messages, but the number of users.  

These limits do not apply to anything you send within the 24-hour period.  

WhatsApp has three tiers for message send limits.  

• Tier 1 – You can send to 1,000 unique customers in a rolling 24 hour period
• Tier 2 – You can send to 10,000 unique customers in a rolling 24 hour period
• Tier 3 – You can send to 100,000 unique customers in a rolling 24 hour period

You’ll start at tier 1, and there are 2 pre-requisites for getting upgraded. 

The first is the number of messages sent. 

You need to double your total unique user sends within a week.  

That means if you’re in tier 1 (1000 unique sends), you need to send messages to 2000 users within 7 days.  

In addition, the quality of those messages cannot be classed as “low”. 

Which brings us to the next point.

Quality Rating

Each message sent is assigned a quality rating on how it was received in the preceding 24 hours.  

Messages with a higher quality rating are colored green, those in the mid-range are yellow, and those that are low are red.  

These ratings are linked to a phone number’s connectivity. 

Again, WhatsApp has 3-levels of connectivity.  

• Pending – when your business is first connected
• Connected – When the user is actively engaged
• Offline – The number is no longer reachable through WhatsApp

This is important because if a phone number shows a red quality score, it will be flagged. If it remains red for 7 days, it will automatically be moved to a status where you have a lower message limit for that number.  

You have 7 days to increase the status from red to yellow or green.  

Generally speaking, the quality score is determined by the number of people who mark your messages as spam. Which is why following the best practices for 1-to-1 communication we outlined above is so important.  

Message Templates

In the WhatsApp manager, you’re able to create Message templates . 

These templates have to be approved by WhatsApp before they can begin sending. 

The kind of templates you can create are generally focused on frequently sent messages like simple welcomes and fulfillment notifications. 

Once these are approved by WhatsApp, you’re able to use them in your messaging which will drastically reduce the time it takes for you to respond to frequent issues and questions. 

The reason these have to be approved is because a few brands abused the lack of oversight when Messenger was released and spammed users. 

As such, this is a good thing for your brand as it’ll ensure higher levels of engagement. 

However, getting approval of these templates can be tricky. 

A few of our clients have had their message templates denied by WhatsApp because they didn’t fall directly within one of the predetermined buckets WhatsApp established.  

After we managed the communication with WhatsApp, we’ve been able to get all of the previously denied templates approved.  

If you want to try this yourself, be sure you outline the validity of the template and ensure WhatsApp recognise the best use of the template and how it doesn’t break their terms of service.

Subscription Policy

We’ve already covered the general business and usage policies above. 

However, WhatsApp also has a policy relating specifically to digital subscriptions.  

In short, you’re not allowed to use WhatsApp to facilitate the sale of any digital product. That includes those that require a frequent subscription . 

Here’s how WhatsApp words it.  

This really cuts out a large market of information brands. It seems Facebook wants to keep WhatsApp as a support channel, only allowing physical product retailers to use it for sales. 

What are the possibilities with WhatsApp?

OK, so we’ve been over everything you need to know when it comes to the rules and regulations of WhatsApp. 

Now, we’re gonna switch gears and take a look at the best use cases and strategic hints so you can get the most out of any future campaigns. 

We’ll start with the kind of message types you can send with WhatsApp, including one or two real-life use cases as examples. 

WhatsApp Business Messaging

More commonly referred to as live chat.  

This is what you’re going to be leveraging to support your customers with complex issues. 

A lot of marketers seem to think live chat is only good for answering questions or putting out fires. But with the right approach, it can be so much more. 

In addition to supporting customers, you should take the time to figure out how you can guide their shopping experience. How you can use the dialogue to figure out what they need before recommending the right product for them. 

• General support to answer client questions and remove any last-minute hesitation
• Guided shopping experiences to find out what the user needs and recommend the perfect product for them
• Generate leads by qualifying prospects through a series of natural questions and build sales pipeline. 

WhatsApp Business Automated Notifications

These automated notifications are based on the templates that WhatsApp provides. 

They’re intended to help keep your customers updated and informed of key developments in their experience with your brand. 

As such, they’re kind of limited in their scope and you’re not able to customize them too much, however, they are extremely useful to keep customers apprised of updates. 

We’re talking about things like sending receipts, updating on delivery, and other similar messages related to account management and post purchase updates. 

• Sending users delivery updates for their product
• Billing updates can be sent if your company is soon to charge a customer
• Notifications and reminders about upcoming appointments and reservations

WhatsApp Buttons

The WhatsApp team is continually looking at ways to make the customer experience more streamlined and intuitive.

To this end, they’ve recently added a feature we’ve seen implemented to great effect on Messenger  

Quick reply buttons. 

These buttons will allow users to “type” simple responses with a single finger tap. 

The buttons are going to be added to the features in the media message templates.  

And they’ll allow two basic functions to begin.  

Call-To-Action Buttons

WhatsApp’s CTA buttons will allow you to facilitate a simple action with the click of your button. 

At the time of writing, these buttons will allow you to;

• Redirect the user to a specific page on your site
• Include a phone number which is then called upon clicking the button

You’ll be able to customize the text within the button and the number/page it redirects to. However, it has to abide by one of the two use cases.  

Quick Reply Buttons

WhatsApp are also implementing quick reply buttons.  

You’re allowed to add three of these buttons to your messages with the intent of increasing the quality and speed of conversations. 

You can use these replies to keep the conversation moving and move customers who are interested in your products one step closer to purchasing from you. 

You’ll be able to add these buttons to any and all of your WhatsApp Message Templates as long as they abide by the relevant rules and regulations.  For more information, check out WhatsApp’s Interactive Message Templates guide. 

WhatsApp Business Advertising

You can create Click to Whatsapp Ads through your Facebook  Ads Manager to grow your WhatsApp following.

You can use this through the regular Facebook Ad dashboard , and with the campaign goals of traffic, messages, conversions, or post engagement. 

You must also be the admin for the Facebook Business account and already have WhatsApp Business linked to your Facebook. 

All you do then, is choose WhatsApp as the ad destination.  

• Any top of funnel actions where you need an influx of customers. 

WhatsApp Business CRM

One of the primary issues a lot of brands experience when using Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp as their primary form of customer communication is the lack of CRM functionality. 

Sure, you’re able to quickly respond to and engage with customers. But without a detailed CRM you lack the ability to re-engage best customers or see what someone’s purchase history is. 

That’s something we’ve implemented into the Jumper dashboard.  

With Jumper, you get a full CRM that details the user’s full history with your company. Not just through a single channel, but across any of the conversational channels you might now be using.   

• Getting action to customer interaction history to identify your best segments
• Adding custom fields and tags for better segmentation

Whatsapp Guided Shopping

Commerce has been constantly evolving to keep up to speed with modern consumers’ needs. 

Websites and marketplaces allowed customers to shop a huge range of products, even from the comfort of their own couch. 

Messaging apps like Whatsapp, Line, Messenger, are simply the next iteration. They’re giving consumers the power shop on their terms, ask questions, get actual product demos and build trust in a brand before they make a purchase – and all through a continuous chat. . 

A perfect example of this is UK based Threads. A Luxury fashion brand that sells without a website or storefront – entirely through Instagram posts and personalized advise on WhatsApp. 

The reason this is possible is thanks to the immediate responses and personal attention one gets on a Messaging app. That allows the customer assistants to guide users to their perfect product by asking open-ended, but directed, questions.  

Which in turn allows you to offer a more authentic, direct, and personal experience. 

The WhatsApp Business API allows multiple team members to help customers using both custom-written and pre-created automation as responses. 

That means the goal of operating your entire sales funnel from a Messaging app is completely realistic for any brand across multiple industries.  

This guided shopping approach could be used in numerous ways. The below are just a few examples.

• Fashion and luxury brands can  help customers find their perfect product – as shown by Threads
• Insurance companies could use it to give correct information about policies, products and claims
• Dealerships could use it for both lead generation and customer information before recommending certain products

The potential here is endless. The guided shopping approach could be used in pretty much any business where people need your advice.

From here we’re gonna switch gears again. Instead of focusing on the high-level considerations, we’re gonna get into the details on how to set things up with WhatsApp business Messaging. 

WhatsApp structured Message Templates

If you’ve successfully applied for WhatsApp business API and linked your phone number, you’re able to create your own WhatsApp message templates. 

These templates are what you can use to quickly respond to customers through automated responses. 

There are 2 kinds of message templates that you can create and then send to your customers. 

• Session Messages
• Highly Structured Messages (commonly and hereafter referred to as HSM).

What are WhatsApp Session Messages

WhatsApp’s Session Messages are best thought of as answers to FAQs. 

They’re called session messages because they can only be sent within the 24-hour customer support session window.  

The intent with session messages is not to promote your product or make the sale, but to respond – quickly – to a customer query. 

However, there’s something quite fun about session messages.  Because they’re sent in that 24-hour customer service window, you can include whatever you want. 

There are no specific format or content rules on these messages.  That means text, images gifs, videos, or even WhatsApp vocal recordings are permitted. 

However, you have to be aware of that 24-hour window. Once that’s passed, you have to shut this down and move to the paid message templates. 

What Are WhatsApp Highly Structured Messages (HSM)?

HSMs are how WhatsApp is monetizing their API messaging service. 

The secret to these messages is in the name. They’re highly structured and somewhat rigid in their customization and use. However, as templates, you’re able to use them time and time again. 

The downside is you can’t just put whatever you want into the HSMs. 

Whatever customizations you make have to be approved by WhatsApp before any can be sent. In addition, you can only send them to users who have opted in to hear from you. 

You are able to send these messages out in huge numbers though.

How to Create WhatsApp Highly Structured Message Templates

To create your own HSM, you need to ensure that you follow the below rules.  

• Content rules – All message templates must align with WhatsApp’s policies. That means no promotional messages and there should be a focus on value. WhatsApp will only approve the following message types – account, order, or product updates or  resolution notifications.
• Formatting – The format of your HSM needs to abide by the below two areas. 

Template names – Your WhatsApp HSM template name can only include lowercase alphanumeric character and underscores. WhatsApp recommends using simple, descriptive names like “ messagetype_123 ”.

Template content – the content of your template needs to follow strict guidelines – to the letter.  

• It must be text-based containing only letters, digits, special characters, emojis, and WhatsApp Formatting.  
• Must be limited to 1024 characters.
• Must not include new lines, tabs, or more than 4 consecutive spaces. 
• Variables – such as numbers that might change with order numbers etc – must be represented with {{#}}, and must begin counting at {{1}}

Template Translations

One of the benefits of using WhatsApp is the ability to translate your message templates. 

However, WhatsApp will not translate them for you. You have to translate your message templates yourself. 

These translations must follow the same rules as the initial message in your native tongue. 

The WhatsApp Customer Journey

Before we break down the actual journey and how WhatsApp can help at each stage, there are a few considerations you need to understand before taking any action.

• Don’t rely entirely on automation . Yes, bots are great at creating instant responses, but you have to know when your users want to speak to a real person. When they request it, give it to them (taking into consideration working hours and availability etc). And ensure that the handover from bot to human is as seamless as possible.
• This is a great opportunity to strengthen your branding . Messaging gives you a real opportunity to express who you are as a brand. Think a little out of the box and consider what you can do in a dialogue with your users to create a real lasting impression. 
• Context is important, don’t ignore it. Too many brands silo their bots as a standalone channel. You must integrate your chat with other business functions to understand who the customer is and how you can help them. Otherwise you’re doomed to repeat questions, waste time, and frustrate customers.  
• Use automation to pre-empt customer frustrations . There are a number of questions customers will always have, even if they don’t ask. Things like “will my order arrive today?”, “how should I use it for X?”. Pre-empt these frustrations with timely automated messages to help users get through the pain points they might experience. 
• Build multi-language bots to localize your customer experiences. Not everyone wants to engage in English. Localize the language where you can for better engagement and conversion rates.
• Get consent for messaging . It seems obvious, but you’d be surprised at how few brands are explicit in what they intend to do and how they intend to communicate with their customers. Be clear, and ensure the customer knows what they’re in for.    

With all of that being said, let’s move on to the different stages of the customer journey and how you can help the customers at each stage.  

The Discovery Phase

The discovery phase is the initial Period when a user isn’t yet aware of your brand. 

They might be aware of the problem, but aren’t yet sure of the solution. Your job is to get your product in front of them and use your bot to outline how your offering is the solution to the problem they face. 

There’s a few ways you can do this.  

Click to WhatsApp Ads

We mentioned this very briefly earlier on. 

Click to WhatsApp ads are great because they make use of the detailed targeting available in Facebook. To set them up, follow the below steps.  

Set up a new ad and choose one of the following objectives. 

Follow the regular steps, however, when you get to where you want to drive your traffic, make sure you select WhatsApp.  

If you’ve linked your WhatsApp account correctly, the rest should be business as usual.  

Now, whenever anyone engages with the add they’ll receive a message from your brand direct to their WhatsApp account.  

These ads are a great way to fill the top of your funnel and get users to engage with your brand. 

Just make sure you follow the best practices for creating ads that speak to your customers and highlight how you can help solve the problem they’re experiencing. 

One thing you should note is how the monetization for WhatsApp is going to change in the future. 

There was a time when we thought ads were going to be served within WhatsApp itself. However, recent changes give the appearance that this is no longer the case , meaning these click to WhatsApp ads are going to be the only way the platform is monetized. 

That is, if the plan doesn’t change again. 

Embed a WhatsApp Chat Widget on Your Site

Monetising the free traffic you receive from search engines is the goal for many brands.  

Thing is, the conversion rates for organic traffic are low. 

But they don’t have to be. 

A chat widget embedded on your website can offer an extra layer of support. Support where you can help users discover the right product for the problem they’re experiencing. 

With a tool like Jumper, you can integrate the chat widget with WhatsApp, collecting the necessary permissions to follow up with the user within that initial 24 hour period.  

It’s not a perfect, direct route as it depends on waiting on traffic to reach out to you. 

However, with the right prompt you could see a lot of people getting in touch. With you, allowing you to move them from browser to customer.  

The Consideration Phase

At this stage your job is to help the user compare products so they can make the right decision on which is right for them. 

One of the best ways to do this would be through a mix of live chat and automated chatbots.  

The chatbots can handle many of the frequent questions, and even basic answers for the early stages of guided shopping. 

However, at some point it’s going to become too complex for the bots and a real support agent will have to jump in. 

Perhaps to explain product details and usage in more detail, maybe to serve an in-chat checkout, or perhaps to deal with more complex questions (like how does your product Y compare to their product X?). 

You need to be able to hand conversations off both ways. From agent to bot, and bot to agent. That’s the only way you can offer the right level of service at this stage of the customer journey. 

Here’s how we manage to handle this at Jumper.  

The Purchase Phase 

This is where all of your hard work pays off. 

However, there’s often a problem brands experience here, and that’s the lack of continuity.  

Brands spend so long talking to customers through chat and then simply redirect them to a separate, normal, static landing page. 

The conversion rates of which are low because you’re forcing the user to change their behavior to fit your needs. 

You need a service that can serve an in-chat checkout. One that allows the user to confirm and pay within the chat they’re currently engaged in. 

This not only has a higher chance of working, but it’s also just offering better service. 

No matter how much effort you put into helping your users, convenience will always be their top priority.

Adding an in-chat checkout is the best way to offer the convenience they want and need.  

The Re-engagement Phase

The easiest way to increase revenue is to look not for new customers, but instead focus on those who have already purchased from you. 

There’s a few ways to do this. 

The first is through automated follow-ups. 

Automated follow-ups are only permitted on WhatsApp within the initial 24 hour period unless they’re offering some form of notification (like a delivery update). 

So, on one level you should be following up with those who engaged with your brand but didn’t purchase. 

We’re talking basic cart abandonment sequences here. You’re able to send a few reminders in that 24-hour period after they last engaged. 

In addition, you’ll also be able to leverage paid broadcasts. 

Paid broadcasts allow you to reach out to all of those on your WhatsApp list with whom you have a good sender reputation. 

You can use this message type to re-engage those who have opted in for specific lists and messages from you. 

However, make sure that the message you’re sending is one that will generate some form of return. A couple of potential messages could be;

• Notification of out-of-stock items now being available
• Notifications about order status
• Notification to get post-purchase review

There are plenty of other options out there, you just need to make sure it’s worth you paying for.  

WhatsApp Marketing Use Cases and Examples

To help a little tangible example to this piece, we’ve pulled three of the best WhatsApp marketing examples and explained them below. 

We’re also working on a much more comprehensive piece that will break down exactly who’s doing what with this incredibly effective marketing channel.  

Discovery Phase WhatsApp Marketing – EF International Language Campuses

EF has over 600 schools in more than 110 countries. Their primary offering is language training and cultural exchange programmes aimed at both students and professionals.  

They wanted to start more conversations with their potential customers, and so decided to implement a WhatsApp engagement campaign on their website.  

They added WhatsApp as a contact channel on their web pages which led to a huge increase in opened conversations and the conversion rate of conversations to customers.  

The response rate for the WhatsApp campaigns was 2X higher than other methods they’d been using. 

The conversion rate was 3X higher than their next best conversion channel, phone calls.  

And the cost was a full 30% lower than using phone calls to qualify and sell to prospective customers.  

Huge gains from the simple addition of a new contact channel. 

WhatsApp is a great way for you to connect with your customers. As evidenced here, it can be an easy way to help your customers discover and connect with you in those early stages.

And from there, you can better explain why your products are the right fit for them. 

Consideration stage with WhatsApp Business API – OTTO

OTTO is a major European ecommerce brand.

They needed a better way to handle customer support to help guide their customers to the best product for them. 

This is a key stage in the purchase journey. If you can offer a great level of service when the customer is considering your brand, you all but confirm the purchase. Something OTTO managed to do very well.  

In the past, OTTO’s customer success team was somewhat overwhelmed. They were using email and direct phone calls to handle repetitive requests like delivery status or answering questions about the user’s account.  

OTTO trained their service teams to handle responses via WhatsApp. 

By cutting out the long response times of email and the difficulty of scale associated with phone calls, OTTO achieved some impressive results.  

• The seamless handling of 40,000 request per month
• A 15% decrease in average handler time meaning customer queries were answered much faster
• The time to resolution for each customer was an average of 4 messages

When a customer reaches out with a query or for some assistance with their account, getting them a personalised response quickly is key to making your brand stand out. 

OTTO have proven that a simple addition of WhatsApp can help you hit everything a customer needs from you. 

Purchase/Conversion Phase – Pollo Campero

This is what we’re all after. After highlighting your brand as the one that can solve the user’s problem, it’s time to make the sale.

WhatsApp is the perfect channel for taking users over that last step, as demonstrated by Pollo Campero.

They used WhatsApp to engage with users and lead them to a purchase through a 1-1 conversation.

By engaging through WhatsApp they were able to reduce the processing time for orders by 75%.

Asking leading, but pointed questions helped the user find the perfect dish for them, leading to an overall 16% increase in orders placed.

Re-engage with WhatsApp Business API – PlayKids 

Churn is one of the biggest revenue killers for modern brands.  

And it’s also inevitable. However, a lapsed customer is not lost revenue. There are plenty of methods to bring them back into the fold. Something PlayKids attempted with WhatsApp marketing. 

PlayKids products help improve child development through literature and games.  

To improve the relationships with new and existing customers, PlayKids implemented a WhatsApp strategy. The strategy was to help them more efficiently deliver ongoing order updates, news, and updates of new products in-store.  

After a while they also experimented in new ways such as sending bedtime stories through WhatsApp for parents to read to their children.  

These messages had a profound effect on their marketing, specifically related to re-engaging lapsed customers.  

• A 90% decrease in the number of lapsed customers
• 40% increase in message open rate when compared to email
• 66% decrease in time to re-engaging lapsed customers compared to email and telephone

PlayKids are a great example of how a novel approach can have dramatic effects on your brand’s key metrics. 

Get Started With WhatsApp Business API Today

WhatsApp is going to be one of the biggest breakout and most impactful channels for marketing, sales and support beyond 2020. 

The brands that stand to make the most are those already running experiments through the channel. 

It can be complicated to get up and running. However, with the right partner, that process can be made much easier.  

If you’re considering setting up a WhatsApp Business API for your brand, get in touch with our partner team of experts today.

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5 inspiring WhatsApp Business case studies

WhatsApp Business has become a communication channel you can’t miss out on. Why? The answer is easy: it’s where your customers are and where they want you to be.

Many businesses are already successfully using WhatsApp Business. They have shown mindblowing results in sales, customer experience, and customer service. I’ve collected 5 WhatsApp Business API case studies that show you the possibilities of using WhatsApp as a Business.

Get ready to dive into the world of WhatsApp Business. 

Online Fashion Retailer Modanisa

Uses whatsapp business to offer quick, digitized service and increase their sales..

As an online fashion retailer, Modanisa experienced the increasing demands of its customers. That’s why they started looking for a way to give their customers a smoother customer experience and reduce their customer service response time. They found their solution in WhatsApp Business.

Using WhatsApp chatbots as a solution

First, Modanisa started building ‘Nisa’, a customer service chatbot powered by WhatsApp. The chatbot answers frequently asked questions and more personal questions by using dynamic content, all in five languages. By tracking the phone number back to the customer’s order, the chatbot can resolve questions about orders, returns, deliveries, and many other topics.

After building this customer service chatbot, Modanisa started building a second chatbot. This chatbot is more focused on e-commerce and helps customers during the entire customer journey: from browsing through the Modanisa catalog to buying a product.

Modanisa’s success in numbers

This WhatsApp Business Case Study of Modanisa is a perfect example of how WhatsApp can help you improve your customer service and increase your sales. Here are some numbers to invigorate this: 

• 70% of customer inquiries are now completely resolved by the chatbot
• 56% of customer contact takes place on WhatsApp
• 55% of customers placed their first ever-order through WhatsApp
• 36% cost savings in operating call centers

📚 Related: How to build a chatbot for WhatsApp

Beauty Brand Paragon Technology and Innovation (PTI)

Uses WhatsApp Business to realize personal one-on-one conversations between customers and skin-care experts. 

In this WhatsApp Business Case Study, we shine a light on the Beauty Brand Paragon Technology and Innovation. The brand was looking for a way to give better online beauty consultancy and help customers buy relevant products. They started using WhatsApp Business to reach these goals. 

Creating an in-store experience via WhatsApp Business

PTI integrated WhatsApp Business into their website and social media channels by adding a ‘click to WhatsApp’ link. They also included their WhatsApp information on product packing. From here on, customers could click the link or send a WhatsApp message to start their personal shopping experience. 

This experience starts with a virtual assistant that gathers customer information and routes the customer to the skin expert that matches their needs. Once the personal conversation starts, the skin expert gives advice to the customer, showcases the right products, and tries to close sales directly. 

PTI’s success in numbers

Using Whatsapp Business increases PTI’s market reach, and boosts customer satisfaction and sales. The numbers speak for themselves:

• 600% increase in interactions in one year through WhatsApp
• 98.9% customer satisfaction rating, with 100% resolution within 48 hours. 
• 10 times more inquiries are handled through WhatsApp. 
• Increased sales conversations with WhatsApp. 

DIY store Hubo

Uses whatsapp to give diy advice and receive orders. .

Hubo started using WhatsApp when COVID-19 hit the Netherlands. At this time, many people decided to give their homes a makeover. And for their projects to be a success, they needed tools, materials, and of advice from professionals. Hubo then started offering their advice remotely and chose WhatsApp Business to help them do the job.

More than 180 Hubo stores, one WhatsApp number

When a customer wants to get in touch with Hubo, they can start a WhatsApp conversation on their website. After sharing their name, the customer can select the location they would like to get in touch with. By using a location finder, the conversation automatically forwards to one of the 180 Hubo locations. From that point on, the customer can chat with their local Hubo store. They can ask for advice by sharing pictures of certain situations or they can place an order they would like to pick up later. 

Would you like to use one WhatsApp number for multiple store or office locations too? Hubo uses Trengo to make this possible. In Trengo, they can not only collaborate on WhatsApp Business but also include other channels such as Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and email. 

Hubo’s success in numbers

For Hubo, WhatsApp turned into their number one communication channel, and for some store locations even the big revenue maker. 

• Some Hubo stores currently get 60% of their revenue via WhatsApp. 
• Hubo receives about 700 WhatsApp messages a day via Trengo. 

📚 Related: WhatsApp e-commerce: a complete guide

Uses WhatsApp Business to create a personalized customer journey for each customer. 

How do you sell a perfume that the customer hasn’t smelled before? That’s a tough question to answer. You have to start thinking about other ways to let customers experience your products. That’s when Parfumado came up with the idea to create a personalized customer journey via WhatsApp. One in which they interact with customers using quizzes and offer exceptional customer service. 

Personal customer contact in the most efficient way

For Parfumado, WhatsApp has now become a very important communication channel. They can make personal contact with the customer and take that opportunity to link relevant marketing actions to conversations. For example, they invite customers to contact them via WhatsApp through a QR code. When the conversation opens the customer is asked for a screenshot of their perfume calendar. After sending the screenshot, they receive an automatic link with a form to fill out. When they’ve filled in the form, they will receive special perks. These sorts of interactions will make them customers with a longer lifetime value.

Trengo helps Parfumado set up a personal customer journey via WhatsApp. Besides that, Parfumado also uses Trengo to collaborate more efficiently, create an overview of incoming conversations from different channels and automate communication.

Digify Africa

Uses Whatsapp Business to educate African youth on the digital skills they need for career success.

Young people in Africa confront one of the world’s highest unemployment rates. Digify Africa wants this to change. That’s why they wanted to provide learning programs that educate youth on digital marketing and entrepreneurship and offer them freelance training. But there was one challenge: how do you offer online learning when there’s limited access to computers and laptops? As WhatsApp is one of the most popular communication channels in Africa, they decided to use the WhatsApp Business API and build two distinct chatbots for their learning programs. 

Using WhatsApp as a unique learning environment

Learners can start their learning on WhatsApp by either scanning the QR code on social media, clicking on Facebook or Instagram ads or sending a message directly through WhatsApp. In a central menu, learners can then start with a course module or pick a course of their choice. After completing a course, their knowledge will be tested via a quiz, and they can track their progress on a leaderboard. When a learner finishes all the modules, they earn a certificate that will help them find work in the future.

Digify Africa’s success in numbers

It's great to see that WhatsApp can play such an important role in educating people and lowering the unemployment rates in Africa. Here are some amazing results:

• In less than one year, 136,000 people completed training through either one of the chatbots (compared to 120,000 people in their 11 years of operations). 
• The learning program counts almost 40,000 active learners each week. 
• 50% of learners who start a course also complete it

Write your own success story with WhatsApp Business

These five WhatsApp Business API success stories are just examples of how WhatsApp Business can help you achieve your goals and grow your business. Hopefully, they inspired you to start writing your own success story. 

Don’t worry, you don’t have to do it alone. At Trengo, we would love to help you get started with WhatsApp Business and enjoy all the extra benefits our omnichannel communication platform offers.

In Trengo, you can work together on Whatsapp messages with your team, use innovative tools to automate your communication, and connect many more messaging channels besides WhatsApp Business. What are you waiting for? Let’s get started with WhatsApp Business together.

Start your 14-day free trial at Trengo here

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A Beginner’s Guide To Using WhatsApp For Business

Here’s how WhatsApp works and how you can include it in your business communication and marketing strategies.

Messaging apps like Facebook Messenger , WhatsApp , WeChat , Viber or Telegram have billions of users and are growing in popularity – not only among ordinary users but also among businesses. That’s because they can be also be used for all B2C and B2B activities, to communicate with customers, employees, suppliers, and partners.

One of the most popular is WhatsApp. The following article will show you how WhatsApp works and how you can include it in your communication and marketing strategies.

WhatsApp was founded in 2009 by two ex-Yahoo employees. Facebook bought the app in 2014, and after that, began working on improving its tools and gradually integrating them into the business environment. Currently, WhatsApp has over 1.5 billion users and is used in more than 180 countries. Every day, over 60 billion messages are sent on the app.

How to use WhatsApp

WhatsApp can be used free of charge on your Android and iOS devices, on Mac or Windows computers , and in a browser. WhatsApp must be tied to a phone number, however, and you must have the WhatsApp app installed on your mobile phone before using the version on your computer and the web.

Through WhatsApp, you can send written and audio messages and make audio and video calls.

Why include WhatsApp in a marketing strategy?

If you decide to use WhatsApp in your business to communicate with clients or customers, the advantage is that you interact in real-time. The client doesn’t have to wait for an answer like on email or SMS message but has an immediate response from your company.

Also, the company and customers can exchange multimedia messages (photos, videos, documents or voice messages). WhatsApp, SMS and email communications can all be used for one-way communication, but WhatsApp can help turn communication into a conversation.

One-to-One and Group communication

You can communicate as a company with a single user, or you can create group chats on WhatsApp. You can use group communication:

• For in-house corporate communications, where you create smaller or larger workgroups according to tasks or projects.
• To communicate with suppliers and partners
• To interact with customers – e.g. a special group for VIP customers

If you are working on a computer, install a desktop application to help you to save time. Answering many messages from a mobile device isn’t easy, as you will never write as fast – or as comfortably – as on a normal keyboard.

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Also, you can also send documents, photos and videos saved on your computer through the desktop version of WhatsApp . Likewise, you can save any media files that someone sends you from the app directly to your computer. Therefore, you will not need to forward documents from your mobile phone to email or download them to your computer.

You can send and listen to voice messages through the desktop version of WhatsApp, but you cannot make voice or video calls. You only get a warning and a ringtone with a message saying that you have a voice or video call on your mobile device.

How to integrate WhatsApp in your business communications

1. WhatsApp Business App

WhatsApp has created a special app called WhatsApp Business for Android and iOS . With this app, you can:

• Create a company profile in which you can enter basic business information, such as name, address, description, insert an introductory photo.
• Send quick answers – You can prepare quick answers for frequently asked questions, which you then select and send.
• Filter chat list – You can filter conversations by group, chat and unread messages
• Create labels – Your contacts can tag labels by different categories, such as new order, paid, order complete, etc.

All of these tools can help you to effectively organize and speed up communications with customers, simplify administration, and save you time.

2. Promoting WhatsApp as a Corporate Communication Channel

If you’ve included WhatsApp in your business communications, be sure to expand this on all your online and offline channels:

• Printed materials – State on all printed company materials that people can reach you on WhatsApp. Include both your telephone and your WhatsApp on business cards, banners, posters and brochures so that everyone will know that you use WhatsApp for corporate communications.
• Social Media – Mention in the description or posts that customers can communicate with you through WhatsApp.
• Email Signature and Newsletter – In addition to previous points, you can promote the WhatsApp communication tool in an email signature banner or the Newsletter.

3. Integrating WhatsApp with your website

You can also integrate WhatsApp with your website, and make it easier for clients to communicate. When a site visitor clicks on the WhatApp icon, they are automatically redirected to a mobile or desktop app and can communicate quickly and conveniently with a company. This solution can replace live chats.

Of course, you should also mention the use of WhatsApp in the contact section of your website.

4. WhatsApp Business API

WhatsApp can also be connected with your internal systems and be automated for better communication with employees or clients. WhatsApp Business API solutions are used by businesses such as Booking, Uber, KLM, Singapore Airlines and many financial institutions, to allow customers to receive information about bookings, flights, financial transactions and more – all through WhatsApp.

For more information on WhatsApp APIs, please see the following Facebook Developers and WhatsApp Business API links.

5. Internal Corporate Communications

You can also use WhatsApp for internal corporate communications where you can create smaller or bigger workgroups by project, task or department, and make teamwork and communication with colleagues easier.

6. Click-to-WhatsApp With Facebook Ads

Facebook has added a new Click-to-WhatsApp ad function , which you can set up only if you have a WhatsApp Business linked to your Facebook page.

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WhatsApp Marketing Strategy | A Complete Guide and Roadmap with Examples

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Table of Contents

Understanding whatsapp marketing: the basics, laying the foundation: building your whatsapp marketing strategy, examples of successful whatsapp marketing strategies , whatsapp marketing: the dos and don’ts, grow your revenue with whatsapp marketing .

Understanding the infinite possibilities of WhatsApp as a marketing tool can be the game-changer your business is searching for.

With over 2.7 billion users around the globe, there's no denying the vast potential audience waiting to hear from you.

This article will show how you can make the most of this platform to reach out to customers and prospects, engage them, and convert them into repeat buyers and profitable leads. 

"WhatsApp isn't just a messaging platform; it's a powerful marketing avenue."

We've prepared a well-illustrated roadmap for your WhatsApp marketing journey. With these actionable tips, you can create a strategy that resonates with your business objectives and yields significant results. 

Without further ado, let's see what goes into the makings of a rock-solid WhatsApp Marketing Strategy.

WhatsApp Marketing, a term that may appear quite ordinary at first glance, is much more than simply using WhatsApp to connect with your friends or family.

In the world of WhatsApp Business, marketing on WhatsApp focuses on leveraging the power of the world's most popular instant messaging platform to connect with current and prospective customers in a profound, meaningful way.

In simple terms, WhatsApp marketing can be defined as the process of promoting products or services, building customer loyalty, and increasing brand visibility through WhatsApp.

However, it's a holistic approach that extends beyond mere conversational selling .

Building an effective WhatsApp marketing strategy is akin to constructing a solid building; ensuring you build a robust foundation is paramount.

But how do you start constructing that crucial first stage of your marketing skyscraper?

Take a deep breath and do it one step at a time.

Bridge the Gap Between Your Strategy and Goals

Yes, you read it right.

The first step is aligning your WhatsApp marketing strategy with your business goal. How do you go about doing this?

Start by articulating what you hope to achieve out of this exercise.

Are you aiming to boost sales, foster relationships, increase brand exposure or perhaps all three?

After establishing a goal, you can choose the ideal WhatsApp marketing tactic which aligns with your business goal. 

The beauty of a WhatsApp Marketing Software like Gallabox is its multi-dimensional nature that can be customised to suit almost any business goal. If you want to improve customer service SLA, Gallabox's automated messaging feature can deliver instant replies while adding a human touch. On the other hand, if you are focused on increasing brand visibility, Gallabox's bulk broadcasting function can help send mass messages to your contacts in just a few clicks.

Think Beyond Basic Messaging: Bet on WhatsApp Marketing 

WhatsApp is more than just a messaging app; it's a complete communication toolbox filled with power-packed features you can use to execute your marketing strategy.

Tools such as WhatsApp flows , chatbots, drip marketing campaigns, AI-powered conversations, and analytics can all be leveraged for maximum effect. 

Is the MQL vs. SQL battle eating away your precious time?

Deploy WhatsApp flows to accelerate lead qualification and settle the MQL vs. SQL battle once and for all.

Running into trouble converting an interested prospect into an engaged customer ?

Use WhatsApp drip marketing campaigns to send timely, personalised nudges that turn your highly-interested leads into deals.

Have trouble attributing your WhatsApp marketing ROI?

You don't have to go through that excruciating exercise of manually tallying spend and capturing metrics. Keep a close eye on what works and what doesn't at a glance with the help of WhatsApp analytics and built-in dashboards.

Best of all, you can integrate your WhatsApp Analytics data into your Google Analytics 4 via Gallabox.

By doubling down and making the most out of features in your WhatsApp Business API Platform, you can not only deliver impact through your marketing efforts but also drive significant value for your business.

Turn Boring Discounts Into Unbeatable Offers

Good content is what keeps your audience engaged.

Strike a balance between promotional and informational content and strike the right tone based on your contact's temperament.

You can turn your repetitive content into something that resonates with your target audience using Gallabox's AI rewrite feature. To top it off, you can use rich text, compelling images, emojis, and videos to enhance engagement. 

Balance Strategic Execution and Analytical Evaluation

Now that you've thought it through, it's time to put your strategy into action.

No matter what features you decide to embrace, have a handy plan and jot down everything from the frequency of your messages to the tone of voice and segmentation ready.

Regularly monitor your metrics, learn from your performance, and fine-tune your strategy accordingly to achieve the desired outcomes.

Now that you've inaugurated your strategy and become familiar with some key features, let's look at a few successful trendsetters who amp up their WhatsApp Marketing ROI .

Here are some organisations that don't merely generate leads through WhatsApp but go the extra mile to convert these leads into loyal customers.

A noteworthy example is Lenovo, a global leader in the consumer electronics segment. Lenovo Indonesia is currently using WhatsApp Flows to unleash the real potential of its existing WhatsApp channel.

By offering a seamless experience and encouraging customers to take a self-service route, Lenovo increased its conversion rates by 8.2X compared to its normal website experience.

The 40%+ rise in customer engagement and the corresponding industry recognition for quality service are just added perks of turning WhatsApp into a noteworthy marketing channel.

The Little Farm Co

A home-grown brand that sells pickles and family-inspired recipes online was looking for a way to reach more customers while optimising spend.

Already capturing their customers' hearts with their unique taste and unrivalled support, they found that click-to-WhatsApp Ads (CTWA) are the secret ingredient they were searching for in their marketing campaigns.

These WhatsApp Ads helped them reach new customers at scale while helping them maintain customer relationships to the level that's expected out of them. Today, they work with local women farmers and proudly share their products with the world.

GoIreland, a study abroad service provider for students keen on higher education in Ireland, grappled with several obstacles while expanding its study abroad service globally.

Notably, due to their rapid expansion, they struggled with tracking leads from events and fairs, dealing with form abandonment, streamlining contact numbers, and coordinating campaigns across multiple channels. 

However, by engaging Gallabox, GoIreland was able to transform these challenges. They revamped their outdated lead forms and began sending personalised broadcasts on WhatsApp.

They tapped into in-depth analytics and viable insights offered by Gallabox and used that data to revise and optimise their marketing strategy as and when required. This proactive approach led to sizeable benefits like an impressive 39% increase in conversions and improved campaign performance and ROI.

Like any initiative, creating an effective WhatsApp marketing strategy has its fair share of rules that should be followed irrespective of the circumstances.

As you cruise the digital seas in a bid to enhance your business growth, a well-planned WhatsApp marketing strategy offers a fresh and dynamic pathway to unprecedented success.

So, get started today if you're looking to boost your revenue, improve lead conversion rates, or just breathe new life into your existing marketing strategy. And while you're at it, remember that an effective WhatsApp marketing strategy doesn't happen overnight but requires time and persistence.

Stay consistent, track your results, and modify your strategy as necessary to grow your business like one of the early adopters of WhatsApp marketing like Lenovo and Zendesk.  

S ign up for a free trial of Gallabox and see how effortless it is to implement, measure, and iterate your WhatsApp marketing tactics for scale and success.

Shivasankari Bhuvaneswaran Twitter

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How to Use WhatsApp Screen Share in Business

Aug 11, 2023

Youmin Kim Founder of Take App

WhatsApp's latest feature, "Screen Share in video call," is a game-changer that holds immense potential for transforming the way we use video conferencing app in business.

What is WhatsApp Screen Sharing?

Benefits of screen sharing in business, how to use whatsapp for screen sharing, recipient experience, tips and troubleshooting, industries that can benefit.

WhatsApp's screen sharing function enhances video-calling experiences, positioning it to rival video conferencing apps like Microsoft Meet, Google Meet, Zoom, and FaceTime. This feature allows WhatsApp app users to seamlessly share documents, images, and even shopping carts during video calls.

This feature enables WhatsApp users to share their screens during one-on-one or group WhatsApp video calls, enhancing remote collaboration. Whether in professional or personal settings, it offers real-time visual connections that streamline discussions, presentations, and interactions. By eliminating the need for complex software installations, Screen Sharing simplifies remote work, enabling teams to co-create and communicate effectively. In an era of virtual interactions, this tool redefines how we connect, collaborate, and communicate.

Businesses may question the need for WhatsApp screen share when other options like Zoom and Teams exist. The reality is that WhatsApp's dominance as an instant messaging app ensures widespread accessibility, making it an ideal platform for collaboration across diverse technological preferences.

Moreover, its compatibility with low-end devices and the universal usage of phone numbers, especially in WhatsApp-dominant regions, eliminates the need for cumbersome email communication.

WhatsApp video calls and screen share feature will open up new dimensions of seamless and user-friendly collaboration, making it the go-to solution for businesses aiming to foster effective communication and engagement across a wide spectrum of users and industries.

To get started with screen sharing on WhatsApp, follow these steps:

Ensure You Have the Right Version: Update to latest WhatsApp.

Initiate a Video Call: Start a video call with the desired contact.

Access the Call Control View: Locate the call control view during the call.

Tap the Screen Sharing Icon: Find and tap the designated screen sharing icon.

Grant Necessary Permissions: Allow WhatsApp to access your device's screen content.

Share Your Screen: Your entire screen content will be shared in real-time.

Control and Monitor Sharing: Pause, resume, or stop sharing using WhatsApp's controls.

The recipient will see exactly what's displayed on your screen during the call. This feature is invaluable for presentations, sharing photos, and even showcasing online shopping carts.

Use latest WhatsApp for smooth screen sharing.

Note that screen sharing may not work optimally in large group calls.

Users with outdated WhatsApp versions may have limited screen sharing capabilities.

Stay informed about WhatsApp's updates as the screen sharing feature continues to roll out gradually.

Here are five industries poised to gain substantial benefits from this innovative tool.

Customer Support and Service Industries

Personalized assistance through visual guidance like "How to use pap" slideshow, ensuring efficient issue resolution and fostering customer loyalty.

Field Services and Maintenance

Remote guidance for technicians during repairs, reducing downtime and minimizing the need for in-person visits. Customers can easily share their screen recording while doing group video calls.

Hospitality and Tourism

Engaging virtual tours, menu presentations, and immersive experiences that captivate potential guests

Consulting and Coaching

Global reach for consultants and educators, offering virtual sessions, group video calls, interactive presentations, and real-time guidance.

Insurance and Financial Services

Simplifying complex policies and strategies through visual explanations, enhancing client understanding and decision-making.

WhatsApp's "Screen Share in video call" feature marks a significant step forward in business collaboration. By seamlessly integrating visual sharing, WhatsApp is redefining customer interactions, bridging technological gaps, and opening doors for enhanced communication across industries.

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How to Write a Perfect Business Introduction Message for WhatsApp (with Templates)

WhatsApp is a perfect messaging and communicating tool for B2C businesses looking to connect with their clients from the comfort of their smartphones. It’s not just easy but a really popular tool.  

Suggested Reads: 8 Chinese New Year Wishes for Business and Clients (2024)

That being said, improving your sales and customer relationships still depends on what kind of message you approach your clients with. A message is effective when it’s sent at the right time and with the right combination of words. 

Speaking of effective messages, the introduction message is the most crucial of them all. It determines if your leads will open your message and respond to it or ignore it. 

So, the question is, what’s the best way to write an introduction message on WhatsApp that maximises the chances of getting a response? 

In this article, we’ll guide you through the best practices for effective WhatsApp introduction messages , so you´ll be able to create more effective introduction messages with a higher possibility of getting a reply.  

Table of Contents: Why introduce your business on WhatsApp? Messaging a cold lead vs warm lead How to introduce your business on WhatsApp status Things to consider while sending great intro messages on WhatsApp 5 examples/templates of great business introduction messages on WhatsApp Conclusion

Why introduce your business on WhatsApp?

Introducing your business on WhatsApp has many benefits. First and foremost, WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps with a large user base with different demographics. Secondly, contacting leads for the first time via messaging apps can have a much better response rate than other communication channels. Let’s explore in detail.  

The best CRM for WhatsApp

Manage Leads from your Phone

The first thing you want to do and should do is quickly approach your leads once you get their information. You do have a few options in how to open your very first conversation with new leads. You can approach them via a phone call, email, or a messaging app. 

A phone call can be a costly decision because people may not be available to answer you at all times. What’s worse… You just waste your time and effort with each missed call. Also, according to research, people do not appreciate sales calls on their personal numbers . In fact, millennials prefer messaging over phone calls – even for personal communications. 

As for email, it can be a good way to approach leads when you want to explain your products in more detail and provide links to supporting content. However, the problem with emails is that most of your leads are highly likely to overlook your message , just like a hundred and twenty other promotional emails they receive in their inbox daily.

This brings us to the third choice: approaching your new leads through messaging apps. People are more likely to notice their message notifications each time they use their mobile phones. Even if the message isn’t noticed immediately, users will check it later at their convenience because they frequently use messaging apps.  

WhatsApp isn’t just an excellent messaging app for personal and business messaging, it’s also wildly popular. Most of your clients (if not all) are probably on WhatsApp and they prefer using it over other messaging apps because of its simplicity, familiarity, and the features that come with it. Introducing your business on WhatsApp means your message will likely be opened and replied to.

Messaging a cold lead vs warm lead

If you’re using WhatsApp as the tool to connect with your leads, you’ll often be sending your first introduction messages to two different types of leads: cold and warm. A lead is cold or warm depending on how much knowledge you have about them. If you’re shooting your promotional messages to random numbers without even knowing they’re your potential customers, they are cold leads. On the other hand, if you’re responding to people who have shown interest in your product or service through website forms or lead ads, they are your warm leads. 

How to write a great introduction message to Cold leads

Cold leads are the random people that receive your promotional messages about your products or services without knowing who you are. The leads haven’t shown interest in your products or service and have no idea about you. They just see your message on their WhatsApp all of a sudden.

While more people tend to ignore promotional messages, well-crafted introduction messages still have a chance of being opened and getting a response. You just need to be super sharp and upfront about the problem you’re solving or the promotion you’re doing. You have to mention your offer directly so the recipient knows exactly what they can get. Your message should be truly transactional and to the point.   

Let’s say you’re a real estate agent specialising in selling houses and want to let more people who want to sell their houses know about your service. Now, you have a list of 200 random numbers of people you have no idea about. In this case, instead of trying to look more creative, your message should be crafted to the point. For instance, it should look like ¨Looking to sell your house? We help people sell their house above the market rate within 2 months.” 

How to write a great introduction message to warm leads

Warm leads are your potential customers whose information you’ve received through different targeted marketing activities, such as lead ads and contact forms. You know who your warm leads are and how they’ve come in contact with you. They’ve specifically expressed interest in your product or service, and have let you know what they want.  

Sending messages to warm leads is a totally different scenario than sending messages to random numbers. Therefore, your approach should be more personalised and friendly, especially when you’re messaging them for the first time. Don’t treat them like cold leads. Your first message shouldn’t be transactional and neither look promotional. 

This article will focus more on warm leads because most of your online activities will target warm leads. 

How to introduce your business on WhatsApp status 

In case you aren’t aware of it, WhatsApp status is also a great way to introduce your business on WhatsApp . So, before you create a perfect business introduction message, let’s have a general understanding of perfectly introducing your business through WhatsApp status.

Your leads may visit your profile after coming across your message, or promotional posts, to know more about your business. Also, including some industry-related keywords can make your profile visible in front of some customers searching for similar services within the platform. Therefore updating your status with the right elements can make a huge difference. But what’s the best way to do it? 

Well, the general rule of thumb is to make your WhatsApp status concise, engaging , and visually appealing . Here’s a suggested approach:

• Use a high-quality image or video : Use a good-quality image of your product, service, or business logo. If you’re using a video, make sure it’s short and engaging. Remember, WhatsApp statuses last only for 24 hours and viewers often skim through quickly.
• Keep it concise : You only have a few seconds to capture someone’s attention on a status. Keep the introduction short and to the point.
• Engaging text : Start with a question or a compelling statement.
• Emojis : Use emojis to add some flair and emotion to your text.
• Include contact information : Mention “DM for inquiries” or “Contact us at [phone number].”
• Call to Action (CTA) : Encourage users to take action, such as visiting your website, placing an order, or just checking out your product.

Things to consider while sending great intro messages on WhatsApp 

Intro messages play a crucial role in driving your conversations with clients in the right direction. That’s why they should be crafted in a way that people want to react to. It opens doors to future communications and ultimately increases your chances of improving sales . 

When you message your leads for the first time, oftentimes you don’t get a reply. While there are many reasons behind this, such as the customers having a busy schedule or being away (from their phones or for vacation), the greatest reason behind a message not getting a response is terrible writing. People often ignore badly timed and promotional-looking messages. So , how to make sure you don’t send a bad intro message? Here are a few things you want to consider while sending a business intro message to your leads or clients.   

Make it personal

Personalisation plays an excellent role in making the recipient feel that the message is purely intended for them. According to a recent study, a large number of customers prefer engaging with personalised messages over generic ones . 

If you’re collecting leads online, you should know that people submit their details on your forms because they are genuinely interested to know more about your business and the offer. 

However, being unable to approach your leads with a personalised message can confuse them. As a result, they’ll think your message is another generic promotional text. Adding a few personal elements, such as the client’s name and interest, can help make a message personalised. The more specific you are, the better your message will sound to the client as it focuses on addressing their requirements. 

Add a question (to get a response) 

The primary purpose of sending your first message isn’t just writing or introducing yourself, it’s to get a response. If your message doesn’t include something specific to respond to (e.g. a question), your leads will more likely wait for another message than reply. 

Giving your clients a reason to respond helps open up a conversation . It’s best if you craft a question that resonates with them so they are curious to know more about your offers. However, it’s equally important to make it as easy as possible to respond. For instance, people will more likely respond to a yes/no question than a short answer question. 

Mention the product/service your leads are interested in 

People are less likely to answer a message that doesn’t explain the purpose well. If you give them a bit more detail on your intro message than they previously saw online (on Facebook lead ads or landing pages), it’ll remind them what they were interested in. As a result, they’ll open a conversation if they haven’t moved on. 

For best practices, include phrases such as ‘Thanks for showing interest in our (X) product’. Also, list 3 to 5 points specific to the product to remind them of their interest. 

5 examples/templates of great business introduction messages on WhatsApp 

Different industries have different sets of potential customers with different requirements. You’ll want to send your very first message to a client depending on their requirements. Here are 5 industry-specific templates of ideal business introduction messages that you can send on WhatsApp. 

Introduction message template 1. Insurance agent selling life insurance 

You’re an insurance agent that sells life insurance. You run your business website and collect interested clients’ information through its landing pages that you optimise regularly with new offers. You started receiving leads on you ad that highlights new offers for fresh graduates. Here’s how you’ll want to write your first business introduction message on WhatsApp.

"Dear Joshua, thanks for showing interest in our life insurance policy for fresh graduates👨‍🎓. I’m Ben from Prodigy insurance company and am happy to share that we have several promotions for young professionals’ life insurance during this festive season🎊. Would you like us to send you the latest packages and policies? "

Introduction message template 2. Real estate agent selling houses

You´re a real estate agent from Manhattan specialising in selling houses. One of your marketing strategies includes running Facebook lead ads and collecting leads. Here’s how you should compose your introduction message for a potential client who has just submitted her details on your Facebook Lead Form. 

"Dear Claire, thanks for your interest in selling your house 🏡. I’m Tim from Thrive Real Estate, and I specialise in selling houses above market price in Manhattan. In the past year alone, I have helped more than 30 individuals from New York sell their houses above the market rate. I´m looking forward to doing the same for you. It would be my great pleasure to do an assessment of your property and give you an analysis🕵️. Would you like a free analysis of your current property valuation? "

Introduction message template 3. Wedding planner

You’re a wedding planner from Hawaii. You collect your leads online through lead ads on TikTok and Instagram. Here’s an ideal introduction message for new leads you’ve just received. 

"Hi Sara, congratulations on your upcoming wedding 🎉! I’m Jennifer from Divine Wedding Planners. I have been planning weddings in Hawaii for the past 15 years, and my team has done over 100 weddings across all themes and locations💒. Would you like to know more about our latest packages? "

Introduction message template 4. Travel agent 

You’re a travel agent planning to sell new European travel packages. Here’s a sample introduction message on WhatsApp you may want to refer to while reaching out to your leads. 

"Hello Jared, This is Pablo from Easy Travel Services✈️. We're excited about your interest in our European travel deals! Let's make your next European adventure truly unforgettable🌍! Do you have a dream destination in mind, or are you seeking some hidden gems?"

Introduction message template 5. Pet care service

You run a pet care business and you’re running special discounts on different pet care services this festive season. Here’s a sample business introduction message on WhatsApp for new leads:

"Hi Tanya, 🐾 This is Mary from Fluffy’s Best Friends. It’s fantastic to see your interest in our pet grooming specials! Would you like to set up a date for your pet’s festive makeover? 🎉"

If you´re looking to convert more customers and increase sales , it’s utterly important that your new leads respond to your first message on WhatsApp. It ultimately increases sales probability. Therefore, create your very first message with proper consideration of all the right elements that urge users to open the message and respond to it. 

Privyr is a mobile-first CRM that helps you automatically import your leads on your smartphone and contact them on WhatsApp quickly. Plus, it allows you to manage data and conversations with clients so you follow up on each of your leads effectively without missing a single one of them. Privyr also assists you to create personalised messages for your clients.  Create a great WhatsApp business introduction message to your clients and improve the response rate. Try Privyr for free today.

WhatsApp Bulk Sender : This FREE bulk message sender tool helps you bulk-send personalised WhatsApp messages to multiple people, even if you haven’t added them to your phonebook.

To introduce yourself effectively on WhatsApp, send a clear and personalised message to your client. Add a question to get a response and mention the product or service your lead showed interest on if you’re contacting leads generated online.

Write clearly about who you are and what is the purpose of the chat, personalise your message if you know who you’re chatting with, and avoid being too formal.

If you want to write an attractive business bio on WhatsApp, ensure you’ve clearly mentioned who you are and what do you offer. Prioritise mentioning the benefits of your products or services over their features.

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A writer from the heart and marketer from the mind, Michael writes to help businesses implement effective sales and marketing strategies.

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Powerpoint Templates and Google slides for Whatsapp

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This complete deck covers various topics and highlights important concepts. It has PPT slides which cater to your business needs. This complete deck presentation emphasizes Whatsapp Icon Mobile Phone Conversation Outline Messages and has templates with professional background images and relevant content. This deck consists of total of nine slides. Our designers have created customizable templates, keeping your convenience in mind. You can edit the colour, text and font size with ease. Not just this, you can also add or delete the content if needed. Get access to this fully editable complete presentation by clicking the download button below.

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Business Platform Features

Built to scale

Reach your customers anywhere with conversations and create memorable experiences all through WhatsApp Business Platform.

The API offers two ways to connect with your customers

Respond to customer initiated messages

• Use channels off of WhatsApp to drive organic awareness about your WhatsApp number such as your website, storefront and customer mailings or use paid awareness channels such as Click to WhatsApp
• Then customers can initiate a conversation by messaging your business

Reach out to customers with business initiated messages across the buyer journey

• Once you've secured a customer's opt-in, you can initiate messages to them on WhatsApp
• These messages must be created with customizable message templates and can be text-based, media-based, or interactive

Send feature-rich communications

Send files, images and locations with media messages

Use native entry points

Use native entry points like a custom button on your website or a QR code on your product packaging to make it easier for customers to start conversations with you

Enable simpler faster responses

Enable simpler and faster responses by using interactive messages, such as List Messages or Reply Buttons to structure responses or provide a clear call-to-action

Understand message engagement

Understand message engagement on a per-contact level with Read Receipts

Showcase your products and services

Showcase your products and services using Multi-Product and Single Product Messages

More resources

Take the next step.

Deliver compelling experiences at scale with the WhatsApp Business Platform.

New to Communities: Events and Replies in Announcement Groups

Since launching Communities, it’s been exciting to see how people with common interests – neighborhoods, school associations, hobbyists and more – use the feature to keep groups that belong together connected and organized. To help bring communities even closer together, we’re introducing a new way for people to organize events on WhatsApp, and launching organized replies to Announcement Groups so members can respond to important updates from admins.

With events it’s now easier for people to plan their get togethers directly in WhatsApp, whether it’s setting up a virtual meeting or birthday dinner. Anyone can create an event and others can respond so the whole group knows who is coming. Guests can also find the event in the group’s information page, and those going will get an automatic notification when it’s getting close. Events are coming to groups that belong to a Community first, and will roll out to all groups over the coming months.

We’re also bringing replies to Announcement Groups, so admins can hear from their members while keeping these groups an easy place to catch up on what’s happening in your Community. Replies are grouped together and minimized so you can see what others have said in context, and notifications are muted for everyone.

Over the next few months, we’ll keep rolling out new features to Communities and groups so people have more tools to keep their lives organized on WhatsApp. We’ll share more here along with our WhatsApp Channel directly in the app.

May 1, 2024

Meta's AI search is weird and uncanny — and I'm not sure who it's for

Katie Notopoulos , Senior Correspondent covering technology and culture

• Facebook and Instagram now have Llama 3 integrated into their search fields.
• This is confusing. We're used to using the search bar for looking up people, groups, or tags.
• And the suggestions for searches are oddly chipper and G-rated.

Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram have integrated Meta AI into the search fields of their mobile apps. And it's getting weird.

The search bar in the Facebook and Instagram apps is one place you probably know very well. You've searched plenty of things there —the names of people you went to high school with, a local business whose page you want to find, a celebrity whose latest controversial post everyone is talking about.

We all know what to expect in the search bar of Facebook and Instagram : You find things — people, pages, groups, tags, locations — that already exist on Facebook and Instagram.

What you are not expecting is an artificial-intelligence chatbot interface that can do any number of things completely unrelated to Instagram or Facebook: generate an image for you, answer questions, give advice about things, etc.

This creates a really odd situation. You come to the Facebook search bar to type in the name of your local Buy Nothing group, but instead, you see an animated blue circle with "Ask Meta AI anything."

This intrusion into the sacred space of the search bar isn't the only thing Meta is doing with AI that feels a little off.

Fast Company describes how it feels like AI has made Meta's apps "unusable," with the proliferation of clickbait-y AI images like shrimp Jesus or a creepy comment in a parents' group from the Meta AI bot saying it had a gifted and disabled child.

What makes the "Ask Meta AI anything" prompt in the search tab even stranger is the list of suggestions it gives you for searches. Meta wisely realized that most humans would be somewhat baffled by an AI chatbot — most people have never even knowingly interacted with AI. Pew reported that as of March, only 23% of US adults had tried ChatGPT , and 34% had never even heard of it.

Related stories

So there are a ton of suggestions for what to search or ask for. And these suggestions are, I guess, fine ? But they make me feel like I've been living in some saccharine alternate-reality bubble where everyone is focused on their unproblematic hobbies. Here are a few of my top suggestions:

🏡 Landscaping 101.

🐕 Dog breed recs for me.

🌱 Eco DIY home decor ideas.

🏙️ Tips to roam a new city.

📺 Top ocean docs.

🚀 Can you sleep in space?

These are all fine. Pleasant. A mix of helpful, curious facts and fun things. (There are a few suggestions, like "Imagine a 70s living room," that lead to image generation.)

But, like ... Facebook. You know me. Come on, it's me , Katie! We've been together for, what, 15 years? I've given you so much data. You know I don't want to roam new cities or learn about eco-DIY home decor. I'm a garbage gremlin who logged onto Facebook eight times today to do the same gremlin stuff I've been doing for years. I'm not suddenly interested in improving myself! I don't want to know about space! I want to know what people are complaining about in my neighborhood group, and I want to shop for used furniture on Marketplace , and I want to feel bad when I'm done.

This arrangement has satisfied and nourished my spirit for years — and I've been a loyal user. Now you think I want to do landscaping ??? I'm hurt.

A representative for Meta told me that these suggestions could change based on popular searches. That might explain at least one surprising search suggestion I got: "Rick Lax net worth." ( Rick Lax is a magician behind a lot of Facebook viral content and largely popular only ON Facebook.)

On Instagram, the search suggestions are slightly more Instagram-y, like "5 tips for glowing skin," "Cheerleading reels," and "Write a spring fashion guide." The request for cheerleading reels does lead to a suggestion of a bunch of other reels.

I asked the Meta AI whether there was a difference between the AI used for Facebook and Instagram, and it told me, "While the core LLaMA 3 model remains the same, its applications and fine-tuning differ on Instagram and Facebook to cater to each platform's unique requirements and user experiences." A representative for Meta told me that this wasn't exactly true — a standard case of an AI hallucination.

For me, what feels strangest isn't whether Llama 3 is "good" at answering these queries — or noticeably better or worse than any competing AI. It works, but the best things going for it are that it's fast with its output, it's free, and it's right there in an app I already use a lot.

And if Meta's goal here is to get people's feet wet with the idea of using generative AI — without having to download a different app or think up ideas of what to ask it — well, mission accomplished.

It's part of Meta's push into an AI arms race, and one where it's well equipped with more compute power . Meta also has an edge when it comes to getting its large language model into the hands of as many users as possible to try it out: It has a lot of humans who open its apps every day and search stuff in the search bar.

So, yes, jamming Meta AI into the search bar feels really weird and confusing, but Meta isn't shy about muscling new features on users — even if they complain — to get the new feature adopted by a critical mass of users ( cough reels cough ).

But for we gremlins who are used to searching for old flames, new acquaintances, celebrities, and embarrassing other things in the Instagram search bar, this is certainly a strange new world.

Update: May 1, 2024 — This story has been updated with a comment from Meta.

Watch: AI will drive personalization, not creativity, says Roku's VP of growth marketing, Sweta Patel

• Main content

Zimbabwe’s illegal forex dealers use WhatsApp to find clients, evade police

Zimbabwe clamps down on black market trading it blames for devaluing its newly launched ZiG local currency.

Harare, Zimbabwe – The entrance to the main gate at the Budiriro shopping centre, a busy mall south of Zimbabwe’s capital Harare, used to be a hive of activity where informal forex dealers had set up makeshift “offices” on the pavement.

Now the area is all but abandoned.

Keep reading

‘triple spending’: zimbabweans bear cost of changing to new zig currency, will oil prices keep rising, and how will that affect inflation, zimbabwe introduces new gold-backed currency to tackle inflation.

The smartly dressed young boys and middle-aged men who would stealthily trade foreign currency with shoppers have not set foot there in weeks to avoid police raids.

In Zimbabwe, which has been beset by a decades-long economic crisis characterised by hyperinflation, a 54 percent unemployment rate and highly volatile local currencies, the more stable United States dollar is the preferred medium of exchange.

Everyone from state utilities to street vendors accepts payment in US dollars. Because of the popularity of the greenback, black market forex dealing is a thriving side hustle with thousands earning a living from the practice.

In April, in the government’s latest attempt to stabilise the economy, Zimbabwe’s central bank launched a new currency, Zimbabwe Gold, or ZiG .

Soon after, Zimbabwean police began cracking down on informal forex dealers and arresting them in their numbers. The authorities blame illegal currency dealing for distorting the exchange rate and devaluing the local currency, and want to ensure the ZiG is accepted and does not lose value rapidly like its predecessor.

To date, more than 70 street forex dealers have been arrested. But instead of curbing them, it has driven them underground and towards more creative means of doing business.

At a tuck shop about a kilometre from where he used to work at Budiriro shopping centre, forex dealer Darlington Murazva* has set up a makeshift office.

The stocky 30-year-old scrolled through the WhatsApp messaging app on his Samsung smartphone, and pressed play on a voice note that arrived in a group chat he’s in with other foreign currency dealers and vendors.

“The police are in Glen View right now. They didn’t find anyone,” the voice said.

Murazva, who has been a forex trader for 11 years and mostly operates informally, used to have a strategic spot at the entrance to the mall where he would sit on a plastic stool scouting for passing shoppers.

When the police raids started, he and the other traders fled. They are now positioned all over Harare – and give one another a heads-up about movements of the police.

“Now, the police can’t find us. We are always two steps ahead,” he said with a wry smile.

“We know where they are in real time through our fellow traders in the surrounding areas.”

Pockets of opportunity

The biggest sources of foreign currency in Zimbabwe are diaspora remittances and exports. Zimbabwe allows its citizens to open USD accounts where they can deposit or receive the greenback. They can also withdraw hard USD notes from banks. Companies can also source forex from the official auction market.

Away from official channels, though, people regularly buy and sell USD to informal forex dealers depending on their needs. Because street dealers offer better and more market-driven rates of exchange, Zimbabweans prefer to deal with them instead of banks or official currency exchanges.

Black market dealing is illegal, so the exact number of traders is not known. But it is thought there are a couple of thousand. The WhatsApp group Murazva belongs to has 247 members.

Though usually in competition with one another, the dealers have set aside their rivalries to join forces and help one another avert arrest.

Recent reports that went viral on social media saying 60 arrested dealers were sentenced to three years in jail have also created jitters in an already unnerved community.

Moving online has not only been a safety measure for dealers but also a new way for some to continue conducting business.

Steven Tambudze*, 40, who has been a forex dealer for almost half of his life, said WhatsApp has been a real boon in recent weeks.

“Although this has been a very difficult time for other dealers, business has been very good for me,” Tambudze told Al Jazeera at the Highglen cross-border bus terminus, where he waited for a client.

“Most of my deals come through WhatsApp now,” he said.

Some of his former clients who he lost track of because they started trading with other dealers in the city have also returned, he said, explaining that with the raids people prefer to deal with someone they know and trust, and now reach out to him directly by phone and messaging app.

Tambudze said he never meets random people and only deals with clients he personally knows.

Murazva also uses WhatsApp to continue working. However, he is cautious. He never mentions the word ZiG on an actual phone call and never talks about exchange rates or anything that may identify him as a dealer, out of fear the authorities may be listening in.

When he gets a call, he tells potential clients to chat with him over WhatsApp, which he said he trusts a bit more because of its end-to-end encryption.

“One must never give safety a day off,” he told Al Jazeera.

‘Keeping our heads above water’

On the streets, forex traders all have their own ways of approaching customers. At the mall, Murazva would sit on his plastic chair at the entrance until he spotted a potential customer. In a hushed tone, he would then approach the passerby with a whispered deal to change dollars into local currency or vice versa.

Over WhatsApp, clients now contact a dealer they know when they are looking for currency. The dealer then posts a message on the WhatsApp group letting the other traders know they would like to make a currency exchange.

Other interested traders get in touch via inbox with an offer and a rate is agreed.

From there, a payment in local currency is made electronically through a bank account and a physical meeting is arranged for the collection of the hard USD cash.

The dealers in the group are a community who know each other and therefore have a level of trust.

Other traders also use WhatsApp’s broadcast feature, which allows users to send a single message to multiple recipients simultaneously with one click.

The recipients of a broadcast cannot see each other, ensuring privacy. This comes in handy for forex dealers who are trying to lay low and still earn a bit of income.

“The broadcasts are also helping a lot and are far more convenient because one can reach a number of dealers,” Tambudze said.

Murazva is grateful to messaging apps for helping dealers eke out a living amid the turmoil.

“If it wasn’t for WhatsApp groups, we would have starved. We are keeping our heads above the water,” he said.

The veteran dealer feels the police onslaught is a passing phase.

He said this was because when the central bank introduced the bond notes, a currency that forms part of the Zimbabwe dollar, in 2016, the police launched a similar blitz.

“The police operation is not new. We are used to them. Whenever they introduce a currency, we get arrested,” Murazva said. “But they will stop soon.”

Stopgap measures

The new ZiG currency is already devaluing against the US dollar. To date, the currency has depreciated by as much as 25 percent on the black market and is trading at Zig20:USD1. Officially, the rate is about Zig13.5:USD1.

Harare-based economic analyst Rashwhit Mukundu said the fast devaluation speaks to a lack of confidence in the local currency.

However, authorities blame the decline of the ZiG and the collapse of its predecessor on the black market foreign currency dealers. They say dealers pay much more than what is offered at the official rate, driving the currency down as it depreciates against the US dollar.

Informal dealers reject the idea that they are to blame.

Meanwhile, economists and critics accuse the central bank of flooding the market with local currency which is then used to buy US dollars from street forex dealers. Local government contractors, who are usually paid in local currency – which amounts to billions in bank notes – then trade these notes for US dollars on the black market, causing an oversupply, which fuels inflation.

“The real challenge in this economy is lack of confidence in the local currency because people have lost their savings and capital to hyperinflation in the past,” said Gift Mugano, a visiting professor of economics at the University of Zimbabwe Business School.

He told Al Jazeera the arrest of forex dealers was a stopgap measure to deal with the currency crisis, but not a wise idea.

“The question is: how do we restore confidence? You don’t arrest people to foster confidence. The moment you force people, you lose the plot,” he said.

For Mugano, the clampdown is a sign that the authorities have simply “run out of ideas” on how to deal with the currency problem.

“The black market is still thriving. Government is refusing its own money to pay for passports, fuel and other services,” he said.

Mukundu, meanwhile, said the police clampdown was an exercise in futility.

“It’s a case of stitching up one’s behind to stop a diarrhoea. The Zimbabwean government and the central bank are not addressing the fundamental issue of lack of confidence in the Zimbabwean currency,” he told Al Jazeera.

For Mukundu, past experiences with inflation and ongoing economic crises make people want to hold on to US dollars and other stronger currencies over their own.

“The people of Zimbabwe now see value and wisdom in storing economic value in foreign currencies,” he said. “It’s a culture and economic system that has been built over the years that supports storing value in such currencies.”

*Name changed to protect privacy.