Should I be using WhatsApp Business for Customer Support?

According to statista, as of October 2019, 1.6 billion users were accessing the WhatsApp messenger on a monthly basis. The app’s reach and usage penetration is particularly strong in markets outside of the United States. It is one of the most popular mobile social apps worldwide.

As a result, using it to connect with your users is beneficial. However you can forget about using WhatsApp to target their 1.6 billion users with ads. WhatsApp currently doesn’t serve ads and its encrypted messaging system means targeting would be very limited anyway.

A lot of business are talking about and looking into WhatsApp Business or the WhatsApp Business API. Omnichannel customer support has become the customers preferred choice in communication. Because of this, many customers are now choosing products and services based on their ease of customer support offerings.  Customer experience is quickly overtaking price and product as the key brand differentiator. A good example of this is Amazon, where the delivery and convenience often acts as a driver for the products themselves.

WhatsApp Business vs. WhatsApp Business API

WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp business was first launched back in 2018, but it was for Android phones only. Last April it was rolled out to iPhone and is now available in most countries around the world. It is a completely stand alone solution to the standard version of WhatsApp we all know. This app is mainly aimed at small business owners and is designed to make it easier for them to communicate with customers.

The main features are:

• When a user gets a message, they will be notified thats its from a business account inside the chat.
• The ability to introduce your business to the customers using a greeting message.
• The ability to have an ‘Away Message’.  You can add a schedule for when you are not active on WhatsApp to guide users to the website or FAQ section until a representative as available to respond.
• Users can easily get the business information; adding details like business address, description, working hours and multiple forms of contact details such as websites and email address for an omni-channel customer support approach.
• There is a ‘Quick Reply’ feature that businesses can have prewritten messages to save time typing for commonly asked questions.

WhatsApp Business API

This API is aimed at medium and larger businesses who use communication channels for their mass market. This is a paid platform and you are required to apply and be accepted by WhatsApp before starting to use the API. Once accepted, the API allows tailor made automate messaging, which isn’t available using the free Business App.

With WhatsApp Business API, companies can send;

• Appointment reminders
• Shipping alerts
• Order notifications
• Product demonstration videos
• Verification codes
• Boarding passes
• 2-way customer surveys and support messages

For more information about WhatsApp Business API please click here.

At CallPageboy, it is important to us that your customers get the best customer service experience. Our technology allows us to respond to your needs quickly and effectively with 24 support.  Contact us today to see what we can do for you.