How to Use WhatsApp Business

With over 2 billion global users, WhatsApp is the most used and loved instant messaging service in the world. It’s the app your customers use every day to communicate with family and friends. It’s also a powerful, personal way to communicate with your customers when you use it for your business.

Using WhatsApp for Business

In the simplest terms, WhatsApp Business is a messaging app built to meet the specific needs of business and customers within the WhatsApp chat app. This is what make it convenient. And so popular. Many of your customers use and love WhatsApp Messenger to communicate with their family and friends. And they use it often. The average user checks their WhatsApp more than 23 times daily. And 80% of all WhatsApp messages are usually read within 5 minutes.

WhatsApp Business gives your business presence a robust business profile including: cover photo, area of work, description of your business, location, hours of operation, and links to your website. You can even create a product catalog—with product pictures, descriptions, and prices—that customers can browse through right within the app.

WhatsApp Business Messaging

As you well know, business is not just about making a sale, it is about maintaining a relationship that ultimately leads to loyalty and repeat customers. Responding quickly, instantaneously in today’s world, is critical. WhatsApp Business makes that possible—and easy.

• WhatsApp Away message automatically responds to customers if they write to you in a period you have marked as unavailable.

• WhatsApp Greeting message as the name states, greets your customers when they initiate the conversation and write to you.

• WhatsApp Quick replies lets you create templates which you can use while chatting. These are common answers or phrases which you and your customer service agents will be able to access and send out by entering the “/” symbol in the chat.

That’s just the start. You can also:

• Send non-generic, short messages thanking a customer and sharing useful information as to how a certain product is used, or how they can make the best out of your website or app.

• Send images, videos, and web links.

• Easily provide shipping and delivery updates with WhatsApp’s location sharing.

• Ask for feedback through WhatsApp instead of sending web links.

• Share information such as product or service availability to increase repeat purchases.

• Book appointments and send reminders in an easily accessible, visible manner.

WhatsApp Business App vs WhatsApp Business API

There are two different version of WhatsApp. Which one is right for you? That depends on the size of your business, who—and how many people—will be using WhatsApp within your business, and how many customers you’ll be reaching out to.

Here is a summary to help you compare the two options:

WhatsApp Business

• Limited to use on one device within your business

• Limited number of recipients per broadcast (256 maximum)

• 100 MB limitation on media and messaging files

• Free

• Can use it to make calls

WhatsApp Business API

• No device required as it integrates directly with the customer platform

• 100 MB limitation on media and messaging files

• Fees are set by your business service provider

• No calling capabilities

WhatsApp Business – Broadcast Feature

The WhatsApp Business app lets you broadcast message to a group of customers all at once. Think of it as “blind cc” tool that’s designed for one-way communications only. Customers who receive a broadcast message from your company don’t know the message they received was sent through the broadcast feature. They also can’t see the other contacts in the broadcast list. You can send images, audio, and PDF files.

One important note: Only contacts who have added you to their phone’s address book will receive your broadcast message. This is a key feature of WhatsApp Business. This means you can’t use WhatsApp to prospect for new customers. But it also means those customers you are reaching have demonstrated an interest in hearing and are interested in what you have to say to them.

WhatsApp Business Automation

Acquiring a new customer is 6 to 7 times more cost-intensive than retaining an existing one. One of the biggest reasons behind losing an existing customer or a prospect is a business's failure to resolve queries and complaints in a timely manner. However, WhatsApp Business and the WhatsApp Business API can automate your business processes, resulting in a quick turnaround.

• Address commonly asked questions by creating automated message flows.

• Display product catalogs.

• Automate sales processes by integrating bots.

• Send timely payment reminders and due date notifications.

• Send automated welcome and away messages to keep your customers in the loop.

But that’s just the start. You can add in additional automation with a third-party tool. For instance, Interact, Clickatell’s cloud-hosted platform "enables workflow automation and makes engaging and conversing with your customers within WhatsApp easy". It’s pre-integrated with WhatsApp, so you don’t have to worry about additional development. With the right mix of AI chatbots, automation, and human-in-the-loop technologies, you create a one-of-a-kind experience for your customers.

• Use a simple drag-and-drop interface to build self-service workflows to power a chatbot.

• Automate a wide range of business responses to FAQs supporting customer service, engagement, and transactional use cases.

• Seamlessly transfer conversations from the bot to a human agent when needed.

WhatsApp and Customer Relationship Management

You can use WhatsApp not only as a mere communication channel, but as part of your CRM to increase sales and improve customer service. How you do this depends on several factors: the size of your business and customer base, your existing customer tools and set up, and your goals and priorities.

For all but the smallest businesses, you’ll likely want to, or need to, integrate an addition CRM tool to really experience full benefits—including CRM application that you are already using across your company. The best way to figure out the right fit for to work with an experienced partner who can listen to your needs and help you sort through the options to find the right fit.

Put More Than 20 Years of Experience to Work for You

Clickatell, founded more than 20 years ago, is uniquely suited to help you take advantage of WhatsApp and other chat channels, with tools and solutions built to scale with you as you expand your cross-channel offerings.

The Clickatell WhatsApp Business API enables you to take advantage of the channel’s chat capabilities—and tap into the 75% greater year-over-year (YoY) growth in annual revenue experienced by companies that do, according to Aberdeen Group.

Our Chat Desk is one of the most advanced digital contact center solutions in the world. It helps reduce contact center costs, lets customers get information and resolve issues more quickly, and gives your contact center greater flexibility to manage teams, call volume, and increase satisfaction.

Our drag-and-drop visual tool, Clickatell Chat Flow, simplifies the process of rolling out cross-channel customer journeys from one that requires weeks or months to one that can be designed and deployed by a non-technical business user on a rapid timeframe.

Let’s talk. Reach out to Clickatell today find out how we can help your business start benefitting from WhatsApp for Business today.