Introduction:

In this modern era of communication, social media channels have come up with various communication options. “Do you have WhatsApp? Yes, I do have a WhatsApp.” This is one of the most common questions an individual comes across now and then.  This shows the popularity of “Whatsapp”. Businesses often target communication media where they find a wide customer base. Whatsapp is one such medium where people are active very frequently. It has thus become a powerful marketing tool. In today’s article, we will study Whatsapp, its advantages, and tips to use it in a business strategy.

A brief history of Whatsapp:

Whatsapp got coined in 2009 by two ex-employees of Yahoo Brian Acton and Jan Koum. The duo left their job to have a world tour. Due to the huge expenditure, their pockets began to sink. So they started the job search again. They got disappointed with their present situation and gave rise to a startup called Whatsapp. Jan Koum was the man behind the idea of launching the app. Jan Koum and Brian Acton together visited Alex Fisherman for more insights. He later introduced the duo to a Russian developer Igor Solomennikov to assist them to develop the iOS app. Thus “WhatsApp Inc.” got incorporated in California on 24th February 2009.  The name sounded the same as ‘What’s up” that aligned with the idea of the status of an individual.

What is “Whatsapp”?

Whatsapp is a messaging service provider thats all work as great marketing tools for startups and businesses. It has benefits for personal as well business use. It is a service provider without any charges. The platform needs active wi-fi or mobile data to communicate with customers.

Benefits of WhatsApp messenger:

• Offers communications through texting, video calling, and sharing images and documents.
• It helps share your present location.
• Provides many options to promote your business and spread the news.
• Helps you segregate your customer base by creating groups of up to 256 members.
• Helps create organizing events to attract more customers.  
• Is cost-effective and affordable for any type of person.

The emergence of Whatsapp marketing:

Businesses have started using WhatsApp marketing to promote their services and products. Whatsapp Marketing is a medium of promoting goods/ services and getting engaged with your target audience. WhatsApp has become the most personalized form of communication and shopping experience. It helps in texting for personal as well as business purposes.  

Your social media strategy must include Whatsapp along with  Twitter and Facebook. Whatsapp marketing has proved to be one of the successful marketing strategies. 

The organization introduced an app called “Whatsapp Business”  for small businesses. It helps the business connect with its potential customers.  And also provide immediate support services.  

Let us look at some of the reasons why a business should use Whatsapp as one of their business strategies.

Getting started with Whatsapp marketing?

Following are some steps to start with your Whatsapp app:

• Download the “Whatsapp Business app” from the play store or any other app store.
• Register by entering your business phone number. Accept the terms and conditions laid down.
• Verify your company mobile number by following the necessary steps.
• Enter your business details like your business name/ image/ logo.
• Fill in the required details and set up your account to start with.
• Click on the “Add Payment Method” in the “payments” sections in the settings to set up the “WhatsApp pay option”. Create a UPI ID for your WhatsApp transactions. You can share the ID with anyone who wants to transfer or receive money from you.
• You can use WhatsApp messaging on mobile as well as desktop devices. This will help you provide great customer support to the customers.

Whatsapp marketing strategies:

• Define your business goals- The most essential step for a business is to determine your marketing goals. This will help you focus on the relevant actions for your business. Also, define your KPIs to help you meet the goals.

• Determine your target audience- Know your audience to create an effective marketing strategy. Try a different approach to determine your target audience. One such approach is customer profile creation. Building a buyer persona is another approach.

• Install the business app- Whatsapp launched its business app to meet the needs of small businesses. The Whatsapp business app allows the user to create a business profile. The user can create a product catalog to showcase their products. It also helps you stay connected with your customers by creating automated replies. 

• Build customer loyalty- Whatsapp allows a business to create groups segregating their customers. It helps build a brand persona. Push notifications, group chats are some tools that help build brand loyalty.

• Make sales calls- Whatsapp offers businesses to make sales calls. You can make service calls to your customers related to their concerns. Your sales personnel should be well trained to provide quick solutions to the customer.   

• Create brand awareness- Brand awareness increases communications between people about the brand. Create a brand persona for successful Whatsapp marketing. It includes increasing the brand value. Explore the unique features of your brand and share them within the market.

• Create a contact list- You need to have a contact list to provide your services. Use subscription forms to create your contact lists. Share them across your social media accounts. Add some exclusive offers attached to such forms to attract more customers. Segregate your customers into different categories. Send the most relevant campaigns and deliver a customized experience.

• Customize your messages- Whatsapp messages should be well customized for proper communication. Your messages should be promotional, educational, and entertaining. Your messages should be short and precise. Include videos, GIFs, and emojis to make your messages look attractive. Restrict your messages to 5-10 per week.

• Provide effective customer service- Messaging apps have helped a brand grow tremendously. Whatsapp messaging helps a customer receive real-time support. You can create a chatbox to solve the issues of your customers.

Tips to use Whatsapp Business:

• Send product shipping alerts and other relevant push notifications.
• Create your Whatsapp chatbox where the customers can book appointments with your brand.
• Remind the customer about their appointments with your brand. This will help you stay away from rescheduling your meetings. 
• Encourage your support team to resolve customer queries.
• Whatsapp offers the business to send authentication messages for enhanced security and encryption.
• Get valuable customer feedback to improve customer service

Whatsapp Marketing examples:

• Netflix- The streaming giant launched its campaign in India in January 2017. Netflix offers personal suggestions through its mobile app and also WhatsApp. The company sent updates and notifications to users having a Whatsapp account. The user could stay updated with Netflix even after they canceled their subscription.  

• Adidas: The sportswear brand used WhatsApp for launching and promoting its new products. Through WhatsApp, the brand could choose a narrow group of audiences. The focused group included football amateur players. They helped the brand produce quick responses to user queries. Adidas made a deal with the customers. It asked the players to update their match details. In return, the brand promised to send a top-notch football player to their game. In a short span of 6 days, the brand got a lot of buzz in the football niche.

• Klook: The online travel platform used WhatsApp to create an effective campaign. It could meet the needs of the customers and increased retention. Due to its widespread audience in the Asia-Pacific region, the app became a popular choice among the audiences. The app asked its visitors to subscribe to their newsletter. So that they receive updates about their bookings.

• Saffola- The Indian healthcare brand created a health campaign. The campaign was all about fighting the craving for unhealthy food. The brand created a Whatsapp chatbox where the user sent a message whenever he had a craving for unhealthy food. The chatbox tried distracting the user with pre-recorded puzzles and songs.    

• Toyota: The automobile company, created a campaign in 2012. They created a contest where the user had to put the word “hybridized” in their WhatsApp status. The brand provided an iPhone 5 as a lucky draw prize, to the users who registered themselves in the contest. Toyota thus became popular and increased its audience engagement to a large extent.  

• Godaddy: A web hosting companies also do whatsapp marketing effectively. They used customer support and customer answers effectively over whatsapp. That’s why many beginners prefer to use Godaddy for their hosting or domain.

Conclusion:

We have now understood that WhatsApp is an effective tool for marketing a business. It helps to promote your brand and reach out to a wider audience. An effective marketing strategy can cost-effectively convert potential clients. A new business can gain early recognition. Many companies have already set up their business well in the market. They have started making effective use of this platform. So leverage the tips and tools of WhatsApp marketing and get the best out of it for your business. 

Author Bio: 

Suraj Kr. Prakash is a Trainer, Growth Hacker, SEO Specialist, and WordPress Website Developer…who is empowering 10000+ readers through the “Dhandho Karo” platform in various niches such as business & marketing.