WhatsApp Business is the version of the WhatsApp messaging application with exclusive features for SMEs to communicate with their customers. It features, besides facilitating communication, makes it quite popular among all instant messaging platforms for businesses. In January 2018, it launched an application extension, named WhatsApp Business, with several useful features for business owners. According to statistics, WhatsApp has been installed 96 million times in the month of February 2020.
Prominent Features of WhatsApp Business
Business profile
When creating a business profile, it is possible to include relevant information about your company, such as:
- Company description
- Opening hours
- Physical address with map
- Site
If you need to update this data, just click More Options, then Settings and your business name.
Quick Replies
WhatsApp Business allows you to save the messages you send more often, so you can save time on other conversations. They can be related to the most common questions you receive, such as:
- Price of services
- Payment methods
- Opening hours
To add the content, go to Business Tools and select Quick Replies. The field allows you to write text messages, include emojis and define a shortcut for that message, which will always start with a slash.
Statistics
WhatsApp Business also reports quantitative data on the use of the application and lets you know how many messages were sent, delivered, received and read. It is a simple way that helps maintain quality service.
Automatic message
WhatsApp Business allows companies to set up Away Messages and Greeting Messages for their clients. This option can be accessed under the Messaging category in Business Tools.
QR code
The QR code is a well-known feature that is now added to WhatsApp Business to make it easier to start a conversation. Now, companies can make it convenient for customers to contact them by placing their WhatsApp profile’s QR code on their product labels and packaging.
Benefits of WhatsApp Business to SMEs
With over a billion daily users, the messenger app offers companies a unique opportunity to improve their customer communication process. In this era, advertising is not the only key to an increase in revenue. It is necessary for companies to make communication for customers easier and convenient. Currently, WhatsApp has more than 2 billion users from 180 countries, which makes it highly profitable for a company to integrate this tool in their day-to-day processes. Some of the main benefits that WhatsApp Businesses are:
Generates greater proximity
A real-time conversation through the WhatsApp creates a closer relationship between customers and the company. Through the application, it is possible to pay more attention and clarify doubts of clients and, consequently, increase the satisfaction of customers and gain consumer loyalty.
More visibility
As it is a fast service channel, WhatsApp Business can make your company more visible. It can attract more customers interested in your product or services and increase your brand awareness.
Uses product catalogs
One of the advantages of WhatsApp Business is the possibility of creating a catalog of products offered by the company. You can include information related to products such as:
- Photos
- Description
- Price
- Direct link to the purchase page
The catalog is stored in the application and can be sent whenever you need it and to anyone.
Create shareable links
WhatsApp makes it possible to create short links to be shared on websites and social networks.
With this feature, the user, when clicking on the link, can start a conversation with the company on WhatsApp. There is still the possibility of associating an automatic reply so that it is the first message read by whoever clicks on it.
Customize labels
The labels facilitate the day-to-day operations of companies that use this application. With them, you can organize your contacts to be able to find them easily.
These tags include:
- New customer
- New order
- Pending payment
- Paid
- Order complete
It also gives an option to create a custom label.
Integrates with WhatsApp Web
WhatsApp Business offers the possibility to access it through web.whatsapp.com. This feature makes it easier for SMEs as they can operate their business account through their laptops and desktop computers as well.
WhatsApp Business API
API stands for Application Programming Interface, and it contains all the requirements, instructions and possibilities to integrate WhatsApp Business into other tools or automate certain tasks. Initially, it was designed for medium and large companies with the aim of promoting communication with clients throughout the world through WhatsApp in an easy and simple way. However, small-scale companies are also taking its advantage by assisting multiple clients at the same time through this application. It allows access to multiple agents of the same WhatsApp Business numbers so they can assist a huge influx of queries in a timely manner.
Thanks to this function, companies can integrate WhatsApp at different levels within their customer service systems. Through this tool, multiple agents from a company can use a single WhatsApp phone number to reply to conversations and collect orders.In conclusion, WhatsApp Business has opened a number of possibilities for business in 2021. This tool has allowed them to handle conversations efficiently and improve their brand’s visibility. With the recent introduction of WhatsApp Business API, it has become possible for companies to manage multiple customers at the same time, hence strengthening their client base.
