Whatsapp for Business: what it is and how to use it
Miguel Nicolás
09/02/2018
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The far most popular messaging application is open to companies. We tell you all about Whatsapp for Business. Chat with your clients!
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It had been in beta since September, but Whatsapp for Business is now a reality also in Spain. Finally a professional solution really designed for corporate use to an application that is so integrated into the habits of use of the customer as the mobile phone itself. We tell you how this works.
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What is Whatsapp for Business?
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It is the professional version of the app that you already know: Whatsapp for companies.It seems that finally the company has realized that users demand this use and that many businesses already use the standard chat within their communication strategy or customer service - but they do it with a very limited tool. At the end, it is not the use for which it was conceived.With this solution, they intend to make management more agile and a paint job to the app so it is a little more commercial.
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Whatsapp for Business features
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Visually there is a big difference between the two apps (although we have not already said, these are two different applications).This, far from being a problem, we think that it is an advantage, because it does not require a learning curve: the professional user only has to learn a couple of things and is transparent to the client.Without a doubt, the big difference between the two Whatsapp is in the profiles.
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EXAMPLE: Let´s see an example. This is Just Herbs profile, that uses a standard profile for its communication and customer service strategy (and they announce it with much fanfare as you can see on their website). It is only identified as a company through the logo in the profile photo
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However, let´s see what happens with an optimized one like Don Ofertón:
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The difference is significant, right? You can see several different elements:
- Location map: in this case they are not using it, but it is there.
- Account identification as a company under the name (it will also show a tick in a badge next to the name).
- Establishment of a category.
- It allows a brief descriptive information of the type of business.
- Alternative contact email.
- Link to the website.
This would be the standard profile of an eCommerce, but if you have physical stores, on Whatsapp for Business you can also add opening and closing hours. -
Other features
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Apart from appearance and design, Whatsapp forBusiness brings some very interesting features.
It Implements fast responses. You can have a series of predefined shortcut answers that you can access easily,something that will increase productivity.
There is also a type of messages that are displayed when we are out. This avoids they are left unanswered since,at least, they receive some feedback.
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Why using Whatsapp for Business
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The most important reason is the critical mass, the number of users who have that platform. When an app has 1,500 million active users per month, it is clear that it has many possibilities.
In an environment that is changing against the clock towards mobile, we must use all the resources we have at our disposal. And there is nothing better than a native tool which the user is accustomed to live with.Some chats as that of Facebook require the installation of an app that not everyone has on the mobile phone. And other solutions that come from Desktop may not be all well integrated with the mobile phone.In the end, what we have on the table is a way of further contact, instant, practical and that the user trusts. This makes Whatsapp for Business an alternative to take into account customer service (at least in the short term) and, why not, in a promotional tool - although we will have to see how the issue of consent to use and data protection are resolved. -
Download and requirements
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For now, the app is only available for Android operating system, so that is the first requirement. Currently, iOs users remain outside although, obviously, it is only a matter of time.
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The second requirement can be quite frustrating: you need an exclusive phone to use Whatsapp Business. When you install the application for the first time, it asks you to confirm your phone. If it is already being used with a Whatsapp account will not allow you to continue, unless you separate that number of your personal account.At first, both handicaps will be removed in a future release, but at the moment it is what it is.By the way, it is important to say that Whatsapp users do not have to download Business application to interact with professional profiles, since these are integrated into the normal app without problem.
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How much is Whatsapp for Business?
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Just like the version of instant messaging for end users, the app is free for SMEs. But, it seems that, large companies will pay for its use but, in return, they will get access to the API, which opens up possibilities for developers.
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What about you?: Will you jump to Whatsapp for Business? Do you see it interesting for your business? Let us know leaving us a comment.
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Images | Whatsapp, Unsplash.