WhatsApp Marketing

WhatsApp is a free mobile application that allows individuals to easily interact and communicate, including chatting, sharing files and photos, and making voice and video calls. It is modern and particularly popular in regions with high SMS fees, such as South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, India, and Malaysia. In February 2014, WhatsApp joined the Facebook family when the company acquired it for $19 billion.

WhatsApp is an excellent marketing channel thanks to the direct connection it provides with customers. It offers you the opportunity for two-way online communication, just like in physical stores. Therefore, integrating WhatsApp into your digital marketing strategy is a brilliant idea.

Learn about: Creating effective WhatsApp marketing strategies. "Previous Article"

WhatsApp Marketing

The following eight steps are the foundation of every WhatsApp marketing strategy. Let's review them so you can better understand how to approach this channel.

How to Develop Your WhatsApp Marketing Strategy

Step 1: Understand WhatsApp Subscription and Marketing Rules

Although WhatsApp has opened doors for businesses, user experience remains a sharp focus for the company, unlike Facebook. The rules for marketers are very strict, essentially requiring brands to build transparent relationships with subscribed users on the WhatsApp platform. Let's quickly review the five main regulations:

Businesses must obtain active opt-in from individuals. Users can only initiate communication with brands either by sharing their phone number with you or by contacting your brand directly on WhatsApp to indicate their consent for WhatsApp marketing.

Subscription forms must include your WhatsApp name, logo, information about the content users will receive, and a field for entering their phone number. A checkbox allowing users to subscribe to different channels simultaneously does not count as a WhatsApp subscription.

Brands must clearly state the types of information users will receive after signing up, including shipping updates, transaction notifications, new content, product promotions, and so on. If you decide to send other types of messages later, you need to inform users and request permission again.

If users contact your business on WhatsApp for customer support, this does not count as a subscription. In this case, you are not allowed to follow up with any messages except for a single message within 24 hours, which can only include details about resolving their issue.

Any presentation of the WhatsApp brand in your marketing campaigns, including subscription forms, advertisements, banners, etc., must comply with WhatsApp's brand requirements.

Step 2: Download the WhatsApp Business App

When you decide to promote your brand on WhatsApp, you should start by downloading the WhatsApp Business app. It's designed for small businesses and offers user-friendly features like automated messages, quick replies, contact sorting, and chat management to communicate with your audience. Besides Android and iPhone versions of WhatsApp Business, you can also use the web version to work on a laptop.

Step 3: Create a Business Profile

A WhatsApp Business profile is similar to a Facebook Business Page. Name your profile, upload a profile picture, add your contact number, a brief description ​​of your brand, specify your location on the map, your business category, and working hours.

Step 4: Promote Your WhatsApp Profile and Subscribe Users

Add subscription forms to your landing pages and blog. Remember, according to WhatsApp regulations, you cannot use a single form for multiple channels simultaneously. It must also include your WhatsApp name and logo, inform users about the content they will receive, and contain a field for entering their phone number.

Another effective option to gather more contacts is click-to- WhatsApp ads on Facebook and Instagram. Post such ads in your story and news feed on both social networks. To create them, connect your Facebook and WhatsApp profiles, and use Facebook Ads Manager.

Here are three types of click-to-WhatsApp ads. The first is displayed in the Instagram Feed, the second in Stories, and the last in the Facebook Newsfeed. All include the advertiser's branding, a "Sponsored" disclaimer, a short descriptive text, a large image, and a CTA redirecting to a WhatsApp profile.

Step 5: Set Up Quick Replies

Once your promotion brings users to chat with your brand, analyze their frequently asked questions and set up quick replies to speed up communication and optimize routine procedures. To create a quick reply, follow these steps:

·        Click on "More Options," then "Business Tools" and "Quick replies."

·        Set a text message or media file as a quick reply.

·        Choose a shortcut for the quick reply.

·        Create a keyword to find it quickly.

Check out an example of using quick replies on WhatsApp. To reply in this case, you need to type "/ w", and the answer will be "What kind of cake do you prefer?"

Step 6: Utilize Automated Messages

Set an away message for when you can't respond, so your customers know when to expect a reply. You can also create a welcome message to introduce your business to new customers.

Follow these steps to create such messages:

·        Click on "More Options," then "Business Tools" and "Away message" or "Greeting message."

·        Set a text message.

·        Schedule when to send it.

·        Choose the type of recipients who will see this message.

Step 7: Organize Contacts and Chats with Labels

Label your contacts, chats, and messages with different colors to organize them based on your business objectives in WhatsApp marketing. For example, you can separate chats with new customers from chats with pending payments, or new orders from completed orders. You can set up different quick replies to better communicate with people at various stages of the buyer's journey.

Using labels in WhatsApp marketing is easy. Tap and hold a message or chat, tap the label icon, and choose one of the predefined labels or create a new one. You can create up to 20 labels.

By using these tools and tactics, you can better organize and optimize your WhatsApp marketing strategy and effectively direct messages and conversations to reach your target audience easily and efficiently.

Step 8: Create a Product Catalog

Add a price, product description, and item number for each product in your catalog on the WhatsApp platform to facilitate marketing through it. You can upload up to 500 products, allowing you to easily showcase a wide range of your offerings to potential customers. With this feature, you won't have to redirect customers to a website and repeatedly send product information and images to every interested contact. You can also share your catalog to promote your products and services on other social networks.

Medium and large businesses can use the WhatsApp Business API to interact with their audience on WhatsApp more deeply. This provides more in-depth features and solutions for effectively handling and managing customer communication on the WhatsApp platform.

Let's conclude this guide with some actionable tips for strategizing your business activity on WhatsApp, and better leveraging WhatsApp marketing features to boost your business success and efficiently communicate with your customers.

Four Tips to Help You Plan Your WhatsApp Marketing Efforts

-        Keep your business communications informal. Many people use WhatsApp for informal interactions with their friends. It's essential to make your business messages trustworthy, authentic, and creative. Align your marketing campaigns with the personal style of this channel, while remaining professional.

-        Update your status regularly. Your WhatsApp status allows you to post business-related quotes, announce events, create promotions, and share links redirecting to videos on other social media platforms. Ensure your status text is short, informative, and eye-catching to attract more views.

-        Use WhatsApp for customer service. It's a great idea to use WhatsApp messages, voice and video calls, and media files to resolve customer issues in real-time. This direct and personalized approach helps you better engage with your audience and demonstrates that you are a trustworthy business that doesn't shy away from users when they are dissatisfied or facing problems.

-        Send short promotions with website links. Short WhatsApp messages containing links to a website help you drive your contacts to specific pages. These messages tend to have a high click-through rate and are important in motivating more potential customers to shop with your brand.

If you want to benefit from the advantages of a WhatsApp chatbot for your business, contact us today at LetsBot, and we will be happy to help you implement this strategy and drive your business forward.

Stay connected with your customers 24/7 using a WhatsApp bot. Contact us now to experience the difference. You can reach us through our official Facebook page or Instagram or via the Twitter -X.