Introducing WhatsApp Business: What You Should Know
“In some countries, WhatsApp is like oxygen.” — Jan Koum.
And WhatsApp chatbots have become no less than oxygen for businesses, big and small alike. Let us explore the what and how of WhatsApp Business, the benefits of WhatsApp chatbot, and why your business should be on the most popular messaging app.
With over 1.5 billion monthly active users spread across 180 countries, WhatsApp has emerged as the global leader in messaging. Even though it initially started as a platform for users to connect with friends and family, a section has slowly evolved into a potential medium for businesses to engage with clients.
The rise of Facebook Messenger and chatbots for facilitating business-customer interactions birthed the idea of WhatsApp Business API and WhatsApp Business application. WhatsApp Business is an application developed by WhatsApp, dedicated to small business owners enabling them to connect with their customers. On the other hand, WhatsApp Business API is for medium and large businesses helping them connect with customers worldwide and send quick automated replies at scale.
What is WhatsApp Business App?
Announced in 2018, WhatsApp Business is the business version of the popular messaging app. It allows small businesses to connect freely with their customers using the regular WhatsApp application. It is important to note that customers are not required to install any particular app to connect or be connected with businesses. Further, as WhatsApp Business accounts are listed as businesses, users will know they are being contacted by a business account rather than a regular one.
Key Features of the WhatsApp Business App
In the words of the WhatsApp team, “WhatsApp Business app is built with the small business owner in mind.” It has features to help small business owners reach their customers and showcase their products. Let us have a look at some of the features:
1. Availability of Business Profile
Your business can conveniently provide customers with essential information through a WhatsApp Business profile, such as:
- Business hours,
- Store/business address,
- Corresponding location pin,
- Email ID,
- Website links,
- Contact details, and
- Brief business description
This not only makes your business highly accessible and discoverable but also adds transparency.
How to Add a Business Profile:
- Open the WhatsApp Business app.
- Navigate to ‘Settings’ and tap on ‘Business Settings.’
- Tap on ‘Profile’ and add the necessary details against the fields available.
2. Smart Replies and Messaging
Save frequently sent messages as templates and save time with the Quick Replies feature. These messages can be customized as per your preference. For example, typing “/thanks” will deliver the message “Thank you for your business! We look forward to working with you again.” to your customer.
You can even set up an “away” automated message if customers contact you outside business hours. Along the same lines, you could also set up a greeting message that introduces the customer to your products or services when they initiate a chat with your business.
How to Set Up Quick Replies:
- Enter your WhatsApp Business app settings.
- Tap on ‘Business Settings’ and select ‘Quick replies.’
- Tap on the “+” symbol in the bottom-right corner.
- Enter the message or choose media and input its corresponding shortcut and keywords (keywords are optional).
How to Set Up Away Message:
- Open your WhatsApp Business settings.
- Tap on ‘Away Message.’
- Toggle the ‘Send away message’ on and edit or create your away message.
- Set up a schedule during which the away message will be sent.
- You may also select the contacts that will receive the away message.
How to Set Up Greetings:
- Navigate to the Settings of your WhatsApp Business app.
- Select ‘Greeting Message.’
- Edit the existing greeting message or create a new one.
3. Labels
WhatsApp Business app allows businesses to create and allot labels to active chats. As a result, you can categorize different customers and sort through conversations using the labels as filters to respond to their requests.
How to Create and Add a Customer Label:
- Open the client’s chat page.
- Tap on more options indicated by three vertical dots⋮.
- Select ‘Label Chat’ and choose the label.
- If the required label does not exist, tap on ‘New label’ and create it.
4. Vital Messaging Stats
Messaging Statistics is a convenient feature of WhatsApp Business. It provides insight into how many messages were sent, successfully delivered, and read by the clients. Studying these metrics can drastically improve how you conduct business.
How to View Messaging Stats:
- Navigate to WhatsApp Business Settings and choose ‘Business Settings.’
- Select ‘Statistics.’
5. WhatsApp Web
With WhatsApp Web, you can make your WhatsApp Business account available on the browsers of other devices, such as desktops and laptops. As a result, if multiple teams maintain a single account, they can quickly work in coordination without having to fight for resources.
How to Access WhatsApp Web:
- Tap on the More menu (as indicated by the three vertical dots on your home screen).
- Select ‘WhatsApp Web’ to open the QR scanner.
- Open the WhatsApp web link on your browser to access the QR code.
- Scan the QR code.
WhatsApp In Numbers
WhatsApp’s popularity as the world’s most widely used messaging app is reflected in its vast user base. Let’s take a look at the numbers:
- Daily active WhatsApp users: 1 billion
- Largest WhatsApp markets: India (200 million users) and Brazil (120 million users)
- Highest penetration rate: Netherlands (85%), Spain (83.1%), and Italy (83%)
- WhatsApp Business Users: 3 million
- WhatsApp messages sent (per day): 65 billion (29 million messages per minute)
What is WhatsApp Business API?
WhatsApp Business API is available for medium and large-sized business owners so that they can reach out to customers worldwide at scale. With the help of WhatsApp Business API, WhatsApp business chatbots are built to instantly address customers’ queries at scale and increase your brand reach.
WhatsApp business chatbot involves holding an automated customer conversation, miming regular human interaction. With well-designed NLP algorithms and training, it gets a hold of user behavior and can offer a richer customer experience.
Businesses increasingly use WhatsApp chatbots to increase engagement, brand visibility, and stellar customer service.
Read the Full Article: Why Your Business Should Take The WhatsApp Chatbot Plunge
Why Your Business Should Take The WhatsApp Chatbot Plunge was originally published in Chatbots Life on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.