Specialists discredited the opportunities that WhatsApp has in the business world and how it can be leveraged to enhance the way businesses engage with their customers
Digital Transformation has made many things simple in the new era with recent solutions coming through in various sectors daily.
One of the areas that have improved with digital transformation is communication. Currently, communication has been simplified by new apps and software that have made it simpler to communicate with anyone around the world, in real-time.
Whatsapp messaging app is among the platforms connecting the world, almost making the world a global village. With additional features being launched to the platform. One thing is clear, its users use more time on the platform.
Provided the number of people connected on WhatsApp and the amount of time they use the platform, there’s much that can be achieved on the app. We have already witnessed WhatsApp for Business and digital advertising that is carried out on the platform.
The second step for WhatsApp is for companies to utilize the platform to expand and enhance their customer experience. This has started happening and a lot of businesses are noticing the benefit of amassing WhatsApp communication with users.
This topic was on top of the discussion at the Gupshup Whatsapp Webinar as experts discredited the opportunities that WhatsApp has in the business world and the way it can be leveraged to enhance how businesses engage with their customers.
The webinar was moderated by the Chairman and Publisher at CIO Africa, Harry Hare, with panelists; Barinderpal Mumick (the VP, Business Development & Operations at Gupshup), Divine Muragijimana (a Marketing and Communication Executive), Flora Kinuthia (Head of IT at Farmers’ Choice Ltd.), and Peter Malla (the Head of IT Infrastructure at NBK).
The panelists concurred that WhatsApp is still improving and there are more opportunities ahead for WhatsApp to thrive and be utilized in different ways. However, the various panelists had a variety of ideas on what should be prioritized for a business to thrive its relationship with customers on Whatsapp.
According to Divine, the most crucial thing is working to bring happiness to customers.
“The most important thing is creating a conversational experience with the customer. Making the customer feel like they are valued and are being heard. This will bring about customer delight and improve customer experience,” Divine said.
Business Development and Operations VP at Gupshup, Barinderpal Mumick, agreed with Divine’s statement adding that now is the time for businesses to invest in the platform.
“Businesses need to start putting themselves on WhatsApp and promote their WhatsApp number to customers. This way, the businesses can communicate with customers whenever and even automate responses to suit what the customer needs,” Barinderpal noted.
“Customer experience is taking the front seat in the market. AI Conversations is helping brands create a better customer experience and WhatsApp is part of this. Making communication with the customer quick, simple, and creative,” Barinder added.
On his part, the Head of IT Infrastructure at the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) Peter Malla said that we are not even close to realizing the potential of WhatsApp.
“WhatsApp is at its infancy stage and there are a lot of things that can still be done via the platforms. WhatsApp Business is just but an example of how WhatsApp can be leveraged to improve a business’ customer experience,” Peter said.
WhatsApp FAQs
Here are the commonly asked questions about WhatsApp and their answers according to the WhatsApp website:
How do I move my WhatsApp Messenger account to WhatsApp Business?
Moving from WhatsApp Messenger to WhatsApp Business is fast, easy, and reliable. We recommend that you create a local or a Google Drive backup of your account before you begin the transfer process. Learn how to create a backup in this article.
- Update WhatsApp Messenger and download WhatsApp Business from the Google Play Store.
- Open WhatsApp Business.
Note: Keep WhatsApp Business open and your phone turned on until the account transfer process is complete.
- Read the WhatsApp Business Terms of Service. Tap AGREE AND CONTINUE to accept the terms.
- WhatsApp Business automatically identifies the number you’re using in WhatsApp Messenger. To continue, tap the option with your business number.
If the number showing is not the number you want to use, tap USE A DIFFERENT NUMBER and go through the standard verification process.
Tap CONTINUE > ALLOW to allow WhatsApp Business to access your chat history and media.
- Enter the 6-digit SMS code to verify your number.
- Create your business profile > tap NEXT.
You can continue editing your business profile once your WhatsApp Business account is active.
How do I place an order using a cart?
When you are visiting a business’ catalog on WhatsApp, you can use the MESSAGE BUSINESS to start a conversation or use the ADD TO CART button if you’re ready to place an order with the business about a product that you’re viewing.
Adding products to the cart
- Open WhatsApp.
- Go to your chat or business profile of the business you’d like to order from.
- Tap on the shopping button icon listed next to their name to access their catalog.
- Once the catalog opens, browse through the products you’d like to order.
- Tap on the product you like.
- Tap ADD TO CART on the product if you’d like to order.
Alternatively, you can also tap MESSAGE BUSINESS if you’d like to ask a specific question about the product.
Editing your cart
- Tap VIEW CART to see all the products added to your cart.
- Tap ADD MORE if you wish to navigate back to the catalog to continue adding more products.
- You can also edit the quantity for each product added to your cart.
Placing an order
Once you’ve successfully updated your cart, you can send it to the seller as a WhatsApp message.
Once sent, you will be able to see the details of your order by tapping on the VIEW SENT CART button in your chat window with the seller.
Note: You can edit the message before sending your cart to the seller.
If you’d like to enquire about multiple items listed in a seller’s catalog, you can add all of them to your cart and send your inquiry in a single message. An order isn’t final until confirmed by the seller.
What is WhatsApp Business?
WhatsApp Business is a free-to-download app available on Android and iPhone and was built with the small business owner in mind. WhatsApp Business makes interacting with customers easy by providing tools to automate, sort, and quickly respond to messages. It’s also intended to feel and work just like WhatsApp Messenger. You can use it to do everything that you’re used to doing, from messaging to sending photos.
Some of the features we currently offer in the app include:
- Business profile to list important information, such as a company’s address, email,l, and website.
- Labels to organize and easily find your chats and messages.
- Messaging tools to quickly respond to customers.
If you’re not a business, there’s no need to download this separate app. You can continue using your WhatsApp Messenger account for free to talk to friends, family and businesses.
How can I free up storage on WhatsApp?
You can view how much space WhatsApp is taking up on your device and free up storage by deleting items.
View storage
- On the CHATS tab, tap More options > Settings.
- Tap Storage and data > Manage storage.
- The amount of space taken up on your device by WhatsApp media and Apps and other items is displayed at the top of the screen.
Review and delete items
You can free up storage by deleting items that are large or have been forwarded many times. You can also delete items per chat.
Review items
- On the CHATS tab, tap More options > Settings.
- Tap Storage and data > Manage storage.
- Tap Forwarded many times, Larger than 5 MB, or select a specific chat.
- You can tap the sort icon to sort by Newest, Oldest, or Largest.
- The file size of the item is displayed in the top corner of the item.
- Tap an item to review. You can also:
- View which chat the item is from and when it was sent: Tap More > Show in chat.
- Star or unstar the item: Tap Star or Unstar.
Delete items
If you choose to delete an item, it will be deleted from your WhatsApp media. Deleted items might still be saved on your device. If you have multiple copies of an item, you’ll also need to delete all copies in order to free up space.
- On the CHATS tab, tap More options > Settings.
- Tap Storage and data > Manage storage.
- Tap Forwarded many times, Larger than 5 MB, or select a specific chat.
You can:
- Delete all items: Tap Select all if you want to delete all items at once.
- Delete individual items: Tap and hold an item you want to delete. Select additional items to delete multiple items at once.
- Tap Delete.
- Select Delete starred items to delete starred items.
- Select Delete any copies to delete duplicates.
- Tap DELETE.
- Delete items through search
You can also delete individual items by using the search feature.
- On the CHATS tab, tap Search.
- Tap Photos, Videos, or Documents.
- Tap the item you want to delete.
- Tap More > Delete.
- Optionally, tap Delete media in this chat.
- Tap DELETE.
Low storage alerts
If the amount of available storage on your device reaches critically low levels, WhatsApp might not be able to function properly. If this happens, WhatsApp might prompt you to free up space in order to continue using the app.
You can also free up space by deleting apps you don’t use or large videos, photos, or files saved on your phone. For more information about how to free up storage on your phone outside of WhatsApp, please contact your phone’s manufacturer.
